How to clean a mattress, step by step

The short answer: how to clean a mattress: strip the bed, vacuum, treat any stains, let baking soda do its work and air it out.

• Vacuum every surface, especially the seams
• Spot-clean with mild dish soap or an enzyme cleaner
• Deodorize with baking soda (a 1-pound box for a queen)
• Use a protector to keep it cleaner longer
• Next step: Plan it with the Cleaning Schedule ($4.49).

Knowing how to clean a mattress matters more than most people think. You spend about a third of your life on it, and over time it collects sweat, skin flakes, dust, spills and odors that a weekly sheet change never touches. The good news is that a deep clean takes only a little hands-on time. You strip the bed, vacuum, treat any stains, let baking soda do its work and air it out. This guide walks through each step, then covers specific stains, memory foam and how often to do it.

How to clean a mattress: the quick version

1. Strip the bed and wash all the bedding.
2. Vacuum the mattress, including the seams and sides.
3. Spot-clean stains by blotting with a mild soap solution or an enzyme cleaner.
4. Deodorize with a layer of baking soda for several hours, or up to 24.
5. Vacuum again and let the mattress air out before you remake the bed.

Consumer Reports' guide to cleaning a mattress follows the same basic order. It says to clean the mattress at least twice a year, and four times a year if you do not use a mattress encasement.

What you need

Step 1: Strip the bed and wash the bedding

Take off the sheets, pillowcases, mattress protector and any mattress pad. Wash them in the hottest water the care labels allow. MedlinePlus recommends washing bedding and pillows once a week in hot water, 130°F to 140°F, for people with dust allergies. NC State Extension's healthy home guide gives similar advice and adds that allergen-proof covers on mattresses and pillows help keep dust mites in check.

While the laundry runs, the mattress gets a chance to breathe, and you will be able to see every stain.

Step 2: Vacuum every surface

Use the upholstery attachment and go slowly over the whole top of the mattress in overlapping rows. Switch to the crevice tool for the seams, the piping around the edges and any tufts or buttons, where dust and crumbs settle. Do the sides too. If your mattress is not one-sided, flip it and vacuum the other side.

You do not need a special mattress vacuum. A regular vacuum with a clean filter works well. A vacuum with a HEPA filter is a good choice if anyone in the house has allergies, because it traps fine dust instead of blowing it back out.

Step 3: Spot-clean stains

The rule for any mattress stain is to blot, not rub, and to use as little liquid as you can. A mattress is thick, and water that soaks deep into it takes a long time to dry.

• General stains, dirt and food: mix 1 teaspoon of mild dish soap with 1 cup of warm water. Dip a clean cloth in it, wring it out and dab the stain. Then dab with a cloth dampened in plain water to rinse.
• Sweat and yellow stains: use an enzyme cleaner or upholstery cleaner, following the label. Yellowing that has built up over years may lighten but not disappear.
• Urine: blot up as much as possible with dry towels right away. Then apply an enzyme cleaner made for urine, which breaks down the odor-causing compounds rather than just covering them.
• Blood: use cold water, never hot, which sets protein stains. Dab with cold water and a little mild soap or an enzyme cleaner.

Test any cleaner on a hidden spot first. When you are done, blot the area with a dry towel and let it dry completely.

Step 4: Deodorize with baking soda

Once any damp spots are mostly dry, sprinkle baking soda in a thin, even layer over the whole top of the mattress. For a queen-size mattress, a 1-pound box is about right. Consumer Reports suggests leaving it for 24 hours if you can, ideally near a sunny window. If you need the bed tonight, even a few hours helps.

The baking soda soaks up odors and a bit of moisture. It is cheap, safe and does not leave a scent behind.

Step 5: Remove the baking soda and air it out

Wipe off as much baking soda as you can with a dry cloth, then vacuum the rest with the upholstery tool. Fine powder can be hard on some vacuums, so check your manual and empty or change the bag or filter afterward.

Open a window or run a fan for an hour or two. Then put on a clean mattress protector and fresh sheets.

How to clean different types of mattresses

How often to clean a mattress

Many people pair the twice-a-year deep clean with the time change in spring and fall, which makes it easy to remember. Not sure when is daylight savings this year? Our guide lists the 2026 and 2027 dates.

Keep your mattress cleaner for longer

• Use a protector. A washable, waterproof mattress protector stops most stains before they start. An allergen-proof encasement helps with dust mites.
• Keep humidity down. MedlinePlus notes that dust mites thrive in moist air and recommends keeping indoor humidity between 30% and 50%.
• Let the bed breathe. Pull the covers back for a while in the morning so moisture from the night can escape.
• Skip eating in bed, and keep pets on their own bedding if you can.
• Treat spills right away. A fresh stain is far easier to lift than an old one.

When to replace a mattress

Cleaning will not fix sagging, lumps or broken springs. If you wake up stiff, see a body-shaped dip or have stains and smells that come back no matter what you do, it may be time for a new one. Many mattresses last somewhere around 7 to 10 years, but comfort and support matter more than the calendar.

Put it on the schedule

The hardest part of mattress care is remembering it. Mattresses do not look dirty, so they get skipped for years. Writing the jobs down fixes that.

Our Cleaning Schedule ($4.49) is a 9-page printable with daily, weekly and monthly checklists, a seasonal deep clean list, room-by-room checklists, a family chore chart and a cleaning supplies list. Put "wash sheets" on the weekly page, "vacuum mattress" on the monthly page, and "deep clean and rotate mattress" on the seasonal list, so all three happen on time.

If you would like to get the whole household organized at once, the Home Management Bundle ($16.99) includes the Cleaning Schedule along with the Household Binder, Home Maintenance Log, Home Inventory, Moving Planner and Password & Accounts Log. Bought separately, those six come to $32.94.

A simple mattress cleaning calendar

Keep it easy to remember. Wash sheets and pillowcases weekly, and the mattress protector monthly or after any spill. Vacuum the mattress top and sides with the upholstery tool each season, and rotate it at the same time unless the maker says not to. Once or twice a year, do the full refresh: baking soda, a long sit, a slow vacuum and an airing in a sunny room.

Pillows next: our guide on how to wash pillows covers every fill type.

Your next step

Pick a day this week when you can leave the bed bare for a few hours. Strip it, vacuum it, treat any stains and sprinkle on the baking soda before you head out. By evening you will have a fresher bed, and you can write the next deep clean date on your calendar for six months from now.