Simba Hybrid Mattress Review

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Written by:

Max Stevens
Simba Hybrid Mattress Review

Simba Hybrid Mattress Review

This Simba Hybrid mattress review will put an end to those days of reading review after review. This is the most in-depth UK review you’ll get for the Simba Hybrid. After all, a once-in-a-decade investment! Right? 

I’ve lined up some questions below for you to have a quick read to find out if this is the mattress and review for you (Psstt… don’t worry… I provide the best alternatives as well!):

  • Are you a side sleeper? 
  • Are you a lightweight sleeper? 
  • Are you an average weight sleeper?
  • Do you want a mattress that works for any position for average and lightweight sleepers?
  • Do you like a mattress on the softer side of life?
  • Looking for a mattress with zero noise?
  • Want minimal motion transfer, so you don’t wake your partner up?

If you answered “yes” to any of these questions, then this review is made for you! Please feel free to use the table of contents below to skip to the best section for you!

But if you answered “no”, then have a look at these round-ups I made to help you decide which mattress fits your exact needs! INSERT INTERNAL LINK(S)

Simba Sleep – A Brief Introduction

[[Image Insert – Full-width banner image of Simba logo?]] 

You live in the best possible time in recorded history to buy a mattress. There are literally 1000’s mattresses out there, but Simba Sleep has a long history in the sleep industry. And specifically in the mattress sector. 

They actually started their journey back in 1979, wherein the years until 2002, they honed their craft as a mattress thread supplied. In fact, their thread has been used in over 50 million mattresses worldwide. 

They also have a fierce reputation as a leading mattress in a box company. It was one of the first mattresses I tried in this never-ending journey. If you’ve read my about me page, you’ll probably know all about my back injury! 

Anyway, one of the many features that attracted me to Simba was the patented open-cell ‘Simbatex’ Foam, which basically allows for more airflow through the mattress. And that interested me as honestly, I’m one of the hottest and sweatiest sleepers alive. 

On top of that, it also contains graphite particles (mad, right?) that supposedly dissipate the heat away. So, as you can see, Simba knows what they’re doing, and with the number of people enjoying the mattress, and the fact everyone seems to know them – I mean, that’s why you’re here, right? 

It also contains graphite particles that did what it was supposed to do and help dissipate any heat away. And the Titanium Aerocoil® Spring? Well, think of them as a pump helping to push air through the mattress! But was it enough to stop a hot sleeper sweating out in the night? Find out below!  

Simba Hybrid Mattress Construction

Simba Hybrid is precisely that – a hybrid mattress, meaning it’s made of both the aforementioned Simbatex memory foam and Titanium Aerocoil ® springs. This is one of the main reasons that drove me to try the Simba Hybrid – I love hybrid mattresses in general as I think it’s the best of both worlds! 

The springs make it ‘bouncy’ enough. If you sleep with a partner or prefer a more cushiony feel, this definitely helps with pure memory foam mattresses. 

[[Image Insert]] – Custom 50/50 illustration showing cross-section of mattress plus illustration description

The Simba Hybrid mattress is 25cm deep with 5 layers and around 2,500 titanium alloy Aerocoil™ springs. Plus, it has 4 handles on the outside of the mattress for easy movement (excluding single and double sizes).

  • Non-removable Cover – 100% hypoallergenic polyester
  • Second layer – Open-cell, breathable, Simbatex foam with graphite for additional cooling
  • Third layer – made of 2,500, 25mm Titanium Aerocoil® springs
  • Fourth layer – high-definition foam with reinforced edges
  • Fifth layer – zoned base support

My Overall Performance Ratings

TypeRating
Off-gassing6/10
Back sleeper8/10
Side sleeper10/10
Front sleeper7/10
Combo sleeper8/10
Hot sleeper5/10
Couples8/10
Edge Support4/10

But let’s dig deeper into the ratings and how I came about them. Trust me, a few years ago, before I became a self-proclaimed mattress nerd, I didn’t know half of what I know and write about now. I’ve tried to lay it out as efficiently as possible so you can jump to “your” specific section, and without further ado… 

Off-Gassing & Unboxing

Off-gassing refers to the new, chemical smell that pretty much every mattress-in-a-box releases after you open them up and leave them to inflate – and the Simba Hybrid was no different. 

