When we set out on our mission to find the best pillows for a good night’s sleep, we had to admit we thought it would be a pretty easy task. After all, there’s not that much science to finding a good pillow right? However, it turns out it’s a little more complicated than that. As you may have come to realise if you’re tossing and turning at night squishing your current pillow into all kinds of shapes to try and get comfy, when it comes to pillows, one size does not fit all.
Just like when it comes to finding the best mattress for your particular sleep requirements, finding the best pillow for your best night’s sleep depends on a variety of different factors. That includes your regular sleep position – i.e whether you’re a front, back or side sleeper – whether you suffer from any aches and pains, like neck pain, and whether you’re someone who tends to overheat at night.
There’s also your preference for natural materials – like cotton, down, feather, or wool – or synthetic materials – like memory foam or polyester – to factor in. Plus there’s sustainability, and of course, budget to consider. You might also be desperately searching for an effective anti-snore pillow to silence a noisy bed partner!
The good news is that we’ve done the hard work for you… because in this case napping is work… right? The Ideal Home team has tried and tested multiple bestselling pillows from brand names big and small to find the cream of the crop. Our top choices are listed directly below, and we’ve broken down the basics of pillow shopping at the bottom of this guide. Happy snoozing!
Best pillows – the quick list
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One of the best pillows overall thanks to its adjustable fill that makes it a great all-rounder for front, back, and side sleepers.
The best pillow for side sleepers, this luxury-feel memory foam pillow delivers great spinal alignment.
Great value two-pack that feels far more luxurious than its price suggests.
This one-of-kind pillow converted even our memory foam cynics thanks to its dreamy sink-in sleep surface.
The one pillow, of the many we've tested, that elicited gasps of delight from our testers as they laid down their heads.
The best pillow for neck pain thanks to its carefully designed head and neck support
Best pillows – tried and tested
The Ideal Home team has tried and tested each of these pillows to find the very best night's sleep. Each pillow has been tested over multiple nights, and by a variety of reviewers; from hot sleepers looking for breathability, to those with neck pain or snoring issues, and a range of front, back, and side sleepers. This is our edit of the very best pillows that emerged from our research.
Best pillow for side sleepers
Thanks to its adjustable fill (a genius concept) this boxwall pillow could well offer the perfect side sleeping support. Just add or remove the foam 'nanocubes' to make the pillow the correct height for you. That means this pillow can work just as well for back and front sleepers too, making it a great all-rounder. And whilst synthetic pillow fill can sometimes lead to overheating, Simba has addressed this with its 'astronaut-inspired temperature regulation' (that's coating the cotton pillow outer in a formula that absorbs, stores, and releases heat when you need it).
Memory foam pillows often divide opinions, with some loving the adaptive sleep surface and others less keen on the firmer feel. However, the Panda Hybrid Bamboo pillow converted even our most memory foam-averse reviewers, with this pillow scoring highly amongst all testers, especially our side sleepers. The cool and silky bamboo rayon top layer gives the pillow a luxurious feel, and our side sleeping testers found the malleable memory foam inner brilliant for spinal alignment, in fact, several of our reviewers said they now won't sleep without it.
This pillow is an investment, but, if you're looking to invest in a good night's sleep, then this feather and down pillow will transform your boudoir into 5-star hotel luxe. It's the only one of the many pillows we've tested that elicited gasps of delight from our testers as they laid down their heads – yes, it really is that comfortable. It's filled with Downpass-certified Masurian goose down, comes in two firmness options, and is beautifully malleable to allow you to squish this pillow into the exact right sleep surface for you.
Best pillow for back sleepers
The Tempur Comfort Cloud pillow was by far the favourite pillow of our back-sleeping testers. The soft memory foam inner offered just the right loft for the majority of our back sleepers and its sink-in core was appreciated for the support it offered around the top of the neck and shoulders. It may be an investment, but after sleeping on this pillow for a week several of our reviewers said they wouldn't return to another pillow, with one saying, 'this pillow has changed my mind about memory foam – I'm definitely a convert!'.
Similar to the Simba Hybrid pillow with its adjustable foam 'nanocubes'. Woolroom's Chatsworth Washable Wool Pillow has a quilted cover that you can unzip to adjust the amount of wool filling inside. You can buy more wool fill to increase the height, (which side sleepers might find a necessity) but we found the default medium loft a great height for back sleepers. Better yet, the pillow is made from sustainable materials and is perfect for hot sleepers thanks to wool's breathable thermo-regulating qualities.
