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Front, side and back sleepers can wave goodbye to hot and flustered nights

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We hit the sack with a range of pillows and looked out for firmness, breathability and value for money

Sinking your head into bed is the simplest luxury of all, but achieving optimum pillow comfort can be a bit more complicated.

Pillow shopping factors to consider start with whether you like a soft, medium, or firm composition, while body temperature tendencies are just as important.

Should you be prone to overheating or getting hot and bothered from feeling restless at night, a cooling pillow is the ideal option. These solutions vary from temperature-regulating materials to breathable layers, and even cooling gel fillings.

The cooling pillow intensity of choice depends on personal preference, and if you’re looking for help with night sweats or hot flushes, or simply a more refreshing sleep set-up, we’re here to help with a few options for side, front, and back sleepers, covering all cooling bedtime bases.

We trialled a range of pillows over several weeks, sampling them one at a time with different bedding layers. Our tester looked at how much cooling comfort the pillows provided, for sleeping on and sitting up in bed. We also compared firmness and value for money, as well as breathability and any additional design features.

Read on for our pick of the best cooling pillows, from gently refreshing to noticeably chilling.

The knitted cover of this Silentnight cooling pillow holds medium-firm filling inside, with a top layer of gel bubbles. These tactile bumps released intense, instant coolness when our tester’s head pressed onto the hypoallergenic pillow. We appreciated the immediate chill, especially when waking up too warm or turning over. The gel pad is soft enough to lay your head on, while bringing the crisp relief of a cold surface.

Although the gel bubbles warmed up slightly after resting for a while, we found their freshness returned by shifting our head’s position. Our tester noted the pillow has shape flexibility and works well as a fairly flat headrest, or as part of a stack. We couldn’t fault how consistently cooling the top layer is, making the under £30 price tag a very reasonable spend.

This hypoallergenic pillow arrived with a drawstring mesh bag to store any excess foam cube filling which can be removed for adjusting the firmness. As the “nanocubes” are small, we liked being able to tailor the height precisely. The top temperature regulating pillow layer is immediately cooling to touch, and we were soothed by this when turning over in bed. Continuous moving around at night doesn’t diminish that fresh feel either.

On the other side is a smooth cotton surface, while the mesh outer border keeps airflow moving, and we noticed a refreshing airiness. The overall outer composition has a durable high-quality thickness to match the premium price. Because of the adjustability, we were comfy in all sleeping positions and even at its firmest, the machine washable pillow is spongy enough for resting on.

Read the full Simba hybrid review

The zip closure case with blue piping contains separate bulky and flat microfibre layers, which are removable to cater for different firmness preferences. We mostly kept them both in place, liking how much our head sank into the super fluffy overall composition. It felt similar to a down pillow, minus any feathers.

The freshness we noticed comes from the top “UltraDry” sweat-eliminating cover. We noted a comforting crispness to this supremely soft pillow top, bringing a gentle airiness rather than overt chill. Plus, because of the squishy filling, we found it supportive in all sleeping positions. The entire pillow is machine washable for thorough cleaning too.

This memory foam pillow has a dense shape with enough movement to mould, and a cooling knitted cover. Our tester found the firm form best for side sleeping, while being noticeably supportive. We could feel the firmness hold our neck well in particular.

Both sides are cooling to the touch and bring that flipped pillow feel, offering instant respite from being too warm. There’s breathability in the memory foam as well, adding an airiness. The pillow’s depth is level throughout so, usefully, it lies flush with other bedding. Although an investment pillow purchase, the firming support accompanying its breezy coolness would also suit head or neck achiness.

Best: For gently cooling relaxation

Hypoallergenic silk has natural temperature regulating qualities, wicking away moisture and warmth like sweat. The satisfyingly plumped-up, yet soft, fibres were gently cooling on our face while we fell asleep, and retained freshness overnight. We also found it easy to settle into the composition across all sleeping positions, which we noticed most during a few restless nights we spent tossing and turning.

The effect of sinking into this pillow is luxurious relaxation, with it being light and breathable to rest on, rather than really chilly. We could also feel a soothing skin comfort from this pillow, too.

Read the full Soak & Sleep pure silk pillow review

This synthetic-filled pillow has a cotton cover and a medium-to-firm thickness, perfecting the balance between sinking into the pillow and being supported. Because of that, we found it most comfortable for lying flat on our back and in a side-sleeping position. The cooling surface layer can be felt through a pillowcase and provides a freshness our tester noticed on both the face and head.

Lying down, we noted a newly washed bedding feel of airiness each night that didn’t fade with use. Pressing our skin against the pillow brought a reactive cooling effect that helped lull us back to sleep. Plus, the entire pillow is machine washable as an extra bonus for long-term cleanliness.

Although currently out of stock, the synthetic smart pillow will be back soon.

The yellow-piped pillow comes complete with a removable machine washable polyester cover for keeping it clean. There are tiny holes in the PU memory foam, adding breathability which we noted when resting our head on its surface. That’s where we saw the coolness come into play, as a refreshing airy release, rather than a chilly overall surface area.

The firm foam is supportive and held our head and back in place without any squishiness. There is some give though with movement, but just the right amount for a dense firmness. We found this pillow to be a useful height for reading on our back or side, too.

Read the full Eve Sleep memory foam pillow review

Best: Mesh for air circulation

This fluffed-up medium firm pillow contains inner foam, and an outer microfibre filling with a mesh surround for boosting air circulation. We found the composition really comfy to prop us up when lying on our back or side. Each side of the pillow is equally fresh, and we noticed the breeziness from the mesh while hugging it too.

Resting our head on the smooth surface felt refreshing and lightly cooling. But for us, the mesh surround brought the most coolness – sometimes, we placed our hands on it while sleeping. It’s worth knowing that the pillow can be hand washed too.

This polyester-filled pillow pair has a cotton exterior that we noticed felt fresh when first laying our head down. Layering both together lets you sit up in bed, and when separated, we found using one was enough to sleep on our side. They are a simple composition as pillows go, if you do prefer a classic shape and style, and we appreciated the crisp cotton effect they add to bedding, with a light, refreshing feel on our skin. Machine washable too, we were impressed by the price point for a matching pair.

For a noticeably chilled pillow effect, Silentnight’s cool touch pillow was our consistently cool favourite. Meanwhile, the Simba hybrid pillow offers height adaptability and a soothing coolness. Finally, for breezy cooling, plus back and neck support, we’d recommend the Dreams therapur memory foam ice pillow.

For the latest discounts on pillows and mattresses, try the links below:

Front, side and back sleepers, we’ve found the best memory foam pillows for extra neck support and comfort

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