Don’t worry, it’s safe and normal, as they’re tightly vacuum sealed at their factory to ensure they’re kept as fresh as possible for your arrival. But some mattresses have more pungent odours than others, which can be particularly annoying if you’re not in a well ventilated or large enough bedroom. 

Option 1: [[Image Insert]] – Full Custom Illustration representing mattress off-gassing. E.g. mattress and person in a room, with odour coming off the mattress? 

Option 2: [[Image Insert]] – Image of cutting tool? 

When I unboxed the Simba mattress, I was greeted by a tiny cutting tool to cut the plastic wrap without damaging the mattress. Honestly, it’s so effortless and satisfying, haha. You’ll have to leave the Simba for a minimum of a few hours but ideally 24 hours. 

I came back to check on mine around 4.5 hours later, and that’s when I noticed quite a distinct smell “off-gassing” from the mattress. But I’ve experienced less potent smells from other mattresses I’ve tried and tested, so that’s something to consider. 

The solution is (if it’s possible for you!) is to throw open your windows to let some fresh air waft in. I have those Velux windows, and honestly, it was enough to relieve the foul odours.

Firmness

Here’s where it gets a little complicated, as firmness is subjective. Why do I say it’s subjective? Because mattress firmness comes down to how your body reacts to your mattress. Our bodies respond differently because of our variations in sleeping position, body weight, size and shape. 

For one thing, a heavier person, like umm…James Corden (sorry James!) would find the mattress much softer. While a lighter person (less than 59kg/130lbs) would find the Simba Hybrid much too firm! So how then do we nail down this firmness issue?  

[[Image Insert]] – Full illustration of 3 beds, with 3 representations of light/average and heavyweight sleepers. Each with a speech bubble saying “I’m lightweight and find this firm” “I’m average weight and I find this medium to firm” “I’m heavyweight and I find this medium firmness.” 

Further on, I’ve given the most accurate representation of what the mattress firmness should feel like for all the different weights and positions you may fit. It’s always worth keeping in mind that most of these mattresses have a 100-200 night trial. I strongly recommend trying out the mattress for at least 10-15 days before coming to your own conclusions. 

So how firm is the Simba Hybrid for me?

From my own experience (I’m 75kg/165lbs, by the way), the Simba hybrid is an overall medium firmness (6 out of 10). And for me, that’s just how I like it! On my first night, I immediately recognised that the mattress was softer on my shoulders and heavier on my back and hips – and that’s what I need as a side sleeper! 

I personally put this down to the zoned base support in the Simba Hybrid, and what this does is provide extra support in the most frequent pressure points. 

But I say it’s medium firmness overall because the two layers are immediately underneath the cover. These layers give the mattress an overall medium feeling: the light, open-cell foam has been made to increase airflow. The titanium-alloy Aerocoil® springs are 20% lighter than other micro coils. 

[[Image Insert]] – Custom Illustration showing firmness scale with a representation of the firmness rating

Rating: 6/10

Is it Good for Backsleepers?

What back sleepers need: Medium-firm to firm

Pressure Point: Lower Back

[[Image Insert]] — 3 beds, 3 sleepers, all in back sleeping position, all with speech bubbles variations: 1) “This mattress is great for me!” “This mattress wasn’t firm enough, and my spine wasn’t aligned”, and then CTA saying, “Read Why Below” 

If you’re a back sleeper, then the main point you need to consider is keeping a correct spinal alignment. So you’re looking for a mattress that is comfy enough but stops your back from curving into your mattress. 

While some back sleepers prefer a “softer” mattress, buying a medium-firm to firm mattress is essential. This firmness is supportive enough to keep your spine straight while having a bit of softness to provide cushioning relief around your lower back. If your mattress is too soft, you’ll start to experience backaches and pains in the morning, and as we get older, it gets worse!

