Costco’s Novaform lineup and Douglas are two of the most well-known mattress brands in Canada, and both brands have built up a loyal Canadian customer base.

Novaform has been making mattresses and other sleep-related products since 1997. Sold exclusively in Costco stores throughout North America, Novaform is a brand of Innocor Inc., a specialist foam manufacturer based in New Jersey, USA.  The most popular mattress in Novaform’s line-up, the Serafina Pearl, has been available since 2016 and has helped Costco enter the mattress retail space and provide sleep solutions to millions of shoppers every year.

Douglas was introduced in 2017 by Canadian bed-in-a-box company GoodMorning.com. Douglas was manufactured as a single-firmness mattress, designed using eight years' worth of engineering data and customer feedback. GoodMorning.com designed the Douglas to be a value-packed, Canadian-made mattress at an unheard-of low price. They offer the same level of customer service for the Douglas as they do across their growing catalogue, along with a 365-night sleep trial and a 20-year warranty.

Delivery, Trial, Returns	Costco Novaform	Douglas
Shipping cost:	Free shipping	Free shipping
Shipping time:	15–20 business days	3–10 days
Sleep trial length:	90 nights	365 nights
Return ease:	Return in store or arrange free pickup over the phone	Company picks up
Refund:	Yes, full refund	Yes, full refund
Additional fees:	No	No

Thanks to modern compression methods and the rising popularity of the bed-in-a-box, mattresses can now be shipped far more efficiently and conveniently than ever before. Customers no longer need to take a day off work to accept a delivery. Boxed beds are now delivered with the same convenience as most Amazon orders. Some bed-in-a-box companies even offer same-day delivery to certain areas.

Delivery

2021 update: This model of Novaform Serafina Pearl mattress is currently only available for sale in Canada.

Costco uses the FedEx and UPS Ground shipping service to deliver the Novaform Serafina Pearl mattress directly to customers’ doors across Canada. Shipping is free and takes between 15–20 business days for delivery. Unfortunately, Costco will not deliver mattresses to all remote locations in Canada.

Douglas uses FedEx to deliver their mattresses directly to customers’ doors, and shipping is free throughout Canada. Customers can expect their new mattress to arrive within 3 to 10 business days following order confirmation.

Trial Period

Like many mattress companies, Costco and Douglas both heavily promote their sleep trials. With a 365-night sleep trial, Douglas has one of the longest sleep trials of all mattress brands. Costco only offers a 90-night sleep trial for the Novaform.

Returns and Additional Fees

If a customer wishes to return their Novaform or Douglas mattress within the sleep trial period, each company will arrange to pick up their respective mattress and issue a full refund. There are no additional return or restocking fees for either the Novaform or Douglas mattress.

Out of the Box	Costco Novaform	Douglas
Delivered in a box:	Yes	Yes
Box dimensions:	20" x 23" x 40"	17.5" x 17.5" x 44.5"
Box opening:	Scissors required	Scissors required
Box/mattress fitting:	Loose	Tight
Protection layers:	5	2
Expansion time:	24 hours	3 minutes

Delivery Times & Opening the Box

Both the Costco Novaform and Douglas mattresses arrived within the expected delivery times. Each product was well-protected with heavy-duty plastic to keep the mattress in good condition during shipping.

Both boxes were sealed with heavy-duty tape. Customers will definitely need scissors or a knife to open either box. To prevent potential harm to your new mattress, remember to be extra careful when using sharp objects to remove any packaging.

Setting up the Mattress

Once opened, each mattress is easy to remove. We recommend a ‘tip-and-pull’ motion to slowly slide the mattress out from its cardboard container. Simply tip the box from a vertical position down onto its side, and then pull the lightweight box away from the bundled mattress. It’s most efficient to do this process in the room where you intend to use the mattress.

Both mattresses are protected with multiple layers of heavy-duty plastic – an inner layer to compress it in a vacuum seal, and outer layers to keep them rolled tightly in a cylinder shape.

Customers will need to unwrap the first layer in order to unroll the mattress, which will still be in its compressed form. Some helpful advice at this stage is to place the rolled up mattress onto the designated bed frame. Next, like the end of a roll of tape, find and peel back the outer layer of plastic. You can use the momentum of unrolling the compressed mattress along the bed frame to help remove the rest of this layer, which could be up to a few meters long. After completing this process, the mattress will be lying unrolled before you.

