Best pillow 2025 − tried and tested to suit every sleep style

If you ask a group of people what makes the best pillow, they'll give you radically different answers, depending on their sleep style. I sleep on my stomach, so I prefer a soft, thin pillow that flattens beneath my head and saves my neck from straining. If you sleep on your side, you might prefer a thicker, firmer pillow to cushion your neck and shoulders. With so many choices to make, it can be difficult to know where to start.

That's where I come in. As Homes & Gardens' resident Sleep Editor, I lead a team of testers across the country in the search to find the best pillow. Together, we've spent years in the sleep industry, so we know the pros and cons of different pillow types to suit different sleepers, from fluffy down numbers to memory foam models. I've developed a series of pillow buying rules to help you find the perfect fit.

We sleep on each pillow for eight hours a night, seven nights a week, for a minimum of 30 nights before we write our reviews. That's hundreds of hours of testing for comfort, support, and thermoregulation. Our reigning champion is the Marlow Pillow, which features adjustable firmness to suit any sleep style, but you might find that another of our tested pillows is a better match for you.

Best pillow − 6 tested options at a glance

Below, you'll find a bite-size summary of each pillow, outlining who it suits and what it costs. To learn more about a particular pillow, keep scrolling or hit 'read more below' to shortcut to that section. There, I've listed the need-to-know specs, including the firmness and filling of each pillow, before sharing the details of our testing experience.

The best pillow overall

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The best pillow should suit every style of sleeper, so that you can pass it around to each member of your household or place it in your guest bedroom to help your friends and family sleep comfortably. It follows that the best pillow is an adjustable pillow, and the Marlow Pillow checks every box for comfort, cooling, and cost.

Some adjustable pillow brands use a series of pillow inserts or heaped handfuls of fluff, which you can remove and replace until your pillow reaches your desired height. The problem with these methods is that they're a little messy. You'll need to find somewhere to store whichever inserts you aren't using and take care not to spread your fluff all over the floor.

The Marlow Pillow incorporates an intuitive design to maximize comfort and minimize mess. There are two zippers: one at the top and one at the bottom of the pillow. All you need to do is open and close the zippers, letting air in and out of the pillow until you reach your optimal firmness and feel. It took me a few tries to achieve my ideal consistency, but once I'd found it, I knew I'd never slept on such a comfortable pillow. The gel-infused memory foam kept me cool through my pillow cover in the summer heat.

As luck would have it, the best pillow in this buying guide is also the most affordable: at full price, the Marlow Pillow retails for just $49, and it's often discounted in the bedding sales. I'd recommend this pillow to everyone, unless you don't like the feel of memory foam: in that case, I'd encourage you to consider the Brooklinen Down Pillow as an alternative.

Reviewed by

Reviewed by

Emilia Hitching

As our resident Sleep Editor, Emilia leads a team of expert testers across the country to rank and review the best pillows. Emilia looks for versatile pillows which are adjustable to suit every head in the household. Read the full review: The Marlow Pillow

The Marlow Pillow | Was $49, now $36.75 at Brooklinen

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The best pillow for side sleepers

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The Sleep Number PlushComfort Pillow collection offers three distinct shapes and sizes to suit all sleep styles. The Classic Pillow lies soft and flat, most comfortable for back and stomach sleepers. The Ultimate Pillow is filled with inserts, which you can remove and replace until you reach your ideal look and feel. The Curved Pillow stands out as the best pillow for side sleepers.

Picture the Curved Pillow as a rectangle: three sides are straight, but the bottom edge is curved to fit into the gap between your neck and shoulders. 'I found that the PlushComfort Pillow saved my neck from straining when I lay on my side,' says expert tester Alex Frost. 'I noticed how much straighter my spine felt: I wasn't twisting to try and get pressure relief, which meant my back muscles felt looser in the morning.'

'The PlushComfort Pillow walks the line between squish and support,' Alex continues. 'It's filled with down alternatives, so you get the look and feel of down without the effort of fluffing it. Given the unique shapes of the PlushComfort pillows, I was intrigued to see whether they fit inside my standard pillowcases, and I was surprised to find they did. The cases didn't fall off or cinch up but wrapped right around the pillow.'

