Best Pillow for Side Sleepers
Last Updated: November, 2024
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Often sleepers focus on features of a good mattress or a good bed foundation and forget to put as much keenness when purchasing pillows. There's no good or bad pillow - so to speak. What matters is your sleep needs. A side sleeper's perfect pillow is a back sleeper's worst nightmare. Therefore it's good to know what works best for your type of sleeper.
We went on the hunt to carefully select the best pillows for side sleepers and reviewed them to help you make the right purchase. According to our mattress tester, the best pillow for side sleepers is the Amerisleep Dual Comfort pillow. Read on to learn more about the top selections.
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A Quick Look at Our Top 7 Best Pillows for Side Sleepers
Amerisleep Dual Comfort Pillow
The pressure-relieving foam of this Amerisleep Dual Comfort Pillow conforms to your neck and head's shape, providing optimal spinal alignment. Moreover, its memory foam is CertiPUR-US certified, guaranteeing buyers that it is high quality and toxin-free.
Plushbeds Organic Shredded Latex Pillow
Plushbeds Organic Shredded Latex Pillow's shredded latex allows you to customize the loft depending on your comfort preference. The latex properties of this pillow also allow for exquisite pressure relief along the neck and shoulder region, granting you a comfortable sleep.
Molecule All-season Pillow
Thanks to its Air-Engineered™ Design, this dual-sided pillow combines a firmer side with slightly raised edges and a softer side to help alleviate pressure points, providing sleepers personalized comfort regardless of their sleep styles.
With its medium soft feel, this pillow excellently adapts to your head and neck, providing precise support and pressure relief for a rejuvenating sleep. Moreover, the AirFoam™ Technology design ensures the pillow remains exceptionally durable and retains its shape for extended periods.
SleepOvation Pillow
The SleepOvation Pillow possesses 77 tiny cushions that provide sleepers targeted pressure relief in their neck and shoulder region. It also offers customized support since each cushion adjusts accordingly to contour to your body's shape.
Zoma Body pillow
Unlike most memory foam pillows, the Zoma Body Pillow has an extended length that allows room for more versatile positioning. For instance, you can hug the pillow while placing it between your legs for full body support. Notably, this feature makes it suitable for pregnant mothers who need more support around their backs, bellies, and hips.
GhostBed Cooling Gel Memory Foam Pillow
Thanks to its cool-to-the-touch cover, you can rest assured of a neutral temperature on either side of the pillow. In addition to superior cooling, the pillow's ergonomic design helps keep your head, neck, and spine properly aligned.
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As a side sleeper seeking the best memory foam pillow, this Amerisleep Dual Comfort Pillow guarantees balanced support and comfort. Its Bio-Pur Memory Foam design not only contours to your neck and head for proper spinal alignment but also maintains an excellent cooling environment.
One of Amerisleep Dual Comfort Pillow's noticeable features is its enhanced cooling properties. For starters, it features a premium cooling cover, which helps regulate your body temperature. The pillow also features Amerisleep's proprietary plant-based Bio-Pur Foam in its design, which helps enhance overall breathability much more efficiently than traditional memory foam.
Note that this Amerisleep Pillow also doubles as an excellent adjustable pillow, thanks to its memory foam construction. Its flippable design allows you to customize the firmness depending on your comfort preference. Generally, this ensures side sleepers find the right level of support for their shoulders and neck.
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Side sleepers should hunt for the best pillow that offers excellent neck support while granting them a cool and comfortable sleep environment. Fortunately, Plushbeds Organic Shredded Latex Pillow provides all this in a single package.
As a side sleeper pillow, this Plushbeds latex model comes with an adjustable design to help sleepers customize their comfort and support depending on their needs. Its shredded latex materials allow it to adapt to your sleep position, reducing the likeliness of developing sores such as neck pain.
Thanks to its latex design, most buyers consider this Plushbeds Pillow the best cooling pillow. Its shredded latex, in conjunction with the organic cotton cover, makes it super breathable—preventing any potential heat build-up that may cause restlessness.
Unlike traditional shredded memory foam pillows, this latex model is high quality and built to last longer; it also possesses hypoallergenic properties. And since it is crafted with high-quality certified organic materials, it makes a healthy choice for side sleepers with sensitivities.
