Waking up well-rested is often the key to starting your day off on the right foot. However, getting a good night's sleep is easier said than done — but a cool, supportive pillow can make all the difference. Shop TODAY spoke with a medical expert and a certified sleeping coach to learn more about the importance of creating a cool bed space for sleeping.
Hot nights can often disrupt our sleep, especially since our internal body temperatures change in the later hours of the night. According to Dr. Alicia Roth, a clinical health psychologist who specializes in behavioral sleep medicine at the Cleveland Clinic, providing your body with a cool environment at night can help ease that adjustment in body temperature.
Why are cooling pillows important? | Bestselling cooling pillows | Cooling pillowcases | How we chose | Meet the experts
Why are cooling pillows important?
"Our body temperature gets the lowest in the middle of the night while we sleep," Roth says. "Therefore, it’s usually best to sleep in a cool environment so your body doesn’t have a hard time reducing its internal temperature. For example, for some people, taking a hot shower right before bedtime and transitioning into a cool bedroom is very relaxing and helps them fall asleep."
If you're struggling with staying cool at night, Bill Fish, a certified sleeping coach, suggests looking for pillows with special cooling capabilities. "Make use of a PCM (phase-change-material) that is truly cool to the touch," Fish tells us. "PCM control temperature by absorbing body heat and releasing it. Other pillow materials with cooling properties are gel or copper, which pull heat from the body. Wool, while it might seem warm, acts as natural insulation which pulls heat."
If you're looking to upgrade to a cooling pillow, we've rounded up 14 bestselling picks with rave reviews to help make your search a bit easier.
Bestselling cooling pillows
Sealy Elite Cool Touch Advanced Cooling Pillow
- Good for side sleepers
- Packaging and delivery issues
Sizes: Does not specify | Materials: Nylon and polyethylene exterior, hypoallergenic fill interior
Made to be cool to the touch, this pillow was designed specifically for hot sleepers. The cool-touch fabric and airflow knit help remove any trapped heat and moisture that may build up as you sleep. It also uses hypoallergenic filling material to help hold its shape and provide extra support.
Qutool Cooling Bamboo Pillow
- Keeps shape over time
- Comfortable and adjustable
- Not for those with sensitive skin
Sizes: Full-body, Queen, Camping pillow, Standard, King | Materials: Memory foam interior
Using shredded foam, this pillow allows air to circulate from all over so that you can sleep comfortably. With the help of gel-infused foam, the pillow is meant to help regulate your temperature at night to help prevent overheating.
Plixio Memory Foam Bed Pillows
- Has a removable cover
- Soft and plush, yet has the "right" enough of firmness
- Non-returnable
Sizes: Queen | Materials: Memory foam interior
A comfortable night awaits with the help of these memory foam pillows. They're made with shredded bamboo memory foam that's infused with a cooling gel. If you also tend to wake up with back or neck pain, this pillow is designed to help provide extra support.
PLX Cooling Memory Foam Pillows
- Holds its shape after many nights
- Reviewers appreciate supporting a small business
- Too firm for some
- Different from previous versions
Sizes: Queen | Materials: Polyester
You can't go wrong with an affordable set of cooling pillows, and this two-pack has more than 13,700 verified five-star ratings. Using bamboo and memory foam, this pillow will help keep you cool at night thanks to its breathable cover.
Snuggle-Pedic Bamboo Memory Foam Pillow
- Has longevity, many reviewers have used this pillow for multiple years
- Not too firm, not too soft according to reviewers
- Previous versions were better compared to these, according to reviewers
Sizes: Standard, Queen, King | Materials: Bamboo exterior, memory foam filling
This pillow uses self-adjusting technology that allows you to customize it to meet your needs. You can gather or spread the pillow to achieve the perfect shape, and the bamboo and polyester fill will help ventilate heat throughout the night.
Sealy Molded Bed Pillow
Real Simple voted this the "Best Memory Foam Pillow" in their Sleep Awards.
$55.95
Amazon
Brooklyn Bedding Premium Shredded Memory Foam Pillow
- Good for side and stomach sleepers
- Many reviewers take them on-the-go
- Many are repeat buyers
- Too firm for some
Sizes: King, Queen | Materials: Does not specify
Every person sleeps differently, so this pillow looks to conform to your own personal sleeping habits. A cooling gel foam is infused into deconstructed memory foam to draw heat out and away from the head and neck, according to the brand.
West Elm HydroCool Cooling Down Alternative Pillow Insert
- Available in lots of sizes
- Able to choose level of firmness
- None to note at this time
Sizes: Standard, Body pillow, King | Materials: Organic cotton exterior, brand-specific Hydrocool polyester filling
Stuffed with a moisture-wicking fill, the brand says the HydroCool fibers absorb and evaporate moisture throughout the night to keep you from overheating. It comes in three sizes and three support levels for side sleepers, back sleepers and stomach sleepers.