'Retailing for around $70, the price of the pillow is well aligned with the value,' says Alex. 'This feels like a pillow that will hold its shape well over time: it hasn't broken down at all through weeks of daily testing.'

Reviewed by

Reviewed by

Alex Frost

Alex is one of our most prolific sleep product testers, with eight mattress reviews, a comforter review, and a pillow review under her belt. As someone who suffers from upper back pain, Alex needs a pillow to support her neck and spine. Read the full review: Sleep Number PlushComfort Pillow

Sleep Number PlushComfort Curved Pillow | $69.99 at Sleep Number

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The best pillow for neck pain

The Luxome LAYR Customizable Pillow boasts a 4.9 average star rating from 1757 verified customer reviews. Almost every review mentions the convenience of the adjustable design: you can increase or decrease the firmness and loft of the pillows by removing or adding the memory foam inserts. Just make sure you find somewhere to store any surplus inserts.

'I have tried multiple high end pillow brands due to chronic neck, back, and hip pain,' begins one recent review. 'The LAYR Pillow has been the only one that truly corrects my spinal alignment. I have been pain-free since the first night. My current combo is soft + medium. Planning to surprise my husband with one soon.'

'For years I have had to manipulate pillows to try to take pressure off my sore left shoulder,' says another happy customer. 'Eight weeks ago, I underwent shoulder replacement surgery, and I'm feeling the stress of recovery. I was skeptical about the LAYR but willing to try just about anything to sleep horizontally again. I think this is it. There's enough softness to sleep on my back sometimes and firm support that keeps my shoulder from scrunching into the mattress when on my side. Thumbs up.'

There are a smattering of more mixed reviews, most of which concern the cooling, or lack thereof. The cover is made from bamboo viscose, which feels cool to the touch, but the inserts are made from memory foam, which is known to trap heat. If you suffer from night sweats or hot flashes, you need a cooling pillow, such as the Saatva Latex Pillow. If you're looking for a more affordable adjustable pillow, I recommend the Marlow Pillow.

Luxome LAYR Customizable Pillow | $140 at Luxome

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The best down pillow

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For plush comfort, there's nothing like real down. The Brooklinen Down Pillow is filled with fluffy clusters of duck down and features lots of little air pockets with retain heat and maintain loft. I'd recommend a down pillow for anyone who wants a beautiful bedspread, though hot sleepers might want to steer clear.

Cheap down pillows are filled with feathers, whose sharp little shafts can poke through the pillowcase and scratch your skin. The Brooklinen Down Pillow, by contrast, uses clusters of duck down, incorporating all the fluff and leaving all the filaments behind.

The Brooklinen Down Pillow comes in Plush, Mid-Plush, and Firm to suit every sleep style. I tested the Mid-Plush, which I think is their most versatile pillow and the best fit for your guest bedroom. To keep your down pillow looking its best, make sure to fluff it every morning.

If you're an animal lover, you might be asking yourself: are down pillows ethical? I can confirm that the duck down in the Brooklinen Down Pillow is responsibly sourced from Hutterite farms and certified by DOWNMARK. If you're allergic to down, or you prefer to purchase vegan products, you'd be better off with a down alternative, such as the Marlow Pillow.

Brooklinen Down Pillow | Was $129, now $96.75 at Brooklinen

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The best memory foam pillow

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Like all the best memory foam pillows, The Fox Pillow is made to mold to the shape of your head to cushion your neck and shoulders. I'd recommend it for back and side sleepers, in particular. As soon as you remove the weight of your head, The Fox Pillow should spring right back into shape. You won't get those ugly indentations, the way you do with down pillows.

'The Lagoon Fox Pillow feels soft and squishy, not as firm as I'd expect from memory foam,' says expert tester Alex Temblador. 'I attribute that to the finely spun microfibers that make up the down alternative fill.'

