The Only Thing Worse Than Sleeping Too Hot is Waking Up Too Cold…
Thankfully, there are plenty of products out there nowadays to combat both—and not just because of our natural human desire to innovate away discomfort. It turns out that sleeping too hot or too cold can have a strongly adverse effect on our sleep quality… and thus, our mental & physical health overall.
That temperature-induced tossing and turning is affecting more than just your annoyed partner—it’s holding you back from a stronger immune system, better mood, and a sharper brain. But while there are plenty of products out there that claim to help, it’s difficult to cut through the noise to figure out which products are worth the investment.
So we dug in and did our research to find our favorite picks for fully optimizing your sleep environment at home. We found two high-tech temperature-regulating bed accessories that offered more than just cooling materials—Eight Sleep’s Pod Cover and BedJet’s Climate System—and decided to see how they stack up against one another.
Here’s what we learned:
What You Need to Know About Eight Sleep & Bed Jet
Eight Sleep
- Eight Sleep launched in 2014 with a temperature-regulating, sleep-tracking technology that’s since attracted the likes of Elon Musk, Mark Zuckerberg, and tons of professional athletes. Their Pod Cover uses an app-connected, water-based cooling system that can fit onto any size mattress to temperature-adjust from 55° to 110°.
- Eight Sleep has gotten some big name press to the tune of Forbes, GQ, and The New York Times. Their Pod Cover was even named one of Time’s Best Inventions of 2019.
BedJet
- BedJet was founded by a former engineer who thought, “if we can keep astronauts comfortable in space, why can’t we keep regular people comfortable in their beds?” He built a prototype on his kitchen table in 2013 and has since evolved BedJet to a third-generation machine.
- The BedJet works essentially by infusing the sheets with either hot or cold air. It doesn’t use any cooling agents, however, so the coldest available setting will be the same as the ambient temperature in your bedroom.
So we’ve got a bed from a guy who used to work on space suits and a bed that sounds like an actual spaceship… but only one gets to be the gold standard. So we broke it down into four main categories to find a winner.
Functionality: Eight Sleep
When it comes down to what these products are actually capable of, comparing Eight Sleep to BedJet is like comparing the latest iPhone to a flip phone. While the BedJet does offer a pretty solid heating solution, its “cooling” process is more just like what you’d get out of a fan. If your bedroom is already cold enough from blasting the AC, the BedJet can circulate that cool air in your sheets. But that’s sort of the extent of its power.
The Eight Sleep, on the other hand, is on another level. It uses sensors in the mattress cover to track your sleep, health, and bedroom conditions, then makes automatic temperature adjustments via the Hub to optimize your sleep. It gets smarter over time, and even proves it to you by showing your sleep results in the app.
It makes sense why Elon Musk thinks “it’s good,” because the Pod Cover is kinda like the Tesla of the sleep world. In terms of functionality, Eight Sleep gets the no-brainer nod.
Price: BedJet
When it comes to price, however, BedJet comes out on top. They have two options: the base Climate Comfort Sleep System ($599) and the Dual Zone Climate Comfort Sleep System ($1,329). Since the Eight Sleep also offers dual temperature zones (the idea here is sleeping with a partner), we thought it made more sense to use BedJet’s Dual Zone option as well in our comparison.
But even at $1,329, the BedJet is a more affordable option than the $2,295 queen-sized Eight Sleep Pod Cover. While you’re paying less, it does seem like you get what you pay for, in a sense. The Eight Sleep Pod Cover does everything the BedJet does (but seemingly better), along with much, much more.
It’s worth noting that both brands offer payment in installments with Affirm. So if you’re really looking to upgrade your sleep situation, you won’t have to dish out an arm and a leg. Just make sure you know what you’re getting.
Customization: Eight Sleep
The BedJet does offer some degree of customization. They also have a remote-controlled app, as well as an actual separate remote you can buy—giving you the opportunity to heat or “cool” your system as you like. BedJet offers something called “Biorhythm technology” in their product, which is supposed to dynamically cool and warm your bed throughout the night. You just have to manually program how that happens.
Eight Sleep lets its AI-based sleep tracking do that work for you and automatically heats or cools adaptively in response to your body temperature… so you can focus on “programming” other things. Setting the time for your warm, vibrating alarm for example, or focusing on your health and nutrition to score higher on your Sleep Fitness (and yes, this is an actual metric that the Eight Sleep app provides you.)
Since Eight Sleep’s app is always updating, the possibilities for customization and personalization are technically endless. (Just like Tesla, once again…) Eight Sleep wins this category by a landslide.
Our Top Pick: Eight Sleep
The BedJet is a solid option if you’re looking for a very basic level of temperature-control and you’re on a tight budget. A few members of our team did note that the blasting of air in their sheets all night ended up just feeling dry and uncomfortable, so if you’re looking for a cooling solution this may not be your best bet.
But, if you haven’t yet figured it out, Eight Sleep is our top pick. The functionality, customization, and sheer star power is just too much to compete against. They’re like the Apple of sleep technology. On top of that, Eight Sleep’s Pod is clinically proven to improve your deep sleep by up to 32%.
However, just like Apple, it’s not cheap. Thankfully, Eight Sleep offers a $0 down and 0% APR payment plan, as well as a 30-night risk-free trial period. So if you’re interested in best-in-class sleep technology and medical-grade health tracking, you don’t have to stress about giving it a try.
Eight Sleep Brings Your Sleep Experience Into Next Century.
Extraordinary sleep makes a big difference, and the Eight Sleep Pod Cover offers some extraordinary ways for you to get it. 32% more deep sleep at night means 32% more body and brain power for conquering your days. Just ask Zuck and Elon about how important that is.
The BedJet, while more affordable, ultimately falls quite a bit short. If your budget really doesn’t allow for much more, it could be a good option. But if you’re really looking to level-up your sleep, there’s no substitute for Eight Sleep’s Pod Cover.