Best Pillows of 2020

A good pillow is key to getting restful sleep, but finding the best one is no simple task. With so many options to choose from, it all comes down to your personal preferences for material and your sleep position. Side sleepers should choose a thick, firm pillow; stomach sleepers need a soft, thinner one; and back sleepers need somethingin between. The goal is to have your head and neck aligned so that when you’re lying down, your neck isn’t tilting in any direction.

"Patients come to me in pain, and I know their pillow isn't keeping their neck aligned with their spine," says Dr. Darren Pollack, chiropractor and medical director of DASHA Wellness & Spa. "Over time, this wear-and-tear can cause muscle stiffness, tendonitis, nerve pain, herniated discs, and more."

Over the past several years, the experts in the Good Housekeeping Institute’s Textiles Lab have tested over 100 different pillows made of materials like foam, fiberfill, down, as well as cooling pillows, organic pillows, pregnancy pillows, pillows to cure neck pain, snoring, and more. When testing pillows, we check how easy they are to clean and whether they'll actually hold up to laundering, plus how well they keep their shape after a weight is placed on them all night. Then we have real consumer testers try them out for feedback on things like comfort and support. All in all, we reviewed over 3,400 data points to find the picks below. Here are the best pillows to buy for your bed:

• Get to know the materials. Down pillows tend to be the fluffiest, but a combination of down with feather will be firmer and often less expensive. Down alternative pillows can still feel soft and offer good support, but they're usually made with synthetic fill and are be more affordable than down. Either way, make sure the outer fabric is tightly woven with no fibers or feathers poking out. Memory foam pillows are thicker and firmer. You can choose from solid memory foam or memory foam clusters, which feel more plush to lie on while still offering the support of foam. There are also hybrid pillows that mix foam clusters and fiberfill so you get the best of both categories.

• Take a look at special features based on your preferences. You can look for innovative features that come with some pillows, like cooling properties if you tend to overheat or adjustability if you want to change up the firmness level.

• Consider any recent health changes. Health-related changes (like weight fluctuation, new aches and pains, or other changes in your body as you age) affect the type of support you need, Natalie Dautovich, Ph.D., an environmental scholar at the National Sleep Foundation.

• Don't overlook care instructions. Before purchasing a pillow, check the care label to make sure you're willing to wash it as recommended. Most are machine washable, but some are dry clean only, have front-loading machine restrictions, or only allow spot-treating. Your pillow will last longer if you wash it two to four times a year, and if you use a pillow protector to keep it clean and safe from wear.