Nothing highlights the importance of a good pillow like trying to sleep on a bad one, and people who sleep on their side, in particular, can have a tough time finding the right fit because they need more neck and head support.
After more than 1,000 nights testing 119 pillows, we’ve found a number of options for side sleepers and think the Nest Bedding Easy Breather Pillow is the best for a range of side-sleepers.
Our pick
This pillow has a customizable and washable filling that offers firm support for back- and side-sleepers. What it doesn’t have: the lingering chemical smell we’ve noticed in some other shredded foam.
We recommend the Nest Bedding Easy Breather Pillow for both side- and back-sleepers in our full guide to bed pillows, and we know some stomach-sleepers—those who sleep half on their side, half on their stomach—also find it comfortable, and it offers neck support that doesn’t cause pain.
Many companies advertise their pillows for specific sleep positions, but in our experience their recommendations don’t match up all that well. Overwhelmingly, our side-sleeping testers have preferred pillows with shredded memory foam (even when they didn’t like the idea of sleeping on foam at first) because of its moldability.
Budget pick
This adjustable pillow is more affordable than other shredded-foam pillows we’ve tried, and it offers firm support for back-, side-, and some stomach-sleepers. However, it might have a strong chemical smell.
For those side-sleepers on a budget, we’ve recommended the Xtreme Comforts Shredded Memory Foam Pillow since 2016. While we’ve encountered issues with a lingering chemical smell in approximately half the pillows we tested, the 30-day return policy and affordable price point makes it worth considering.
Upgrade pick
Removable layers make this shredded-foam pillow easier than others we’ve tested to tailor to different body shapes while offering plenty of neck support for back- and side-sleepers.
Meanwhile, Sleep Number’s ComfortFit Pillow Ultimate is a more luxurious option that is easily tailored to different body shapes and preferences. Using a mixture of shredded foam and down alternative, this is the loftiest shredded-foam pillows we’ve tested, and three sealed, removable layers inside make it easier to customize than any other we tried.
