Both Serta and Octave are two well-known Canadian mattress brands. Serta was founded in 1931, the year the company introduced its first Perfect Sleeper mattress. Previously known as Novosbed, Octave is a pioneer in the Canadian bed-in-a-box landscape and released its first mattress in 2009. Staying true to its roots of relentless focus on customer satisfaction and product innovation, Octave is set to continue the legacy of Novosbed. So, what are the backgrounds of Serta and Octave?

Serta

Serta was founded in 1931 in Illinois as Sleeper, Inc. by 13 mattress manufacturers who licensed the Serta name. Its first product was the Perfect Sleeper, billed as the first “tuftless innerspring mattress.” In 2005, Serta consolidated with the National Bedding Company when both were acquired by two private equity firms.

In 2010, Serta acquired Simmons and consolidated the three companies under Serta Simmons Bedding. Serta Simmons Bedding was acquired by another private equity firm in 2012. In early 2023, the company filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in the US, and emerged from the court-protected restructuring process in July 2023. 

For years, Serta has been a top name in innerspring and foam mattresses. Recently, however, Canadian brands like Octave have been manufacturing foam mattresses with similar or better features. These mattresses are delivered to consumers’ doors for much less than Serta, with a much longer sleep trial and warranty.

Octave

Launched in 2023, Octave is the next step in the evolution of the Novosbed mattress. The Vista, Mirage, and Horizon models are designed to enhance the Canadian sleep experience and provide greater cooling, motion isolation, and pressure relief than the popular Novosbed.

The Octave brand is owned by GoodMorning.com. This direct-to-customer mattress company has sold over 350,000 mattresses across the United States and Canada in the last 10 years. GoodMorning.com maintains an A+ rating on Better Business Bureau and an “Excellent” rating on Trustpilot.

It’s more convenient than ever to order a mattress online and get it delivered to your front door. You don’t even have to be home to accept it. A bed-in-a-box makes it easy to try out a new mattress in the comfort of your own home and take the time to make sure it’s right for you. 

Octave ships in 3–10 business days and uses FedEx to deliver mattresses throughout most parts of Canada. If you live in a remote location, FedEx may transfer your package to a local courier for delivery. Additional shipping costs may apply in this situation.

Serta Percevall is delivered to you fully expanded. It ships in about 5–7 days. Sleep Country uses its own delivery trucks in metro areas for free, as mattresses cost more than the $75 minimum sale to qualify for free shipping. You can also opt for Green Glove Delivery, where Sleep Country delivers the mattress to the room of your choice and sets it up for you. As with other retailers, additional shipping fees may apply outside of metro areas. Check with the retailer to be sure of the final cost. 

Comparing Octave vs Serta’s sleep trial, Octave offers a generous 365-night sleep trial. Octave will also pick up your mattress and provide a full refund if you return your mattress. 

Serta Percevall has an industry-standard 100-night sleep trial, and returns are hardly straightforward. If you bought the mattress at Sleep Country, you have to return it to a Sleep Country store yourself. You will not receive a refund, only get an in-store credit to exchange the mattress, one time, for another one. Sleep Country will also deduct a $65 exchange fee from the in-store credit. If you choose a mattress that costs more, you’ll pay the difference. If you choose a mattress that costs less, you won’t get the difference refunded to you. 

Both the Octave and Serta Percevall mattress were delivered to us within the expected timeframe. Octave was protected by heavy-duty plastic layers, and a shipped in a white cardboard box. Percevall is not a bed-in-a-box, so it’s delivered fully expanded. 

Keep the information that came with your shipment, like the sleep trial and return policy. The Octave shipping box can be recycled, but with both mattresses, you should save the plastic the mattress was wrapped in case you want to return it in the future.

Serta

Our mattress was delivered wrapped in a single layer of heavy-duty plastic. The plastic was torn near the brand tag on the short side of the mattress. Fortunately, however, the mattress did not appear to have been damaged during transport.

Octave

Octave uses FedEx to deliver mattresses by ground throughout most parts of Canada. Orders arrive in 3–10 days. Shipping is free and your mattress is delivered directly to your door. If you live in a remote location, FedEx may transfer your package to a local courier for delivery. Additional shipping costs may apply in this situation.

Octave arrives in a recycled cardboard box and is wrapped in two layers of heavy-duty recycled plastic for added protection. Once unrolled, the Octave mattress fully expands in a couple of minutes and is ready to sleep on the same day it’s delivered.

Octave Vista is a three-layer memory foam mattress. Serta Percevall is a four-layer hybrid mattress. Both are promoted as cooling mattresses, but only Octave offers a full range of advanced cooling features.

Serta vs Octave Mattress Layers

Serta Mattress Layers

The 11.5” Serta Perfect Sleeper Elite Percevall is a four-layer hybrid mattress with a quilted, non-removable mattress cover.

