The 11 Best Down-Alternative Pillows

What we’re looking for

Fill type: Polyester fiber | Loft: Varies slightly by density, roughly medium to high | Firmness: Soft, medium, or firm

The first night I slept on this Boll & Branch Down-Alternative pillow, I double-checked the label to make sure the brand hadn’t accidentally sent me their real down pillow. The pillow felt so plush it was hard to believe it wasn’t the real thing. Boll & Branch offers this pillow in three densities, where the same pillow is stuffed with increasing amounts of fill to get a higher loft and firmer feel. I tried the medium version, which offered a pleasant mix of support and cushioning. I even felt my neck was fairly well-supported while side sleeping, which can be difficult to find in down-alternative pillows, since they are often soft and sink-y. The soft version would likely be a good choice for most stomach sleepers, while the firm would be good for back and side sleepers who like a firmer feel and/or want extra support.

Between feeling so similar to real down and actually being fairly supportive (with three density options), the Boll & Branch won the top spot for this list. And while not extremely cheap, it’s around the $100 mark, depending on which density and size you choose, so it’s less expensive than some of my other favorite pillows that have other (generally more expensive) fill types. It has a cotton shell, which is a nice touch for some added breathability, too.

Fill type: Polyester fiber | Loft: Medium | Firmness: Medium

This two-pack of pillows holds a pretty close candle to the Boll & Branch pillow above with a price per pillow that’s less than half the cost. They are surprisingly supportive while still feeling plush and down-y, if not quite as “true down”–y as the Boll & Branch pillow. Each is covered with a cotton shell and filled with polyester fiber fill, just like the Boll & Branch. When I tested them, I slept on my back and side and found both positions pretty comfortable — my neck felt well-supported without being cranked into any awkward position in either. Senior editor Jen Trolio is also a back and side sleeper and liked the cushy feel of the Beckham pillows enough to buy additional pillows for her kids. They’re also a good choice for stomach sleepers, according to Strategist writer Arielle Avila, who rotates between her side and stomach easily on these pillows.

Despite all these pros, the Boll & Branch pillow still won out for me because of the three density options (the Beckham pillows come in just one density) and because the fill of the Boll & Branch has a slightly airier feel that I felt was more akin to actual down. Comparing them side by side, I think the Beckham pillow has a slightly faster response time after I press into it — which may be preferable to some people! — but the slower response in the Boll & Branch feels more downlike to me.

Fill type: Polyester microfiber fill | Loft: Mid-loft or low-loft | Firmness: Medium-firm

Down-alternative pillows often aren’t as supportive as other styles (like memory-foam or latex pillows). To maximize neck support, chiropractor Dr. Sapna Sriram recommends a down-alternative pillow with a supportive inner core. One such pillow is the Casper Original pillow. It’s filled with polyester microfiber fill, like many other down-alternative pillows, but it uses a pillow-in-a-pillow design to provide more support. The inner pillow is more densely filled to provide the neck support; it sits inside the zippered outer pillow, which has microfiber fill lightly stuffed on each side to add additional plushness. Together, this makes for a cushy yet supportive pillow.

Strategist writer Brenley Goertzen is a longtime fan of this pillow and loves it so much she evangelizes about it to her family members, who have been convinced to buy their own. A stomach and side sleeper, Goertzen says the pillow gives her enough support on her side while still feeling comfortable when she’s on her stomach.

Fill type: Microdenier fiber and shredded latex core | Loft: Medium or high | Firmness: Medium

My other favorite option for neck support is this pillow from Saatva, which actually combines two materials in a two-chamber design. The outer chamber is filled with a fluffy microdenier down alternative, while the inner chamber is filled with densely packed shredded latex. This design gives the pillow a plush feel as well as extra neck support. It’s a similar concept to the Casper Original pillow above. I especially like this pillow for side sleeping because it doesn’t feel overly firm, but keeps my neck from collapsing into the pillow (which can be an issue with down and down-alternative pillows). New York deputy editor Alexis Swerdloff is also a big fan; after purchasing a pair for herself and her husband, she says both of them have become converts. She says the pillow feels “fresh and springy” every night and never gets lumpy (another potential issue with down and down-alternative pillows). One potential downside of this pillow is that due to the latex core, it’s not fully machine washable, as most down alternatives are. However, you can still machine-wash the down-alternative-filled outer layer.

