Pillow Buying Guide: How to Choose Perfect Pillow for a Good Night's Sleep
Pillow Buying Guide
Selecting the right pillow for optimal sleep quality and comfort is vitally important to your health and well-being. Pillows support the head, neck, and spine alignment during sleep, so the quality of your sleep is significantly impacted by the pillow you choose. In this helpful pillow-buying guide, we offer pillow selection tips to help you choose the best pillows for sleep. Here, we take into account firmness, materials, and pillow care, as well as offering advice on when you may need to consider speciality pillows.
Determining Pillow Needs
When determining the right pillow for you, consider factors like sleep position, personal preferences, and any specific health concerns or conditions that may affect pillow selection. What works for one person will not necessarily work for someone else, so you may need to try a few to determine your ideal pillow. There are so many types of pillows available, it should not be difficult to find the right one for you.
Pillow Materials and Fill Types
Pillows come in a wide variety of materials and fill types, including down, feathers, memory foam, latex, polyester, and hybrid options. Down and feathers have fallen out of favour because they are ethically problematic when the feathers are acquired by live plucking. Some ethical suppliers prohibit live plucking, so if you adore feather pillows, check their certification. Down alternatives are soft and more affordable since they are made with synthetic microfibre filling. If you prefer something more eco-friendly, consider organic wool or, for a more luxurious, cloud-like cosiness, Tencel, a filling made from raw, natural fibres derived from eucalyptus. Memory foam is supportive and malleable, conforming to your neck and shoulders, but some can retain heat. Nanocubes are small cubes of close-cell foam, slightly different from memory foam, and they regulate heat well.
Firmness Levels
How do you know which firmness level is right for you? Consider your sleep preferences and support needs. Back sleepers need a soft pillow to support the head and ease stress on the upper spine, while side sleepers need support to lift and support the head, keeping the spine and neck in alignment. Stomach sleepers put a great deal of stress on the spine and neck because this position forces the cervical spine into a mild twist. A thin pillow will help compensate for this.
Specialty Pillows
In some cases, you may need to consider a speciality pillow, to address specific sleep issues or preferences. Cervical pillows can help alleviate neck pain, cooling pillows promote temperature regulation, and anti-allergy pillows are a good choice for sensitive sleepers. A wedge-shaped pillow can help if you have respiratory or sinus issues and need to elevate your head during sleep. An orthopaedic pillow is firm and designed with contours to support your neck, shoulders and upper back, and a body pillow is good for providing support during pregnancy; they can also make things a little cosier for side sleepers.
Pillow Sizes and Shapes
There are many pillow sizes and shapes, including standard, queen, and king, as well as speciality shapes such as contour, wedge, and body pillows. Your pillow size will be determined primarily by your bed size, but personal preference also comes into play.
- Standard pillows are 75cm by 50cm. These rectangular pillows fit any bed, and work well for side and back sleepers.
- King-sized pillows originated in the United States. These are large pillows, 90cm by 50cm, suited for very large beds, where they do a better job than standard pillows of filling the horizontal space.
- Square pillows are also called European pillows. They are not really for sleeping but can make an impactful design statement and are good for supporting your back if you like to read in bed.
How to Care and Maintain Your Pillow
Proper pillow care and maintenance will extend the lifespan of pillows and ensure hygienic sleep conditions. It is advisable to replace your pillows every year or two. In the meantime, wash them at least once a week, if possible, along with your bedding. If you prefer, you can use a protective pillow cover, which can delay your pillow washing, pushing it off to every six months. Exceptions to this rule include memory foam and latex pillows, which typically cannot be machine-washed. Follow the manufacturer’s instructions in order to properly care for them. For expensive down pillows, choose dry cleaning.
Budget Considerations
It is not hard to set a budget for pillow purchases, because you can find high-quality options within a range of price points. However, it is important to invest in good-quality pillows for long-term comfort and sleep support. While you can find inexpensive pillows, do not skimp on such an important item for quality sleep.
