Best Pillow • 7 Top-Rated Pillows Reviewed and Tested By Sleep Examiner

If we cut to the chase, you will find below the order we rank the pillows,  but as usual, it’s the details that really tell the story, since it turns out that the best pillow for the majority, may not be the best pillow for you.  So, we also gave you a top reason to choose each one, but also ranking what each pillow can offer your own unique needs.

For example, a side sleeper can do well with a very different pillow than a back sleeper and the differences don’t just stop there, but let’s get right to it and hopefully, it will help you make the best decision possible and get the pillow of your dreams!

Tempflow Serene Pillow – The Best Overall Pillow

In selecting the overall best pillow, we were looking for a pillow that not only met the criteria we found essential according to users and experts alike, but in our mind, the best pillow needed to readily address all the deficits we found in lesser ranked pillows.  In the Case of the Tempflow Serene pillow, we found all of the following:

1. Luxurious Comfort – There is no doubt that the Tempflow Serene pillow feels comfortable from the moment you lay your head down, to when you wake up before you even realized you nodded off for a full sleep.  Its fiber and shredded memory foam infusion gives it a lighter, feel, yet the pillow still feels dense enough to give a much higher quality feel than other similar shredded foam pillows that use lighter density fill that feels cheaper in comparison.
2. Proper Support – The Tempflow Serene pillow was on the softer side overall, but never flattened out like some of the pillows we tested.
3.  Adaptable To All Sleeping positions – Tempflow claims that it is self-adapting to all positions of sleeping and it did not disappoint. Whether we were testing on our side back or stomach, the Tempflow did its job filling in the gaps between the head and neck in relation to the mattress underneath.  The reason comes down to the higher density bamboo shredded memory foam and fiber infusion.  The result is a softer feel, without the flattening out you might expect from a lesser dense foam or feather pillow.
4.  Cooler Sleeping – The Tempflow uses a proprietary Kool-Flow high bamboo content fabric with what they term as micro-venting, in order to avoid the heat retention that comes with a less breathable fabric.  Add to that the extra breathability that comes with a shredded foam and fiber aerated fill, as well as the cooling gel-infusion into the memory foam and it is easy to see why the Tempflow keeps its promise of a cooler overall night’s sleep.
5. Hypoallergenic and Low V.O.C. – It is reassuring to know that the Tempflow Serene pillow has been Greenguard Gold Certified for being an extremely low V.O.C. (Volatile Organic Compount) off-gassing product.  Greenguard Gold certification has the toughest industry criteria for testing for V.O.C.s that is half of the criteria for CertiPur-US and Oeko-Tex, two of the other environmental testing standards for the bedding industry.  Add to that the fact that the fabric used in the cover is hypo-allergenic and the whole pillow is washable, so even allergy sufferers can use this pillow.
6. All USA Made and 20-year industry leading warranty – The Tempflow Serene pillow is 100% USA made, which might explain the higher quality level when comparing to the competition and the resulting industry leading 20-year warranty against flattening out over that long lifespan.

This doesn’t mean that the Tempflow pillow is the best pillow for everyone, but it surely will wind-up being the favorite choice for many pillow users.

Visit the Tempflow website for more information or to order one today.

Coop Original Pillow – Best Adjustable Pillow

Coming in at number two for best pillow, Coop Home Goods Original Pillow gets the honor of also being the best adjustable pillow.  So why should you care?  The answer is that if you are a DYI kind of person and want to get the absolute surest way of having the perfect thickness for your needs, this pillow delivers on its promise to get you there!

This can be a great way to explore what thickness you may find you do best with.  That means that as a side sleeper who has broad shoulders, you may want to add some of the foam fill to give you the right thickness to keep your head in a alignment, whereas if you are a back sleeper, you might want to remove fill in order to prevent you head from tilting up to high.  Here are the overall features we explored with testing the Coop Home Goods Original pillow:

