Pillows buying guide

02.Pillow types

Pillows can be made out of a number of different materials. Here are some of the more common ones.

Synthetic fibre fill

• Polyester is the most commonly used synthetic fibre fill. These pillows are machine-washable and usually come in a variety of fill weights to suit your needs.
• Polyester is quite long-lasting, and a good choice for the budget-conscious.

Wool fibre fill

•  An alternative to synthetics, wool is washable and flame-resistant.
• Wool provides good moisture absorbency, wicking away any moisture created by your sleepy head.
• It allows the infill (the filling inside your pillow) to breathe well, which claims to provide you with a more restful night’s sleep.

Feather and down fill

• Feather and down pillows have been used across the ages and are still very popular. They tend to be soft and sit a little higher than other pillows.
• Suitable for people who like a soft pillow that will mould around their head and shoulders.
• While they feel quite luxurious they’re not so great for people who move around a lot when they sleep or need their neck supported well.

Foam and latex fill

•  Foam and latex pillows tend to last longer than most other types of pillow fill. 
• Suitable for people who like a firm and supportive pillow.
• While foam pillows are generally quite cheap, latex pillows can be pricey but come in a mind-boggling array of styles and shapes as the latex can be sculpted and contoured to any shape.
• There are jellybean-shaped pillows with rounded edges for stomach sleepers, pillows with sculpted grooves to facilitate air flow and graduated pillows that claim to support troublesome necks.

Memory foam

• Memory foam is made from polyurethane, but has a different cell structure from other foams, which makes it less ‘springy’ and slower to recover (hence memory foam — it ‘remembers’ your shape for a while after you’ve moved).
• Memory foam pillows are very heavy and have a squashy feel, leaving an indentation where your head has been for quite some time, so it’s not recommended for those who move about a lot in their sleep.
• Memory foam pillows are quite expensive; costing up to five times the cost of a polyester-fill pillow, so you’ll want to make sure it’s the right product for you before deciding to buy one.