Travel Pillows

What a travel pillow is

A travel pillow is a small pillow made to hold your head while you sleep sitting up. Seats on planes, trains and buses are upright. Your head isn't. It tips forward or sideways as you fall asleep, and that's what wakes you. A travel pillow gives it something to land on.

The best-known kind is the U-shaped neck pillow, sometimes called an airplane pillow. There are others: wraps that close around the neck, hook-shaped pillows that go under the chin on one side, inflatable pillows that pack small, and small rectangles for camping or car trips.

This list includes every travel pillow we track, of all those kinds. Fill and weight show where the maker or listing states them.

How to read the table

Every field shows only when the maker or the listing states it. A dash means it wasn't stated.

Travel pillow type

Type is the first thing to read. U-shape, wrap or 360, J or hook, inflatable, or rectangular. We take it from the product name and the maker's description. A maker's own product name wins over a store category; a contoured rectangle sold for travel is listed as rectangular, even if the store files it with neck pillows.

Fill

Fill is what's inside: solid memory foam, shredded memory foam, polyester fiber, microbeads or air. Memory foam pillows have their own page, and so do inflatable ones. When a listing puts something odd in the fill field, like a number, we leave it blank instead of guessing.

Weight, in ounces

Weight is how heavy the pillow is, in ounces. We take the maker's figure first. When only the listing states it, keep in mind that a listing's item weight can include a case or packaging. Compare two pillows' weights only when you know both were weighed the same way.

Carry bag or compressible, as stated

This field quotes what the maker says about packing: a travel bag, a storage pouch, "compressible", or a clip that attaches to luggage. If it's empty, the maker didn't say. That doesn't mean there isn't a bag; it means you'll have to look at the listing photos.

Dimensions

Width, length and height in inches, as stated. For a U-shape, the inside opening matters too. Some listings give only a size name, such as "universal" or "medium". A size name carries no number, so we don't make one up.

Firmness, as stated

A firmness word from the maker, when there is one. No common scale. Read it as each maker's own.

Care

The maker's washing instructions: cover, core, temperature and drying, when stated.

Health wording (maker)

Some listings use words like neck support or neck pain. The table quotes those as the maker's wording. It doesn't mean we've rated them, and a travel pillow isn't a treatment for anything.

The types, and which trips they suit

U-shaped neck pillows

The classic travel neck pillow. It circles the back and sides of your neck, open at the front. It works when your head tips to either side. Some have a toggle or strap to close the front, which helps when your head tips forward. U-shapes are the easiest kind to find a spare cover for, and the hardest to pack flat unless the fill is air or shredded foam.

Wraps and 360 pillows

A wrap closes all the way around your neck, often with a hook-and-loop strip. Some are a scarf-like piece of fabric with a firm support inside on one side. A full wrap supports the front too, so your chin doesn't drop. They usually pack flatter than a U.

J and hook pillows

A J or hook pillow sits under your chin on one side, curving up toward the ear. It's built for one lean direction, so it suits a window seat or a car where you always tip the same way. Check whether the maker says it can be turned for either side.

Inflatable pillows

Air-filled, usually U-shaped, sometimes with a fabric cover. Their strength is packing: deflated, they take very little space. You can also set the firmness by how much air you put in. Check the valve type in the listing, and practice once at home.

Rectangular and camping pillows

A small, flat rectangle for camping, a car seat or a hotel bed that's too soft. It isn't a neck pillow, but makers sell these for travel and some people prefer them. Some are contoured rectangles meant to tuck between your neck and a headrest.

Foam, fiber, beads or air: the fill trade-offs

Fill decides how a travel pillow feels, how much it weighs and how small it packs. None of them wins at everything.

• Solid memory foam. Holds its shape and gives the firmest support. Usually the heaviest and the bulkiest to pack.
• Shredded memory foam. Softer, and some let you take fill out through a zipper. Still on the heavy side.
• Polyester fiber. Light and soft, and it squashes into a bag. It also flattens faster under a heavy head.
• Microbeads. Pour into shape around your neck. They shift as you move, which some people like and some don't.
• Air. The lightest and the smallest packed. Firmness is up to you. A fabric cover makes it feel less like a pool toy.

