A pressure sensor measures the surface pressure distribution of a body supported by a surface, for example a person lying on a mattress. In one approach, a pressure mapping system acquires a customer's pressure map using a reference mattress and presents this pressure data in the form of a pressure map. The pressure map measurement data is then analyzed to determine body characterizing parameters such as body mass index, contact area and average peak pressure. The pressure map measurements are then located on a mattress category grid that has been referenced and aligned to a large population sample of measurements taken with a reference mattress. Alternatively, the pressure map measurements are matched to a physical profile category within a database. Each category provides ranked mattress recommendations based on selection and ranking criteria derived from pressure map data obtained from a large sample of test subjects. In this way, a customer's pressure map can be translated to a recommendation of specific mattresses or mattress categories that are offered by a mattress retailer or manufacturer.