Neck Pain Keeping You Up at Night? These 9 Pillows Will Help You Sleep More Comfortably

We chose the Coop Sleep Goods Original Adjustable Pillow as the best pillow for stomach sleepers because it provides reliable support, with a lower loft that helps maintain a neutral spine. While everyone is different, it’s generally true that stomach sleepers will find a low-loft pillow most comfortable. That’s because stomach sleeping requires less height to maintain a neutral spine.

“Stomach sleeping is generally hardest on the neck, because it forces sustained rotation,” says Pola Ham, EdD, an occupational therapist and an assistant professor at Touro University School of Health Sciences in New York City. “If someone absolutely can’t stop, they usually need a very low-loft setup to reduce the angle.”

Coop’s adjustable pillow isn’t specifically a low-loft pillow, but you can take advantage of its easy-to-adjust features to achieve a lower loft. To lower the height of this pillow, you can unzip the cover and remove a portion of the memory foam pieces.

During testing, we noted that it does take a little time to get the height just right. But once you do, it provides comfortable support. “It probably took me three nights of trying out different fill amounts before I found my sweet spot,” says writer Catherine Brown. “But in the end, it was comfortable, and it’s growing on me more and more each night that I use it.”

Memory foam tends to retain heat. But Coop has created a more-breathable pillow by using a nontoxic blend of microfiber and memory foam in a cross-shape that encourages airflow within the pillow. 

The cooling pillow from Layla is filled with a mix of natural kapok fibers and memory foam. It provides moldable support that cradles your neck and offers softness and pressure relief.

Kapok is a natural fiber with a silky texture and breathability, and it serves as an alternative to down as a filling. Kapok is generally more eco-friendly than cotton or down fill, because it’s harvested by hand. Combined with memory foam, Kapok creates a sleeping experience that is both soft and supportive (the best of both worlds).

We think this is a great option for anyone who deals with allergies or sensitivity to synthetic materials, because the pillow boasts CertiPUR-US certification. This means the materials are made without formaldehyde, phthalates, or heavy metals, and they’re screened for chemicals classified as harmful to human health.

This is an adjustable pillow, so it’s a great choice for any sleep position. Simply unzip the pillow and remove or add the kapok-and-foam filling to achieve the height that will help you maintain a neutral spine.

“This is the most comfortable pillow I’ve ever used,” says writer El Wilson, who tested this pillow. “It helped my neck pain so much. I could tell the moment I put my head on it that it was high quality. It provided support while feeling soft.”

The Brooklinen Marlow Pillow is a high-quality, adaptable pillow with cooling capabilities. And at under $70, it offers an affordable price tag, making it our pick for the best budget-friendly pillow for neck pain. In addition to a low starting price, Brooklinen offers additional discounts for buying multiple pillows in a bundle.

We love the adjustable nature of this pillow, which features two side zippers that create a near-custom sleep experience with three different lofts. The pillow is plush and on the softer side when both zippers are open. It provides firmer support when both zippers are closed. The Marlow pillow is made with a gel-infused memory foam, which works together with the 100 percent–cotton cover and mesh gussets to create a breathable, cooling pillow.

I tested the Marlow pillow for two weeks and continue to sleep with this every night. I love the firm support it provides when both zippers are closed. It’s available in both standard and king sizes. It’s made with hypoallergenic and antimicrobial materials, so it’s perfect for our high-allergy household.

Because the Luxome LAYR Customizable Pillow uses removable inserts to adjust the loft of the pillow instead of messy foam pieces, we chose it as the best customizable pillow for neck pain. It includes one soft, one medium, and one firm insert that can be stacked in various layers to get the exact sleep experience you’re looking for.

The inserts are made from gel-infused and CertiPUR-US-certified memory foam, which is both hypoallergenic and enhances the pillow's cooling properties. The Luxome inserts are placed within an organic bamboo-viscose cover with natural cooling properties. While the foam inserts can’t be washed, the insert covers and the pillowcase are all machine-washable. This pillow is available in standard and king sizes.

We spent two weeks testing this pillow and loved how easy it was to adjust how it feels. “There are loft sections you can add or remove, and within those, you can remove fill,” says editor and tester Olivia Campbell. “The three inserts are different plushness, so you can choose how firm or soft the top layer is.”