If you're a back sleeper who enjoys a firm sleep surface then we think this high-density memory foam pillow could be the option for you. It's designed to help side and back sleepers with neck pain, but our testers with no existing neck problems were just as impressed by its ergonomic shape that cradles the neck to offer optimum support during the night. It's also a great buy if you tend to switch positions during the night, with slightly higher headrests on either side of the pillow to cater for comfortable side sleeping.
Best pillow for front sleepers
This high quality feather and down pillow is super soft and very low loft, meaning it's ideal for front sleepers who need a pillow without too much height. The high ratio of 70% Hungarian goose down to 30% feather makes the pillow super squishy and malleable, and whilst side or back sleepers may find they need two pillows for comfort, our front sleeping testers found a single pillow the perfect height.
If you're a front sleeper who would prefer to avoid animal by-products then Simba's Hybrid pillow comes to the rescue again. This versatile all-rounder is height-adjustable so you can remove as many of the foam 'nanocubes' inside the pillow as necessary to create the perfect height pillow for your front-sleeping needs. There's even a handy bag included for storing the excess.
Whilst front sleepers are generally best avoiding memory foam pillows due to their high loft that will put strain on the neck, the Tempur Comfort Cloud is the one exception to the rule. This softer memory foam pillow is designed with much more in common with a regular pillow than the usual 'block-like' memory foam options, and it's low sink-in loft was extremely popular with our front-sleeping reviewers.
Best memory foam pillow
This one-of-kind pillow converted even our memory foam cynics thanks to its dreamy sink-in sleep surface. Unlike most memory foam pillows that tend to be quite firm and 'block-like' in design, has a much more 'traditional' pillow shape and loft, which means it looks great in a pillowcase, and suits a wide variety of sleepers, with our back and front sleepers both rating it highly, and our side sleeping testers also enjoying a great night's rest. Just bear in mind this pillow is heavy, so you'd definitely have an unfair advantage in a pillow fight!
Memory foam pillows often divide opinions, with some loving the adaptive sleep surface and others less keen on the firmer feel. However, the Panda Hybrid Bamboo pillow converted even our most memory foam-averse reviewers, with this pillow scoring highly amongst all testers, especially our side sleepers. The cool and silky bamboo rayon top layer gives the pillow a luxurious feel, and our side sleeping testers found the malleable memory foam inner brilliant for spinal alignment, in fact, several of our reviewers said they now won't sleep without it.
Another entry from Panda, the brand's original memory foam pillow is a design that's amassed a host of positive reviews online. The pillow is higher than the Panda Hybrid Bamboo Pillow, so whilst our back sleeping testers preferred the Hybrid, it was very popular with our side sleeping testers who appreciated the extra loft. Without the quilted bamboo rayon upper layer, it doesn't feel as luxurious as Panda's Hybrid pillow, but it is nearly half the price, which makes it a great value memory foam option.
Best feather and down pillow
This pillow is an investment, but, if you're looking to invest in a good night's sleep, then this feather and down pillow will transform your boudoir into 5-star hotel luxe. It's the only one of the many pillows we've tested that elicited gasps of delight from our testers as they laid down their heads – yes, it really is that comfortable. It's filled with Downpass-certified Masurian goose down, comes in two firmness options, and is beautifully malleable to allow you to squish this pillow into the exact right sleep surface for you.
If you're looking for a classic feather and down pillow then this option from Scooms is hard to beat, offering a plumptious fill that will deliver hotel pillow quality at home. It delivers that 'just right' mix of comfort and support thanks to a combination of a goose feather inner core surrounded by a softer, squashier layer of goose down, encased in a dust-mite proof high thread-count cotton cover that stops any filling from escaping. The result is a cloud-like pillow that our (non-vegan) testers loved sinking into.
Offering the luxe 'flumph' of down at a far more affordable price point, this two-pack of duck feather and down pillows from M&S is the best budget buy we've found. Other feather pillows at this price point have tended to clump or have uncomfortable feathers that stick through the casing, but not this option. Whilst the pillows are lower loft and clearly not the same quality as the Brook + Wilde or Scooms pillows, this is a great value set that still delivers great squish-factor for the price.
Best pillow for neck pain
In our opinion, this is by far the best pillow for neck pain of all the options we've tested. The ergonomic butterfly shape is specifically designed to support the cervical spine (the upper section that connects the head and back), to keep the head in alignment with the spine when back sleeping, and to support the natural curve of the neck and head whilst side sleeping. Our testers initially found the slow-rebound memory foam quite firm, but soon realised that was its winning formula. As one tester said, 'I recently pulled a muscle in my neck and this is the only pillow that could make me comfortable at night'.