Read the fill field together with weight and carry bag. A foam pillow with a compression pouch can pack smaller than you'd guess. A fiber pillow with no bag will ride on the outside of your backpack.

Size and fit around your neck

Travel pillows don't come in standard sizes. Most are sold as one size, and that size fits some necks better than others. Three checks help.

First, the opening. A U that's too wide sits on your shoulders and misses your head. One that's too narrow presses on your throat. When the maker gives inside dimensions, compare them with your own neck.

Second, collars and hoods. A thick coat collar or a hoodie hood changes the fit. If you always fly in a hoodie, try the pillow with it on.

Third, glasses and headphones. A tall side wall can push on headphone cups or glasses arms. A lower or adjustable pillow may get along better with both.

Choosing a travel neck pillow for the trip you take

Here's my rule: weigh the pillow against the trip, not the other way around. A pillow you'll carry for a week through three airports should be light and should pack small. A pillow that lives in the car can be as big and soft as you like. That's why weight and the carry bag field sit right next to type in the table.

• Long flights. U-shape or wrap with a front closure, so your chin has support when your head drops forward.
• Window seat or the same side every time. A J or hook may be all you need.
• Backpack or carry-on only. Inflatable, or anything the maker says compresses into a pouch.
• Car trips. Weight matters less. A U-shape or a small rectangle for the headrest.
• Camping. A rectangular or inflatable pillow that packs with the sleeping bag.

Rosa has her own system. Every December she flies to San Antonio for her family's Christmas Eve tamales, and her sleep mask and ear plugs live in the same pocket of the same carry-on, year after year. Her rule: anything you need to sleep on the trip goes in one place, so you can find it in the dark.

That pairing makes sense. A travel pillow handles your head, and a travel sleep mask and ear plugs handle light and noise. Some people add a portable white noise machine for hotel rooms.

How to wear and use a travel pillow

Small changes make the pillow do its job.

1. Sit all the way back. The seat holds your back and shoulders. The pillow only holds your head.
2. Fit it high. A neck pillow sitting on your shoulders isn't touching your head. Pull it up so it sits against your neck.
3. Turn it if you nod forward. Try the thick part under your chin.
4. Close the front if it closes. A strap or toggle keeps a U from spreading open.
5. Adjust the air or fill. Try an inflatable at a few different amounts of air. Shredded foam pillows with a zipper may let you take some fill out.
6. Try it at home first. On the couch, at the angle of a plane seat. Better to learn now than halfway through a night flight.

Care between trips

Read the care tag before the price tag. Travel pillows get a lot of use in public places, so the care field matters.

• Removable cover. Wash it as the tag says, after every trip if you can.
• Memory foam core. Usually spot clean only and air dry. Don't put foam in the dryer unless the tag allows it.
• Inflatable. Wipe clean, dry completely, and store it partly inflated or as the maker suggests.
• Fiber or microbead fill. Some go in the washer whole, some don't. The tag decides.
• Storage. Keep it in its pouch or a clean bag, not loose in the trunk.

Our guide to washing pillows covers the general steps.

Who can skip a travel pillow

• You don't sleep while traveling. Then it's just one more thing to carry.
• You always take a window seat and lean on the wall. A rolled sweater may do the same job.
• Your trips are short. An hour-long flight may not be worth the space in your bag.
• You pack only a small personal item. Unless it compresses or clips to the outside, it may not fit.

Related pages

• Pillows: every pillow type we cover
• Memory foam travel pillows and inflatable travel pillows
• Best travel pillows: a shorter list with its own pick rule
• Travel sleep masks, ear plugs for sleeping and portable white noise machines
• Travel gifts: if you're shopping for someone who flies a lot
• How to wash pillows