Average weight Back sleeper: Between 59-104kg (130-230lbs)

Remember I found the Simba Hybrid medium firmness (6 out of 10)? Well, when I tried the Simba Hybrid out as a back sleeper, I didn’t feel that it gave me the necessary support on my lower back. But maybe that’s because I have a pretty curved spine naturally. 

The reason behind this is that I felt the springs weren’t strong enough to keep my lower back level with the rest of my body, which is super important as a back sleeper. So whilst it does have zoned base support, I found that it didn’t really provide me with enough support if I was a back-sleeper. 

For a firmer mattress, I’d probably opt for the Simba Hybrid Pro, which has TWICE as many springs (5,000 25mm Titanium Aerocoil® springs, compared to 2,500).

Lightweight Back sleeper: Less than 59kg (130lbs)

If you’re considered a lightweight, then you’ll have no problems sleeping on your back as you’ll find the Simba Hybrid firmer than those heavier than you. 

My girlfriend, who weighs around 42kg, found the mattress firm enough. The single spring layer containing 2,500, 25mm Titanium Aerocoil® springs was enough to support her back-sleeping needs.

 As a lightweight sleeper, coupled with the feeling of increased firmness, the Simba Hybrid will provide the necessary support to keep your spine as straight as possible. 

Heavyweight Back sleeper: More than 104kgs (230lbs)

For heavyweight back sleepers? The Simba Hybrid may not be the best mattress I can recommend for you. Now, remember that firmness is subjective, and with back sleepers, it’s even more so. Still, as a heavyweight back sleeper, you’re looking for a slightly firmer mattress that provides the necessary support and comfort on your pressure points. 

In my opinion, if you’re set on Simba Sleep, then you’re better suited to the Simba Hybrid Pro, which I believe is the ONE for you. Its double spring layer containing 5,000, instead of the Simba Hybrid’s 2500 springs, provides more rigid support to keep your back straight. 

Rating: 4/5

Is it Good for Side sleepers?

What side sleepers need: Very soft to medium soft

Pressure Point: Shoulder

[[Image Insert]] — 3 beds, 3 sleepers, all inside sleeping position, all with speech bubbles variations: 1) “This mattress is great for me!” “This mattress wasn’t firm enough, and my spine wasn’t aligned”, and then CTA saying, “Read Why Below.” 

Side sleepers need a very soft to a medium soft mattress, so your shoulder can sink into the foam cushioning. Side sleepers’ pressure points are often exaggerated. If it’s not soft enough, your shoulder may feel squished between your body and your mattress by your own weight.  

Average weight Side Sleeper: Between 59-104kg (130-230lbs)

Confession time! I believe the Simba Hybrid is THE best hybrid mattress for side sleepers like myself! If you remember from the intro, I found the Simba Hybrid to be medium soft – a 6 out of 10 on the firmness rating scale (ideal softness for side sleepers). 

The soft, non-removable cover and the cushioning Simbatex and zoned base support layers gave me the plush comfort and gentle support that’s extremely shoulder-friendly. 

As it’s my natural sleeping position, this is where I spent the most time testing, and it passed with flying colours. It allowed for my right shoulder to sink enough to provide comfort and kept my spine aligned, so I didn’t wake up with any of those niggling footy back problems. 

Lightweight Side Sleeper: Less than 59kg (130lbs)

If you’re a lightweight sleeper, then you’ll find the Simba Hybrid somewhere in the medium-firm range, which may be a bit too supportive for your side-sleeping needs. You’d want a softer mattress that has more “give” so your shoulder can sink in. 

Most of your pressure goes through the shoulder that meets the mattress as a side-sleeper. As the Simba Hybrid is on the firmer side of life, you may potentially suffer from shoulder aches and pains in the morning. 

You may want to check out INTERNAL LINK instead, as it’s softer for you than the Simba Hybrid mattress.