Whilst Kally Sleep's butterfly pillow scored highly with most of our reviewers, a couple found it too low for their comfort, which is when this Zamat pillow came into its own. Offering ergonomic support that cradles the head and allows the cervical spine to rest in alignment, this is a slightly higher loft pillow that some of our testers found more comfortable, especially for side sleeping. It also comes with a removable pillow insert that gives you greater control over the pillow's height. The downside is it's not the most attractive, and you're unlikely – although the outer cover is washable. Still, if it helps your neck pain, that's a small price to pay.
If your neck pain is caused by the wrong height pillow and you're struggling to find just the right depth to keep your neck and spine in alignment, then Simba's adjustable fill pillow could be the solution. This boxwall pillow unzips so you can add or remove the foam 'nanocubes' that form the pillow's fill, enabling you to make it just the right height for you, whether you're a front, back, or side sleeper. And whilst synthetic pillow fill can sometimes lead to overheating, Simba has addressed this with its 'astronaut-inspired temperature regulation' (that's coating the cotton pillow outer in a formula that absorbs, stores, and releases heat when you need it).
How to choose the best pillow for you
It's easy to think that there isn't much to choosing a pillow, which is probably why most of us grab the cheapest two-pack of pillows we can find on the shelves. However, once neck pain, overheating, or general discomfort enter the equation it soon becomes clear there's more to finding a good pillow than meets the eye.
The best pillow for your best night’s sleep depends on a variety of different factors. That includes your regular sleep position – i.e whether you’re a front, back or side sleeper – whether you suffer from any aches and pains, like neck pain, and whether you’re someone who tends to overheat at night.
There’s also your preference for natural materials – like cotton, down, feather, or wool – or synthetic materials – like memory foam or polyester – to factor in. Plus there’s sustainability, and of course, budget to consider. You might also be desperately searching for an effective anti-snore pillow to silence a noisy bed partner. So what should you consider before splashing your cash in the search of a better night's sleep?
Are you a front, back or side sleeper?
Your preferred sleep position is probably one of the biggest factors to consider when choosing the best pillow for you. As James Leinhardt, Sleep & Posture Expert and Founder at Levitex explains “Choosing the right pillow for you is about ensuring the best possible sleeping surface for an optimised sleep posture", and that means considering your neck and spine alignment.
Whatever position you sleep in, if you imagine a thin pipe or tube (I like to think of a hosepipe!) running from the base of your spine to the top of your head, you want that tube to be straight with no kinks around the neck area. This means you don't want a pillow that's too flat – which will mean your head dips down forming a kink in the tube – or too high – which will force your neck to arch upwards adding a different kink to the spinal pipe.
The position you sleep in will largely determine the type of pillow you need to keep your spine aligned nicely straight.
Side sleepers – if you sleep on your side then you'll want a thicker pillow – or two thinner pillows – that lift your head enough to keep your spine and neck in alignment. Finding the correct height can be a challenge as everyone’s shoulders are different widths – wider shoulders mean you'll need more pillow height to keep your neck straight once you're laid on your side. A boxwall or memory foam pillow can be a good bet here as they both provide a more structured pillow that offers height but prevents your head from sinking too much.
Front sleepers – this sleep position is generally the one most frowned upon by osteopaths as unless you faceplant your pillow you're likely twisting your head to either side which isn't great for your spinal alignment and puts pressure on the neck. However, as a front sleeper myself I know it can be a hard habit to break! Front sleepers will want a softer, thinner pillow that doesn’t lift the head too far from the bed.
Back sleepers – if you sleep on your back you’ll want a mid-height pillow that sits somewhere between a thinner front-sleepers pillow and a higher side sleepers pillow. Again it’s all about spinal alignment, you don’t want a pillow that forces the neck to arch too far upward or sink too deeply down. A memory foam pillow can offer good support, moulding to the neck to support this area, whilst allowing the head to sink slightly deeper.
Which filling is best for pillows?
Spend some time looking for a new pillow and you'll soon realise there are a whole host of pillow fillings available. From hollowfibre to goose down, synthetic to natural, the array of terms and materials can fast become a little overwhelming.
To help you get to grips with the basics, we've broken down the pros and cons of most common pillow fillings below.
First up, it's synthetic fillings. These pillows are filled with manmade fibres, like polyester and polymide that are made from petroleum-based plastics.
Confusingly many manufacturers 'invent' their own terminology to dress things up to sound a bit more fancy, but the basic synthetic options are hollowfibre, microfibre, and memory foam.