1. Luxurious Comfort – While the cover is thinner than the Tempflow Serene, the pillow still has a nice supple feel from the get go and definitely does not feel cheap, so you won’t be disappointed.
2. Proper Support – The Coop Original pillow was on the softer side overall, but mostly kept its shape over the night, though that can be impacted by how much fill you use.
3.  Adaptable To All Sleeping positions – The Coop pillow did seem more adaptable than some, though using the adjustable features really make it excel for whatever type of sleeper you mostly are.
4.  Cooler Sleeping – Though the Coop Original does not use gel infusion like the Tempflow, we still found it to be more breathable and overall cooler than many of the other competitors.
5. Hypoallergenic and Low V.O.C. – Like the Tempflow Serene, it is reassuring to know that the Coop pillow has been Greenguard Gold Certified for being an extremely low V.O.C. (Volatile Organic Compount) off-gassing product.  Greenguard Gold certification has the toughest industry criteria for testing for V.O.C.s that is half of the criteria for CertiPur-US and Oeko-Tex, two of the other environmental testing standards for the bedding industry.  Add to that the fact that the fabric used in the cover is hypo-allergenic and the whole pillow is washable, so even allergy sufferers can use this pillow.
6. Domestic and Imported Manufacturing and 5-year warranty – While not all USA made, they do claim that there are components that are and overall it is a brand known for holding up well, as evidenced by the thousands of 5-star reviews on Amazon over many years now.  The 5-year warranty isn’t anywhere near the 20-year warranty of the Tempflow Serene pillow, but it has the track record to prove that you will be a happy customer for those 5-years!

While not everyone wants to be bothered with adjusting their pillow, those that do can be assured of an easy and precise way of doing so with the Coop Original pillow.

Visit the Coop Home Goods website for more information or to order one today.

TEMPUR-Cloud Pillow – The Best Stomach Sleeping Pillow

Coming in at number 3 for best pillow, Tempur-Pedic gives you the quality you come to expect from good memory foam, but doesn’t quite give the support needed for all sleeping positions, though it is by far the best stomach sleeping pillow.  Here is the breakdown of what you can expect from this Tempur-Cloud pillow:

1. Luxurious Comfort -The Tempur-Pedic Cloud pillow is about as comfortable as they come, with the pure memory foam bliss comfort that molds around your head and neck.
2. Proper Support Is Position Dependent – The Tempur-Cloud pillow is perfect for stomach sleepers who need a pillow that will conform around them, but it can lack on the support needed for side sleepers that are broader shouldered individuals or when used with a mattress that is firmer and more gap needs to be filled in that space between the head and shoulder.  Back sleepers will also do well, but not as well as the contoured style Tempur-Pedic pillows.
3.  Sleeping Position Specific – Like mentioned above, it does excel more for stomach sleeping, but it can work well in certain back and side sleeping situations.
4.  A bit Warmer Sleeping –  While it will feel cooler at first, the memory foam can warm too much for some sleeping, since there are no real ventilation outlets for the pillow.
5. Hypoallergenic, but with lower V.O.C. listed foam – Tempur-Pedic lists that they uses CertiPur-US Certified low V.O.C. foam and while that does not guarantee as low V.O.C. emissions as you would find with GreenGuard Gold certified products, it is made in the U.S.A. or Sweden, so it does likely use some higher standards and will be hypo-allergenic thanks to the polyurethane and polyester combination.
6. Made In The USA with 5- Year Warranty – The pillow is made in the USA or Sweden and has the quality to sustain the 5-year warranty.

While the Tempur-Cloud pillow may not work well for all position sleeping, it can for some and definitely excels for stomach sleeping.

Visit the Tempur-Pedic website for more information or to order one today.

MyPillow – Most Supportive Pillow

Coming in att number 4 for best pillow, MyPillow shows that an infomercial product can still be a fan favorite with real staying power.  It definitely is the cheapest of the pillows we tested in both cost and quality, but it packs a punch with the supportive chunky foam you either will love or hate.  Here is a breakdown of the its features:

1. Comfort -MyPillow may not be the most comfortable, thanks to the very large foam squares that combine to form the inside of the pillow that is surrounded by a non-stretching cotton cover, but some customers really like the overall feeling of the springy buoyancy it gives.
2. Proper Support – There is no doubt that you will get ample support that won’t flatten out with MyPillow, though it might be a bit too thick for back and stomach sleepers.
3.  Sleeping Position Specific – Back sleepers who like a thicker loft should do well, side sleepers will get perfectly ample support and stomach sleepers should avoid the pillow all together.
4.  Normal Temperature Sleeping –  While not a cooling pillow overall and the cover is not cool to the touch, thanks to its buoyant foam, it doesn’t contour as much, which gives it less heat build-up and therefore did not cause it to sleep warm.
5. Hypoallergenic, but with lower V.O.C. listed foam – Tempur-Pedic lists that they uses CertiPur-US Certified low V.O.C. foam and while that does not guarantee as low V.O.C. emissions as you would find with GreenGuard Gold certified products, it is made in the U.S.A. or Sweden, so it does likely use some higher standards and will be hypo-allergenic thanks to the polyurethane and polyester combination.
6. All USA Made and 10-year warranty – MyPillow is 100% USA made, which might explain the higher quality level when comparing to the competition (though they do not use as high of density/quality of their foam), but it does show why they can give a very long 10-year warranty.