Fill type: 60% polyester, 40% viscose for pocket filling; 100% recycled polyester for core filling | Loft: Medium | Firmness: Medium

Ikea’s Senapsmott pillow has a similar design to the Casper and Saatva pillows above, with a firmer core surrounded by a fluffy exterior to provide a downlike feel and proper support. The polyester-viscose fill is moderately compressive, but the inner core prevents the pillow from completely deflating under the weight of your head and neck. As a back and side sleeper, I was able to sleep comfortably on the Senapsmott pillow, without having to scrunch it around to achieve proper support. The Senapsmott is also designed to be a cooling pillow — in addition to viscose added into the fill, it has a lyocell-cotton cover. I found it had a pleasant cool-to-the-touch feel, though not an extremely long-lasting one. I wouldn’t choose this pillow solely for cooling purposes, but it’s a nice bonus on top of an affordable, comfortable, and supportive down-alternative pillow.

Fill type: Recycled plastic down-alternative fill | Firmness: Soft, medium, or firm | Loft: Varies

The Buffy Cloud is stuffed with PET filling made from recycled plastic bottles; it’s certified by the Global Recycled Standard to verify the content and is certified to be BPA-free. But what really makes it a cooling pillow is the cover, which is made of moisture-wicking Tencel fabric. When I tested the Cloud, it maintained a pleasantly cool temperature.

The Buffy Cloud comes in three firmnesses. I tested the soft model, which is super-compressive and plush, with a lower loft, which makes it best suited to stomach sleepers. But the medium and firm models will be slightly taller and better for back and side sleepers, respectively, as they contain more filling (38 ounces for the soft, 49 ounces for the medium, and 62 ounces for the firm).

Fill type: Mulberry silk | Loft: Low | Firmness: Soft

Most down-alternatives are filled with a synthetic fiber, but this silk-filled pillow from Cozy Earth makes for a great natural-fill option. This pillow is covered with a bamboo cover and filled with mulberry silk, giving it an ultrasoft feel and excellent temperature regulation (it’s one of my favorite cooling pillows, too). Though this pillow is very soft and compressed a fair amount underneath my head, I felt comfortable laying on my back with this pillow. I think it could also work well for many stomach sleepers, as they’ll be able to sink in without their necks being pushed upwards. And while I didn’t find it quite supportive enough for side sleeping, Strategist senior editor Simone Kitchens, a side and back sleeper, stacks her Cozy Earth Silk pillow on top of a firmer pillow for the perfect balance of plushness and support. This pillow is significantly more expensive than many of the others on this list, but seeing as silk is an all-natural material (that tends to be costly anyway), it’s no surprise that it costs more than pillows filled with polyester.

Fill type: “Ultra-soft” microfiber | Loft: Adjustable | Firmness: Adjustable, arrives medium-soft

Adjustable pillows are a great option for people who want to get their pillow “just right” for their taste. But they tend not to be made with down-alternative fills — the Chinchilla pillow is one of the bestthat I’ve found. It’s filled with an ultrafluffy microfiber fill that looks a bit like cotton balls. To adjust the pillow, you unzip it and remove some of the fill, which will lower the loft and reduce the firmness of the pillow. It arrives fairly soft and with a low loft, however, so I doubt most people will need to make major adjustments — I didn’t need to change much to get comfortable on this pillow. Having the option to adjust makes this pillow customizable in a way that most other down-alternative pillows simply aren’t; just keep in mind you are paying a little extra for that adjustability, compared to other down-alternative pillows. Beyond the fill, this pillow also has a bamboo-polyester blend cover. You can remove the cover to wash separately, but like most down alternatives, the entire pillow is machine-washable too. Because it defaults to a lower loft, I’d primarily recommend the Chinchilla to stomach and back sleepers. (Side sleepers will be better off with one of the other adjustable pillows recommended below.)

Fill type: Silicone-coated polyester fibers | Loft: Adjustable | Firmness: Adjustable, arrives medium

I’m already on the record as a huge fan of Purple’s Harmony pillow, which has a latex core and an outer layer of the brand’s signature GelFlex grid. The GridCloud is like the down-alternative version of it — and, unlike the Harmony, it’s adjustable. As with the Lagoon Chinchilla, you can simply unzip the pillow and remove filling to adjust the loft and firmness.

