The Avocado Organic Mattress Cover and Pad Protector is a top choice for keeping your sleep space clean without plastic. Fully organic, with all the important green certifications, this is one of the best non-toxic, sustainably made mattress protectors available. Here’s our review, based on first-hand experience.
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Avocado Green Mattress Cover & Pad Protector
Highlights: Certified organic mattress protector that is absorbent, breathable, non-sweaty, non-toxic, and sustainable. Climate neutral, GOTS and MadeSafe certified, and made by a fantastic B Corp.
- GOTS certified organic
- MadeSafe certified
- No plastic
- Soft and comfortable
- Noiseless and breathable
- Machine washable and can be tumble dried
- Non-toxic and sustainable
- Made in the U.S. by a heavily certified sustainable B Corp
- 100-night trial and 1-year warranty
- Not waterproof
- Not a full mattress encasement
- Expensive
- Materials: Organic cotton
- Certifications: GOTS, PETA certified vegan, 1% for the Planet, B Corp, MadeSafe, FSC, Climate Neutral Certified, Greenguard Gold, Formaldehyde-Free UL, Oeko-Tex Standard 100, Fair Trade
- Cost: $239-$399
- Sizes available: Twin, Twin Xl, Full, Queen, King, Cali King
- Depths: Standard fits 6-16-inch deep mattresses, Deep Pocket fits up to 22-inch deep mattresses
The Avocado Green Organic Cotton Mattress Cover and Pad Protector is a top choice for protecting your mattress from minor spills, sweat, body oils, and stains. This protector isn’t waterproof and instead relies on layers of cotton batting to absorb and hold spills, so you buy a little time to save your mattress.
If you’re looking for a waterproof mattress cover that can handle incontinence, or those moments when you accidentally dump an entire cup of water (or worse) on your bed, check out Avocado’s Waterproof Mattress Protector (view on Avocado), which I also highly recommend.
What we like about the Avocado Organic Cotton Mattress Cover
This mattress cover comprises organic cotton through and through. The outer cover is a soft and luxurious 400 thread count sateen using long-staple cotton ticking. The inside is a 400 gram per yard organic cotton fiber fill that is carded.
Together these materials make for a breathable, absorbent, durable mattress cover that is less likely to rip and wear. It is non-sweaty, moisture-wicking, and expertly carded and quilted, meaning the cotton batting won’t move around and clump together in use or when you wash it.
Avocado ethically sources its organic cotton for this product from India, where it is also woven. The cotton meets global Fair Trade standards and is GOTS certified, as is the whole product. Avocado makes the product by hand in its organic certified factory in California.
There are no non-natural fibers in this product aside from the elastic band. Even this is certified STANDARD 100 by OEKO-TEX®, meaning no harmful chemicals.
Just as important as what’s inside a mattress cover is what’s not inside it.
Avocado’s mattress cover does not contain:
- Vinyl
- PVC
- Phthalates
- Polyfoam or polyurethane
- SBR
- Spandex
- Thermoplastic polyurethanes (TPUs)
- Formaldehyde
- Laminates
- Adhesives
- Chemical finishes or waterproof coatings.
This mattress cover is GOTS organic and Made Safe certified, meaning it is free from more than 6,500 toxic chemicals known or suspected to cause human or ecological harm.
Avocado reinforces the edges and uses organic cotton canvas on the base of the elasticated skirt, to prevent slipping. And, unlike most elastics, the fitted skirt comprises organic cotton too, not polyester with elastic properties. This is the kind of feature that Avocado excels at, demonstrating the company’s genuine commitment to doing things in a better, more sustainable, non-toxic way for people and planet.
I also love that the skirt has a three-quarter-inch wide elastic banner around its edge, so that it doesn’t pull and warp your mattress. This wouldn’t be an issue with a 12-inch mattress like mine, but for deeper mattresses, a poorly elasticated skirt can cause the mattress edges to turn up, which also puts more strain on the mattress cover and reduces its lifespan.
Avocado’s sustainable shipping (and more)
My mattress cover arrived in a simple cardboard box without branding (which saves on ink and resource use overall). There was no plastic packaging and I could easily recycle everything in the box.
I also like that the shipment is carbon neutral and that Avocado is a carbon negative business overall. It achieves this by supporting carbon offset projects via Carbonfund.org and is Climate Neutral Certified.
Like Leafscore, Avocado supports American Forests, a non-profit that works to protect and restore threatened wildland forest ecosystems, promote and expand urban forests, and educate people about the environment.
Avocado is also a longstanding Benefit Corporation (B Corp) and member of 1% for the Planet. It makes its bedding products in the U.S. in a GOTS certified factory and has control over its entire supply chain, making it one of the most transparent and credible businesses around. (This is why the lawsuit against Avocado surprised me, and likely why it was so quickly dismissed.)