Expansion Time

Next, cut the final layer of plastic. The vacuum seal now broken, the mattress will quickly begin to decompress. Remove this final layer of plastic as the mattress expands to its full height. Douglas reached full expansion in under five minutes, but the Novaform mattress took around a full 24 hours to decompress.

The Novaform Serafina Pearl and Douglas are both combination foam mattresses. Multiple layers of foam work together to offer comfort and support.

Some of the other major differences between the Novaform and Douglas mattresses are the different types of foams used for comfort, contouring, and pressure-point relief, not to mention the support layers for motion isolation and edge support. Each mattress contains comfort, transition, and support layers, and these layers vary slightly in height and density.

Also, each mattress also has a unique top cover which showcases the brand’s personality and design aesthetic. Top covers are sometimes removable. In this comparison, only Douglas has a removable and machine-washable top cover.

Costco Novaform vs Douglas Mattress Layers

Novaform Mattress Layers

The Novaform Serafina Pearl mattress contains three layers of foam. Like many of the memory foam mattresses on the market today, each layer of foam in the Novaform mattress works with the others to provide an overall level of comfort and support.

• First layer: 3 inches of ComfortLuxe® gel memory foam. This top layer is designed to stay cool enough to help regulate body temperature overnight. Foam density: Unspecified.
• Second layer: 3 inches of convoluted CustomWave™ foam. This “egg carton” transition foam provides an overall balance between the top and bottom layers, allowing hot air a passageway out through the sidewalls of the mattresses.
• Third layer: 8 inches of support foam. This thick bottom layer helps give the mattress its structure.

Of note: Unfortunately, the density information for the layers is not available on either the Costco or Novaform website.

Douglas Mattress Layers

Douglas uses three layers of foam in the construction of its Canadian-made mattress.

• First layer: 2 inches of ecoLight® cooling gel foam. This cooling gel encourages a restful sleep by ensuring that the mattress doesn’t trap heat. The ecoLight® foam has the durability, responsiveness, and comfort of memory foam, but it has a lower carbon footprint. Foam density: 2.5 lbs/ft³.
• Second layer: 2 inches of Elastex® foam. This transition layer is designed to provide spring and support. Many mattresses use latex for similar reasons. Elastex® is free of the allergy-causing chemicals found in latex.
• Third layer: 6 inches of motion isolation support foam. This thick bottom layer greatly reduces motion transfer between sleepers, and it also enhances edge support.

Costco Novaform vs Douglas Mattress Cover

Novaform Mattress Cover

The Novaform Serafina Pearl mattress has a 100% polyester top cover smartly decorated with quatrefoil patterns and button tufting. A rope border separates the quilted top cover from the grey, diamond-stitched sidewalls. Due likely to the compression process, the sidewall may bunch in certain sections, leaving creases. These creases should mostly disappear after the first few days, though a few may remain, as evidenced by the photos in this review article.

According to the product tag, the mattress cover is a blend of fabrics originating from Canada, but assembled in the United States:

Top cover: 100% polyester.
Side wall: 60% polyester; 40% polypropylene.
Bottom: 39% polyester; 29% rayon; 29% polyester; 3% aramid.

Mattress covers often include zippers for easy removable of the outer fabric. The cover of the Novaform Serafina Pearl is neither removable or machine washable. Therefore, the only option for cleaning this mattress is spot cleaning.

Douglas Mattress Cover

With its mountainscape stitching to its red and white colour profile, Douglas’ Canadian-centric cover shows the brand's homegrown roots. Cut from a single piece of fabric and woven together, the design is almost seamless. The red zipper running the entire length of the side wall and the red Douglas badge are the only elements that break up this impressive white canvas.

As for upkeep, the top half is machine washable, a bonus for anyone who can't stand the thought of spot cleaning their bed by hand. Douglas' cover is enhanced with moisture-wicking Infinitex™ fibres. This proprietary fabric is stretch-knit and very soft, but also extremely durable. The cover is great for staying cool and breathable through the night, so you won't wake up in a pool of sweat.

Consumers are becoming more environmentally conscious when making purchases. Retailers both in and out of the mattress industry have been incorporating more eco-friendly and ethical policies when selling products and choosing suppliers.

