Vispring vs Hästens: An Honest Comparison from Inside the NYC Luxury Sleep Market

Two Brands, One Category, Very Different Philosophies

Vispring and Hästens both make handcrafted luxury beds using natural materials with no foam or synthetics. That is where the similarities largely end.

Vispring was founded in 1901. Its story traces back to James Marshall’s pocketed spring invention in 1899. Two years later, John Nolon and Frederick James acquired the rights to the patent and founded the company that would eventually become Vispring – built around the pocket spring technology that would become the global standard for premium mattress construction. Today, every Vispring bed is handcrafted in Plymouth, England, where the brand continues its long tradition of British bedmaking, using vanadium steel springs made and nested in-house by craftspeople whose skill takes years to develop. The materials are entirely natural: British Shetland wool, horsetail hair, cotton, silk, cashmere, mohair, and alpaca depending on the model. Vispring received the King’s Award for Enterprise for International Trade in 2024, one of the most prestigious honors a British business can receive. Today Vispring is available in 68 countries through more than 650 retailers worldwide, making it one of the most globally trusted names in luxury sleep while remaining rooted in its Plymouth manufacturing tradition.

Hästens was founded in 1852 in Köping, Sweden, originally as a saddlery. The shift from saddles to mattresses came after World War I as horses were replaced by automobiles. The brand’s sixth-generation family ownership, the iconic blue check fabric introduced by Jack Ryde in 1978, and its appointment as an official supplier to the Swedish Royal Court have made it one of the most recognizable names in luxury sleep globally. Hästens beds use horsehair, cotton, wool, and flax, assembled by craftspeople in Sweden.

What Each Bed Actually Feels Like

This is the question most comparison articles avoid because it requires actually sleeping on both. Here is how the two sleep experiences are often described in showroom and industry conversations.

A Hästens bed has a distinctive buoyancy. The layered horsehair creates a certain bounce and responsiveness that feels almost cloud-like on first contact. The blue check aesthetic is part of the experience. The bed is designed to be seen as much as felt, and Hästens leans into that. The brand’s positioning has always been unapologetically aspirational: Drake owns one, David Beckham owns one, and the showrooms are designed to feel like a destination. The sleep experience is real, and so is the brand’s strong visual and status-driven identity.

A Vispring bed feels different. The support is more precise and more body-specific. The vanadium steel springs respond independently to different pressure points with a kind of quiet attentiveness that is harder to describe in words than to feel in person. The natural materials create exceptional breathability- wool wicks moisture, horsetail hair allows air circulation, and the absence of foam means the bed never traps heat the way synthetic alternatives do. Vispring’s identity is quieter and more product-led. The product is the brand, which is either a disadvantage for the status-conscious buyer or exactly the point for someone who simply wants the best sleep experience.

The Spring Question

One of the clearest technical differences between the two brands sits inside the mattress itself. This deserves more attention than it usually gets in comparisons of these two brands.

Vispring has manufactured its own pocket springs since the company’s founding. The springs are made from vanadium steel, a metal chosen specifically for its long-term resilience and resistance to fatigue. Each spring is hand-nested individually into a calico cotton pocket by an experienced craftsperson on the factory floor in Plymouth. The spring count, gauge, and tension vary by model and by the specific needs of the sleeper. This vertical integration is unusual in the mattress industry and it matters for one simple reason: when Vispring claims a 30-year guarantee, they are guaranteeing springs they built themselves to their own specification. There is no external supplier whose quality control is outside their oversight.

Hästens purchases its pocket springs from an external supplier. This does not make the springs inferior – the finished product demonstrates real quality, but it does represent a meaningful difference in how much control each brand has over the complete manufacturing process. Vispring controls one of the most important parts of the bed’s construction in-house: the spring system itself, along with the final handcrafting and assembly of the finished mattress. Hästens operates with a different model, relying on external spring sourcing as part of its production process.

Pricing: What You Actually Pay

The price gap between these two brands is large and frequently misunderstood. Both use beautiful materials, but they scale differently.

* Pricing varies by model, size, configuration, upholstery, base, topper, materials, promotions, taxes, delivery, and showroom location. The figures above are intended as directional comparisons and should be confirmed directly with each brand before purchase.

For the entry-level king sleep system comparison shown above, there is a $16,580 price difference. Vispring gives you a longer 30-year guarantee. Both brands allow couples to select a split-firmness mattress, meaning one side can be soft or medium while the other side is firm.

It is also worth noting that Vispring’s entry-level Elite mattress is not a stripped-down version of the brand. It is still handmade in Plymouth using natural materials, pocket-spring construction, and the same core manufacturing principles that define the collection.

Vispring also offers a highly customized bespoke program where the bed can be built in any custom size or shape for unique spaces or antique frames. A Vispring bed can be tailored in nearly every detail to suit the individual client – from the mattress size and shape to the divan, base, leg style, height, finish, storage configuration, headboard design, and upholstery.

With more than 20 customizable headboard styles, over 100 standard upholstery fabrics, and the ability to work with a client’s own material, Vispring offers true end-to-end personalization across the entire sleep system. Vispring offers four distinct firmness choices, allowing the sleep system to be tailored more precisely to the comfort and support needs of each sleeper.

The New York City Ownership Experience

Hästens has multiple New York locations. The SoHo location, run by the Sleep Spa concept, offers guided bed consultations designed around the buyer’s sleep habits and preferences.

For buyers in Manhattan, Vispring New York provides a dedicated service program out of its SoHo showroom to make delivery and ownership completely effortless:

• White-Glove Setup: Complete delivery, home installation, and proper leveling are included with qualifying purchases.
• Old Bed Disposal: The delivery team will safely remove and get rid of your old mattress at the same time.
• Loaner Beds: Custom beds handmade in Europe take 3 to 8 weeks to arrive. If your moving schedule means you need a bed immediately, Vispring New York may be able to provide a temporary luxury loaner bed during the waiting period.
• Mattress Turning Service: They offer professional in-home turning help to make sure the natural fibers settle evenly and perform perfectly over the years.
• The US Quick Ship Program: If you cannot wait weeks for a custom build, Vispring keeps local stock of select popular sizes and models in the United States, which may allow delivery in just a few days depending on availability.

For New York buyers, this local support matters. Brian Benko and the team at 459 Broome Street remain the direct point of contact not only for the first consultation, but for delivery, service, turning guidance, and long-term ownership support.

Hästens remains an excellent choice for buyers who value its distinctive Swedish identity, iconic blue-check aesthetic, and more visibly status-driven luxury experience.

Which One Is Right for You?

The best way to choose between Hästens and Vispring is to experience both in person. Spend at least 20 minutes on each bed, in a quiet showroom, with guidance from someone who understands body type, sleep position, firmness preference, natural materials, and long-term comfort.

Vispring New York welcomes private consultations at its SoHo showroom at 459 Broome Street. With nine models available to experience in person, the team helps clients understand not only how Vispring compares to other ultra-luxury brands, but which sleep system is genuinely suited to their body, lifestyle, and long-term needs.