Softest pillow in Canada: fills compared for every sleeper
The softest pillows are filled with down (the light clusters that grow under a duck's or goose's outer feathers) or with a down alternative made from polyester microfibre. Shredded memory foam is a step firmer, but you can pull fill out until it feels right. A very soft pillow suits stomach sleepers best and works for many back sleepers. Side sleepers should be careful, because a pillow that squashes flat leaves the head tipped toward the mattress. For them, the better choice is a pillow that feels soft on top and still keeps its height.
Two kinds of soft
Ask ten people for the softest pillow in the world and you will get answers to two different questions.
- How far your head sinks. This comes from the fill inside.
- How the surface feels on your cheek, whether smooth, plush or fuzzy. This comes mostly from the cover and the pillowcase.
A third quality, squish, matters if you fold your pillow in half or hug it on your side. Down and shredded foam bunch up easily. A solid memory foam pillow feels soft when you press slowly, but it won't fold under your arm.
Height matters more than softness
Loft is the height of the pillow, and soft-pillow shoppers tend to forget it. Once your head sinks in, whatever is left underneath decides whether your neck lines up with your spine.
Side sleepers have to fill the gap between the ear and the outside of the shoulder. That usually means a pillow that stays roughly 10 to 15 cm (4 to 6 inches) tall under weight, more for broad shoulders. Stomach sleepers want very little, often under 7.5 cm (3 inches). Back sleepers land in between.
To get soft without going flat, add fill rather than removing it. An overstuffed down pillow stays squishy on top and still holds your head up. With down, check fill weight as well as fill power: fill power describes how fluffy the down is, and fill weight tells you how much of it is inside. A standard 20 x 26 inch (51 x 66 cm) pillow and a queen 20 x 30 inch (51 x 76 cm) pillow need different amounts to feel equally full.
Soft pillow fills compared
| Fill | How soft it feels | Holds its shape | Heat | Suits |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Down | Softest and lightest | Poorly; needs fluffing most days | Breathes well | Stomach and back sleepers who like to sink |
| Feather or feather and down blend | Soft, with some quill feel | Shifts during the night | Breathes well | People who want a down-like feel for less |
| Down alternative (polyester microfibre) | Close to down when new | Clumps and flattens with use | Can trap heat | Anyone avoiding animal fill or washing often |
| Shredded memory foam | Medium-soft, adjustable | Well; reshapes by hand | Warm unless gel or ventilated | Combination sleepers, side sleepers who want soft |
| Solid memory foam | Soft surface, slow sink | Very well | Can run warm | People who want steady support over plushness |
| Latex (Talalay) | Bouncy rather than sinking | Very well | Cooler than most foam | People who dislike the slow sink of memory foam |
Down and feather
For the softest pillow possible, choose down. Higher fill power means bigger clusters holding more air, so an 800 fill power pillow feels puffier than a 600 at the same weight. Canada has a long history with down bedding, and companies such as Canadian Down & Feather Company sell down pillows here. The catch is upkeep: down drifts to the edges, flattens under your head overnight and needs a shake every morning. Feather pillows cost less, feel firmer, and the odd quill can poke through a thin cover. Some people avoid both for allergy or ethical reasons.
Down alternative
Polyester fibrefill is the cheapest way to get soft, and most of it goes through a home washer without trouble. But the fibres mat together over time. A fibrefill pillow that felt like a cloud in the store can turn lumpy within a year or so.
Shredded memory foam
Shredded foam is less airy than down. It springs back better, though, and you set the firmness yourself by adding or removing fill. Several brands sold in Canada make this style, Silk & Snow among them. Look for gel or a ventilated cover if you sleep warm.
Latex
Talalay is the softer of the two common latex types. It pushes back gently instead of letting you sink, which some people call soft and others call springy. If memory foam has ever felt like quicksand, try latex.
Who should buy a soft pillow, and who should be careful
Stomach sleepers are the clearest match. A low, soft pillow stops the head from being pushed up and back, and some stomach sleepers do best with almost nothing under them.
Back sleepers usually do well on soft to medium, provided the pillow fills the curve behind the neck rather than letting the head drop flat.
Side sleepers have the hardest time with very soft pillows. If you love soft, buy an overstuffed one and check in a mirror that your head isn't tilting down. And if you already wake with a sore neck or shoulder, a softer pillow is unlikely to be the answer; you probably need more support, not less.
Combination sleepers tend to like squishy fills, since they can punch the pillow into a new shape each time they roll over.
Keeping a soft pillow soft
Fluff down and fibre pillows every morning to put air back into the fill. To test one, fold it in half: if it stays folded instead of springing open, the loft is gone and no amount of fluffing will bring it back.
Washing wears fibrefill down faster, so a protector such as our Cooling Pillow Protector lets you wash the cover instead of the pillow. The pillowcase changes the feel more than most people expect, too. Flannel feels fuzzy and warm on a January night; sateen feels smooth and cooler in July.
Where Dosaze fits, and where it doesn't
Dosaze doesn't sell down, feather, fibrefill or shredded foam pillows in Canada. If you want to sink into a puffy cloud, one of those will suit you better than anything we make.
Our pillows are shaped memory foam built to hold your neck in position. They make sense for a different shopper: someone who has been looking for a softer pillow because their current one leaves them sore, when the real problem may be that the pillow flattens or doesn't fit the curve of the neck. Memory foam gives slowly under the head and then keeps its height, which is the trade-off down can't offer.
- The Dosaze Contoured Orthopaedic Pillow cradles the natural curve of the neck and promotes spinal alignment. It works for side, back and stomach sleepers, has a naturally cooling, antimicrobial fabric and a removable cover you can wash.
- The Contoured Orthopedic Side Sleeper Pillow is the one to look at if soft pillows keep collapsing under your head on your side.
- The Cervical Orthopaedic Pillow is shaped to support the vertebrae from C1 to C7 and is designed for side and back sleeping.
All three use CertiPUR-US certified memory foam and ship locally within Canada. They won't fold in half or squash into a hug, and a stomach sleeper who wants almost nothing under the head may still prefer a thin, soft pillow.
Frequently asked questions
What is the softest pillow material?
Down is the softest common pillow fill, and higher fill power down feels puffier still. Polyester microfibre down alternative feels similar when new but flattens sooner. Shredded memory foam is a little denser, though you can remove fill to soften it.
Is a soft pillow bad for your neck?
It depends on your sleep position. Stomach sleepers and many back sleepers are fine on a soft pillow. Side sleepers need enough height to keep the head level with the spine, so a pillow that collapses can leave the neck bent toward the mattress.
Are memory foam pillows soft?
Solid memory foam feels soft when you press into it, but it sinks slowly and keeps its shape rather than squishing like down. That makes it feel supportive more than plush. Shredded memory foam is softer and easier to mould.
How can I make my pillow softer?
With an adjustable shredded fill pillow, take some fill out. With down or fibrefill, fluff it daily and try a smoother or plusher pillowcase such as sateen or flannel. If a fibre pillow stays folded when you bend it in half, replacing it will do more than any fix.
Do soft pillows go flat faster?
Down and polyester pillows usually flatten faster than foam or latex because the fill compresses and shifts. Down recovers with fluffing, while fibrefill tends to mat for good. A pillow protector cuts down on washing, which helps fibrefill last longer.