GoodMorning.com Inc. carried out a survey in February 2017, discovering that almost 50% of Canadians are willing to spend more money for more environmentally friendly products. Therefore, in every review on Mattress-Reviews.com, we will highlight each mattress company’s green philosophy, as well as how prominent their policies are on their websites.

Feel & Firmness	Costco Novaform	Douglas
Feel:	Medium-soft	Medium-firm
Firmness:	3.4 / 10	6.7 / 10
Edge Support:	2.7 / 10	7.8 / 10
Motion Isolation:	8.2 / 10	8.3 / 10
Bounce:	1.4 / 10	3.1 / 10

Feel & Firmness

According to the testing conducted by third-party engineers (commissioned by us), the firmness and feel of the Costco Novaform mattress and Douglas mattress are very different:

• The 14″ Novaform Serafina Pearl Medium we tested has a medium feel, bordering on medium-soft. It is rated at 3.4 / 10 on the firmness scale and has a bit of ‘hug.’
• The Douglas is a medium-firm mattress, rated at 6.7 / 10 on the firmness scale. The Douglas mattress does not have excessive ‘hug.’

Edge Support

Foam mattresses are not known for their edge support; in fact, it is often one of the main issues customers have when moving from innerspring mattresses to foam. According to the testing conducted by third-party engineers (commissioned by us), the Costco Novaform and Douglas mattresses have very different edge support scores:

• The 14″ Novaform Serafina Pearl Medium mattress has below-average edge support. It is rated at 2.7 / 10 on the edge support scale.
• The Douglas mattress has above-average edge support. It is rated at 7.8 / 10 on the edge support scale.

Motion Isolation

Motion isolation in foam mattresses is usually very good and one of the main reasons couples make the switch from innerspring to memory foam. According to the testing conducted by third-party engineers (commissioned by us), the Costco Novaform and Douglas mattresses are both above average for motion isolation:

• The 14″ Novaform Serafina Pearl Medium mattress has above-average motion isolation. It is rated at 8.2 / 10 on the motion isolation scale.
• The Douglas mattress has above-average motion isolation. It is rated at 8.3 / 10 on the motion isolation scale.

Bounce

Due to the fact that motion isolation for foam mattresses is generally very good, bounce is generally very low. According to the testing conducted by third-party engineers (commissioned by us), the Costco Novaform and Douglas mattress have very different bounce ratings:

• The 14″ Novaform Serafina Pearl Medium mattress has below-average bounce. It is rated at 1.4 / 10 on the bounce scale.
• The Douglas mattress has below-average bounce. It is rated at 3.1 / 10 on the bounce scale.

Overview	Costco Novaform	Douglas
Price (Queen):	$999 CAD	$799 CAD
Available in:	Canada	Canada
Made in:	USA	Canada
Trial length:	90 nights	365 nights
Warranty:	20 years	20 years
Mattress height:	14"	10"
Number of layers:	3	3
Cover materials:	Polyester, polypropylene, rayon, aramid	Tencel®, polyester, spandex
Machine washable:	No	Yes
Green policies:	No mention on the website	ecoLight® foam; Plant-based fabric; Optimized shipping; Recycled cardboard; Recycled ink
Feel:	Medium-soft	Medium-firm
Firmness	3.4 / 10	6.7 / 10
Edge support:	2.7 / 10	7.8 / 10
Motion isolation:	8.2 / 10	8.3 / 10
Bounce:	1.4 / 10	3.1 / 10
Year-Round Price Guarantee:	No	CLICK HERE

Remember, Mattress-Reviews.com is owned, operated, and paid for by GoodMorning.com Inc. and advertises the Octave, Douglas, Juno, and Logan & Cove brands. The following is strictly our competitive opinion:

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There are a few factors that immediately stand out after comparing Costco’s top-selling Novaform model and the Douglas foam mattress. Each product in this Novaform vs Douglas mattress review has a few similar features, especially with regards to comfort and support. They also each have a distinctive firmness and feel, level of edge support, level of motion isolation, and bounce.

What really propels one brand ahead the other are the lower price, longer sleep trial, environmental commitment, and the Canadian-ness of the Douglas mattress. Douglas is Mattress-Reviews.com’s Top Pick for Mattress under $1,000 CAD, and customers who choose to purchase a Douglas over a Novaform will appreciate the comparatively lightweight and easy to clean features of this bed. They can also sleep better knowing they are supporting a mattress brand that supports the environment. Douglas is made in Canada and uses sustainable and renewable materials.