Saatva’s Latex Pillow is a high-quality, supportive pillow. It has a naturally derived, hypoallergenic, latex core surrounded by a plush outer layer and an organic cotton cover. We chose this as the best latex pillow for neck pain specifically because of its pressure-relief capabilities.

Saatva has chosen materials that are naturally breathable, including a 100 percent–cotton, washable cover and breathable latex with better cooling capabilities. This pillow is available in a standard loft suited for back and stomach sleepers, as well as a high loft suited for side sleepers. You can also choose between a standard and a king-size pillow.

“Saatva says this pillow delivers ‘hotel-quality comfort,’ and I found it to be very luxurious and comfortable,” says writer Grace Gallagher, who tested this for us. “It is also very responsive and bounces back quickly.”

This pillow is available in four heights, allowing you to get the best loft for your preferred sleep position and body type. The brand’s website helps guide you to the right choice. The pillow also features a cooling cover that helps pull heat away from your body. On one side, it features super-responsive foam that adapts to the sleeper. It’s a hypoallergenic pillow with a removable, machine-washable case, so it’s a great option for someone with allergies.

I tested this pillow for two weeks, and it has become my new favorite. What I love most about this pillow is the loft: I don’t have to stack pillows to get comfortable at night anymore. I also enjoy the weight of this pillow and how well it maintains its shape throughout the night.

We chose the Purple DreamLayer Pillow for its quick-to-adapt materials. This pillow is made with an adaptable GelFlex Grid, which is beloved for how quickly it responds to position changes throughout the night.

We also love this pillow because it’s easy to adjust the height. It includes two insert layers to help you find the perfect loft, so you don’t have to mess with removing shredded foam. During testing, we noted that this is a medium-firm pillow that cradles your head without sinking or becoming misshapen while you sleep.

“I legitimately slept better,” says Campbell. “I really liked that it was adjustable in a non-messy way.” We think this is a good option for someone who gets head or neck pain while sleeping, as it provides pressure relief for more-comfortable sleep. 

For sleepers who run hot, it can be challenging to find a comfortable pillow that doesn’t trap heat. But the Bedgear Night Ice Performance Pillow is a supportive pillow that relies on three cooling technologies. It was the natural choice for the best cooling pillow for neck pain.

The cooling features begin with Bedgear’s gel-infused, open-cell foam, which encourages airflow and improves breathability. This is surrounded by a cooling, gel-infused foam crown. The entire pillow is encased in Bedgear’s Ver-Tex cover, which keeps the pillow cool to the touch all night long.

We also like the support properties of this pillow and think it would be a great option for someone who deals with neck pain; it conforms to the sleeper while providing medium-firm support. This pillow is available in four heights, so an option suited for any sleep position is available. Note that you can’t adjust it once it arrives.

“It kept my spine perfectly aligned,” says writer Kara Wahlgren, who tested it for us. “I felt like I got a more-restful sleep with less tossing and turning, and I woke up without any of the usual stiffness in my neck or shoulders.”

Everyone is different, and what each sleeper needs from a pillow is unique. We chose the Freeform Pillow from Purple as the best option for back sleepers because of its medium-firm support and adjustable loft height.

“There’s still no single agreed-upon ideal height that fits everyone,” says Dr. Ham. “Back sleepers usually do best with lower to medium loft. It should be enough to support the natural curve of the neck without pushing the chin toward the chest.”

Because of the adjustable nature of the Freeform Pillow, you can find the best height for your needs. To make the pillow shorter or taller, simply unzip the pillow and remove or add Purple’s adaptable shredded MicroFlex MoonFoam. You also have the option to create neck rolls in the pillow by filling two cylindrical compartments with additional foam.

This is a hypoallergenic pillow from Purple that features a honeycomb grid to encourage cooling airflow. This same honeycomb feature provides pressure relief on sensitive areas like your head, neck, and shoulders.

Our tester, writer Raki Swanson, used this pillow at its fullest height and noted how well it maintains its loft all night. After a few nights, she removed some foam for a slightly lower loft. “Wow, just wow,” says Swanson. “It was the right choice. I added more support to the neck ‘tubes’ on the inside of the pillow, and it was amazing.”