Heavyweight Side Sleeper: More than 104kgs (230lbs)

Heavyweight side sleepers will find the Simba Hybrid even softer and more shoulder-friendly! That’s because you exert more pressure on the mattress than I do, meaning it will have more “give” for your shoulder to sink into. Plus, the zoned base support is soft around your shoulders for more contouring, which is a good thing! Why? Because your shoulder sustains a lot of pressure, it needs cradling for pressure relief.  

Rating: 5/5

Is it Good for Front Sleepers?

What front sleepers need: Medium Firm to Firm

Pressure points: Stomach and Hips

[[Image Insert]] — 3 beds, 3 sleepers, all in front sleeping position, all with speech bubbles variations: 1) “This mattress is great for me!” “This mattress wasn’t firm enough, and my spine wasn’t aligned”, and then CTA saying, “Read Why Below” 

Front sleeping is the most challenging position to keep that back straight. Why? Because laying on your stomach immediately pulls your spine down due to the pressure exerted on your stomach. That’s why you need a medium-firm to firm mattress to prevent your stomach from sinking down any farther

Average Weight Front Sleeper: Between 59-104kg (130-230lbs)

I felt my hips sink in when I tried to sleep on my stomach on the Simba Hybrid mattress. Its Simbatex and 25mm light Titanium Alloy springs weren’t supportive enough to keep my body straight. Though the mattress was firmer on the hips than my shoulders due to the zoned base support, it wasn’t firm enough.

Lightweight Front Sleeper: Less than 59kg (130lbs)

If you’re a lightweight sleeper, you may find the Simba Hybrid somewhere in the medium-firm range, which should be firm enough for healthy stomach sleeping. The spring layer and the zoned support base didn’t really provide enough support for me. Still, in my opinion, it’s not worth discounting the Simba Hybrid from your list – it’s definitely good enough.

Heavyweight Front Sleeper: More than 104kgs (230lbs)

As a heavyweight stomach sleeper, you’ll find the Simba Hybrid a lot softer than me. This means that your stomach is more likely to sink in, distorting your spinal alignment. So if you have back issues like me, or feel you need more support than your current mattress gives you, then you’re better off looking elsewhere. 

You’re looking for a firmer mattress as your stomach is more likely to sink into the mattress, especially if it doesn’t have additional zoned support in that region. So with that in mind, you should look at these: internal link or internal link for firmer options. 

Rating: 3.5/5

Is it Good for Combo Sleepers?

What combo sleepers need: A bit of a bounciness 

[[Image Insert]] — 3 beds, 3 sleepers, all in combo sleeping position, all with speech bubbles variations: 1) “This mattress is great for me!” “This mattress wasn’t firm enough, and my spine wasn’t aligned”, and then CTA saying, “Read Why Below” 

If you don’t stay in one sleeping position for long, you’re a combo sleeper! Since combo sleepers like you move a lot, you need a mattress that can aid you in your movements. What kind of mattress can do that? A mattress with a bit of bounce does the trick! 

Imagine being stuck in a traditional dead-feel memory foam. You’d have to pry yourself free before you can even change sleeping positions!

The question is: Is the Simba Hybrid a bouncy mattress? I reckon it is! After all, it does have 2,500 25mm Titanium Aerocoil® springs, which give you all the bounce you need. But if you like an even bouncier mattress, consider upgrading to the Simba Hybrid Pro, which has twice the number of springs: a whopping 5,000! You can click here to check it out.

Rating: 4/5

Is it Good for Hot Sleepers?

[[Image Insert]] — an illustration of a hot sleeper with 2 sides representing ‘Is it good for hot sleepers?” “Yes” and “No”

I’m a hot sleeper. My girlfriend always tells me how my side of the bed is soaked in sweat in the morning – disgusting but guess who still gets his morning cuddles.

Is the Simba Hybrid mattress temperature neutral? Nope. I’d say it’s on the warmer side. So when I slept on it, I opted to use my 8.5 tog duvet instead of the standard 10.5 togs. Though I’m sure, it’ll help me when winter comes. But during summer? I’d crank up my AC to the max! 

It may have an open-foam Simbatex and lighter Titanium Aerocoil® springs to make the mattress more breathable. Still, these may not be enough for a hot sleeper like yourself. 