How it performs
My experience with the Avocado Green Organic Cotton Mattress Cover and Pad Protector
My Avocado mattress cover was impressive right out of the box. Everything was easy to recycle and the cover felt super soft and cozy. Sure, the ribbon feels unnecessary, but it does make this rather uninspiring piece of essential bedding feel luxurious and indulgent. It would also make this a nice gift, should you be hopelessly practical like me (I bought my wife an Earthquake Kit for our first anniversary).
Moving on.
There was no chemical smell, off-gassing, or mustiness, from my new mattress protector, just that fresh organic cotton smell.
I gave the whole thing a quick once-over and found no loose threads, wonky seams, or other quality control issues.
I immediately appreciated the lightweight feel of the cover and how quiet it is compared to plastic waterproof protectors.
The cross-quilting makes the cover look great, feel great, and inspires confidence that it will stand up to regular use and regular washing.
What you don’t want in a mattress protector is the fiber fill moving around, leaving areas that are exposed and not protective and areas that are lumpy and uncomfortable. My previous cotton mattress cover suffered just this fate, which is why I sought out a more sustainable, durable replacement.
Because Avocado sizes its mattress cover very generously, so it can fit over a deep mattress, I had a lot of excess material to deal with. My mattress is just 12-inches deep, so there was quite a bit of organic cotton to tuck under the mattress. Avocado also intentionally sizes its covers big because organic cotton will shrink a little on the first few washes.
Happily, the top and sides fit great, with only a little excess material. I’ve come to expect this, though, because my Nolah mattress (see review) is smaller than a regular Queen size mattress.
As a hot sleeper who is noise sensitive, I love that this mattress cover is totally free of plastic. The organic cotton helps me stay cool overnight and there’s no crinkling or crackling to contend with.
As I co-sleep with my toddler for a chunk of every night, I’ve found it really reassuring to have this mattress cover in place. While it’s not fully waterproof, it is machine washable and very absorbent.
Thankfully, we haven’t had any nighttime accidents since I got this cover, and I didn’t feel much like throwing serious spills at intentionally. I did (finally) accidentally spill an almost full 250 mL glass of water on the bed though, giving me a chance to test the cover’s absorbency. The water spread through the cotton and stayed entirely in the mattress cover, with no appreciable leakage onto the mattress below.
Because I only spilled water, I untucked the cover on one side and propped up the wet part of the cover to let it air-dry during the day. By bedtime, the cover was totally dry (it was a heat wave). In cooler weather, I would definitely remove the cover in full and line dry it or hang it to dry.
Sizing and fit
This cover fits over the mattress like a fitted sheet, meaning there are no corner ties or elastics to contend with. This also adds a little protection to the sides of your mattress, although the sides aren’t full of cotton batting, so don’t absorb much.
Note that this cover comes in two depths. The Standard Pocket accommodates all Avocado mattresses, including the Eco Organic (see review) and Avocado Green Mattress (see review), from 6-16-inches in depth. The Deep Pocket accommodates mattresses up to 22-inches in depth, meaning this will almost certainly fit over your mattress plus a topper and a mattress pad.
Avocado also sizes the cover generously, knowing that it will shrink a little upon washing.
Care and maintenance
I love that this protector is machine washable. With kids, an old dog, and a propensity for clumsiness, being able to throw it in the wash is a real bonus.
That said, it’s best not to wash this cover more than strictly necessary. After all, this can shorten the lifespan of cotton products. Spot-cleaning is all it needs for most minor spills.
Also, note that it’s best to wash this cover with cold water. This will help to reduce damage to the cotton fibers and also means you won’t ‘set’ any proteins in stains. Washing in hot water can shrink the cotton and affect how the cover fits.
The cover can be tumble dried, but it’s best to line dry it or hang it to dry if you have space. Make sure it’s fully dry before putting it back on the bed.
Warranty and returns
Unlike almost all other mattress covers from other companies, this cover comes with a 100-night trial and a full refund if you’re not happy. You also get a 1-year warranty on the cover, in case manufacturing defects arise.
Remember, though, that this cover is not waterproof and Avocado does not pretend that it will entirely protect your mattress from the results of bigger leaks and spills. That means you can’t claim the cover is defective if some liquids make their way through to the mattress below.
If you do need a fully waterproof cover, Avocado offers a fantastic protector that has a thin layer of polyurethane membrane between organic cotton covers.
Final thoughts on the Avocado Green Organic Cotton Mattress Cover
The Avocado Green Organic Cotton Mattress Cover and Pad Protector is a great choice for an eco-friendly, totally non-toxic, entirely organic way to safeguard your mattress.
Having slept on it for a while now, I mostly forget the cover is in place. When I do remember, it offers excellent reassurance that my non-toxic, organic mattress will stay clean and dry from all but the worst incidents.
Avocado Organic Mattress Cover & Pad Protector
Highlights: Certified organic mattress protector that is absorbent, breathable, non-sweaty, non-toxic, and sustainable. Climate neutral, GOTS and MadeSafe certified, and made by a fantastic B Corp.