The best pillows for a better night's sleep

Back and side sleepers who need a better night’s sleep will like the Elviros Cervical Memory Foam Pillow, which promotes cervical support. As a top pick for this sleeping position group, this pillow’s contoured design perfectly supports and aligns your head, neck, shoulder, and back.

It has two different heights, both of which offer distinct benefits. Back sleepers who have cervical issues, for instance, should use the higher side, which keeps your head in place and maintains alignment. It's helped by a two-horned design, which the head nestles between. Ultimately, it prevents the problems cause by sleeping on pillows that are too high or too low.

It’s comfortable as well as supportive, made from slow-rebound, high-quality memory foam. It’s soft and breathable, and comes with a cotton cover.

If you’ve been dreaming of a good, comfortable night’s sleep, look no further than the Coop Home Goods Eden Pillow. It's as comfortable as they come.

It uses shredded, crosscut memory foam with a microfibre blend. But best of all, it comes with a supply of extra memory foam pieces, so you can top up the pillow, making your perfectly sized and padded-out pillow. Topping up the foam to optimal size can also help with your alignment.

As a bonus, the adjustable design will suit any kind of sleeper — back, side, or stomach — as it's made to accommodate any sleep position. 

All materials are soft and breathable, including a removable bamboo cover that offers protection against dust mites and other nasties. It’s also completely hypoallergenic. The downside is, that quality isn't cheap.

Not everyone needs a super fancy pillow designed for specific alignment and neck issues. If you just want a nice fluffy pillow that’s very comfortable and won’t cost the equivalent of a new mattress, try the Slumberdown Super Support Pillow — a fantastic low-cost option.

Slumberdown is one of the top bedding brands in the UK, so you know your head and neck are in good hands. Not to mention the fact this pillow is cheap. Sorry, that should be pillows — you get two for your money.

These pillows offer good support — soft but firm — thanks to a core block within the pillow designed to keep your head held comfortably in the right position. This design is especially good for side sleepers.

Is there a greater pleasure in life than a nice cool pillow? If there is, we can’t think of one. That’s why the Simba Hybrid Pillow makes this list.

It uses Stratos fabric technology, which responds to your body temperature and absorbs, stores, and release heat throughout the night. It also has a layer of soft Cool Night fibre padding that uses semi-conducting minerals, which moves warm air away. And a mesh panel keeps the pillow well ventilated.

It’s also packed with Nanocubes, which you can remove from the innards to get the perfect pillow height. As with other pillows on the list, the adjustability means this suits pretty much all kinds of sleepers — back, side, and stomach.

No one enjoys waking up with head, neck, or shoulder pain. The Uttu Dandwich Pillow is adjustable, with comfy memory foam, to keep pain at bay and catch up on some much needed sleep. 

Regardless of your preferred sleep position, this pillow’s adjustable height design allows you to customise firmness. You can remove the middle layer or add it back in to get the comfort you need. 

Uttu’s dynamic foam provides great pressure relief. It won’t lose its shape and conforms to the curves of your body for optimal support. As well as minimising pain, it decreases shoulder stiffness, and supports spine alignment. 

It’s also made with hypoallergenic materials, including bamboo fibre and polyester, so you won’t have congestion while you sleep.

The Tuft & Needle Pillow comes filled with a specialised Adaptive Foam that pairs the contouring benefits of memory foam with enough bounce-back to last for the long haul. We’ve all been there: You get the perfect pillow, only to wake up to find the contents of your pillow taking on a permanently indented, avant-garde shape after just a few weeks of counting sheep. 

Because of its soft yet supportive foam core, this pillow held up in a lab simulation that put it through 10 years of use. Since it comes with a washable plush cover, you can keep things germ-free and comfy for years to come. 

Tuft & Needle’s pillow is best suited for people who tend to sleep on their side or back, so if you’re a stomach sleeper you’ll probably want to pass. A this price you want to be sure, though you do get a 30-day trial period.

If you’re a Goldilocks type of pillow-searcher — not too soft, not too firm, just looking for somewhere right in the middle — you’ll rest very easy indeed with the Beckham Hotel Collection Gel Pillow. 

This pillow offers medium-level support, so you’ll avoid any neck strain while still getting enough cushion for a good night’s sleep thanks to a poly-gel fibre blend filling. Plus, you'll be getting two pillows for the price of one. 

Unlike memory foam pillows, the Beckham Hotel Collection’s gel design ensures a flexible level of support, without causing the weird, uncomfortable forms that can take shape after a few weeks on memory foam.

They boast a dust, mite, and mildew resistant material, plus they're allergen and chemical-free so those with sensitivities can breathe easier.

There are plenty of hypoallergenic pillows on this list, but if you need something specialist, check out these John Lewis Active Anti-Allergy Pillows.

The pillow is treated with HeiQ Allergen Tech, a biobased technology that uses naturally-derived probiotics. These break down and reduce allergens and unwanted elements, including dust mites, pet dander, and types of pollen.

Not only that, you can always rely on the quality of furniture and bedding from John Lewis, so you know it’s going to be excellent quality — and for a reasonable price. This pillow is medium and standard softness, but there are also firm and softer versions available, all in medium size.