The Best Pillow for Side Sleepers with Neck Pain

The Best Pillow for Side Sleepers with Neck Pain

Do you find sleeping to be a dreadful pain in the neck? Is it hard to get the right support for your neck while sleeping on your side? These are very common problems, and your search for the best pillow ends here.

Let’s explore the connections between side sleeping and neck pain, to understand why the Parallel High Profile Pillow is such a standout solution for side sleepers seeking the best in comfort and support for relief of neck pain — with a whole new level of sleep enjoyment you’ve never even thought possible!

In summary: 

  • Side sleepers often shift to positions uncomfortable with other side-sleeper pillows
  • The Parallel Pillow doesn't assume you will sleep only on your side
  • Our sculptable, adjustable Blutech Fusion Fill give side sleepers perfect support
  • The Parallel Pillow’s High-Profile version is made specifically for side sleepers
  • Side sleepers often have thermal regulation challenges from their stacked-body position.
  • The Parallel Pillow keeps side sleepers at the right temperature in any season
  • Side sleepers are prone to drooling and sweating. ParaPur™ destroys 99.9% of germs
  • Our 90-Night Return Window eliminates the pain in the neck of buyer's remorse

Pillow for side sleepers and people looking for loftier head and neck support

Understanding the Side Sleeper’s Struggle

Side sleeping is one of the most common sleep positions, and it can create unique challenges, frequently including neck pain. The alignment of the head and neck is crucial in preventing discomfort, and a pillow that fails to provide proper support causes misalignment and exacerbates the problem.

Sleeping on your side can also create pressure points on your shoulders and upper body, and improper support worsens these painful conditions as well. Bodily discomfort in turn causes side sleepers to repeatedly shift away from their preferred position seeking relief, an additional problem when using pillows designed with the unrealistic expectation they will sleep exclusively on their side.

Neck pain, headaches, shoulder pain and even earaches can sabotage the rest and recovery of side sleepers — also spoiling their daytime energy and enjoyment. 

Sculptable Support Side Sleepers Need

In designing the Parallel Pillow, we realized that pillows made specifically for side sleepers typically approached the problem entirely wrong. Your shoulders are not square blocks, and neither is hour head. No two nights are alike, and the support you needed last night may not be exactly what you need tonight. And even if you spend the majority of the night on sleeping on your side, you will probably shift to other positions. So the best pillow for side sleepers, we realized, must be highly supportive and provide good head elevation — yet be incredibly versatile.

What most sets the Parallel High Profile Pillow apart for side sleepers is our exclusive 3-part fill that’s easy to sculpt and shape for amazing support, regardless of your sleep position. Completely unlike other side-sleeper pillows, the Parallel Pillow doesn’t attempt to force your head and neck to assume a predefined position. Instead, the entire pillow is highly sculptable, adapting precisely to how you need to be supported, cradling your sore neck and helping you to wake up feeling revitalized.

BluTech Fusion Fill (BFF): The Science of Neck Support

At the core of what makes Parallel Pillow is the best pillow for side sleepers with neck pain is our innovative BluTech Fusion Fill (BFF) that’s 25% microfiber and 75% foam by weight. This hybrid blend of downy, hypoallergenic fibers and two distinct kinds of precision-cut gel visco memory foam enables twice the airflow of conventional foam fills, while achieving a remarkable ability to assume a soft, supportive shape. The blue memory foam, infused with high-tech gel, immediately responds and adjusts to your body movements, combining the resiliency of latex with pressure-relieving conformance. Meanwhile, the dark memory foam has unique bounce-back and form retention qualities that enable perfect cradling of your head and neck. The downy-soft component provides the perfect amount of loft and glide between the two memory foams, enabling you to sculpt the pillow’s fill like supple clay, and for it to retain the desired shape. And our BFF fluffs back easily, so the Parallel Pillow never goes flat.

Woman in bed hugging pillow for side sleepers

The Perfect Temperature Year-Round

Because side sleepers often position their arms along their body core and their legs together through the night, another common side-sleeper struggle is temperature regulation. The Parallel Pillow’s BFF and our ultra-wicking, Omigosh-soft! TENCEL™ Lyocell outer cover ensure comfortable temperature-neutral sleep. The best pillow for side sleepers with sore necks has double the airflow of other pillows, while providing cloud-like loft and huggable support. It’s never too hot or too cold, and keeps side sleepers at their ideal temperature all night long — year-round.

A Higher Profile for Side Sleepers

The Parallel Pillow is available in two height profiles to suit various body and sleeper types: our High Profile Pillow and Low Profile Pillow . As a side sleeper, the one for you is our High Profile Pillow. Between perfectly quilted TENCEL™ comfort panels and flanked by our signature parallel piping is a mesh elevator gusset, to bolster the additional BFF and provide the support and elevation needed to alleviate side sleepers of neck pain and prevent it recurring. As you easily sculpt the Parallel Pillow into your ideal shape, the four-way-stretch inner shell instantly shape-shifts to help it conform beautifully. 

Eco-Friendly Fill Components: A Side Sleeper’s Green Choice

For us, while making the best pillow for side sleepers with neck pain was a key goal, minimizing our impact on the environment was not negotiable. From day one, the Parallel Pillow had to be a sustainable choice. 

Our Omigosh-soft! outer cover is made from TENCEL™ Lyocell, produced from wood pulp from sustainably managed, renewable sources and has a USDA BioPreferred designation. Our down-alternative microfiber is made of 100% recycled material, spun from the plastic of an average of 20 (and as many as 23) recycled water bottles. Our dark memory foam is a USDA Certified Biobased Product and both foam components can be recycled after use, further reducing environmental impact. While some side-sleeper pillows are made from off-gassing materials and VOCs, the Parallel Pillow is a safe, green, sustainable choice.