But the upgraded version of the Simba Hybrid, the Simba Pro hybrid, is much cooler, even for hot sleepers, since it has a British Wool (ooh fancy) and twice as many springs! You can check it out here.

Rating: 2.5/5

With A Sleeping Partner

[[Image Insert]] — illustration of a couple sleeping with 2 sides representing ‘Is it good for couples?” “Yes” and “No”

I tend to sleep at a later time than my girlfriend. So it’s always an issue when I shimmy in underneath the blanket, and she starts to feel the mattress bounce on her side. 

The key? I look for a mattress with superior motion isolation. What does motion isolation mean? When you move on one side, the other person doesn’t feel your movement. The mattress has sound motion isolation as it absorbs the energy/movement. 

So does the Simba Hybrid Mattress have sound motion isolation? I’ll give it a ‘yes’ on this front, especially when compared to a mattress made out of only springs. But it’s not as motion silent as traditional memory foam.

What makes the motion isolation good? It’s due to the individually wrapped Aerocoil® springs! The springs directly underneath you move with your every movement while leaving the rest motionless, so your partner can sleep distraction-free!

And did we experience the ‘roll-together’? Nope, the Simba Hybrid did well in distributing our weights and prevented us ‘rolling together’ in the middle of the bed. I may like my morning cuddle, but I need my space at night (not that I get it!). 

Rating: 4/5

Edge Support

[[Image Insert]] – 50/50 Stock and Illustration of illustration sitting on the edge of the bed 

I love to sit at the edge of my bed to get my bearings after waking up, take a sip of my overnight water, and have a few deep breaths. The BIG question is: can the mattress’s edge support me? 

Edge support is essential to hold you up in a sitting position and let you sleep at the edge. This is particularly relevant to couples! 

Don’t you find that you sometimes want to maximise your personal space by laying at the very edge on your side of the bed? When you have firm edges, your bed becomes ‘larger’ since you can maximise the entire surface area of your mattress.

Does Simba have firm edges? I would say, not very much. But if you like soft edges so you can easily roll out of bed, Simba has them!

Rating: 2/ 5

Best Features

So what are my 3 favourite features when it came to reviewing the Simba Hybrid mattress? I’d say it’s: 

  • Medium softness
  • Handles
  • Zoned support

I LOVE Simba’s medium softness because I’m naturally a right side-sleeper, and soft mattresses are my go-to! And, of course, the handles! Who wouldn’t want these handy handles to aid oneself in rotating the mattress for even wear? It’s a minor detail that I really appreciate with Simba! 

Also, the zoned support is a HUGE PLUS. It makes sure that the mattress is firm where it needs to be firm to support the more common pressure points. Meaning Simba is firmer on the shoulders and waist area. They tend to be the parts of the body that experience the most pressure going through them. 

Mattress Rating  

We covered a lot of ground for this Simba Hybrid mattress review! Is your mind almost made up whether to try out the Simba mattress or not? For a quick recap, here are the ratings:

  • Off-gassing – 3/ 5
  • Firmness – 6/ 10
  • Back sleepers – 4/ 5
  • Side sleepers- 5/ 5
  • Front sleepers- 3.5/ 5
  • Combo sleepers- 4/ 5
  • Hot sleepers – 2.5/ 5
  • With partner – 4/ 5
  • Edge support – 2/ 5

Parting Words

Which factors do you find important? Did Simba make the cut for you?

To wrap things up, here are the people I would recommend the Simba mattress to. 

  • Lightweight back sleepers
  • Average and heavyweight side sleepers
  • Combo Sleepers
  • Couples

That’s about it for this Simba Hybrid mattress review! I sincerely hope that I’ve been able to help you decide if Simba Hybrid is something you should try or not.

I’ve got tons of other mattress suggestions to help you, your family or your friends. You can check them out here. 

The Sleep Checklist is here to be your forever-sleep companion! Don’t forget to bookmark this page for easy reference. Thank you!

Written by:

Max Stevens