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10 Best Cooling Pillows That'll Upgrade Your Sleep

Yes, they actually do work.

Headshot of Christine FlammiaBy Christine Flammia
best cooling pillows

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Feeling hot in the middle of the night is its own version of hell. Maybe you sleep hotter in the warmer months, or maybe your body's proclivity for overheating knows no seasonal bounds. Either way, nothing is worse than waking up damp and sweaty. But, you can now set yourself up for a cool night's rest with a cooling mattress, airy sheets, and, the latest: Cooling pillows.

Pillows can feature a few details that make them more or less cooling and the best ones often have a combination of properties that really make it work. Brands like Casper and Purple are playing around a lot right now with fabric and textile innovation to make new pillow makeups and designs that excel in cooling. Some microfiber fills mimic an airy down with less upkeep. Others have aerated memory foam, gel layers, or carbon and buckwheat, which have natural heat-dissipating properties.

  • UltraCool Pillow

    Best Down Alternative Cooling Pillow

    SlumberCloud UltraCool Pillow

    $69 at Slumber Cloud
    Read more
  • The Carbon Air Pillow King

    Best Carbon-infused Cooling Pillow

    Eight Sleep The Carbon Air Pillow King

    Read more
  • Marlow Pillow

    Best Adjustable Cooling Pillow

    Brooklinen Marlow Pillow

    Read more
  • The Harmony Pillow

    Best Personalizable Cooling Pillow

    Purple The Harmony Pillow

    Read more
  • Hybrid Pillow

    Best Hybrid Cooling Pillow

    Leesa Hybrid Pillow

    Read more

Some pillows come in a single size and others you can choose from the size and amount of firmness or height. Others are made so that you can adjust how much support and cushioning your pillow has by taking fill in and out—good for combination sleepers and anyone who isn't sure quite how their body is going to feel when it crawls into bed that night. Need more convincing? Here are 10 of the best cooling pillows money can buy.

Best Down Alternative Cooling Pillow

SlumberCloud UltraCool Pillow

UltraCool Pillow
Best Down Alternative Cooling Pillow

SlumberCloud UltraCool Pillow

$69 at Slumber Cloud
Pros
  • Machine washable
  • Soft or firm options
  • Decent price
Cons
  • Pillow is generally too flat for some

SlumberCloud's UltraCool pillow uses a down alternative fill that keeps you nice and supported while the outside is made with Outlast, the mother of all that is cooling. The high-tech fabric is meant to pull heat from your body and release it so your body temperature stays regulated throughout the night.

MaterialOutlast Fabric Outer; Microfiber Inner
SizesStandard or King
FirmnessSoft, Medium, Medium Firm
Best Carbon-infused Cooling Pillow

Eight Sleep The Carbon Air Pillow King

The Carbon Air Pillow King
Best Carbon-infused Cooling Pillow

Eight Sleep The Carbon Air Pillow King

Pros
  • Made with cooling graphie
  • At the cutting edge of cooling tech
  • Solid foam build makes for a consistent sleeping experience—no need to fluff
Cons
  • Big price tag
  • Some might want a loftier pillow

If you've listened to any podcast in the past year, you've probably heard an ad for Eight Sleep, which makes a mattress and topper that has cooling you can control. The pillow version is a pricey one but it will last far longer than the standard. It's made with a ventilated carbon-infused foam, which absorbs body heat and moves it away from your head. The cover is a Tencel mesh, which is silky and breathable.

MaterialCarbon-Infused Foam; TENCEL Mesh Cover
SizeQueen or King
Best Adjustable Cooling Pillow

Brooklinen Marlow Pillow

Marlow Pillow
Best Adjustable Cooling Pillow

Brooklinen Marlow Pillow

Pros
  • Well-priced
  • Adjustable, perfect if you want a lofty pillow
Cons

Brooklinen's Marlow pillow is one of our favorites for a well-priced cooling option. It's made with aerated memory foam to give you the support of a foam without its tendency to trap heat. It's wrapped in a cotton shell for all around breathability. The filling is adjustable, too, which makes it good for people who want control over how much support (or not) they're getting.