• First Layer: 1” of gel foam that’s quilted down directly beneath the top cover, creating pockets for comfort. 
• Second Layer: 2” of gel foam, which provides contouring and padding to prevent you from feeling the coils in the support layer. 
• Third Layer: 8” individually wrapped pocket coils, divided into five support zones for targeted pressure relief. Sidewalls contain 3” of encasement foam to reinforce the perimeter of the mattress. 
• Fourth Layer: 0.5” of base foam to provide additional support and fully encase the coils. 

Octave Mattress Layers

The 12” Octave Vista is a three-layer memory foam mattress that delivers an exceptional blend of cool, cushioned support. Its numerous cooling features include a nanofibre cover, CopperGel™ memory foam infused with phase-change material, and multi-zone support foam with built-in air channels.

• First Layer: 2” of CopperGel™ memory foam, paired with moisture-wicking PolarMAX® phase-change material. This high-performance layer pulls heat and sweat away from your body for a cooler, more comfortable sleep. As an antimicrobial metal, copper can also help reduce bacteria and maintain the cleanliness of your mattress.
• Second Layer: 2” of premium Elastex® foam. This responsive, body-contouring middle layer feels and responds like natural latex. It adds a little extra bounce to your sleep so you can shift positions more easily.
• Third Layer: 8” of high-density, ultra-durable motion isolation support foam to help you stay asleep, even with a restless partner. This layer also contains air channels to let warm air escape and fresh air flow through.

Serta vs Octave Mattress Cover

Serta Mattress Cover

The Serta Percevall cover is cool to the touch, with a ComfortCool Anti-Microbial fabric. The quilted cover is white with irregular dark blue striped highlights. The sides of the mattress are also dark blue, with a thick diamond pattern stripe running the middle width of the mattress. The cover is not removable or machine-washable and can only be spot-treated. 

Serta says the mattress cover material promotes a cool, comfortable sleep along with the gel foam. However, we couldn’t find any independent reviews to validate this claim.

Octave Mattress Cover

Octave Vista is refreshingly cool to the touch, thanks to CryoFusion™ nanofibres in the top cover. The upgraded models—Mirage and Horizon—contain a higher number of nanofibres, making them even cooler. These nanofibre-infused fabrics have excellent breathability and moisture-wicking properties.

Octave’s mattress cover features a swirling, blue-grey pattern that is unique to each mattress. The removable, machine-washable cover connects to the navy-blue base with a sturdy yet stylish zipper.

Feel & Firmness

According to the testing conducted by third-party engineers (commissioned by us), the Octave Vista mattress and the Serta Percevall mattress vary in feel and firmness:

• Serta Percevall is considered a firm mattress, rated at 7.6 / 10 on the firmness scale. This mattress won’t have much sink to it and may be more suitable for back and stomach sleepers, as well as heavier sleepers. Side sleepers may be less comfortable on this mattress.
• Octave Vista is a medium-firm mattress and is rated at 6.8 / 10 on the firmness scale. That means it will be slightly on the firmer side while striking a good balance of comfort and support. Medium-firm mattresses are a great choice for most Canadian sleepers, as they tend to suit the widest range of body types and sleep styles.

Edge Support

Foam mattresses are not generally known for their edge support compared to hybrid or coil mattresses. Octave Vista stands out in that regard, earning an above-average edge support score. Serta Elite Percevall also received an above-average score.

• The Sealy mattress has excellent edge support at 8.5 / 10. This means you should not have any trouble getting out of bed or sitting on the edge of the bed.
• The Octave mattress has above-average edge support with a score of 7.5 / 10. Sleepers should be able to sit comfortably on the edge of the bed and get up without difficulty.

Motion Isolation

Motion isolation in foam mattresses is usually very good. This is one of the main reasons couples switch from innerspring to memory foam. Our third-party engineer testing (commissioned by us) shows that:

• The Serta Percevall has slightly above-average motion isolation at 6.3 / 10. Sleepers may feel some amount of movement from their partner, kids, or pets.
• The Octave mattress has above-average motion isolation, at 7.3 / 10 on the motion isolation scale. Sleepers shouldn’t notice movements from the other side of the mattress.

Bounce

Because foam mattresses excel at motion isolation, their bounce ratings are generally very low. According to the testing conducted by third-party engineers (commissioned by us), the Serta mattress vs Octave have completely different bounce scores:

• The Serta Percevall is rated at 7.8 / 10 on the bounce scale, which is well above average. Hybrids tend to be bouncier than foam mattresses, but the amount of bounce can also depend on overall mattress firmness and the thickness of individual layers. The Percevall will have a highly springy and responsive sleep surface.
• The Octave mattress is rated at a below-average 3.7 / 10 on the bounce scale. This can be attributed to its high motion isolation and foam composition. The layer of premium Elastex® foam will prevent you from getting “stuck” in the mattress, thanks to its springiness and responsiveness. This makes it easier to shift positions or get out of bed.

* Octave was named Canada’s Best Cooling Mattress by Best Health Magazine, which has an existing business relationship with GoodMorning.com.