ParaPur™: Your Anti-Germ Side-Sleeping Sanctuary

Not only might side sleepers perspire more, but their position naturally leads to increased drooling compared to people sleeping on their backs. So side sleepers will take comfort knowing that inside every Parallel Pillow is our groundbreaking ParaPur™ technology.

This self-refreshing barrier kills 99.9% of microbes in just 59 minutes and continues working for the life of your pillow. Permanently embedded with positively charged, pure silver ions, the inner cover with ParaPur actively protects you from bacteria, spores, microbes and dust mites without nasty chemicals. The result: a germ-free and naturally anti-stink platform for the sweetest dreams. Sweat, slobber, and still sleep hygienically, with ParaPur on guard!

For side sleepers with neck pain, the High Profile Parallel Pillow provides extra head and neck support that is fully adjustable and easily sculpted when the sleeper changes positions

The Parallel Pillow is available in High Profile and Low Profile versions. For side sleepers with neck pain, the High Profile Parallel Pillow provides extra head and neck support that is fully adjustable and easily sculpted when the sleeper changes positions. 

True Comfort on the Side: Free Extra Fluff

Comfort is highly personal, and that is something intrinsically designed into the Parallel Pillow. It ships generously filled with our amazing BFF hybrid fluff. If you want it to feel less substantial under your head and neck, it’s easy to take some out through the inner shell’s convenient side zipper. And we include a free bundle of extra fill with every Parallel Pillow. Your comfort, on your terms.

Risk is a Pain in the Neck: Our 90-Night Guarantee

If you have yet to experience the joy of waking up free from neck pain on a Parallel Pillow, you’re in for sheer delight. And our 90-night return window means there’s no risk or regrets, with countless restful sleeps and energized tomorrows to gain. It’s high time that as a side sleeper you discovered the transformative power of personalized comfort for achieving your very best night’s sleep, free from neck pain.

The Pillow Side Sleepers Have Been Waiting Up For

The Parallel Pillow’s amazingly sculptable support, innovative fill technology, and eco-friendly components make it the standout choice for side sleepers, including those struggling with neck pain. What’s even more impressive is how easily it adapts when you change positions to sleep on your front or back. An intuitive, half-asleep pat and squeeze is all it takes to create a thinner, thicker, wedge-shaped, indented or divoted pillow shape, to again cradle your head and neck exactly the right way. 

Your tomorrow begins tonight. Experience how the Parallel Pillow is the best side-sleeper pillow you’ve ever imagined, risk-free. And say good-night (and good riddance) to neck pain.

DISCLAIMER: While this article is based on more than 50 years of experience in helping people with their pillows, it is not intended to be taken as medical advice. Every pain situation is unique, and there are a wide range of potential causes. Talk to a qualified healthcare provider about neck pain or any other painful condition and follow their guidance specific to your situation.

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Customer Reviews

Based on 50 reviews
70%
(35)
18%
(9)
6%
(3)
0%
(0)
6%
(3)
D
Deborah J. (Ann Arbor, MI, US)

No more neck pain so I am very happy!

C
Customer

This is my favorite pillow as I am a side sleeper. It’s the perfect amount of padding

d
dana c.h. (Haverhill, MA, US)
So far so good

So far so good, it’s early 2+ weeks. But the height which I found is the main issue I have, this is the best so far.

Hello Dana,

We are happy to hear that you are enjoying the pillow. Thank you for your feedback we hope to keep inproving and helping people get a good night's rest.

Best Regards,
Parallel Sleep Support

M
MC (Bristol, RI, US)
Relieved my Neck pain

I like the combo of shredded memory foam and fiber fill. The pillow is firm but also a little plush. It is the right height for my neck, and happy to know that I could get more filling if needed. I have the side-sleeper version. Really like this pillow - and I have tried many.

Hello, Thank you for your positive feedback, we are glad to hear the pillow is working out. Thank you for choosing Parallel and sweet dreams!

L
Lori S. (Longmont, CO, US)
Best Pillow!

Side sleeper. LOVE this pillow. Had to take a lot of the insides out. That was a messy affair! Perfect amount of fluff in the end. Ahhh.

Hello, Thank you for your positive feedback, we are glad to hear the pillow is working out. Thank you for choosing Parallel and sweet dreams!

J
Jeff H. (Buford, GA, US)
Boss Pillow

Been struggling for a while trying to find a proper pillow...FINALLY...Don't have to look any further. Much appreciated!

Hello, Thank you for your positive feedback, we are glad to hear the pillow is working out. Thank you for choosing Parallel and sweet dreams!

J
Jon H. (Forney, TX, US)
Great Sleep & Fantastic Support

after trying several pillows and doing research on may websites trying to figure out what a better pillow would be, I stumbled across this pillow. After seeing the Memorial Day sale, I picked one up. the high profile pillow has been amazing and I no longer have to flip my pillow 4-5 times a night just to have the support be in the same place and actually where I need it to be. Hopefully this pillow will be one of my last. Highly recommended.

Hello, Thank you for your positive feedback, we are glad to hear the pillow is working out. Thank you for choosing Parallel and sweet dreams!

S
Shelley B. (Castle Rock, CO, US)
NPS score:
0 (Not at all likely)
10 (Extremely likely)
Likes: Quality for the money.
Improvements: Nothing
Perfect firmness

I really like this new pillow! I didn’t even have to adjust the firmness. Finally, a pillow that doesn’t smother me or get too hot to sleep.

Hello, Thank you for your positive feedback, we are glad to hear the pillow is working out. Thank you for choosing Parallel and sweet dreams!