On pocket coil vs innerspring, I'd pick pocket coils for most couples. Each spring moves on its own, so pocketed coils pass less movement across the bed, follow the body more closely and can be zoned firmer under the hips. A wired innerspring is simpler and costs less, which is the case for it.
An innerspring mattress is any bed whose support comes from a core of steel springs. A pocket coil mattress is one kind of innerspring, where each spring is sewn into its own fabric sleeve. The older kinds, Bonnell, offset and continuous coils, are wired together into a single unit. Sleep Foundation's coil guide calls Bonnell coils "one of the least expensive types of mattress coil", and says pocketed coils often command a premium price.
At Merit Home Furniture's Duncan store, the makers have mostly settled the coil question. There are 20 mattresses listed for Duncan, from Restwell, Restonic and Natura, and 18 of those listings name pocket or individually wrapped coils. The Copper Hybrid just says coils, and Natura's Majestic is all latex with no springs, a different type of mattress altogether. The one Bonnell listing among Merit's Vancouver Island mattresses is a 6-inch Ashley at our Port Alberni store.
Pocket coil vs innerspring: what's the difference in the springs?
The difference between a pocket coil and an innerspring unit is what holds the springs together. In a wired innerspring, rows of springs are laced to each other with helical wire, so pressing one spring tugs at its neighbours. In a pocket coil unit, only fabric joins them. A spring under your hip can compress while the one under your partner's shoulder stays where it is.
What is an innerspring mattress?
An innerspring mattress is a bed built on a steel coil core, with comfort layers on top. Sleep Foundation describes three wired designs. Bonnell coils are hourglass springs, wider at the top and bottom than in the middle. Offset coils share that shape but pass less motion along. Continuous coils are rows of loops bent from a single wire.
The Ashley queen shows the plain end of the family: 6 inches tall, 13.5-gauge tempered Bonnell steel coils and 1 inch of high-density foam. It's carried at our Port Alberni store, so call that store for our best price.
What are pocket springs?
Pocket springs are coils wrapped one at a time in fabric and packed side by side. One early patent for the idea came from Canada. James Marshall, who lived in Toronto, was granted a US patent for his mattress on April 29, 1902. His springs sat in a textile casing "formed so as to consist of a series of pockets". How coil beds stack up against all-foam and latex is in our comparison of foam, hybrid and coil construction.
Bonnell, offset, continuous and pocket coil units compared
Bonnell, offset, continuous and pocketed coils differ most in how many springs fit in a mattress and how much motion they pass along. Sleep Foundation's coil guide, updated July 25, 2025, gives these typical coil counts by type. The notes on motion and price are its descriptions, shortened.
| Coil type | Typical count | Motion and price |
|---|---|---|
| Bonnell | 400 to 600 | Moves as one unit and may pass motion and noise; among the cheapest coils |
| Offset | 500 to 2,000 | Passes less motion; costs more than Bonnell |
| Continuous | 400 to 800 | Still passes some movement; usually inexpensive |
| Pocketed | 800 to 1,200 | Least motion and noise; often priced at a premium |
The counts on the Duncan list run from 884 to 1,250, so they sit in that pocketed band, with Restonic's 1,250 a little past the top. None of our mattress listings names an offset or continuous coil.
Pocket coil mattress vs innerspring: which is better for your sleep?
A pocket coil mattress suits more sleepers than a wired innerspring does, because it isolates movement and can be zoned. For a shared bed or a side sleeper, I'd start with pocketed coils. A wired innerspring still makes sense where motion and zoning matter less and the budget matters more.
Where a wired innerspring makes sense
A guest bed used a few nights a year, a child's first bed or a cabin. Sleep Foundation lists Bonnell coils as durable, and a thin Bonnell bed is light to move: the Ashley 6-inch queen lists 50 pounds.
Where pocketed coils earn the extra
Two sleepers who turn at different times, a side sleeper whose shoulder needs to sink, or a heavier sleeper who wants the middle of the bed held up. Sleep Foundation says pocketed coils contour to the body better. The zoned units on our Duncan list put firmer springs under the lower back.
For a sore back, I couldn't find a study that tests pocketed coils against Bonnell coils directly. The trials that do exist compare firmness, and they're gathered in what the back pain studies found about mattresses. If your back hurts, that's a question for your doctor before it's one for a mattress store.
Motion transfer on a pocket coil vs an innerspring
Motion transfer is how far a movement on one side of the bed travels to the other. On a Bonnell unit it travels further, because the laced coils "move as a single unit", in Sleep Foundation's words. On a pocket coil unit each spring answers only the weight on top of it. A partner rolling over moves less of your side.
