How to get urine out of a mattress

What to check before you start

• Whether the urine is still wet or has dried, and roughly how large the area is
• Whether it reached the mattress itself or was stopped by a removable cover, protector or topper. Those layers have their own care labels; this guide doesn't cover washing them
• What the mattress is, if you know: maker, model and main material (foam, latex, springs or a mix)
• The mattress's care label, the maker's care instructions and your warranty terms
• Whether anything has already been used on the mark, and what
• Disposable gloves if you have them, and washing your hands afterwards. This guide covers cleaning only; if illness or blood may be involved, follow current health guidance

Why the manufacturer's instructions come first

Mattresses are built from different materials, and makers' instructions differ to match. Three examples from makers' own pages:

• Tempur. Tempur's UK care page says its material cannot be washed, sponged or dry cleaned, and warns that soaking it with water or other cleaning fluids risks irreversible damage and will invalidate the guarantee. It also says not to steam-clean it. That's guidance for Tempur's own material, not a rule for every mattress.
• Hypnos and Vispring. Hypnos's care guide says not to use detergents or chemical cleaners on its mattresses, as they may bleach or disintegrate the fabric. Vispring's says to spot clean a spill or stain with a mild detergent and cold water and let the mattress air dry completely. Their guidance differs, though both advise against vacuuming in routine care.
• Nectar. Nectar's UK warranty says it doesn't cover defects caused by damage to the mattress or its cover, including liquid damage or stains. Warranty terms vary, so read yours.

Before using liquids, chemicals or a machine, check your own mattress's care instructions and warranty terms. We checked these sources on 20 September 2026; guidance can change, so check the current instructions for your mattress.

If the urine is still wet

1. Strip the bed and separate the layersRemove the bedding and any removable cover, protector or topper, so you can see what the urine reached. Each follows its own care label.
2. Absorb what you canPress clean, dry towels or cloths firmly onto the area, using a dry part each time, until little more comes up.
3. Blot, don't rubPressing or dabbing lifts liquid out. Rubbing can spread the mark.
4. Pause before adding liquidMore liquid can leave the mattress wetter without shifting what's left, and some makers advise against soaking at all.
5. Check the guidance before using any productRead your care instructions and warranty terms first. If they allow a product or method, use as little as you can, on a cloth rather than poured on, and try it on a small hidden area first. If you can't find any guidance, take extra care rather than assuming it's fine.
6. Let air reach the mattressLeave it uncovered in a well-ventilated room, and read the drying section below before making the bed.

If the urine has already dried

Dried urine isn't a fresh spill. Start by looking at what's left: a visible mark, a smell or both, and how large the area is.

Check your care instructions and warranty terms before adding anything. What suits a mattress depends on its materials, and no household method has been established as safe for every one.

Don't automatically wet the area again. Re-wetting dried urine is common online advice, but it puts liquid back into the mattress, and makers such as Tempur warn about soaking. Every further attempt adds moisture too.

Be realistic: a mark or smell may not disappear completely, however careful you are.

Human urine vs dog or cat urine

Whether the urine came from a person, a child's or an adult's accident, or from a dog or cat, the guidance that matters most is your mattress's. Makers' instructions are written around the mattress and its materials, and the sources we checked don't set out separate universal methods for human, dog and cat urine. Products made for pet urine exist, but whether one suits your mattress still depends on the maker's guidance and the product's label. This guide covers cleaning only, not health advice.

Let the mattress dry — without guessing what's happening inside

Airflow does most of the work. Keep the mattress uncovered in a well-ventilated room and leave the bed unmade until you're satisfied it has dried.

There's no drying time we can responsibly give: it depends on how much liquid reached the mattress, what it's made from and the room. A surface that feels dry doesn't prove the layers underneath are. That's our own cautious reading, not something a maker has demonstrated, and we haven't found a reliable household way to check inside a mattress. So don't keep adding moisture just because the top looks dry, and when in doubt, allow more time rather than less.

Once it's fully dry, look again at the mark and the smell before deciding whether to do more.

Excessive moisture can create conditions in which mould becomes a concern: Simba says a mattress that gets too wet can encourage bacteria or mould to grow. That doesn't show that urine causes mould; it's simply one more reason not to keep adding liquid.

What about bicarbonate, enzyme cleaners, vinegar or peroxide?

Bicarbonate of soda (baking soda). Some sources describe it as a dry treatment for smells; Consumer Reports, for example, suggests sprinkling it over the mattress and leaving it. The times sources give vary widely, so we haven't given one, and some makers advise against vacuuming in routine care, so check how yours says to remove it. It isn't universal, and it doesn't show that urine deeper in the mattress has been removed.

Enzyme cleaners. Consumer Reports says an enzyme-based odour remover can work on many bodily fluids and organic liquids, though not specifically urine on a mattress. Whether a product suits yours depends on your maker's instructions and the product's label, and we can't say any will remove urine completely.

White vinegar. It's widely suggested online, but some makers restrict liquids altogether, as Tempur does for its material. A maker's instructions come before online advice, and we don't give a mixture because none suits every mattress.

Hydrogen peroxide. It shows why compatibility matters: Hypnos, for instance, warns that detergents and chemical cleaners may bleach or disintegrate its fabric. Check your maker's guidance and the product's label, and don't mix cleaning products. We don't give a recipe or a strength.

Do you need a spot cleaner or extraction machine?

Not automatically. A spot cleaner or extraction machine adds liquid as well as removing it, so over-wetting is a risk, and mattress makers may restrict liquids. Their suitability for mattresses isn't established across the board.

Check your mattress maker's instructions and the machine's own. The instructions from one machine maker we looked at list carpets, fabric upholstery and car interiors, not mattresses.

Steam depends on the maker: Tempur says not to steam-clean its material, while some other brands allow it for certain mattress types.

If a mark or smell is still there

Judge the result once the mattress is completely dry. Complete removal isn't guaranteed, and a second attempt isn't automatically the next step.

If something remains, your mattress maker's customer support is a reasonable next step: they know the construction and their own guidance.

For an extensive or stubborn problem, a professional cleaner may be worth considering. Check your warranty terms first, as some makers restrict liquids, steam and chemicals. We can't say a professional will get a better result.

When to stop treating it

Each attempt adds moisture that a mattress's layers may hold on to. Pause and reassess, rather than trying again, if:

• the mattress is getting wetter with each attempt, not drier
• repeated attempts aren't improving the mark or the smell
• you're not sure what the mattress is made from, or what has already been used on it
• the maker's guidance rules out the method you were about to try
• a smell returns after the surface seemed dry — a reason to reassess, not to add more product
• the affected area seems large, or the urine seems to have soaked in deeply

Related guides

If it happened on a carpet or rug instead, our guide on dog urine smell on carpet covers pet urine there. If it was blood rather than urine, our guide on how to get blood out of a mattress covers that. If it's the smell rather than a mark you're dealing with, our guide on why mattresses can smell covers that separately. Browse the Mattresses section →