Cheap CCF vs. RidgeRest/ZRest (in terms of comfort)?

I'll answer this the way you asked it :)

The Ridgerest is more comfortable given it's design. The others kill me.

It's inflatable or hammock for me, although I'm VERY envious of those who can use CCF.

I use a nightlite personally, but they all seem equally uncomfortable to me. To absolutely guarantee a poor night's sleep, I also cut it down really, really small. Still, the simplicity and weight savings make it worth it for me.

Thanks, Todd and Ike. For most trips, I'm pretty sure I'm going back to inflatable. But the cost of the Ridgerest is reasonable enough I think I'll experiment with it, those times I need something puncture proof.

to me the advantage of the ridgerest (other than incredible warmth) is that the condensation pools in the ridges during the night. instead of making my shirt damp, in the morning the water is on the pad and i just shake it off.

I use a Ridge Rest, and I don't notice too much difference in comfort compared to CCF. I like the RidgeRest because it's easy to roll up part of it to use as a pillow. I also sleep with something under my knees (pack or such), which alleviates much of the discomfort on my lower back and bony prominences.

If anything, I'd vote the difference in comfort is subtle.

I use a ridgerest. I would agree that the difference in comfort is probably close to none, however the smoother surface of the RR makes it monumentally easier to pack as an "internal frame", and is also not so sticky on my face or arms.

Having to attempt patching an inflatable in the field, particularly at night (when you would notice) has kept me away. And that weird bouncy feeling when you move around.