How Do I Pick The Right Pillow
Picking the right pillow for you may feel like something of a trial-and-error situation, but if you take into account your sleep style, any back pain or neck pain you might be experiencing, and your personal preferences for how soft or firm you like your pillow to be, you’ll be able to find something that fits all your criteria. If you’re an especially fussy sleeper, we’d recommend opting for a pillow that has adjustable features, like the Emma and the Simba pillows, which give you the option to tailor them to just your liking.
A Ventilated Gel Memory Foam Pillow At An Affordable Price
Amazon
Fill Material: Memory foam and temperature-regulating gel | Size Options: Standard, queen, king | Density: Medium firm
Dont let the low price fool youthe Weekender has a lot going for it. This pillow is made with soft and supportive memory foam to cradle your head and neck while providing pressure relief and comfort. It also has a ventilated design and temperature-regulating gel to keep you cool and comfortable while you sleep. The removable cover is machine washable, too.
What Pillows Do Hotels Use
With down lauded as the ultimate luxury, many top rated hotels will use down, or feather-filled blend. After all, down pillows are often the best all rounders when it comes to sleep position. So while memory foam options are really good for the individual buyer especially the options that can be customised they aren’t quite as versatile for multiple users.
For the full boutique feel, teaming a best pillow with one of the best duvets will ensure what you’re sleeping under is just as good as what you’re sleeping on.
You May Like: Are Firm Mattresses Bad For Side Sleepers
What We Think Of The Utopia Bedding Ub0718 Premium Plush Pillow
As the name suggests, the Utopia Bedding UB0718 Premium Plush Pillow has a plush feel to it rather than one of firmness. However, this doesnt mean it isnt supportive its simply a different kind of support. This pillow allows your head to sink in to reach perfect alignment instead of having the head sit on top of the pillow like a memory foam fill will do.
The pillow is filled with polyester which is what gives it its plush feel. Although polyester pillows tend to deflate faster than pillows with other fill types, this model is built to last and does just that. You wont be replacing these pillows an excessive amount, which is even better for people shopping on a budget. This pillow comes in a traditional white and is available in queen or king sizes.
I absolutely love my Utopia Bedding pillows. I have always used this brand and this time around I went with a cheaper model to compare. While not quite the same quality as the thicker pillows I normally buy from this company, I have been quite impressed by how supportive and long lasting these budget pillows are. Highly recommend to those with a limited amount to spend.
Erik S.
An Adaptive Foam Pillow That Keeps You Cool At Night
Tuft & Needle
Fill Material: T& N Adaptive Foam, graphite, cooling gel beads | Size Options: Standard, king | Density: Medium-firm
The Tuft & Needle Original Foam Pillow is soft and squishy yet supportivethe dream pillow trifecta. Its made of T& N Adaptive Foam thats been custom cut so it properly aligns your head and neck, while keeping its shape all night. It also contains graphite, which pulls heat away from your head while you sleep, and cooling gel beads that trap heat, so youre always sleeping on the cool side of the pillow.
Also Check: Is Sleeping On A Hard Mattress Good For Your Back
Why Trust Good Housekeeping
Lexie Sachs is the Executive Director of the Textiles, Paper & Apparel Lab at the Good Housekeeping Institute. She has a Bachelor of Science degree in Fiber Science from Cornell University and more than 15 years experience in the textiles industry, including merchandising and product development for home products. Lexie joined Good Housekeeping in 2013 and has extensively tested all types of beddingâincluding mattresses, sheets, pillows, comforters and more â using specialized lab equipment and with hundreds of testers.
A Memory Foam Pillow Thats Made To Your Specifications
Fill Material: Memory foam | Size Options: Standard, king | Density: Your choice
Plutos customizable pillowthe first of its kind, the company boastscomes recommended by two Forbes Vetted editors. To get a pillow made just for you, simply fill out a brief online quiz about your current pillow, pillow preferences and sleep style, and the companys algorithm will deliver a recommendation for the best model for you. And in the unlikely event you dont end up loving your pillow, rest assured that Plutos 110-night risk-free trial gives you an easy out .
Recommended Reading: Where To Buy Serta Icomfort Mattress
Best Pillow For Side Sleepers
Layla Kapok Pillow
- Fill type: Foam and kapok fiber
- Height: 7 inches, adjustable
Many happy reviewers call this pillow perfect for side sleepers. They claim its comfortable and supportive, it maintains its loft through the night, and it improves neck and shoulder pain.
Need a tall pillow? A flat pillow? The Layla pillow can work either way. It comes stuffed full, but the cover unzips so you can easily adjust the height to maintain spinal alignment while you sleep.
The pillow is made using shredded memory foam and fibers from kapok tree seeds, which help give the pillow a soft, airy feel. A few reviewers go so far as to call it cloud-like.
The breathable cover is woven with copper-infused yarn, which the company says helps prevent unpleasant odors and trapped heat. Several reviewers confirm they did sleep cooler with this pillow, though a few people didnt notice much of a cooling effect.
