SoundAsleep Cloud Nine Air Mattress – 2023 Review Update
When Cloud Nine by SoundAsleep hit the market towards the end of 2016, it was a deer-in-headlights moment everybody in the industry.
The deer were the competing companies, and we were the squirrel in the tree curious to see how the new arrival will fair against the top models.
Before we move on to a more detailed analysis, let Andy explain what the ratings below mean.
Last updated: December 2023
What’s better about the Cloud 9?
Digest of user satisfaction stats
Below are a few numbers from the pool of data we collected from our testers and retailers that carry the Cloud 9.
- 1 in 128 owners saw an air leak or a pinhole developing within a month and 1 in 88 within 6-month (the warranty of the Cloud Nine is 1 Year)
- 98% of our testers described the Cloud 9 as comfortable
- 78% of those who already owned or tested 2 or more airbeds in the past said it was “the most comfortable” model they slept on
- Current user satisfaction % with the Cloud Nine (people who rated it with 4 or 5 stars is 96 %)
Rated 9.7 / 10 overall with a 96% user satisfaction
The best part is, things settled in and Cloud Nine is still standing the test of time. If the beginning of this review reads like a Teleshop ad that’s because this airbed deserved it with hard stats that you’ll see further down in the review.
It stands strong in what we believe to be the one category rating that sums up most of the others – the value for money, in spite of the fact that it’s a peg more expensive than most of the competition.
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Air retention - 98%98%
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Comfort - 98%98%
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Durability & Longevity - 96%96%
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User satisfaction - 96%96%
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Value for $ - 97%97%
PROs and CONs of the Cloud Nine
PROs
- Lowest air leak % in the industry at the 1 and 6 month mark
- Comfortable and sleeps like a real bed – the 40+ chambers distribute weight and make a stable sleeping surface
- Smart dual pump eliminates the risk of the airbed deflating, even if there is a pinhole
- Fast and silent inflation – the main pump inflated the best in under 3 minutes, and the secondary pump is quiet, which is not always the case with smart pumps
- Extra thick flocking, air beams and slightly raised edges
- Non-slip bottom material – no sliding or moving
- 1 Year warranty
CONs
- Price – costs about 20 % more than the competitor model with similar features
- No size and color choices – only comes in Queen size and blue-beige combo
- Only available for the US market
Air retention of the Cloud Nine
What models like Serta Never Flat had on the Dream Series (also made by SoundAsleep) was the Never Flat pump.
This pump kept the bed inflated through the night by silently adding air.
The response from SoundAsleep came in the form of including the Dual Smart Pump in the Cloud Nine, which pretty much does the same thing. This pushed the model to the very top, especially in some sizes, you can see our list of top performers in Twin size here.
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Air retention
Combine the advantages of the Comfort Coil Inner design
and the I-beams that were already there and showing
superior results in terms of not loosing air.
Comfort of the SoundAsleep Cloud 9 air mattress
Comfort was never an issue with SoundAsleep models, but Cloud 9 is a whole different beast.
The new pump that maintains firmness levels (three of them you can choose from) and the extra flocking added to the top, made the Cloud 9 one of the few air mattresses that sleep like a real bed.
It’s currently rated at 98/100 in the Comfort category.
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Comfort rating
Forget the confusing tech terms
No need to remember any of these tech terms, it can all get confusing if you get to the nitty-gritty of the industry lingo.
As much as the companies make an effort to describe the innovations with names and terms that sound like they belong on a space mission, you don’t need to understand it.
In fact, it’s wise if you don’t dwell on any of those, so let us put it all in plain terms.
What Comfort Coil, I-beams & Dual Smart Pump
mean for you?
The first two mean no bounciness and a flat and stable sleeping surface with no sinking to the middle.
The latter means there’s practically zero chance of you or your guests waking up to a deflated bed.
Durability and longevity of the SoundAsleep Cloud 9
%
Durability
What Fox Plush and a few other models had on the Dream Series was the durability of the PVC and the extra thickness of the top.
The response from SoundAsleep is making the PVC of the Cloud 9, multi-layered and “puncture-resistant”.
Why is “puncture-resistant in quotes?
We’re putting the puncture-resistant in quotes because we never liked the terms because it’s relative and doesn’t really mean anything.
If that’s how you judged airbeds, every single one of them would be great just because it says so its fact sheet.
The SoundAsleep Cloud Nine Series air mattress is the first model to have this kind of numbers, both in our testing and in the user reviews. This has been true since we first included it in our evaluations and not much has changed in this month’s update.
How are things in real life?
We’ve already seen the 2 most important numbers – percentage of leaks or pinholes developed after 1 month and 6 months of use.
Both of the numbers are very close to the most heavy-duty air mattresses out there, the Fox Plush and the Best Choice Bamboo.
Bottom line – so far it seems every bit as durable as the toughest models out there.
Final thoughts and takeaways
There’s no going back
Cloud Nine bests the competing models in what are supposed to be their stronger suits.
Honestly, we don’t see any space for improvement in terms of quality while keeping the price under $200.
The only way we see the Cloud 9 not being at the top anymore is if somebody made it at a lower price.
Knowing what goes into making this kind of airbed, we don’t see it happening.
were can I buy one of these ?
Hi Mr. Scott, you can order Cloud 9 by contacting the company or on Amazon (you can see the links to the Amazon listing by following some of the green or red buttons you can see in the guide above).
Getting them through Amazon is also a great way to read what other people are saying about them.
Cheers
What’s the difference between your cloud nine and your dream series?
Hi Cathy,
These are not our products, we don’t make them, SoundAsleep does – they’re a company based in New Jersey.
With that said, we can answer your question – the main difference between Cloud Nine and the Dream Series is that the former comes with a smart pump. This means that besides the main pump for inflation & deflation, it has a small secondary pump that stays plugged in and “kicks in” when it registers a drop in pressure of the chambers. If you ever owned an airbed before, you’ll know that one of the issues are slow, mysterious leaks even when there’s no hole – the smart pump is a solution to that issue.
The later mattress does have a very low incidence of leaks but the pump is classic…naturally, this also means that Cloud 9 costs more.
We hope this helps