I know from years of mattress testing that comfort is subjective, and no single mattress will work for everyone. That being said, sleeping on the 2000T feels like nothing I’ve ever felt before. When I settle in, the mattress conforms just enough for my whole body to sink into it, while what feels like a thousand little hands support me from below. The closest comparison I can think of is floating in a sensory-deprivation chamber. When I lie on the Hästens, I feel weightless, like I’m bobbing in a pool of water calibrated to exactly my body temperature. I can barely tell where the mattress ends and my body begins, regardless of what position I’m in.
Unlike the slow-sink of memory foam or the cushion of a padded pillow top, the horsehair in a Hästens mattress has a natural springiness, but it is just as soft and far more breathable. I’m a hot sleeper, and I never once woke up sweaty in the 2000T. Below the horsehair, 2,340 individual springs offer a sensation that is as delightful to experience as it is difficult to describe—but imagine being suspended in a tide of soft, shifting air, cradled yet free.
I’m a loyal side-sleeper, so I’ve always preferred mattresses with a supportive foundation and a plusher topper for my hips and shoulders. My first great love as a sleep writer was the Stearns & Foster Estate PT Firm, a lofty, pillow-topped Wirecutter pick that allowed me to get comfortable on my side without my body feeling like it was being pressed up against the mattress. But even on that superb mattress, I often felt like I was sinking slightly downward, compressing its top plush layer until my hips neared the firm coils below. I never feel like that on the 2000T, which cradles my hips and shoulders while remaining supportive overall.
The edge support is also impressive, considering how soft the mattress is: Sleeping near the side doesn’t feel precarious, and sitting directly on the edge simply causes it to gently sink, not slump. I was initially worried that those 2,000-plus springs (which are great for support) would mean the mattress would transfer motion. High coil counts tend to make you feel like you’re sharing a canoe on testy waters—every movement your partner makes is felt. But with its layered construction, the 2000T mutes the motion across the bed.
After a couple of weeks on the mattress, I could feel the materials start to compress together, creating lumps after I got up in the morning. But that’s normal, assures Hästens, because its mattress requires regular, complimentary massaging. Yes, every mattress sold by Hästens comes with a “re-calibration program,” in which Hästens employees visit your home to loosen up the materials and redistribute them, to prevent the mattress from settling into a you-shaped valley. Each Hästens owner is entitled to this service for a decade or more.
They remove the topper, flip the mattress, and then systematically tread across the surface in weighted steps, like they’re marching. Then they knead it with their fists, before reapplying the topper and systematically rolling the edges in to redistribute the materials in an even layer. After each 20-minute “massage,” I could feel the difference. The mattress again felt like the first day it was delivered to my home.
But the team can go even further, if needed. The 2000T felt a little too cushy at first, so I let Hästens know. In response, the next time the team came to my apartment to recalibrate the mattress, they re-tufted the entire thing by hand, functionally tightening each coil to adjust the bed to feel a little firmer than it was before. Again, I could really feel the difference, as if I’d swapped a soft mattress for a medium one without the hassle. The team members explained that they can do this procedure for only half of the mattress, too, which is ideal for couples with different firmness preferences.
After six months of sleeping on the 2000T, every night I crawl into bed, it feels like falling in love all over again. I get a rush as I slide in between the sheets, and sometimes as I snuggle in, I can’t help but kick my legs in excitement, like a little kid. Then I drift off into another world and remain there, blissful, until my alarm goes off in the morning.