Several reviewers mention a chemical smell that lasted for several days, so you may want to plan to air your new pillow out before sleeping on it. If you dont love the pillow, you can return it within 100 days.
Other Fillings To Consider
- Pros: Offer even support, breathable and wont cause overheating, naturally hypoallergenic, durable and long-lasting
- Cons: Most expensive option
Like their mattress counterparts, latex pillows are a less common choice, just 4% of members own this type. This is likely to be because they are often so expensive and can cost in excess of £100. However, there are still plenty of reasons to consider them.
With a similar feel to memory foam pillows, latex will contour and spring back to support your neck. Unlike memory foam pillows, they dont suffer from overheating in fact, theyll help you maintain a neutral temperature all night so you won’t need to flip the pillow over to the cool side.
Theyre durable and hold their shape well, longer than any other type of filling, and are naturally resistant to mould and dust mites, too.
Recommended Reading: Does Medicare Cover Mattresses For Seniors
Caring For Your Pillow
Before using it
Consider buying a pillow protector they’re quite inexpensive and available in most home and bedding shops. The pillow protector can be easily washed as well. Often pillow slips and/or protectors will stain yellow from a mixture of moisture and oils from your skin. Maintaining your pillow helps to keep your pillow fresh and clean, away from moisture and oils, and will also keep it from staining.
Daily
Give your pillow a good shake and fluff it up. This will help kill any dust mites and keep it fresher and cleaner.
Weekly
Some pillows can be put through a gentle washing machine cycle to keep them really clean, particularly polyester and latex pillows. Check the labels on your pillows, and if they’re suitable, pop them in the wash.
Every six months
Test your pillows with our simple four-step method to ensure your pillows are still in good condition.
Read more: How to wash a pillow
Layla Kapok: Best Pillow For Molding To Your Neck
Layla makes a beautiful range of more natural sleep products, including a down-alternative comforter , pillows, sheets and other bedding and accessories. As well as pure comfort, Laylas Kapok Memory Foam Pillow is big on sleep innovation, and feels as cool as it looks.
For the ultimate in natural materials, Layla takes responsibly harvested kapok fibers and uses them to fill its luxurious pillow for a super-light and airy feel. Whats more, the Layla Kapok Memory Foam Pillow comes over-stuffed, leaving you free to remove any filling to get the perfect pillow height for you.
The cover is woven with CuTEC, a copper-infused yarn that helps minimize odor and improve hygiene. The copper fibers also keep things cool with the CuTEC naturally pulling heat away from your skin to prevent overheating.
This pillow comes with a generous 120-day trial , which is plenty of time to figure out if its the right fit for you. The Layla Kapok Memory Foam Pillow is also covered by a five-year guarantee. One downside, if you do decide to commit, is that this pillow is not machine washable, so always use it with a protector and cover.
You May Like: Where To Try Memory Foam Mattress
The Best Pillows For 2022 Are:
- Best pillow overall Brook + Wilde marlowe pillow: £229, Brookandwilde.com
- Best pillow for supportive comfort Simba hybrid pillow: £81.75, Simbasleep.com
- Best pillow for excellent support Emma original pillow: £49.50, Emma-mattress.co.uk
- Best pillow for a luxury feel The White Company ultimate silk surround pillow: £85, Thewhitecompany.com
- Best pillow for side sleepers Panda bamboo memory foam pillow: £35.96, Mypandalife.com
- Best pillow for buying in pairs Soak & Sleep 90 Hungarian goose down pillow: £75, Soakandsleep.com
- Best pillow for reading in bed The White Company memory foam pillow: £45, Thewhitecompany.com
- Best pillow for waking up refreshed Greenfibres organic wool pillow with Swiss pine shavings: £99.60, Greenfibres.com
- Best pillow for luxury on a budget John Lewis & Partners mulberry silk blend standard pillow: £55, Johnlewis.com
- Best pillow for the environment Greenfibres Tencel pillow: £53, Greenfibres.com
Sleeping Duck Pillow Best Cooling
Highlights
Hot-sleeping Aussies everywhere, its time to cool down. The Sleeping Duck Pillow is the best cooling pillow that we found during our analysis. That can be attributed to the Hyper-Adaptive foam its made up of in addition to latex. The foam is 8x more open than whats found in the standard latex and memory foam combinations, thereby letting your pillow breathe and cool down.
This hybrid design gives you the lightness of a cloud along with the comfort of a firm mothers lap. Youll feel the pressure relief of memory foam and the buoyancy of the latex, experiencing weightlessness and support at the same time.
Soft yet firm, it definitely works side sleepers but back and stomach sleepers may find their peace too.
A user rates it as the coolest pillow on the Sleepingduck website:
Nothing like a standard latex pillow. This pillow is awesome and comfortable for back, side and tummy sleeping. I have always had trouble finding a pillow the right thickness to accommodate all three positions and this pillow is totally amazing.
You can get Sleeping Duck Pillow in the 60cmx40cmx9.5cm size, for $120.
Final verdict: We love Sleeping Duck Pillow on many counts. Its versatile, thin yet fluffy, soft yet firm, well made and soft. Whats commendable is that they expand their foam using pressure expansion rather than chemical reactions, making your pillow safer and healthier to rest on.
