Nest Bedding Easy Breather Side Sleeper Pillow review

The Side Sleeper is a crescent: its lower edge curves inward so your down-side shoulder can sit closer to your head. Nest says the shape supports the head and neck while making more space for the shoulder^[1]. CNN Underscored's Michelle Rae Uy found the curve deep enough to work as intended but not so deep that it steals room from your head^[2]. Sleepopolis's reviewer described thick ends and a thinner, softer middle, which made rolling between side and back easy^[3]. That shape fits a lab finding: in 40 adults, the shoulder rose an average of 4.4 cm (about 1.7 inches) when they rolled from back to side, and the authors concluded that a pillow of uniform height suits neither position well^[4].

Nest lists one size, 26 by 18 inches, and a weight of 6 pounds^[1]. There is no king version of the crescent; the rectangular Easy Breather comes in standard/queen, king and junior sizes instead^[5]. A separate Jr. Side Sleeper measures 18 by 13 inches, and Nest pitches it at younger sleepers and travelers^[1].

The trade-off is looks. Tom's Guide's reviewer and its awards team both said the curve makes the pillow awkward in a pillowcase and odd-looking next to rectangular pillows^[5,6]. That cost it half a point in the review, which the reviewer called an aesthetic issue rather than a performance one^[5].

Why bother with the curve? Side lying raises pressure on the rotator cuff compared with lying on your back^[7], and a crescent lets the shoulder tuck in under the pillow's edge instead of shoving the pillow away. We found no study that tests crescent pillows directly. Our shoulder pain guide covers what the evidence does say.

The pillow ships overstuffed, and Nest's advice for side sleepers is to try it as it comes before removing anything. The fill is 80% shredded CertiPUR-US foam, a blend of memory foam and high-response foam, plus 20% polyester fiber, held in a knit cotton inner pouch^[1]. Nest suggests back sleepers remove about a quarter of the fill and stomach sleepers about a third, and says the right amount for you depends on shoulder width, body type and how deeply you sink into your mattress^[1]. To reach the fill you unzip the outer cover, then a second zipper on the inner pouch^[5]. A storage bag Nest calls a “pillow egg” holds about half the fill, so nothing you remove has to be thrown away^[1].

How much you take out depends on your frame, and testers landed in different places. Tom's Guide's Terri Williams, a side and stomach sleeper, kept all the fill for both positions and removed some only for back sleeping^[5]. CNN's Uy found her sample, 7 inches thick as shipped, too lofty for her neck and frame. She removed some fill after the first night and called the result perfect. She also found the fill firmer and less squishy than a rival pillow, and suggested slightly underfilling it^[2]. Sleepopolis's reviewer, who is short, moved fill from the ends toward the middle instead of removing it^[3].

Take fill out a handful at a time and sleep on each setting. In one lab study, only 70.8% of side-lying necks had settled after 15 minutes on a test pillow^[8], so a quick test on the bed can mislead you. If you go too low, put fill back; if the full pillow is still too low, Nest says customer service can send extra fill^[9]. For target heights by shoulder width, see how to choose a pillow.

Every tester who commented found it cool, and cooling is the main reason it wins awards. The outer cover is 49% Icecore, 49% polyester and 2% spandex^[1]. CNN quotes Nest describing Icecore as a yarn that regulates temperature by managing heat and moisture^[2]. Uy used the pillow on several hot summer nights, said it stayed cool and dry, and called it the most comfortable cooling side-sleeper pillow she tested^[2]. Williams, who sleeps under covers year-round, found it cool to the touch and scored its temperature control 5 out of 5^[5].

Tom's Guide gave it the 2025 Sleep Award for best pillow for side sleepers. Its write-up credits the cooling and the adjustable fill, and says the runner-up, Purple Harmony, lost partly because testers found it slept warm^[6]. The fill helps as well: Sleepopolis's reviewer, writing about the version she tested, noted that loose foam pieces let air move through the pillow in a way a solid block doesn't^[3].

Two caveats. Neither Tom's Guide nor CNN published a temperature measurement, so these are sleepers' impressions. Williams also noted that her bedroom is climate-controlled and that she couldn't promise the same result in a hotter room^[5]. Our cooling score of 8 reflects strong but unmeasured results. For other ways to sleep cooler, see our cooling guide.

