We asked 5 sleeping pad brands why we should buy their pads. This is what they said.

Over the years I have owned and used many sleeping pads from all sorts of companies. When I had a small gear rental business in Denali Alaska, I rented out sleeping pads from five different brands: Big Agnes, NEMO, Alps Mountaineering, ExPed, and Sea-to-Summit. Most of my customers (including repeat customers), didn’t really have a preference to any particular pad brand. The pads I rented out were all similar in design, shape, thickness, and even material. This led me to wonder: Is one brand really better than the other? I went straight to the sources for my question. I sent all five of these brands, Big Agnes, NEMO, Alps Mountaineering, ExPed, and Sea-to-Summit, the same question. Obviously, there are many different styles, weights, ratings, and uses but I wanted to at least get a general idea from these companies. All of these five brands offer similar features such as:

Easy to use
Included carry case and repair kit
Durable materials
Insulated pads and non-insulated pads

In the responses you can quickly see that some of them are just copy-and-paste replies, I know they probably get these kinds of questions all day long. All of them were friendly and genuine in wanting to answer my question. Although, all of the five brands responded to my question, Sea to Summit gave me the most thorough reply. The question: “I have done lot’s of research on air mattresses and there are so many good choices out there. But I have found that most air mattress companies are very similar to each other. I am just wondering as to why I should buy a mattress from (your brand)? What makes you truly different?” Here is what each of the following brands had to say:

Synopsis

Big Agnes – Comfort is top priority
Sea to Summit – Comfort and make sure your mattress fits well
Exped – We make high quality products and have superior customer service
NEMO – We offer lifetime warranty. We don’t offer anything that hasn’t already been done before
Alps Mountaineering – Lots of great features on our air pads

Having worked in the outdoor industry and hearing people rave about certain brands’ pads and why I should buy theirs, I have decided that it all depends on what I’m using my pad for. I like my Exped mattress because it’s 4 inches thick and it’s like sleeping on my bed at home. I like my Big Agnes/Alps/NEMO/S2S pads because they are great for backpacking and take up little weight. All these brands are great and if you look at the details you will of course find some differences but most sleeping pad brands have similar products across the scale from ultralight treks to backpacking to car camping.

Here are their full responses:

Big Agnes

“Here at Big Agnes, our top priority is comfort. We design our pads to make you like as if you were snuggled up in your own bed. Our pads range from next to nothing ultralight air pads to burlier self-inflating foam pads. We also carry insulated and non-insulated pads. Are there any specific features you are looking for? Such as air chamber vs. self inflating foam, insulated vs. non-insulated, size.”

Sea to Summit

“There is quite a lot out there for sleeping mats and quite a bit to consider. I hope that I can help you understand a bit about our mats and what makes them great, but also help you understand what you may want to look for when buying a mat. That way you can make an educated decision on any mat out there, even if you end up with a non-Sea to Summit mat. I just want to make sure it will work well for your intended end use.

Here are a few blog posts I would highly recommend reading for some great information from our product guru –

https://seatosummitusa.com/blogs/ask-baz/sleeping-mats-tech-to-trail

https://seatosummitusa.com/blogs/ask-baz/the-physics-of-insulation-and-comfort-in-air-filled-sleeping-mats

https://seatosummitusa.com/blogs/ask-baz/which-mat-to-choose

I am going to speak mostly about air mats, but if you want some additional info on Self-Inflating mats, I have also attached it.

For a quick snapshot into why to buy a Sea to Summit mat, I would focus on 3 main points:

Comfort – We use a varying number of Air Sprung Cells in our mats, you can think of these like the springs you would find in a regular mattress. The more you have, the more you gain stability, support, and (in my opinion) comfort. (Think back to that ‘90s mattress commercial where people put wine glasses on their bed and jumped by them without spilling. You can actually do this test with our mats and a bowling ball, I just used a cup of water instead.) Comfort is subjective and there is no real way to measure it, but I would say you should lay on all the different types of mats and roll around on them for a while. My main point here is that thick and cushy doesn’t always mean comfortable, so make sure you like the comfort of your mat. (Please note- insulation plays a big part in this as well, be sure to get adequate insulation. With more cells, there is less air movement in the mat when you move keeping the heat you have produced close to your body)

Ease of Use – This one ties into the point above, but our mats require a lot less air to inflate (due to the cell structure). I can blow up the Ultralight regular size in 7 breaths, the large in about 12. There is a high volume one-way valve on the mats, so each time you put air in, it won’t come out. The mat deflates in seconds with the use of a large dump valve. We also include a pump sack with each air mat that is attached to the stuff sack. This makes inflation a breeze, even though it’s there for increasing the lifespan of your mat.

Durability – We use a heavier face fabric on the mats than most other companies and though this means you may carry a bit more weight, you get a lot more durability. The face fabric is made of 40D nylon, (some companies use 30D or all the way down to 15D, This is just a measurement of how heavy the fabric is) You will get a lot more abrasion, puncture, and tear resistance from our fabric over others. We also have a really cool process for making the mats more durable in construction, using a Liquid extruded thermoplastic urethane (TPU). This is really techy and in depth, so you can read further on it or give us a call and we can chat in depth if you like.

The biggest thing is making sure you are comfy and the mat fits your sleeping system well. My biggest advice is to try out as many mats as possible an actually inflate/deflate spend some time working with what you are interested in. Also, make sure you get the correct insulation for all weather you may be encountering.”

Exped

There are a few things that definitely make us stand out and I have listed a few below-

We double bond all of our synthetic filled air mattress’. This means we attach the synthetic insulation to the top and bottom of the mat giving you the maximum loft of the insulation to help keep you warmer at night.
We invented the Downmat and it still has one of the best weight to warmth ratios in the market.

Our customer service is always here to help you. No matter how old your mat is, if you get a puncture, tear or anything happens to your mat feel free to contact us and we will always have a great solution for you.”

NEMO

“NEMO doesn’t bring anything to market that doesn’t offer a better experience than what’s already out there, so we’ve got some pretty unique pad designs that increase comfort for the user. After all, the end goal here is a good night’s sleep! All NEMO products also carry a lifetime warranty against defects in workmanship and materials to the original owner, with proof of purchase from an authorized NEMO dealer. I’d recommend you check out our Cosmo 3D. We use a body-mapped baffle system that offers stability and keeps the user centered on the pad. It’s definitely one of our most comfortable pads yet and has a minimum weight of 2 Ibs. 9 oz. More information on the Cosmo can be found here: https://www.nemoequipment.com/product/cosmo-3d/ Another pad to check out would definitely be our Roamer series. New to 2019, the Roamer is a self-inflating pad that utilizes over 4 inches of plush materials and thickness. This pad is a bit heavier coming in at 5 Ib. 3 oz. but is definitely worth the weight for it’s comfort. More information on the Roamer can be found here: https://www.nemoequipment.com/product/roamer/”