Talalay Latex vs. Coil Spring

Talalay latex has superior feel and comfort because of its unique compression profile. Compression is how a material responds to a weight or load being placed on it. A material will resist the load and push back in proportion to the load and the material’s ability to carry the load. The manner in which a material responds to a load defines how the material feels to the touch and how it supports the load. Below is a graph showing the amount of force needed to compress a piece of latex and a coil spring a percentage of the original height.

As shown in the graph on the right, a coil spring has a very linear response to the applied load. The linear response of a spring is an inherent property. Talalay latex on the other hand responds to the applied load in a non-linear fashion. Initially Talalay latex increases in firmness in response to the load, but as the load increases Talalay latex compresses to a greater extent. Talalay will support just as much weight as the coil spring, but it has more give keeping the material from having the feel of bottoming out.

The increased compressibility of Talalay latex is what allows the material to shape itself and conform to the human body. The human body’s profile is not flat and its weight distribution is not even. A coil spring is only able to respond to a body’s weight and not its shape. Talalay latex with its non-linear compression curve can respond to a body’s weight and shape. A person may have similar weight distribution between the shoulders and hips, but the body parts have very different shapes.

Talalay latex has the ability to allow for more compression without a proportional increase in weight to conform to various body shapes and weights.