Material80% Memory Foam and 20% Polyester Fiber
SizesStandard or King
FirmnessAdjustable
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Best Personalizable Cooling Pillow

Purple The Harmony Pillow

The Harmony Pillow
Best Personalizable Cooling Pillow

Purple The Harmony Pillow

Now 20% Off
Pros
  • Squishes without going flat
Cons
  • Honeycomb construction not for everyone

Purple's Harmony pillow brings its signature stretchy latex honeycomb to its pillow, giving you a squishy feel that is underlaid with support. You can choose from a standard or king size and a low, medium, or high support height. The honeycomb is something you'll be able to feel through your pillow case, though. I have had a Purple mattress for years, and quickly got used to the feeling but it's not everyone's cup of tea.

MaterialVentilated Latex; Mesh Material
SizesStandard or King
HeightLow, Medium, High
Best Hybrid Cooling Pillow

Leesa Hybrid Pillow

Hybrid Pillow
Best Hybrid Cooling Pillow

Leesa Hybrid Pillow

Now 15% Off
Pros
  • Reversible design
  • Removable insert
Cons
  • Too firm for some

For those who only want a cooling pillow sometimes and other times are looking for the regular soft squish of a standard pillow, this Leesa one has one quilted side and one cooling gel side.

MaterialPolyester MicroFiber; Tencel and Nylon
SizeStandard, Queen, King
Best Budget Cooling Pillow

Casper Essential Cooling Pillow

Essential Cooling Pillow
Best Budget Cooling Pillow

Casper Essential Cooling Pillow

Pros
  • Widened gusset
Cons
  • Not as cooling as other options

Pillows, especially ones with any sort of upgrade like a cooling feature, can really get up there in terms of pricing. This Casper one is made with a microfiber fill and breathable cover. The gusset on the side is two inches wide, rather than just sewn together, to make for a fluffier feel.

Material52% Polyester, 48% Polyethylene Cover
SizesStandard or King
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Best Gel Cooling Pillow

Allswell Gel Cooling Pillow

Gel Cooling Pillow
Best Gel Cooling Pillow

Allswell Gel Cooling Pillow

Now 30% Off
Pros
  • Machine washable
Cons
  • Heavy

Allswell puts a layer of cooling gel over its memory foam inside to make for a cool sensation every time you lay down on it. The knit cover is removable and machine washable, so you can get that clean, cool feeling every night.

MaterialMemory Foam; Cooling Gel
SizeStandard
Silkiest Cooling Pillow

Cozy Earth Silk Pillow

Silk Pillow
Silkiest Cooling Pillow

Cozy Earth Silk Pillow

Pros
  • 10-year warranty
Cons
  • Pricey
  • Too thick for some

Cozy Earth makes a cooling pillow with a mulberry silk inside and bamboo Viscose cover. It's silky and cool to the touch—ideal for creating that kind of hotel bed atmosphere at home. It looks as luxe as it feels.

MaterialMulberry Silk Inner; Viscose From Bamboo Outer
SizeStandard or King
Cushiest Cooling Pillow

Buffy Cloud Pillow

Cloud Pillow
Cushiest Cooling Pillow

Buffy Cloud Pillow

Pros
  • Lightweight
  • Made with GRS-certified recycled fiber
Cons
  • Shorter shelf life

Buffy's Cloud pillow feels like, ahem, a cloud. But actually. The whole brand was founded on making duvets that don't trap heat and it brought that penchant for coolness to its pillows. Choose your size (standard or king), firmness (soft, medium, heavy), and stack it with a set of three pillows for a whole set.

MaterialTENCEL Lyocell Fiber Outer; Recycled PET Fill
SizeStandard or King
FirmnessSoft, Medium, Firm
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Best Buckwheat Cooling Pillow

Hullo Buckwheat Pillow

Buckwheat Pillow
Best Buckwheat Cooling Pillow

Hullo Buckwheat Pillow

Pros
  • Malleable feel
Cons
  • The buckwheat insides can take some adjusting to

Listen, we told you brands have been getting real creative in their textile designs and this is exactly what we mean. Some super-hot sleepers swear by buckwheat pillows, which naturally lets air move through it rather than stick in one place and contribute to your overheating.

MaterialBuckwheat; Cotton Twill
SizeStandard
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