Choosing a Pillow: Back Sleeper Edition

Our tips for back sleepers looking for their perfect pillow fit. 

When it’s time to drift off into dreamland each night, you’re always hoping for a solid night’s sleep filled with coziness and sweet dreams. But, the pillow you add into your nighttime routine is essential to the rest you need (and want), and it’s key to discover your sleep style and choose the best pillow for bedtime that doesn’t leave you frustrated, sore or sleepy.

With our Choosing a Pillow: Back Sleeper guide, you’ll scale way down on interrupted nights of sleep and achy backs in the mornings. We’re giving you everything you need to know to pick the best pillow for back sleeping, from identifying your back sleeping style to choosing between all of the options. 

Identifying your back sleeping style

If you’re a back sleeper, congratulations! Back sleeping is widely considered the most optimal sleeping position, since it keeps your spine aligned, your back neutral and your neck happy. As a back sleeper, you might be a snorer (whoops!), and you’re definitely familiar with waking up with crazy hair on the backside of your head. However, you’re probably not just lying completely still each night. Here are the different back sleeping styles:

• The savasana sleeper: Some back sleepers spend the entire night looking like they’re ending a yoga class—in a perfectly straight, relaxed line. The savasana sleeper is probably getting great sleep quality since they don’t tend to move around too much.
• The starfish sleeper: The starfish sleeper lays on their back, legs wide and arms above their head. They might wake up with tighter shoulders in the morning, and the position can put pressure on your lower back. 
• The knee up sleeper: A lot of back sleepers tend to bend one knee upwards while they’re sleeping, which can be a sign that you want to take the pressure off of your back or even that you sleep warm at night.

Our tips for sleeping well on your back

Sleeping on your back can be beneficial in a lot of ways, and is a common way to sleep well. However, sleeping on your back might elevate your snoring or upset your lower back, so follow these tips to sleep well on your back:

• Back sleepers should look for a pillow that isn’t overly fluffy—it should be soft enough for optimal coziness, but without enough loft to disrupt the spine alignment. The best pillow for back sleeping is firm but filled with soft material.
• If you tend to have lower back pain as a back sleeper, consider sleeping with a bolster pillow under your low back or under your knees.
• If you’re a loud snorer, consider sleeping on a wedge pillow.
• A lot of back sleepers benefit from surrounding themselves with pillows on their sides at night, almost creating an in-bed pillow nest. 

Key tips for choosing the best pillow for back sleeping

The best pillow for back sleeping is flat enough to keep the neck in alignment, fluffy enough for comfort and firm enough to provide support. When back sleepers sleep with a pillow too high off of the mattress, they’ll tend to wake up with neck pain—but when sleeping with one too flat, they might struggle with snoring or exacerbated sleep apnea.

When choosing the best pillow for back sleeping, look for one that’s comfortable but has plenty of support. Since back sleepers don’t tend to move around a ton while they sleep, a supportive pillow is a must. The best pillow for back sleepers will keep their necks happy and their spines neutral, making it easy to slip into dreamland each night. 

What’s the best pillow for back sleeping?

At Skylark+Owl, we’re all about luxury with options. With our luxurious pillow selection, you can choose your desired level of softness for your optimal sleep. When selecting the best pillow for back sleeping, our Refined Pillow in a firmer style is your best option. The seriously cozy filling mimics down without the allergies and has a gusset design that allows for some additional loft. 

Refined Pillow

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Everyone in your home probably has a different sleep style, so make sure that everyone is sleeping well with a Skylark+Owl pillow tailored especially to them. Whether you live with side sleepers, back sleepers or stomach sleepers, we have a pillow for everyone.