Hollowfibre – the cheapest pillows you can buy tend to be made of hollowfibre. Made of polyester wadding, a hollowfibre pillow is dense but lightweight. A hollowfibre pillow is affordable, easy to care for as it can generally be washed at high temperatures, and anti-allergenic, which makes it a popular choice for kid's bedding. However, over time this pillow is most likely to flatten and become lumpy. Synthetics can also cause overheating and night sweats as the plastic polymer fibres aren't breathable and reflect body heat back towards the sleeper, and neither production or disposal at the end of the pillow's life span (plastic is non-biodegradable) is good news from an environmental point of view.
Microfibre – the 'luxury' version of hollowfibre, a microfibre fill is made of much finer strands of polyester resulting in a very lightweight pillow with a, yes, more luxurious feel. Some compare microfibre to the feel of down, but it has the upside of not running the risk of animal cruelty. However, again, being made of synthetics, the environmental impact of production and disposal is a concern. Like hollowfibre, microfibre can also cause overheating.
Memory foam – synthetic, yet a very different beast to hollowfibre or microfibre, memory foam is a dense material that offers a much firmer sleep surface. Activated by body heat, memory foam has elastic qualities that help it to mould to your contours as you sleep. This can make it a good choice for back sleepers and those who suffer from neck pain as it ensures good support of the head and neck. However it tends to be expensive, and some can find it too hot. Like with all synthetics, there are also environmental concerns.
Then there are the more traditional, natural fillings to consider. These range from all types of feathers and down to wool filling.
Down – long thought of as the Holy Grail of pillow fillings, down creates the plump, squishy and super soft pillow fill we perhaps all associate with the perfect pillow. This natural fill is also far more breathable than a synthetic option, making for a cooler sleep. However, sourced from either duck or goose on an industrial scale, the fill can raise concerns about animal cruelty. Down pillows also can't be washed, will need more plumping, and that luxury feel comes with a luxury price tag to match.
Feather and down – a more affordable alternative to pure down, a feather and down fill bulks out down's fine softness by adding some larger feathers into the mix. Goose feather and down tends to be the most luxurious mix, with duck feather and down the more affordable (yet often a little lumpier) alternative. Generally speaking, the more you spend on a feather and down pillow the better the quality, with some cheaper options resulting in escaped down and feathers that stick through the casing.
Wool – in our opinion, wool is a bit of a wonder fibre in terms of bedding fill. Insulating, breathable, temperature regulating, hypoallergenic, durable, a sustainable and renewable resource, and bio-degradable at end of the product's lifespan, it ticks a whole lot of boxes when it comes to the best pillow fill choice. However, it is currently quite hard to come by except from at specialist retailers, and not all wool pillows can be washed, so it pays to double-check the manufacturer's care instructions.
Temperature regulation
Overheating is one of the most common reasons for disrupted sleep or night-time waking. If you regularly flip your pillow over at night looking for the cooler side, it’s likely you need a ‘cooler’ more breathable option.
Synthetic pillow casing and fill is usually the biggest culprit if you find your pillow gets too hot in the night. Made of plastic polymers, synthetics aren’t breathable – although manufacturers try to combat this by adding in ‘spaces’ between fibres to enable airflow – so the natural heat of your head is reflected back to you, leading to overheating or a sweaty head. Natural materials like cotton, wool, feather, or down are far more breathable, and can generally offer a cooler sleep.
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.
How often should you replace your pillows?
To ensure continued support and hygiene, experts recommend re placing your pillows every one-two years. But since, you will get up close and personal with your pillow every night, a wash is necessary to ensure longevity.
Experts say you should wash your pillows every three to six months, so consider this when you buy. For more information on how often you should wash your pillows, read our handy guide. We love pillows with removable covers that can be tossed in the machine and even tumble dried as is common with many foam pillows. This means you can usually wash it, dry it and sleep on it by the evening. Great if you only have one set of pillows.
How did we test these pillows?
What better way to test out a pillow than to lay your head down for a nap?
In order to thoroughly test all the options in this round-up, most pillows have been tried out by multiple members of the Ideal Home team. Since some are side sleepers, front and back sleepers, and others allergy sufferers and individuals who struggle to regulate their temperature, it was important for more than one to rest their head on each pillow. As we’ve been preaching, one size doesn't fit all.
To earn a place on our shortlist, each pillow has to have represented great quality for its price, live up to specific claims made by the manufacturer, and, above all, provide the best night's sleep more times than most.
Click here to find out more about how we review products at Ideal Home.
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