The Best Pillows for Side Sleepers (and Slaying Your Sleep Paralysis Demon)

Welcome, side-sleeping gang—let me congratulate you on choosing the optimal sleeping position (fight us). Back sleepers are notorious snorers, and stomach sleepers… are you guys OK? Can you breathe? Anyway, we’re biased because we take up the least amount of room and look the most like peaceful angels whilst in REM. But even though we’re the best, we still occasionally toss and turn, and if that sounds familiar, the problem may be your pillow.

While everything is subjective, including what makes the best pillows for side sleepers, one thing’s universal: “A comfortable pillow will help support your neck and back throughout the night; a poorly chosen pillow, on the other hand, can contribute to headaches, neck pain, and arm numbness,” according to the National Sleep Foundation. Side sleepers tend to need more support to cradle their neck, but want to avoid going full Stay-Puft Marshmallow, as an overly full pillow can cause as much neck pain as one that is flat as a pancake. So let’s get into the best pillows for all you side sleepers to prevent neck and shoulder pain, because sleeping should be a peaceful escape from the realities of the world, not a nightmare. 

VICE contributor (and side sleeper) Angel Kilmister is a massive fan of Honeydew Sleep’s Scrumptious Side Sleeper Pillow, and waxes poetic about how it has turned her “into a snooze god” in her review of the pillow. But what makes it so heavenly? “The shape leaves space for my shoulder so that I can position my neck in the optimal support zone, aligning my spine and putting my head in a perfectly fitted cloud holster, letting me sink in without feeling like I'm being smothered by the sides of the pillow,” she writes. If you’re not already convinced, it’s also currently 41% off on Amazon and the brand’s website, and has thousands of five-star reviews.   

If you go wild for a squishy pillow that you can really sink your teeth neck into, Cuddledown is the answer to your prayers for better sleep. The Neck Support Cradling Down Pillow is fluffy, hypoallergenic, and specially designed to support your head and neck while you sleep. 

The Cotton Side Sleeper from Eli & Elm tops a lot of lists of favorites in terms of comfort, has four stars on Amazon, and reviews that sing its praises for support and shape, like one Amazon reviewer who claims, “This [is] the only pillow that work[s] for me. It is comfortable and I have eliminated my headaches.” 

If you feel like nothing has quite the specific amount of support and height you crave, you can always opt for a uniquely boxy Pillow Cube, which has thousands of glowing reviews on Amazon: “ I've had nearly a full week of sleeping through the night and waking up with pain reduction…it's worth the money if you are a true side sleeper and want a good pillow for spine alignment.”

The Kapok pillow kills two birds with one stone—it has shredded memory foam on the inside that can be added or removed for your ideal thickness, plus its airy kapok fibers provide a cooling experience if you tend to sleep hot. 

A friend recently described this pillow to us as “life-changing.” It uses an open cell, cooling memory foam gel that prevents overheating and “reacts immediately to pillow pressure to gently support the unique shape of your head, neck and shoulders,” according to the brand. It also comes in low- and high-profile options so you can choose the height that’s best for you. 

This Arc de Triomphe-shaped pillow provides a perfect spot for your shoulders, so you don't end up scrunched into a little ball. It’s also completely customizable and comes with extra foam fill to get your preferred density. With over 54,000 reviews and a 4.5 star rating, satisfaction is nearly guaranteed. 

Sleep tight, and don’t let your partner’s obnoxious snoring keep you up! 

The Rec Room staff independently selected all of the stuff featured in this story. Want more reviews, recommendations, and red-hot deals? Sign up for our newsletter.