Peace Lily vs Koala Calm As Mattress Comparison

The Peace Lily mattress is for anyone that’s concerned about the environmental impact of their mattress and the chemicals they might be bedding down with. The Peace Lily is a natural, cleaner, eco-friendly choice, which seems to be the main reason Aussie sleepers choose it.

You might also choose it if you’re after a supportive, supple and springy sleeping surface that provides excellent pressure relief. It’s got the widest range of sizes of any mattress we’ve reviewed, including long single, king single and super king. This means it suits a wide range of sleepers, including children.

Latex isn’t known for its ability to reduce partner disturbance so shift workers or particularly wriggly sleepers might need to look elsewhere.

We reckon side sleepers will get a great night’s sleep on the Koala Calm As mattress. With its 5 layers and foam construction, it offers a lot of soft, sinkable support for side sleepers’ necks and spines, helping to keep them in the correct alignment. The Original Koala mattress (the precursor to the Koala mattress) impressed Cosier writer Elese with its minimal partner disturbance and the Calm As mattress, with 2 extra layers, will be even more effective. Co-sleepers, this one’s for you.

We highly recommend the Peace Lily mattress, especially for its natural, eco-friendly focus. A good choice for back and side sleepers, it offers a flippable firmness level between medium and firm and great pressure relief. Springy, it provides a lovely cushioning feel that gently moulds to your body. With a 25-year warranty - one of the longest we’ve seen - this is a durable, long-lasting mattress. (Be sure to read the warranty carefully to understand Peace Lily’s requirements around a suitable bed base to prevent moisture build-up.)

• Flippable firmness layers so you can choose a medium or firm feel.
• Huge range of sizes which is the widest of all mattresses we’ve reviewed.
• The clean, green naturalness of the mattress, including its sustainable manufacturing.
• That it’s handcrafted.

• Heavy to move, lift and turn.
• Returns policy isn’t great with customers in non-metro areas having to arrange a charity pick up or drop off.
• Delivery timeframes are vague.

We reckon so. Designed to suit a range of sleepers, but especially good for side sleepers, the Koala Calm As foam mattress is great at providing supportive comfort all night long. It suits Aussie sleepers well, thanks to the attention paid to keeping you cool as you sleep. Partner disturbance is also minimal. Koala itself is a great Aussie company with some really solid eco-credentials.

• The supportive comfortable feel of the mattress.
• Customisable firmness level that can be flipped.
• The attention paid to keeping you cool on hot nights.
• Koala’s environmental and sustainability focus.

• It’s pretty deep at 29cm so check if your fitted sheets will work.
• No handles which makes turning and moving it tricky.
• It’s heavy, weighing up to 51.75kg for the king - those handles really would have come in handy.

The Peace Lily mattress has 5 layers of natural, certified organic materials:

1. A 100% certified organic cotton handmade cover that’s soft, cool and moisture wicking.
2. 100% certified organic cotton wadding for a breathable, luxe-feeling cover.
3. A medium 5cm layer of 100% natural rubber latex.
4. A 100% natural rubber latex core layer.
5. A firm 5cm layer of 100% natural rubber latex.

The layers are encased in 100% certified organic cotton, complete with a cotton tape edge that’s double stitched for durability.  The layers are glued together with a natural latex glue that’s adhesive and chemical free. There are no toxins, polyurethane foams, chemical adhesives or nasties of any kind in a Peace Lily mattress. This is backed by international certification bodies, including eco-INSTITUT, OEKO-TEX and the Global Organic Textile Standard (GOTS).

The Koala Calm As mattress is a foam mattress with 5 layers:

1. A 7cm polyester sleeping surface and a 1cm quilted cover. This sleeping surface is designed to keep you cool and dry as you sleep.
2. Flippable comfort layer which offers you a medium-firm or firm feel.
3. A support layer with 3 support zones that are targeted to your important bits, like your back and shoulders. It’s got air tunnels too to help air move freely and avoid that sticky feeling. It’s also designed to spread your weight evenly across the mattress.
4. Another support layer, much deeper this time. It’s the firmest core of the mattress and should provide great support for every type of sleeper.
5. Edge support to make sure you don’t sink when you perch on the end to put your socks on.

All the foam is polyurethane foam that’s certified free of formaldehyde and other nasties and is low-VOC (volatile organic compounds).

Peace Lily offers a 100-night free trial. However, they do ask you to try your mattress for at least 30 nights. This gives your body time to adjust and also allows the mattress to fully decompress. If it’s still not for you, you need to email Peace Lily and follow their instructions. The mattress needs to be in good condition and clean with no stains or tears, etc. (Pro tip: use a mattress protector!)

If Peace Lily agrees it’s in good condition, they’ll arrange a local partnered charity organisation to pick up your mattress for free. Once it’s been accepted and picked up by the charity, then Peace Lily will process your refund.

Some Aussie customers haven’t had the best returns process, especially those in more rural areas with no partnered organisations nearby. In some cases, customers have been left to arrange their own charity pick up / drop off. This has involved contacting local charities and attempting to wrestle a heavy latex mattress into their vehicle for drop off. Honestly, the returns process sounds like a hassle unless you live in an urban area.

The Peace Lily mattress comes with a great 25-year warranty. Latex mattresses tend to be more durable and longer lasting than other mattress types. However, you must use a bed base with your mattress, otherwise the warranty is void. It’s worth taking a read of the warranty to understand what Peace Lily defines as a suitable bed base.

All orders are dispatched within 1-2 business days of ordering and can take up to 15 business days for rural deliveries. Compared to Koala, who contact you with the day and time slot for delivery so you can make sure you’re home, Peace Lily is a bit more hands-off. Although you’ll get a tracking link emailed to you, they highly recommend you choose the authority to leave delivery option. Given the price of these mattresses, you might not feel comfortable having your mattress left outside your home.

Peace Lily courier drivers don’t bring your mattress inside your home or up any stairs so expect to haul the box around by yourself.

With the average free trial period being 100 nights, Koala beats it by offering 120 nights. Koala will only pick up the mattress for free in most areas of Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Perth and Adelaide. If you’re outside these areas, you’ll need to bring it to the nearest Koala warehouse - ouch. Although they promise a full refund, note that delivery fees are non-refundable.

Koala ships for free nationwide, although they do offer weekend delivery for $70. Delivery can be same day in metro areas. Outside metro areas, you’re looking at 1-15 business days. They have a delivery checker on their website so you can get a more accurate idea of how long it could take.

The Koala Calm As mattress has an industry standard warranty of 10 years that covers any physical damage and defects in the materials and workmanship. It doesn’t cover normal wear and tear, which includes ‘softening of the product that does not affect performance’. This sounds a little subjective to us as your idea of your mattress becoming too soft they might argue isn’t performance related.