Alex continues: 'I've realized lately that I prefer my pillows on the thinner side, as it helps to align my neck with my spine. My favorite thing about The Lagoon Fox Pillow is that I could continually adjust the thickness, removing and replacing fill until I figured out what worked for me.'

Retailing for $130, the Lagoon Fox Pillow is admittedly pricey. Alex thinks that 'ordering the Fox Performance Pack might be a better deal as it includes the pillow, a silk pillowcase, a travel compression bag, and a hat, just for fun. The silk pillowcase is exceptionally smooth, cool to the touch, and soft. It also assists with maintaining and improving the health of your hair and skin.'

Reviewed by

Reviewed by

Alex Temblador

Alex is one of our more prolific sleep product testers, with three mattress reviews, a mattress topper review, a comforter review, and a pillow review under her belt. As someone who suffers from recurring neckache, Alex appreciates the pressure relief of memory foam. Read the full review: Lagoon Fox Pillow

Lagoon Fox Pillow | Was $130.41, now $105.96 at Lagoon Sleep

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The best latex pillow

It's hard enough to find a premium pillow that meets your sleep needs. When you narrow the search to vegan products, it becomes almost impossible. Key word: almost. When I found the Saatva Latex Pillow, I found hotel-quality comfort at home: it's suitable for vegans and eco-conscious shoppers alike.

The Saatva Latex Pillow is filled with shredded natural latex, which works a lot like memory foam to mold to the shape of your head, neck, and shoulders. 'These are the most luxurious pillows,' says one recent reviewer. 'At night my head perfectly sinks into just the right depth and feels supported. The Saatva Latex Pillow works very well for either sleeping on your back or side.'

Unlike memory foam, natural latex is eco-friendly and suitable for hot sleepers. The open-cell structure of latex creates plenty of air pockets. Latex is also hypoallergenic and antimicrobial to resist the growth of dust mites and mildew.

The Saatva Latex Pillow comes in two heights: Standard Loft, which is roughly five inches tall, and High Loft, which goes up to seven inches. I'd recommend the Standard Loft for back sleepers and High Loft for side sleepers: stomach sleepers should shop for something flatter, such as the Brooklinen Down Pillow.

Saatva Latex Pillow | $165 at Saatva

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Best pillow – Side by side

Honorable mentions

Over the years, our expert team has tested 12 pillows. Our top six represents the best for comfort, cooling, and cost, but you might find that another pillow is more suitable for your sleep style. With that in mind, I want to spotlight two more tested pillows for your consideration.

• Cozy Earth Silk Pillow: retailing for $254 for a Standard size, the Cozy Earth Silk Pillow is the most expensive I've ever tested, but that's the only reason it didn't make the main buying guide. Mulberry silk might be costly, but it's naturally cooling for hot sleepers and hypoallergenic to soothe sensitive skin. As a stomach sleeper who sometimes wakes up on my back, I appreciate the softness of the Cozy Earth pillow, which squishes beneath my body to save my neck from straining. If you're a side sleeper, and you're looking for something more supportive, I'd recommend the Saatva Latex Pillow, instead.
• Woolroom Organic Washable Wool Pillow: filled with organic wool, which makes a natural moisture-wicker, this is one of the best cooling pillows for anyone who suffers from night sweats. Much like the Lagoon Fox Pillow, the Woolroom Organic Washable Wool Pillow is easy to adjust to your ideal thickness and firmness, but you'll need to find somewhere to store that surplus wool. Testing got a little messy, as I kept finding tufts of wool on my carpet.

How we test pillows

I lead a team of seasoned product testers across the country to rank and review pillows. We test each pillow for at least 30 nights to get a good indication of future performance before we publish our initial review. Often, we continue to sleep on pillows after the end of the official test period and we update our reviews in accordance with changes in performance.

For the sake of fair comparison, we assess each pillow against the same criteria: comfort; support; thermoregulation; and durability. The Homes & Gardens review process is editorially independent and not influenced by third parties.