While the MyPillow is the least comfortable of the pillows we tested, it certainly gives the necessary support and to be fair, the comfort did take some getting used to, allowing it to improve over time.

Visit the MyPillow website for more information or to order one today.

The Purple Pillow – Coolest Sleeping Pillow

Coming in at number 5 for best pillow, Purple gives a whopper of a pillow that is far more heavy duty than the rest thanks to its unique elastomer gel grid that famously adds coolness pockets throughout the pillow surface.  Whether you love it or hate it, you won’t find any pillow like it anywhere.  Here is a breakdown of the its features:

1. Comfort -The Purple pillow does feel like a high quality product and it also has the grid system on one side and cushier inserts on the other.  Unfortunately, not all customers like the comfort of the gel grid system and that means that if you don’t like the feel of the grid, you won’t get the cooling feature if you flip it.
2. Proper Support – The Purple pillow was a bit firmer overall and it does keep its shape over the night, but it may not be thick enough to provide enough support as a side sleeper and it may be too thick for a stomach sleeper.
3.  Sleeping Position Specific – This pillow can work for side sleeping if you do not have too broad of shoulders, but it does work well if you are a back sleeper.  Most stomach sleepers will find it too firm.
4.  Cooler Sleeping –  If you use the gel grid side, we found the pillow to be the coolest of the ones we tested.
5. Hypoallergenic, but no testing for V.O.C. Listed – Purple does state that the pillow is non-toxic, but they do not list any testing performed by any of the three organizations other competitors have tested with (Greenguard Gold, CertiPur-US and Oeko-Tex), so we have no way of knowing if it outgasses.  From our research, we do think that the gel system is likely hypoallergenic, so it should not bother allergy sufferers.
6. Made In The USA with 1 Year Warranty – The pillow is not made in the USA and warranted for 1-year.

The Purple pillow definitely feels like a high quality pillow that is cooler to sleep on if you like the feel of the grid system, but it may not be for everyone.

Visit the Purple website for more information or to order one today.

Sydney Sleep Pillow – Best Side Sleeper Pillow

Coming in at number 7 for best pillow, Sydney Sleep turns on the charm with its one side crescent shaped side sleeping curve and it is a difference you can really feel.  We found it nice to be able to have it contour around your shoulder, though we certainly were able to shape the Tempflow, Coop and CozyCloud pillows just fine around the shoulder to firm its own adaptable curvature.  Although some might be put off with the crescent curve on one side, either way, the Sydney Sleep pillow is nice pillow with adjustability that allows you to increase or decrease the thickness  Here is a breakdown of the its features:

1. Comfort -The Sydney does feel like a good quality product and part of that is due to the thicker and luxurious feeling cover over shredded memory foam, but it is a firmer feeling pillow overall, unless you adjust it flat, which would take out the support.
2. Proper Support – The Sydney Sleep pillow was a bit firmer overall and it does keep its shape over the night as a side sleeper.
3.  Sleeping Position Specific – This pillow really is primarily for side sleepers.  The shape and firmness do not lend itself as well for Stomach or back sleeping.
4.  Cooler Sleeping –  While not a cooling pillow overall, it doesn’t feel warm to the touch, nor did it heat up when using it overnight.
5. Hypoallergenic and Low V.O.C. – While not Greenguard Gold Certified, it is certified by the next best agencies called CertiPur-US and Oeko-Tex, two of the other environmental testing standards for the bedding industry that are not as stringent as Greenguard, but still give a high level of reassurance that the product is a low V.O.C. pillow.   Being polyester, the fabric used in the cover is hypo-allergenic.
6. Imported Manufacturing and no warranty listed – The pillow is not made in the USA and not warrantied.

While the Sydney pillow does not get the highest marks for quality, it is still a viable option for side sleepers that need a good support and curvature, even if it comes at the cost of less reassurance over the longer term usage.

Visit the Sydney Sleep website for more information or to order one today.