The GridCloud is filled with extremely fluffy silicone-coated polyester fibers, which give the pillow a more substantial and supportive feel than many other down-alternative pillows. The GelFlex grid on the top side of the pillow also adds some oomph to keep the pillow from sagging or compressing too much. And, just as it does for my beloved Purple Harmony, the GelFlex grid keeps the surface of the GridCloud pillow nice and cool.

I was pleasantly surprised by how supportive this pillow was to sleep on. As a back and side sleeper, it can be challenging to find a down-alternative pillow that doesn’t go flat once I lay my head on it. I even took this pillow camping while I was testing it, and it made sleeping in the great outdoors considerably more comfortable. I didn’t end up removing any filling from my GridCloud pillow, as I liked the height and medium feel of the pillow as is — it looks quite lofty at first, but it does settle somewhat once you’re laying on it, so it doesn’t end up feeling as tall as it looks. But I appreciate having the option to remove fill, since the pillow is fairly densely stuffed to begin with. I also appreciated how plush it feels in addition to being very supportive — it really offers the best of both worlds.

Fill type: Microdenier polyester fiber | Loft: Adjustable | Firmness: Adjustable, arrives medium

Because Trolio is a fan of Sleep Crown’s Classic pillow — an “over-the-head” pillow beloved by multiple celebrities — she also tried the brand’s more recently released under-the-head pillow, the Sleep Crown Queen. The Queen is a standard bed pillow that features the same down-alternative microdenier polyfill as the Classic, but it’s more densely stuffed. In fact, there’s so much fill that it weighs a whopping four pounds — on the heavier side for any pillow, but especially for the usually lightweight down-alternative category.

According to Trolio, the fill looks like a big mass of spun cotton candy, but less airy. She describes the feel as supremely squishy, “almost like if memory foam and latex had a baby, made of a down alternative — genetically unlikely, and possibly a miracle of science.” She raved to me about how comfortable it is, likening it to a heftier version of the giant Squishmallows her two daughters have on their beds. Trolio is a back-and-side sleeper and likes the Sleep Crown Queen for both sleeping positions. The fill is compressive but also responsive; when she presses into the pillow, it pops back into its shape quickly — not as quickly as rubbery latex, but significantly faster than slow-moving memory foam. This combination of compression and responsiveness is what makes it feel unique compared to the dozens of other pillows she’s tried over the last few years; it also reduced the amount of “loft math” required to figure out the appropriate pillow height, she adds, since it has such a nice mix of cushioning and support. But if you do feel like tinkering with the loft and firmness, you can remove the included pillowcase and unzip the two inner liners to remove fill or add more in, if you buy a $30 bag of extra fill.

The major drawback of this pillow is the cost — it’s hard not to wince at a price tag of almost $300. But if you have the cash to spend, it really does have a one-of-a-kind feel.

[Editor’s note: The Sleep Crown Queen pillow is currently sold out. The next restock will be on September 22 at 10 a.m. ET.]

Fill type: Polyester | Loft: Low | Firmness: Soft or firm

If you prefer a soft and squishy pillow over one with a lighter, airier feel, consider the Marshmalloo. Trolio has been sleeping on it for a few months and says it is similar in feel to the Sleep Crown Queen pillow above, except it has a lower profile and is not adjustable. It’s filled with a fine polyester fiberfill that gives the pillow a dense but extremely squishy feel; Trolio finds it especially comfortable for sleeping on her back but says it would also likely work well for many stomach sleepers.

The cover is made from nylon-spandex blend, so it’s quite stretchy and feels similar to workout wear, Trolio says; it’s also very smooth and has a slight cool-to-the-touch feel. The Marshmalloo comes in two firmness levels, soft or firm, and Trolio tested the soft version. The firm version likely offers a bit more support, if you want the squishiness without going too soft, but may still have too much give for most side sleepers. (With that said, if you’re the type who likes to scrunch and fold a pillow into a just-right shape to get comfortable, this one will allow for that.) At just $80, the Marshmalloo is a great option for those who want a down-alternative pillow with a denser feel.