Douglas is one of the most well-known mattress brands in Canada and has built up a loyal following. Octave is a newer brand, introduced to the Canadian marketplace in 2023, but it’s as well known and loved as its predecessor, Novosbed.

Octave and Douglas are owned by GoodMorning.com, one of Canada’s largest online mattress retailers. In the last 10 years, the company has sold over 350,000 mattresses across the United States and Canada. GoodMorning.com maintains an A+ rating with the Better Business Bureau and an “Excellent” rating on Trustpilot.

Octave

Octave is the next step in the evolution of the Novosbed mattress. The Vista, Mirage, and Horizon models are designed to enhance the Canadian sleep experience and provide greater cooling, motion isolation, and pressure relief than the popular Novosbed.

The Octave brand is owned by GoodMorning.com. This direct-to-customer mattress company has sold over 350,000 mattresses across the United States and Canada in the last 10 years. GoodMorning.com maintains an A+ rating on Better Business Bureau and an “Excellent” rating on Trustpilot.

Douglas

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	Octave	Douglas
Shipping cost:	Free shipping	Free shipping
Shipping time:	3–10 days	3–10 days
Sleep trial length:	365 nights	365 nights
Return ease:	Company picks up	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.

With the increasing popularity of ‘bed-in-a-box’ mattresses, it’s easier than ever to order your next mattress online and receive it directly to your front door in a matter of days. You don’t even have to be at home to accept it. No more taking time off work to schedule around a delivery truck. Even better, you can try out the mattress in your own home on your schedule. There’s no pressure to make a buying decision in a showroom.

Octave and Douglas both use FedEx to deliver their mattresses. Both companies deliver directly to customers’ doors throughout most of Canada. Shipping times for Octave and Douglas are similar: around 3–10 days for most of Canada. If you live in a remote location, the shipper may transfer your package to a local courier for delivery. Additional shipping costs may apply.

As with any other bed-in-a-box brands, Octave and Douglas heavily promote their in-home sleep trials. These trials are among the longest in Canada at 365 nights.

If a customer wants to return their Octave or Douglas mattress within the sleep trial period, both companies will arrange to pick it up and issue a full refund. There are no additional return or restocking fees for either the Douglas or Octave mattress.

Out of the Box	Octave	Douglas
Delivered in a box:	Yes	Yes
Box dimensions:	17.5" x 17.5" x 44.5"	17.5" x 17.5" x 44.5"
Box opening:	Scissors required	Scissors required
Box/mattress fitting:	Tight	Tight
Protection layers:	2	2
Expansion time:	2 minutes	2 minutes

Both the Douglas and Octave mattress boxes came in a cardboard box sealed with heavy-duty tape. Customers will need scissors or a knife to open the packaging. Be extra careful when using sharp objects to open the box to prevent potential harm to yourself or your new mattress. It’s OK to recycle the box, but keep the plastic bag the mattress was shipped in, just in case you want to return it.

Once opened, the compressed mattress is easy to remove from the box. We recommend a ‘tip-and-pull’ motion to slide the mattress out of its cardboard packaging slowly. 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 practical to complete this process in the room where you intend to use the mattress.

The Douglas and Octave mattresses were wrapped in two layers of heavy-duty plastic. The inner layer compressed each mattress in a vacuum seal and the exterior layer kept it tightly bound in its cylinder shape.

We recommend placing the rolled-up mattress onto the designated bed frame for a more straightforward setup. Next, like the end of a roll of tape, find where the outer layer of plastic begins and start peeling it back. 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 metres long.

After completing this process, the mattress will rest unrolled before you. Next, cut and remove the final layer of plastic. The vacuum seal is now broken, and your new mattress will begin to decompress. A bed-in-a-box mattress should expand to its full height within a few minutes to a few days. The Octave and Douglas mattresses expanded to their full height within a few minutes.

Octave and Douglas are both combination foam mattresses. Each has three layers, is offered in one firmness level, and has a machine-washable mattress cover. However, these mattresses vary when it comes to height, density, composition, and sleep benefits.