Restwell's spec sheets say its 5-zone pocket coil "eliminates motion transfer". I'd read that as a maker's claim, since some movement still crosses through the foam and the frame.
Edge support and zoning in pocket coil and innerspring beds
Edge support is how well the side of a mattress holds you when you sit on it or sleep near it. Sleep Foundation says Bonnell beds generally have reliable edge support but can be prone to sagging in the centre. Most of Merit's pocket coil listings name what wraps around the coils. Every Restwell Contour listing names a foam-encased edge, which Restwell's spec sheets say gives "extra stability for the coil to reduce sagging". Ashley's pocketed hybrids at Port Alberni use 2 perimeter rows of 9-inch, 13-gauge pocketed coils instead.
Zoning means springs of different firmness in different bands of the bed. Pocketed springs make it simple, since a stiffer band doesn't stiffen its neighbours. Restwell's Contour and Savannah coils use 5 zones, firmer in the lumbar area. Restonic's latex Revive beds use 3, with a reinforced middle. The six Comfort Care listings and Natura's Green Spring Serene say zoned without saying where the zones fall, and the Ashley Bonnell names none.
Coil counts and gauge in the Duncan pocket coil mattresses
Coil count is the number of springs in the support core, and it's often quoted for a queen. Sleep Foundation puts a queen innerspring or hybrid at 400 to 1,200 coils, and its rule of thumb is to avoid counts below 400. The Restwell, Restonic and Natura listings for our Duncan store give the counts below. Each price range runs from the smallest size listed to the largest, before applicable taxes.
| Mattress | Coils per our listing; price range |
|---|---|
| Restonic Minto and Prestige | 884 foam-encased zoned pocket coils; $698.00 to $1,288.00 |
| Restonic Notte and Mondena | 1,188 zoned pocket coils plus a nano coil layer; $1,488.00 to $2,088.00 |
| Restonic Vernazza and Treviso | 1,250 zoned pocket coils plus a nano coil layer; $2,099.00 to $3,099.00 |
| Restwell Canary and Robin | 1,200 pocket coils, 8 in. tall, in 5 zones; $799.00 to $1,199.00 |
| Restwell Starling, Nightingale and Sparrow Elite | 1,200 pocket coils under a 1 in. layer of 1,400 micro coils; $1,399.00 to $2,299.00 |
| Restwell Savannah Plush | 1,200 pocket coils in a queen, in 5 zones; $1,699.00 to $2,199.00 |
| Restonic Revive Reflections | About 1,200 pocket coils in a queen; $1,928.00 to $3,127.00 |
| Revive Tiffany Rose and Jasmine, St Charles and Elizabeth | 1,188 pocket coils in a queen, 9 in. tall, in 3 zones; $2,375.00 to $4,315.00 |
| Restonic Revive Marissa | Pocket coils, firmer through the lower back, no count given; $1,338.00 to $2,353.00 |
| Natura Green Spring Serene | Zoned wrapped coils, 9.5 in. tall, no count given; $1,649.00 to $3,199.00 |
| Restwell Copper Hybrid | Coils, with no type or count given; $1,999.00 to $3,499.00 |
Restonic's Comfort Care listings don't say which size their counts describe. And a count says nothing about feel: the Minto sleeps firm and the Prestige plush on the same 884 coils, because the layers above set the feel.
Do more pocket springs mean a better mattress?
More pocket springs mean smaller springs packed closer together, and a count alone doesn't make a bed better. Sleep Foundation draws its line low, at 400 for a queen. A queen with 1,000 pocketed coils clears that easily and sits inside the 800 to 1,200 range it gives for pocketed cores. I'd only compare counts between beds of the same size from the same maker.
Micro and nano coils are a separate count. Sleep Foundation says microcoils measure 1 to 3 inches, against about 6 inches for most innerspring coils. They sit in the comfort layers, so adding Restwell's micro coils or Restonic's 1425 Nano Coil layer to the support count would flatter the bed.
Gauge is the thickness of the spring wire, and its scale runs backwards. Sleep Foundation says mattress coils are usually between 13-gauge and 17-gauge, and 13 is the thicker wire. Ashley gives 13.5-gauge for its Bonnell queen. No Duncan mattress listing states a gauge, nor do the Canary and Starling spec sheets, so ask us and we'll check with the maker.