Give it a few hours to expand, and wash only the outer cover. The pillow arrives vacuum-wrapped. Williams found it partly expanded after an hour and fully expanded after several hours^[5]. Nest says its CertiPUR-US foam has low to no scent^[1], and the reviews we read don't report a lingering smell.

Wash the outer cover in cold water on a delicate cycle, without fabric softener or bleach, and dry it on low. High heat can warp or shrink it^[1]. Uy noted that the shiny cover needs a bit more care in the wash^[2]. Nest recommends a waterproof pillow protector to space out washes, and suggests kneading the pillow like bread once a week to open up the shredded foam^[1].

The trial and warranty are short, and the warranty does not cover flattening. Nest gives its pillows a 30-night trial counted from delivery and a 2-year limited warranty^[9]. The warranty covers defects such as failed zippers, bad seams and fill that stops performing as intended. It excludes normal wear and changes in comfort, firmness or loft^[9]. When shredded fill packs down, you top it up yourself: Nest sells a replenishment kit in a Side Sleeper version^[10].

Read the return conditions before you wash anything. A returned pillow must come back in its original packaging, in new, sanitary and resaleable condition, free of stains, odors and laundering. You get one free exchange per order, and refunds have a return-shipping fee deducted unless the pillow arrived damaged or defective^[9]. If you buy on Amazon, check that order's return window; most items sold there can be returned within 30 days of delivery^[11].

Long-term evidence is thin. Williams said the pillows still looked and felt new after several weeks, with no sagging and no need to plump them^[5]. That is a short window, and we haven't coded enough owner comments on this model to chart, so this page has no owner-sentiment section.

Published specs for this pillow vary, so trust Nest's current listing over older reviews.

• Fill ratio. Nest and Tom's Guide's award write-up give 80% foam and 20% polyester fiber^[1,6]. Tom's Guide's earlier review said 70% foam and 30% fiber^[5].
• Size. Nest and CNN give 26 by 18 inches^[1,2]. Tom's Guide listed 29 by 17 inches^[5].
• Cover and feel. Sleepopolis described a Tencel cover, an 8-inch height and a soft, lush feel that some might find less supportive than solid memory foam^[3]. Nest now lists the Icecore blend^[1], and CNN found the fill on the firm side^[2], so Sleepopolis likely tested an earlier version.

Buy it if you sleep on your side, run warm and want a shoulder-friendly shape you can tune. It suits hot side sleepers with average to broad shoulders: the crescent makes room for the shoulder, the cover tested cool, and there is enough fill to go tall. It also flexes for combination sleepers. Williams found it worked on her back and stomach once she adjusted the fill^[5], and Sleepopolis's reviewer found the thinner middle made it easy to roll from side to back^[3].

Skip it if you need a king-width pillow, want a long trial or warranty, or prefer a plain rectangle that fits any pillowcase. If you have a small frame, budget a few nights for removing fill, as CNN's tester did^[2]. And if you want a springier fill that holds its height, CNN's tester rated the memory foam Eli & Elm better on that count^[2].

The Nest is the cool-sleeping choice among adjustable crescents; rivals win on terms, sizes and bounce.

• Coop Original Crescent: shredded memory foam and microfiber in a crescent, sold in queen (18 by 28 inches) and king (18 by 34 inches), with a 100-night guarantee and a 5-year warranty^[12]. Choose Coop for the longer terms and a king size; choose Nest if cooling matters more.
• Eli & Elm Side Sleeper: CNN's previous top pick, an 18-by-28-inch crescent. Uy found its memory foam version compressed under less pressure, bounced back quicker and held its height better than the Nest. A shredded latex version is firmer^[2].
• Purple Harmony: Tom's Guide's runner-up. It has no adjustable fill and testers found it slept warm^[6], but it comes in three heights and has a bouncier latex feel^[5].
• TEMPUR-Neck: if you want firmer, fixed support, Tom's Guide's review points you to it as its top pick for pressure-relieving neck and shoulder support^[5].