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Another pillow that comes with all the bells and whistles for support and comfort for a side sleeper is the Molecule-All-season model. Given its superior design that offers a world-class cooling effect, firm support, and exceptional comfort, this Pillow is among the few that stands out as a game-changer among the best pillows for side sleepers.
Just as the name suggests, Molecule All-season stands out as an excellent cooling pillow capable of keeping you cool and sweat-free all year round. It has a state-of-the-art moisture-wicking cover that draws sweat from your body to shield against night sweats. It's worth noting that this is a machine-washable cover—making the pillow's hygiene and cleanliness easy to maintain. In addition to the moisture-wicking cover, the pillow's memory foam filling possesses small air pockets that promote consistent airflow, helping dissipate body heat to keep you cool.
With its solid memory foam core, the Molecule All-Season pillow offers side sleepers firm support while maintaining its shape throughout the night, ensuring your spine and neck remain properly aligned. With this feature, you can rest assured that your mornings will no longer be accompanied by neck or shoulder pain.
The pillow's unmatched comfort is primarily evident in its shredded memory foam fill. While some memory foam pillows may feel a bit rigid, Molecule All-season offers a unique contouring effect that helps effortlessly align your neck and head. This also helps minimize and eliminate pressure points that may disrupt a rejuvenating slumber.
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Finding the right pillow with proper support and comfort can significantly improve your overall sleep experience. Fortunately, the Nolah Cooling Foam Pillow is one of the few best adjustable pillows that promises unparalleled comfort regardless of whether you're a back, side, or stomach sleeper.
Thanks to its fantastic temperature regulation mechanism, this Nolah Pillow keeps hot sleepers cool during hot summers. Its cover features phase-changing outlast fibers and Nolah's Proprietary AirFoam™ that absorb and release heat up to 20% more than ordinary alternatives—helping maintain a cool and comfortable sleep environment.
Nolah Cooling Foam pillow is a thicker pillow, making it one of the few lofty models designed to provide side sleepers with the necessary elevation to keep their spine and neck aligned throughout the night. As a medium-firm pillow, Nolah offers the perfect balance of support and softness, minimizing the risks of waking up with shoulder or neck pain.
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SleepOvation is a unique pillow with state-of-the-art features designed to revolutionize sleep comfort. Its ground-breaking 77 micro-cushions-in-one construction design offers unparalleled support, especially given the strategic positioning of each cushion.
The SleepOvation pillow excels in the temperature control department since the strategic positioning of all 77 micro cushions allows for efficient ventilation and breathability–preventing heat build-up. Also, thanks to its moisture-wicking cover, you won't need to worry about sleep interruption due to sweating.
Unlike traditional pillows that often create pressure points leading to restlessness, the SleepOvation pillow's multi-cushion design helps distribute weight equally to reduce pressure points, preventing the likelihood of waking up with shoulder or neck pain. In fact, the pillow offers precise support on every part of your neck and head, enhancing your overall sleep comfort.
Not only does this pillow provide superior support, but it also enhances its longevity. The micro-cushions are made of high-quality materials designed to resist flattening and clumping. Since it comes with a removable machine washable cover, it makes it easier to maintain a healthy and hygienic sleep environment.
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Though most Zoma products primarily target athletes and individuals with active lifestyles, this Zoma Body Pillow possesses all the necessary features that deliver cutting-edge support and comfort to any sleeper.
Zoma Body Pillow is filled with shredded memory foam that conforms to the body's curves, helping align your neck and spine while alleviating strain or any form of discomfort from your neck and shoulder region. Overall, Its shredded foam fill provides an excellent balance of plushness and comfort, ensuring a well-supported sleep experience.
Side sleeping can sometimes cause you to overheat, but Zoma Body Pillow's advanced cooling technology ensures you stay cool all night. For instance, it has a mesh fabric cover that dissipates heat and promotes efficient airflow.
Unlike a typical shredded memory foam pillow, Zoma has an extended length, allowing side sleepers to embrace the pillow between their legs—which helps further promote healthy spinal alignment. Moreover, the extended length also ensures your body remains in a neutral position throughout the night.