Read Also: How To Dispose Of A Mattress In Massachusetts
Hollowfibre/microfibre Pillows: Pros And Cons
- Pros: Cheapest option, can be washed at home, available in hypoallergenic options
- Cons: Not as breathable as others, short lifespan
About one third of our members chose microfibre or hollowfibre pillows. These pillows are easy to take care of, and can be washed at home . They come in a variety of shapes and heights, so you can choose the best for your sleeping position.
However, theyre not as malleable or breathable as other options, and have the shortest lifespan of all pillows it’s recommended that you replace them every few years. That said, they are a great basic option if youre shopping on a budget and want to be able to clean your pillows at home.
What Else We Recommend And Why:
Under $60
- FluffCo Down Alternative Pillow: FluffCo set out to create hotel-style pillows at an affordable price point. We liked its soft fluff pillow, which is an excellent option if you’re looking for simple, high-quality pillows for your bed.
$60 to $100
Over $100
- LAYR Pillow: This adjustable pillow offers three layers that can be added, removed, or independently adjusted for your perfect pillow. It’s a good option for guests since each layer is made of a different material and firmness, but it feels pretty underfilled with layers removed.
- Leesa Hybrid Pillow: This dual-sided, adjustable pillow is another great choice for neck pain. It has a soft polyester microfiber side and a gel side to keep you cool. You can remove the insert for a lower loft. The biggest drawback is its short, 30-day trial.
- Saatva Memory Foam Pillow: Previously our pick for “best luxury pillow,” we still think this is a great option, but feel you can get a “luxury” experience from any of our top picks. This pillow isn’t adjustable, but it’s supportive and firm and has a tremendous spa-like feel.
- Pillow Cube Side Sleeper Pro: A rectangular version of the popular cube-ish pillow, the polyurethane block is meant to keep your neck well aligned . It’s available in a few heights but lacks the adjustability of some of our other picks. Still, if one of the sizes happens to fit you, you’ll probably find it soft and supportive. Read our full Pillow Cube Side Sleeper Pro review.
Read Also: Does Memory Foam Mattress Have Springs
Coop Home Goods Premium Adjustable Loft Pillow
Specifications
Get the perfect pillow for you with this ultra-convenient adjustable bed pillow that can be made as deep or as flat as you like. Simply add to or reduce the filling to get the height you need to suit your sleep position or body size. The hypoallergenic fill is a non-toxic blend of memory foam and microfiber.
To add to the versatility, this pillow comes with an extra half-pound of fill, plus it can be machine washed. Meanwhile, the removable pillowcase is made from a super-breathable polyester and viscose rayon blend.
Over time the pillow does flatten, but the extra fill will come in handy should you need to plump it up again. Also, if youre not a fan of fuss and just want a sleep pillow that you can use straight away, then you might want to stick to one of the more conventional choices in our list of the best pillows for sleeping.
How Long Do Pillows Last
Even the best pillows aren’t meant to last forever for the best sleep, the National Sleep Foundation recommends replacing a well-used pillow every couple of years.
Our fluffy little pillows absorb a shocking amount of dead skin and body oils night after night, which is the perfect breeding ground for allergens like dust mites.
You can tell if it’s time for a new pillow if your pillow is lumpy or flat, no matter how much you fluff it. Robbins also told us that a healthy pillow springs back when you compress it if you fold your pillow in half and it stays put, it’s probably time for a new pillow.
Also Check: How To Buy A Good Mattress Online
Our Pillow Testing Methodology
To learn more about what to look for in a pillow, we spoke with Rebecca Robbins, sleep researcher, author, and instructor in medicine at Harvard Medical School and associate scientist at the Brigham and Women’s Hospital. However, there is no one-size-fits-all, best pillow for everyone.
Individual anatomy, sleep habits, and preferences profoundly impact how comfortable a pillow will be from person to person. For that reason, our rating criteria for this guide relied heavily on the following considerations:
Return policy and trial period: It’s impossible to know how comfortable a pillow is going to be for you until you sleep on it, despite how comprehensive our guide aims to be. “The most important thing is trying the pillows out to see what works for you,” said Robbins, which includes being able to touch, lay on, and sleep with a pillow before deciding if it’s right for you. For this guide, we only considered pillows that accept returns of used merchandise for a full refund with at least a 30-day trial window, which gives you ample time to decide if a pillow is right for you.
Adjustability: We prioritized adjustable pillows with removable inserts or shredded fill for dialing in your perfect loft. This creates a more custom pillow that would better suit your needs.
What Are The Benefits Of A Good Pillow
Great pillows are beneficial for a few reasons. First of all, the help you get a better sleep. We all know how much of an effect a bad nights sleep can have on our mental state and energy level, so a better pillow can improve your life in more ways than one. A good pillow will also help improve your spinal alignment and maintain good posture while you are asleep. This will prevent sore necks and aching backs during the rest of your day.
Also Check: Does Mattress Firm Sell Latex Mattresses
