Pillow tools
Pillow Loft Calculator
Three things set the right pillow height: the position you sleep in, how broad your shoulders are, and how far your shoulder sinks into your mattress. Set them below and you get a starting range to test — not a measurement, and not a number to buy blind.
Which position do you spend the most hours in?
How broad are your shoulders?
How does your mattress feel?
High loft — starting range
5–6 inches
Side sleeping fills the gap from the outside of your shoulder to the side of your head, which is the largest gap of any position.
Treat this as where to begin. Sleep on it for three or four nights, then check the fit with the photo test below and adjust in small steps. If you land near the edge of a range, or you change position through the night, buy an adjustable pillow so the height stays a setting rather than a purchase.
How to check the fit
Lie down in your usual position on your own mattress, settle for a minute, and take a photo from behind — a phone propped on a shelf works. Your nose should line up with the centre of your chest, and the line of your neck should continue the line of your spine rather than kinking up or down.
- Head tilted up toward the ceiling: the pillow is too high.
- Head dropped toward the mattress, or an arm tucked underneath: the pillow is too low.
- Judge by how your neck feels in the morning, not by how the pillow feels at bedtime.
- Re-check after changing mattress or adding a topper — the target height moves with the surface.
Where to go next
- How high should my pillow be? — the full explanation behind these ranges.
- Pillow too high: signs and fixes and pillow too low.
- Best pillows for broad shoulders if the calculator sent you above 6 inches.
- Take the pillow quiz for a product shortlist rather than a height.