Octave vs Douglas Mattress Layers

Octave Mattress Layers

The 12” Octave Vista is a three-layer memory foam mattress that is engineered to deliver an exceptional blend of cool, cushioned support:

• First layer: 2 inches of CopperGel™ memory foam and moisture-wicking PolarMAX® phase-change material. This high-performance layer pulls heat and sweat away from your body for a cooler, more comfortable sleep. Copper is also an antimicrobial metal, which helps reduce bacteria and maintain the cleanliness of your mattress.
• Second layer: 2 inches of premium Elastex® foam that feels and responds like natural latex. It adds a little spring and support so you can shift positions more easily, and the natural ventilation also helps you sleep cool.
• Third layer: 8 inches of high-density, ultra-durable motion isolation support foam to help you stay asleep, even with a restless partner. This layer offers zoned support to promote spinal alignment and better support sleepers’ lower back and hips. It also contains air channels to let warm air escape and fresh air flow through.

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.

Octave vs Douglas Mattress Cover 

Octave Mattress Cover

Octave Vista is cool to the touch, thanks to CryoFusion™ cooling nanofibres in the top cover. The upgraded Octave models—Mirage and Horizon—have even more cooling nanofibres. This makes each model even cooler than the last.

The mattress cover features a swirling, blue-grey pattern on a white background. This pattern is unique to each mattress. The removable, machine-washable cover connects to the navy blue base with a sturdy yet stylish zipper. Each mattress features the signature of the company’s CEO as a statement of quality.

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	Octave	Douglas
Feel:	Medium-firm	Medium-firm
Firmness:	6.8 / 10	6.7 / 10
Edge Support:	7.5 / 10	7.3 / 10
Motion Isolation:	7.3 / 10	8.3 / 10
Bounce:	3.7 / 10	3.2 / 10

Feel & Firmness

In independent tests conducted by third-party engineers (commissioned by us), the Octave and Douglas mattresses earned scores consistent with a medium-firm feel.

• Octave scored a 6.8 / 10 on the firmness scale. This means it strikes a good balance of comfort and support. Medium-firm mattresses are a great choice for most sleepers, as they tend to suit the widest range of body types, sizes, and sleep styles.
• Douglas scored 6.7 / 10 on the firmness scale. It offers a solid base for lower back support and spinal alignment. Douglas also provides more pressure-point relief and cushioning than traditional firm mattresses.

Foam mattresses are not generally known for their edge support. This can be worrisome for customers transitioning from innerspring mattresses to foam. However, independent testing conducted by third-party engineers (commissioned by us) revealed that both Douglas and Octave perform above-average for edge support.

• The Octave mattress has above-average edge support, at 7.5 / 10 on the edge support scale.
• The Douglas mattress has slightly lower edge support, at 7.3 / 10 on the edge support scale.

Either mattress will allow sleepers to sit comfortably on the edge of the bed.

Motion Isolation

Many people love foam mattresses for their superior motion isolation. Both the Octave and Douglas mattresses performed well in this area. According to third-party engineering tests we commissioned, both mattresses perform well for motion isolation:

• The Octave mattress has above-average motion isolation at 7.3 / 10 on the motion isolation scale. Sleepers should notice only minimal movement from the other side of the mattress.
• The Douglas has exceptional motion isolation, scoring 8.3 / 10 on the motion isolation scale. This is one of the highest scores we have ever recorded. Movement should not transfer across the mattress, ensuring an undisturbed sleep.

Bounce

Because foam mattresses excel at motion isolation, their bounce ratings are generally very low. According to the testing conducted by third-party engineers (commissioned by us), the Octave mattress and Douglas mattress bounce ratings are below average:

• The Octave mattress is rated at 3.7 / 10 on the bounce scale.
• The Douglas mattress is rated at 3.2 / 10 on the bounce scale.

Bounce is useful for helping sleepers change positions. Despite these low bounce scores, Octave and Douglas should allow easy movement. This is due to the middle layer of Elastex® foam, which provides both springiness and support.

* Octave was named Canada’s Best Cooling Mattress by Best Health Magazine, which has an existing business relationship with GoodMorning.com.