Put simply, most snoring can be traced to our airways. When we sleep in certain positions — especially on our backs — “the upper airway is susceptible to collapse,” explains Dr. Paul Schalch Lepe, board-certified ENT and sleep medicine specialist at UC San Diego Health. The partially blocked airflow through our nose and throat triggers that vibration sound we know all too well.
This is where a cleverly designed pillow can be crucial, helping you break the habit of lying supine and encouraging you to instead sleep on your side, or at an angle that does not obstruct airflow and also minimizes pressure on your back. Called “positional therapy,” according to Dr. Schlach Lepe, this approach can help prevent or mitigate airway collapse and, by extension, reduce snoring.
Fortunately, the anti-snoring pillow market is less niche than it once was, and it’s now relatively easy (and affordable) to find them in a variety of shapes, sizes, and angles that nudge the body toward more optimal positions in bed. We talked to various sleep doctors and other experts in the field to round up your best options.
Best anti-snoring wedge pillow
Snoring most often happens when you’re on your back, so it’s no surprise that almost all the experts we spoke with echoed the sentiment of board-certified sleep medicine physician Audrey Wells: “Wedge pillows can be used to elevate the head and torso, which may reduce snoring,” says Dr. Wells.
Sleep coach Cali Bahrenfuss recommends this best-selling wedge pillow with multiple height and width options. It has a high-density foam core with a layer of memory foam on top as well as a removable quilted cover. She says patients can even add their favorite pillow on top for extra familiarity and comfort.
Best (less expensive) anti-snoring wedge pillow
But can’t you elevate your head by just stacking up some regular pillows? According to W. Chris Winter, author of The Sleep Solution, it’s worth getting a specialized wedge shape because it will also support your shoulders and back, and you won’t risk pitching your neck forward in an unnatural way.
Sarah Riccio, a former writer at Sleepopolis, likes the Xtreme Comforts wedge with its 30-degree angle and seven-inch height. Though it doesn’t come in as many sizes and angles as the Kölbs pillow above, it’s more affordable and made fully of memory foam, which is Winter’s material of choice: Less collapsible than down filling, “Memory foam tends to support and hold people better,” Riccio says. “It’s conforming around your neck and will give a little bit more of an even distribution of pressure.”
Best anti-snoring pillow for back-sleeping (that isn’t a wedge)
If you prefer a traditionally shaped pillow to the wedge, an extra-lofty profile can help ensure your head and neck are lifted. Most standard pillows are approximately four to six inches in height, which may not be enough for people who snore. Riccio recommends the seven-inch-high Layla Kapok pillow, which also “does a great job of maintaining its shape.” Just be sure to also place it under your shoulders, if needed, so that your head is aligned with your spine and you don’t wrench your neck out of whack.
Best anti-snoring pillows for side-sleeping
Doctors agree that sleeping on your side is the best way to prevent snoring, but some find it difficult for reasons like neck pain. For those people, Dr. Anthony Izzo, Sleep Center medical director at Community Neuroscience Services, recommends this MedCline pillow with a unique built-in wedge and space to put your bottom arm through the pillow system. It “creates a comfortable space for the shoulder and arm to rest in, without bending the upper spine or the neck,” he explains.
Another fan, dentist and snoring expert Jay Khorsandi, deems the MedCline the “Rolls-Royce of side-sleeping pillows” because “it puts you in a beautiful side-sleeping position with little pressure on your hand so it won’t go numb, and nice shoulder and neck support.”
Here’s another option for back sleepers who are having difficulty adjusting to side-sleeping: Dr. Kannan Ramar, a sleep physician at the Mayo Clinic, suggests a “backpack pillow” like this one, which has an inflatable air bag to prevent you from rolling over. “It’s not going to be comfortable when you try to get onto your back, so it tries to keep you on your side,” he says.
Dr. Schalch Lepe says his patients often report good results from this U-shaped foam pillow designed to reduce shoulder and back pressure. The back support helps snorers maintain their side sleeping position throughout the night.
Although this pillow style is built to accommodate the mouthpiece of a CPAP machine (a wearable device that treats sleep apnea), Khorsandi says it’s a good choice even for those who don’t use one. He likes that these pillows “have a cutout on the side, so your nose and your mouth are more free and open, which will help with breathing. They’re just more ergonomic.”
Made by the makers of the classic Pillow Cube, this viral pillow for side sleepers is designed to fill that pesky gap between your shoulder and neck that a traditional pillow won’t support, giving you a more comfortable night’s rest and, hopefully, mitigating snoring as you’re able to remain on your side longer. “An ideal positional pillow will nudge the patient to sleep on their side without causing them to wake up or have any discomfort that might disrupt sleep,” says Dr. Shclach Lape.
Best adjustable anti-snoring pillows
“If a pillow is too high or too low, it can exacerbate snoring issues,” says Keith Cushner, co-founder and general manager of Tuck, a sleep-product review site. To help customize your level of support, Cushner recommends this adjustable pillow that comes with removable filling for finding the perfect loft.
Dr. Kevin Lees, Director of Chiropractic Operations of The Joint Chiropractic, reminds patients that even wedge pillows should be purchased for the specific body of the person using them. If the angle is too steep, that, too, may cause back or neck pain, he says. This wedge pillow lets you customize the angle anywhere between 30 and 60 degrees, thanks to a clever folding mechanism. The versatile design also enables you to use this pillow for your legs and back.
Best anti-snoring pillow device
If you want to go further (and splurgier) than the pillow itself, the Smart Nora device is designed to be placed underneath your pillow: If the sensor detects snoring sounds, it will trigger the pad to inflate, changing your position and — ideally — stopping your snoring. You can adjust its sensitivity to both sound detection and movement, and unlike with other sleep apnea systems, “you do not need any oral appliances,” says Dr. Neomi Shah, the Associate Division Chief for Academic Affairs in the Division of Pulmonary, Critical Care and Sleep Medicine at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai. She recommends it as a “non-invasive” option for people who don’t have obstructive sleep apnea and don’t require more in-depth monitoring from a medical professional.
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