Perhaps you’re an extra tall individual or you sleep with a partner and you’d both love some extra foot room. If you’re ready to take the plunge on a new dream bed and land yourself in the best California king mattress on the market, stay with us. We tested to see which mattresses work best for the California king size.
My team and I have personally tested over 200 mattresses, giving us a large pool to pick from when selecting the best California king mattresses. We paid extra close attention to supportive constructions for couples, accommodating firmness levels, feel and overall value when making our choices. But regardless of what mattress type you’re looking for — a memory foam mattress, gel memory foam mattress, innerspring mattress, hybrid mattress, a soft or firm mattress or some other variation that caters to your preferred sleeping style — here are the best California king mattress options we’ve found.
(All prices listed are the regular, nonsale list price and reflect the costs of California king size mattresses.)
Watch CNET video producer Owen Poole review the best California king size mattresses for 2024.
If you want a safe pick that’ll be comfortable, supportive and long-lasting, the Brooklyn Bedding Signature is one of my go-to recommendations. It has a strong hybrid construction made with foam and over 1,000 coils, it has multiple firmness levels to pick from and it has a neutral-foam feel that most people will find enjoyable. Plus, it offers a great value for what you’re getting.
Read more: Best Bed Sheets for Every Type of Sleeper
The CNET Sleep editors use their knowledge from their extensive mattress testing experience to curate our bedding best lists. They collectively have rolled around on 100-plus beds and are considered experts on the subject. With all the mattresses our editors have tested, some quality beds aren’t able to make the cut, but we still think they deserve some credit.
Tuft and Needle mattress: If you want a large California king mattress, but you’re more of a budget-conscious shopper, the Tuft and Needle mattress is a great option. It’s only two layers and it’s a simple bed without any extra bells and whistles. However, it is a comfortable and accommodating bed for just about any sleeping position. It feels like your favorite soft couch, it’s made with a neutral-foam that’s quicker to respond to pressure than memory foam is. Tuft and Needle is also one of the most prominent online mattress brands, so their beds are popular for a reason.
Layla mattress: This is the original predecessor to the Layla Hybrid mattress above. It omits the pocketed coil layer found in the hybrid, but it’s a little cheaper and more affordable. This model is best for people who weigh under 230 pounds and who like the memory foam feel of Layla without the extra cost of the hybrid design. It’s flippable, so you get one firm side and one soft side. It’s also made with copper-infused memory foam, making it sleep cooler than the standard material.
CNET editors pick the products and services we write about based on editorial merit. When you buy through our links, we may get a commission. Read more on how we test mattresses.
Contrary to popular belief, California king mattresses are just longer than king mattresses, not wider. While standard king mattresses are 76 inches wide by 80 inches long, California kings are 72 inches wide by 84 inches long. Knowing the difference between the two helps you make better-informed shopping choices, and ensures that there are no unwelcome surprises. Remember, California king mattresses are all about length.
If you’re well on the taller side, say 6-foot-3 and above, a California king mattress is the absolute best mattress choice for you. With a California king size mattress, you can stretch your toes down, or just never stress about too many decorative pillows up top. The California king bed frame also has the optimal dimensions if you have a particularly long and narrow or rectangular-shaped room. You get all the perks and grandeur of a luxuriously large and comfortable bed, without having to sacrifice a set of nightstands.
The California king mattress and bed frame tend to work best in rooms with dimensions of at least 12 feet by 12 feet. If you’re more concerned with having a wider bed than a longer one (like if you have a partner who loves to wiggle), a standard king mattress is probably the best mattress type for you.