Durability, heat and weight: innerspring vs pocket coil
Durability is the hardest of these to pin down, because I couldn't find a published wear test that compares coil types. Sleep Foundation calls Bonnell coils durable and says pocketed coils "tend to be more durable and supportive". Lifespan has its own piece, our guide to how long a mattress lasts. What Merit's listings show is each maker's warranty.
| Mattress | Core and warranty, per the listing |
|---|---|
| Ashley 6 inch Bonnell queen | Bonnell coils; 1-year limited warranty |
| Ashley 12 inch hybrid | 680 wrapped coils in a queen; 10-year non-prorated warranty |
| Restwell Contour Collection | 1,200 pocket coils; 10-year limited warranty |
| Restonic Comfort Care | Zoned pocket coils; 10-year non-prorated warranty |
| Restonic Revive | Pocket coils; 10-year limited warranty |
A warranty covers what its maker calls a defect, so the years aren't a lifespan. Still, 1 year against 10 says something about what each maker expects.
Heat differs less between the two than the spring type suggests. Both cores are mostly air around steel, so the foam, latex or wool above the coils decides how warm a coil bed sleeps. Covers and comfort layers for warm sleepers have a guide for people who wake up hot.
Weight shows only on Ashley's listings, since Restwell, Restonic and Natura don't print one. The 6-inch Bonnell queen lists 50 pounds and the 12-inch hybrid queen 116.22 pounds. Twice the height and far more foam explain much of that gap, more than the coils alone.
Pocket coil and innerspring mattress prices at Merit
Pocket coil mattresses generally cost more than wired innerspring ones, and Sleep Foundation puts that down to their more complex construction. On Merit's Duncan list, the lowest-priced pocket coil bed is the Restonic Minto, from $698.00 in twin. The highest is the Revive St Charles and Elizabeth, at $4,315.00 in king. Both prices are before applicable taxes.
Within that spread the comfort layers move the price more than the springs. The Minto and Prestige share an 884-coil core and start $50.00 apart in twin. The same 1,188 coils sit under the Notte, from $1,488.00, and the Revive Tiffany Rose, from $2,375.00. Each Restwell's layer list is in the Restwell line, model by model.
Box springs under a coil mattress
An innerspring or pocket coil mattress needs a firm, flat base, such as a box spring, a foundation or a solid platform, and the maker's warranty says which. The box springs and foundations Merit lists are carried at Campbell River, one also at Port Alberni, and none is listed for Duncan. Ask us which base a Restwell or Restonic wants before you order.
Where pocket coil mattresses fall short
Pocket coil mattresses have real drawbacks, and Merit's own listings leave some gaps.
- They cost more, and for a guest room the extra money may buy little.
- The Copper Hybrid names no coil type or count, and no Duncan listing gives a gauge.
- Among the Duncan listings, only the Savannah Plush calls itself adjustable base friendly, so pairing another with a Restwell Peak or Pinnacle base deserves a question first.
Before ordering any coil bed, these questions fill most of the gaps:
- Which coil? Pocketed, Bonnell, offset or continuous, and whether the edge is foam or extra coils.
- Which size is the count for? A queen figure and a king figure aren't comparable.
- Where are the zones? Firmer under the lower back, or the same all over.
- What base does the warranty need? Box spring, foundation, platform or adjustable.
If you're weighing a pocket coil bed against an innerspring, I'd lie on each the way you sleep, then have whoever shares the bed climb in and roll over. Those few minutes tell you more than the coil count on the tag.
Sources for the coil figures
- Sleep Foundation, Mattress Coil Types (Lauren Fountain, updated July 25, 2025), checked November 2026.
- Google Patents, US698529A Mattress, James Marshall of Toronto (granted April 29, 1902), checked November 2026.
- Cowichan Valley Regional District, CVRD Recycling Centre Tipping Fee Changes (November 21, 2025), checked November 2026.
- Restwell Sleep Products, Canary 8232 spec sheet, checked November 2026.
- Restwell Sleep Products, Starling 8235 spec sheet, checked November 2026.
- Merit Home Furniture, mattress listings and the makers' descriptions on them, read November 1, 2026, checked November 2026.
- Merit Home Furniture, Delivery and Setup, checked November 2026.
Trying pocket coil mattresses in Duncan
Every Restwell, Restonic and Natura bed above is listed for Merit's Duncan store at 107 Ingram St, open 9 to 5, Monday to Saturday. The floor holds display models, so call first to ask which coil beds are set up. Nobody will follow you around, and going home to think it over is fine.
Pickup at Duncan is free. Delivery from Duncan is $150 across the Island with setup included, and a mattress going a long way across the Island may travel by another method. Old furniture can go away at delivery, usually $25 to $50 a piece. Taking an old mattress yourself, the CVRD's recycling centres have charged $32 a mattress since January 1, 2026. The Ashley Bonnell queen is at our Port Alberni store, (250) 724-6644; ask that store about delivery.
Call the Duncan store, (250) 746-5527
Our pieces on firmness, sizes and sleep positions sit together on one page. The beds themselves are in the Restwell listings and the Restonic listings.