We evaluate the comfort and support of a pillow by flipping between our stomach, back, and side. We consider which position feels the most comfortable and the most supportive around our neck and shoulders, scoring each position out of five. We switch off our HVAC to assess thermoregulation while we sleep, taking into account the time of year and the temperature of the bedroom. To assess durability, we consider how the look and feel of the pillow changes over the course of the testing period, looking out for lumps and bumps.

As part of our pillow testing process, we spend hours reading verified customer reviews to get the fullest possible picture of long-term performance. Finally, we consider our findings against the cost of the pillow to help you determine value for money.

How to choose a pillow

Consider your sleep style

If you've ever read any of my articles, you'll know I talk a lot about sleep positions. Ask yourself whether you tend to lie on your back, your stomach, or your side, or whether you flip between a combination of the three in the night.

How you tend to lie on the bed informs which pillow height and firmness might be most suitable for you.

• Side sleepers appreciate a thicker, firmer pillow to fill the gap between their head and shoulders while supporting their neck.
• Back sleepers tend to prefer a medium-height pillow with a plush feel which allows their head to sink into the surface.
• Stomach sleepers benefit from a thin, soft pillow that squishes beneath their body weight and stops their neck from straining.

Consider your sleep temperature

If you suffer from night sweats or hot flashes, then you're what's known as a hot sleeper, and you need one of the best cooling pillows to regulate your temperature. If you live in a warm climate, or your bedroom faces the sun for a large portion of the day, you might consider a cooling pillow, too.

In my experience, natural fibers are far more breathable than synthetic substances. As a general rule, hot sleepers should opt for down, wool, or natural latex over down alternative or memory foam.

Set your budget

Before you start shopping, I suggest you set an upper and a lower limit to your budget. Personally, I'd never spend less than $40 on a pillow at full price, though I might be tempted to go lower during sales season, if the product is backed up by customer reviews. With that said, I'd hesitate to spend more than $100 on a pillow, unless I'm shopping for natural latex or silk.

Select your pillow type

Which pillow filling is best for you depends on your sleep style and your budget constraints. The most common pillow types are down, down alternative, memory foam, and latex: each filling has its pros and cons.

• Down pillows are filled with real duck and goose feathers. When clustered together, tufts of down are interspersed with countless tiny air pockets, which creates natural loft. Down pillows look best on your bedspread, but they need regular fluffing to keep in good condition.
• Down alternative pillows are typically filled with synthetic materials, including polyester and microfiber, spun into soft and silky fibers. Premium designs can look and feel a lot like down, while cheaper models can feel firm and inflexible. It's worth spending that little bit extra to get good-quality down alternative. I'd recommend a down alternative pillow for vegan shoppers and anybody with a feather allergy.
• Memory foam pillows are made to relieve pressure and ease pain. The foam molds to the shape of your head, neck, and shoulders, and springs back into shape as soon as your weight is removed. Memory foam pillows are pretty affordable, but they tend to trap heat, so I wouldn't recommend them for hot sleepers.
• Latex pillows share a lot of similarities with memory foam models, in that they're made to mold to the shape of your neck and shoulders to provide enhanced pain relief. Unlike memory foam, natural latex is an eco-friendly material that sleeps cool, so it's ideal for hot sleepers and eco-conscious shoppers. Out of all the pillow types, latex tends to be the most expensive.

FAQs

What's a good price for a pillow?

How much you should spend on a pillow depends on the pillow type. I'd expect to spend at least $100 on a down pillow to get real down, ethically sourced. Your average down alternative pillow is far more affordable, more in the remit of $50, but a natural latex or organic wool pillow will cost more like $150 for a Standard size.

How often should you replace your pillows?

Common consensus is that you should replace your pillow once every one or two years, but I'm not sure I agree. In the same way that you can extend the life of a mattress by flipping or rotating it, you can prolong the life of your pillow by turning it over. If you invest in a pillow cover, such as the SureGuard Pillow Protectors from Amazon, you should be able to keep your pillows looking and smelling clean and fresh for longer.

The best pillow deserves a premium pillowcase. For clearer skin, sleeker hair, and cooler sleep, consider one of the best silk pillowcases: they're a lot more affordable than you might think.