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GhostBed Cooling Gel Memory Foam is a lofty pillow with sufficient support to give your neck and spine the necessary support and exquisite softness to cradle your head comfortably.
The cooling capabilities of this pillow make it an excellent cooling pillow for side sleepers who often sleep hot. Strategically placed ventilation holes in conjunction with the gel-infused memory foam promote consistent airflow to keep you cool and sweat-free all night.
Like most adjustable pillows, this model is filled with memory foam fillings that allow for remarkable customization, enabling side sleepers to shape it into a desirable and comfortable loft that provides optimal support for the head, shoulders, and neck. The loft of the shredded foam of this pillow ensures healthy spinal alignment, minimizing the risks of developing a stiff neck.
Quality craftsmanship is evident in this pillow's overall design to grant side sleepers long-lasting comfort and support. In fact, its shredded memory foam filling is resistant to dust and mold, plus it is also hypoallergenic, making it an excellent choice for people with allergies. More importantly, this pillow's high-quality materials enhance its durability—making every penny of your investment worthwhile.
How To Choose a Pillow For Side Sleepers
As earlier mentioned, there are several factors that can determine if a pillow is ideal for a side sleeper. Let's analyze each.
Cooling Properties
One of the primary concerns for side sleepers is overheating during the night. To combat this issue, opt for a pillow with cooling properties. Look for materials like gel-infused memory foam or latex, which are designed to regulate temperature and wick away heat. Additionally, pillows with breathable covers made from natural fibers like cotton or bamboo can further enhance airflow and keep you cool throughout the night.
Loft
The loft of a pillow, which refers to its height and thickness, is crucial for side sleepers. Ideally, you want a pillow with medium to high loft to maintain proper spinal alignment. When you lie on your side, your head and neck should be in a neutral position, neither tilted up nor down. The space between your neck and shoulder should be filled by the pillow to support your head for maximum comfort. However, avoid high density pillows that may cause discomfort and neck pain.
Removable & Washable Cover
Hygiene is essential when it comes to pillows. Think about hair oil, dust, drool and face oils accumulating on your pillow. A removable and washable cover can help you maintain a clean and healthy sleep environment. When purchasing a pillow, find out if it's machine washable or can only be washed by hand. Also enquire about the use of warm or hot water to wash the covers. Remember that your way of washing directly affects durability. Find out if you may also wash the entire pillow.
Adjustable loft pillow
Every side sleeper has unique needs and preferences, there's no specific loft required by all. In the case of sharing a bed, an adjustable pillow can be a game-changer. These pillows typically have removable layers or fill that you can customize to your desired loft and firmness. This adaptability ensures that you find the perfect balance between support and comfort, allowing you to wake up pain-free and well-rested.
Supportive Fill Material
The fill material of your pillow plays a vital role in its support and comfort. Memory foam and latex are popular choices for side sleepers due to their contouring properties and excellent support. Memory foam conforms to your head shape, relieving pressure and promoting proper spinal alignment. This is true for both a solid memory foam and a shredded memory foam pillow. Latex, on the other hand, is naturally supportive and durable, ensuring long-lasting comfort. For younger and lightweight sleepers, cotton and feather fills may work just fine.
Consider Body Size
Your body size can also influence the choice of the pillow. If you have a larger frame, you may need a pillow with more loft to maintain proper alignment. Conversely, if you're petite, a lower loft pillow might be more suitable. On the other hand, a heavy weight sleeper will require a firm pillow as the head inserts pressure onto the pillow. Take your body size into account when selecting the right pillow to ensure it complements your specific needs.
Conclusion
Choosing the right pillow for side sleepers is essential for a comfortable and restful night's sleep. Cooling properties, loft, a removable and washable cover, adjustability, supportive fill materials, consideration of body size, and a trial period are all factors to consider when making your selection. Remember that the perfect pillow for side sleeping may vary from person to person, so take the time to find the one that suits your unique needs and preferences. With the right pillow, you can wake up refreshed and free from the aches and pains often associated with side sleeping, ensuring you get the quality sleep you deserve.
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