Extra firm is a specialist grade. The Missouri Ortho Backcare Mattress is for the few people it suits: heavier back and front sleepers who already know they like a hard bed, and for them it's a sound buy, a double-sided pocket-sprung mattress they can turn. Everyone else, and every side sleeper, should take the Firm version or something softer. Ignore the word "Ortho" while you're at it: orthopaedic isn't a standard anyone regulates, and on a label it mostly means hard.
Steady on her back, no give on her side
Our tester lay on it at a Bensons store in October 2025, first on her back, then on her side, turning between the two. She weighs 66kg and sleeps in a mix of positions. On her back the firm feel was reassuring, with steady support that suited the position. On her side there wasn't enough give at her hip and shoulder for her to feel comfortable. She much preferred her back.
Turning over was reasonably easy, so the firmness didn't make changing position a chore. It felt surprisingly cool to lie on, and robust and sturdy overall. At 66kg she's lighter than the person this grade is built for. A heavier back sleeper sinks deeper into the springs, so expect it to feel less of a plank to you than it did to her if that's you. If you're a light side sleeper, her verdict on her side is your answer.
The Backcare in its hardest grade
Underneath it's the Missouri Backcare: 1000 pocket springs, a wool layer on the winter side, a breathable comfort layer made with 65% recycled material on the summer side, hand tufting, edge support and a damask cover, 26cm (about 10in) deep. Bensons doesn't publish how it makes this one firmer. Ask in store if the spring gauge or the filling weight is what you're choosing on. Until the rename it was sold as the Penzance Ortho Backcare, with the same spec.
The listing promises "orthopaedic levels of support". Please don't buy extra firm for your bad back on the strength of that phrase. A harder bed isn't a treatment, and medium-firm is kinder to most sore backs. Extra firm works for heavier bodies on their back or front, where a softer bed would let the hips sink out of line.
A dip early on is the complaint I'd take seriously
Most owners chose it because they like a very firm bed. They're happy, some with a topper added. The worst complaint is early dipping: one owner measured a dip a couple of months after delivery and was told it wasn't deep enough to count under the guarantee, and another found dents after a fortnight despite rotating it every week. It isn't the common complaint, but sagging early is the one I treat as most serious.
Read the sag-depth clause before you buy any mattress, this one included, because most guarantees only pay out past a set depth of dip. Sunday is my fresh-sheets day. On a bed like this I'd turn or rotate it every time the sheets came off for the first few months, with a photo of anything that looks like a dent. One owner also warns that the reviews mix in other mattresses, so read them carefully.
If you're a side sleeper or on the light side, avoid it, and don't put it in a guest room: extra firm suits too few people to be a spare-room bed. The comfort guarantee won't rescue you from a wrong guess on the grade either, because Bensons' version is short, swaps rather than refunds and charges you for the exchange.
What to buy instead
Most back sleepers should buy the Missouri Backcare, the Firm version of the same mattress. If you're set on extra firm but want longer to decide, look at the Hypnos Cawthorne Extra Firm at Mattress Online, which is one-sided but well made and comes with a longer comfort trial.