Brooklinen Marlow Pillow
- On the firmer side, which most reviewers appreciated
- Can adjust the firmness with the zippers
- Can go flat throughout the night
Sizes: Standard, King | Materials: Polyurethane foam, polyester fiber interior and a cotton exterior
Infused with cooling memory foam, this pillow has an adjustable firmness so you can get the most comfy night's sleep no matter which position you're in. "I bought a pack of two Marlow pillows about a week ago and it has completely changed my sleep! My neck pain is gone and I love that it feels cooling (hot sleeper here!)" one five-star reviewer raved.
Layla Sleep Memory Foam Pillow
- "Right" amount of firmness
- Some reviewers are repeat buyers
- Sizing is inconsistent
Sizes: King, Queen | Materials: Polyester, memory foam
This popular pick is made with memory foam and a breathable polyester to allow for airflow. Its unique pillow cover is made with a type of polyester fabric that's normally used in exercise apparel for its breathability.
Coop Home Goods Eden Adjustable Pillow
- Adjustable; can fill with as much foam as you like
- Some reviewers are repeat buyers
- Fill shifts around during the night
- Flattens throughout the night; loses firmness
Sizes: King, Queen | Materials: Memory foam; knitted polyester and rayon exterior
Recommended by the National Sleep Foundation for people who sleep hot, the "Eden" pillow is made with a cooling gel-infused memory foam to conform to your head as you sleep. It also comes with extra memory foam that you can add for a truly customized experience.
Tempur-pedic Tempur-Cloud Breeze Breeze Dual Cooling Pillow
- Has "right" amount of firmness; not too soft or hard
- Doesn't need re-positioned throughout the night; stays in place
- Not returnable in certain instances
- Not meant for side sleepers
Sizes: King, Queen | Materials: Cotton, quilted cover and a brand-specific Tempur-Breeze Gel layer
According to the brand, this pillow is designed for all types of sleepers and features a Tempur-breeze gel layer on both sides to keep you cool all night long. It has over 2,000 verified five-star ratings and one customer wrote, "This pillow has helped me gain more REM sleep, helped me not snore as bad, and helped me not sleep so hot."
Best cooling pillowcases
Casper Hyperlite Cooling Pillowcase
- Comfortable and breathable
- "Texture is amazing"
- Deteriorates after wash
- Packaging and delivery issues
Sizes: Standard, King | Colors: 3 | Materials: TENCELL Lyocell
The brand calls the sheets associated with these pillowcases the "coolest" yet, and they emphasize that these offer a level of breathability that contributes to helping you feel as comfortable as possible. Plus, the grid-like pattern attributes to them feeling lightweight, and they shouldn't trap heat throughout the night.
- Cool, crisp and soft feel
- Good for hot sleepers
- Closure is awkward
- Packaging and delivery issues
Sizes: Standard, King | Colors: 17 | Materials: Cotton percale
Run hot when you sleep? These pillowcases from Brooklinen promise to offer a cooling effect for even the warmest of sleepers. Made out of cotton percale, you won't have to keep turning it over to receive a temperature drop.
Most reviewers are repeat buyers, raving about how truly cooling this cotton set is.
Sleep Number True Temp Pillowcases
- Truly cooling surface
- Comfortable, soft
- Different than old versions
- Weird quality after washing
Sizes: King, Standard | Colors: 6 | Materials: Cotton, polyester and spandex blend; sateen fabric
Another tried and true brand dedicated to helping you get the best nights sleep possible, Sleep Number designed these pillowcases that repel heat and humidity (thanks to their brand-specific 37.5 technology).
Tempur-Pedic Breeze Pillowcase Set
- Moisture-wicking qualities
- Retains heat quickly
- Expensive set
Sizes: King, Queen | Colors: 4 | Materials: Cooling nylon, TENCELL Lyocell fibers
Tempur-Pedic is known for their sleep-enhancing products, from mattresses to pillows and more. These cooling pillowcases provide a cool night's sleep a couple degrees below normal.
Plus, the moisture-wicking nylon and lyocell blend fabric is sure to wick sweat away brought on by those who run hot when they sleep.
How we chose
The Shop TODAY team spoke with a clinical health psychologist and a certified sleep coach to help better understand the benefits of sleeping amongst cool, heat-releasing materials. We then searched for highly rated pillows and pillowcases that align with our experts' advice.
Meet the experts
- Dr. Alicia Roth is a clinical health psychologist who specializes in behavioral sleep medicine at the Cleveland Clinic, based in Ohio.
- Bill Fish is a certified sleep science coach and general manager of the National Sleep Foundation.
