If you are in the market for a new mattress, you have probably heard of the names Dunlop latex mattress and Talalay latex mattress. You are probably wondering the difference between them. And you have probably also heard of the different opinions on which is better. These opinions would usually depend on which product the “expert” is selling.

As we all know, latex mattresses are made out of the rubber sap harvested from rubber trees. Dunlop and Talalay do not refer to different kinds of rubber trees as some people might think. They actually refer to the names of two different ways of processing the liquid latex to turn them into mattresses.

The Dunlop process is the process that had been in use since 1929. It is a pretty straight forward process. They pour the liquid latex mixture into a mould press and vulcanize it to turn it into a mattress. The Talalay process on the other hand involves flash freezing the liquid latex mixture after it has been poured into a vacuum mould. After that, they vulcanize the latex to turn it into a mattress.

The added step of flash freezing the liquid latex mixture results to a more stable cell structure. This is the difference maker. Some say this extra step makes the Talalay mattress more durable compared to a Dunlop mattress. This is true. But in my opinion, saying that Talalay latex mattress is more durable than Dunlop latex mattress is like saying a three inch thick steel wall is more durable than a two inch thick steel wall.

Some people also say that the extra step in the Talalay process also results to a better consistency throughout the mattress and gives the Talalay mattress a little bit more plush feeling. This is also true. But the difference is really subtle. Differentiating the plushness of a Talalay mattress and a Dunlop mattress is like discussing which bottled water tastes better or has a better “mouthfeel”. You won’t feel the difference unless you are looking for it.

But definitely, the extra step makes the Talalay process more high tech. This makes Talalay mattresses more expensive as compared to Dunlop mattresses.

Bottom line, by flash freezing the liquid latex in the vacuum mould, the Talalay mattress is able to have a more consistent cell structure throughout the mattress. This makes it a little more durable and a little plusher than the Dunlop latex mattress.