This purple pillow stands out for its exceptional durability and firm support due to its unusual polymer mesh. When it’s time to get to work, the perfect pillow can make all the difference. A pillow can help prevent head and neck pain and can also help you fall asleep within minutes. It is ideal for a pillow to be both supportive and comfortable.
Finding that balance can be a challenge, made even harder by the fact that pillows should be replaced every one to two years. After a few months, the pillow deformed, flattened, and became neither comfortable nor supportive. Then start looking for a new pillow, there are so many factors to consider, including the type and size of the pillow. Feather, down alternatives, and polyester, fill traditional pillows, while latex and memory foam pillows offer high-tech support. These types of bed pillows make up most of the market, but they’re not the only options.
Like its distinctive mattresses, the Purple Pillow stands out from the Purple Grid. The Purple Pillow is designed for long-lasting support night after night, unlike any other pillow on the market. I thought that was a good thing, so, since I’m a big fan of my Purple Hybrid Premier mattress, I decided to give the original Purple Pillow a chance as well.
1. What is a purple pillow?
Like the mattress’s main layer, the Purple Pillow is made from the company’s unique super-elastic polymer mesh. This pillow has many of the same benefits as the Purple mattress. Supportive, responsive, breathable, and durable—in a smaller package. Purple pillow measures 24″ x 16″ long and approximately 3″ deep.
While it’s a little smaller than a standard-sized pillow (20 x 30 inches), it’s nearly 12 pounds heavier. Each pillow comes with two polyester booster pads so the user can adjust the height of the pillow. Boosters have the same length and width as pillows, but one booster is 1/2″ thick and the other is 1″.
A polyester blend cover keeps the purple mesh clean and wicks away moisture. The Purple Pillow is latex-free, made from hypoallergenic materials, and certified CertiPUR-US and Clean Air GOLD, so you can breathe easily while you sleep.
In addition to standard pillows, Purple also offers Harmony, TwinCloud, Purple Plush, and kids’ pillows. Purple’s mesh technology is used in the Harmony and children’s pillows, while the Twin Cloud has silicon fiber filling and the Plush has polyethylene filling. What sets the Harmony apart from the original pillow is that it has a mesh that surrounds the latex core. A kid’s pillow is just a smaller version of the original.
2. What is the purple harmony pillow?
Purple Harmony became the company’s best-selling pillow after its release in 2019, according to a customer service representative. Harmony has a gel grid, but that’s all there is in common with Purple Pillow. The outer fabric is a nylon spandex blend with a “moisture-wicking treatment”. According to the rep, Harmony’s mesh is made with a “special type of latex” that gives it a wobbly yet firm feel.
Harmony does not include a booster pad and is not adjustable or customizable. It’s shaped more like a traditional pillow — again, think wontons rather than chicken nuggets. According to the rep, it’s a favorite with side sleepers. Well, I have a friend who is a guardrail supplier. He is a loyal fan of the purple harmony pillow. I can give you an example. Due to work reasons, he needs to travel all over the country. Every time he travels, he will bring the purple harmony pillow. He said that he couldn’t even get a good night’s sleep without it.
Like the Purple Pillow, the Harmony comes only in standard sizes but is available in two heights: a 6.5-inch and a 7.5-inch “tall” version. At $159, it’s the same price regardless of height, making it one of the most expensive pillows we’ve tested.
3. What is a purple plush pillow?
Purple Plush Pillow does not feature the signature grid, and it looks like most other fluffy down or down alternative pillows. According to a customer service representative, it did not surpass the popularity of Purple Pillow or Harmony.
The polyester-filled pillow can’t be customized – like Coop Home Goods, which lets you remove the shredded foam to find your perfect lift – but it has a zipper that allows you to tighten and compress the fill, or unzip it to soften.
It’s the only pillow from the company that offers multiple sizes — $49 for a standard size and $64 for a jumbo. We didn’t test this one in our best pillow roundup, since we’ve already included two of Purple’s more popular (and unique) models.
4. How comfortable is the purple pillow?
Perhaps more important than the bed, the comfort of your pillow depends on your sleeping position. Belly and back sleepers don’t need as much loft as side sleepers. In general, I am a combined sleeper, sleeping in any one of the three positions.
However, I primarily sleep on my side, like about 60% of Americans, and sometimes on my back. This is how I used this pillow for a few days. I also try to use it on my tummy.
1) Side
My purple pillow wasn’t high enough to cover the space between my shoulders and head when lying on my side. I couldn’t sleep on my side alone against the purple pillow due to the downward slope of my neck.
However, when I inserted the pillow booster pad, the height of the pillow increased by 1-1/2 inches and I felt much more comfortable. The extra padding provides a soft feel, which I prefer to the mesh feel.
When I’m around, I tend to tweak my regular pillows to create just the right loft and shape. The Purple Pillow was snug and responsive, but its weight made it difficult to adjust. For me, this is a major downside.
2) Back
I find the pillow most comfortable on my back. It supports my neck perfectly and supports my head without sinking too much. However, with the insert, it lifts my head up a bit higher than I like, but not so high that I’m uncomfortable.
Also, since I need support when I’m on my side, I decided to leave them inside.
3) Stomach
I can’t use the Purple Pillow on my stomach because it’s too high and doesn’t fit well enough under my head. My neck forms a V shape in this position, which is not conducive to rest or sleep at all.
4) Overall comfort
While it gently cradles my head and neck and adapts quickly to my movements, the purple pillow lacks the adjustable loft and, frankly, the comfort of traditional pillows. In this respect, it compares favorably to memory foam pillows. They both stick to their shape, a feature I find a bit uncomfortable.
In contrast, traditional pillows, regardless of filling type, tend to lose shape, especially after a few nights, making them easy to adjust or combine with other pillows for customized comfort. After this product test, I found that I actually prefer cozy comfort.
5. Are purple pillows worth money?
The purple pillow retails for $109. While that price might make this pillow a splurge, Purple often offers these pillows as part of discounted bundles that include a flat sheet and mattress protector.
These bundles often offer discounts of up to 35%. For consumers who are already interested in the Purple mattress and are curious about this unique pillow, it might make sense to bundle the pillow with the mattress. (I did that, and I’m glad I tried.)
Plus, like the mattress, Purple offers a 100-night trial of the pillow along with free shipping and returns. What’s more, they offer a limited one-year warranty. While most people probably won’t use the warranty on their pillows, it’s nice to know a company stands by its products.
6. How do we test purple pillows?
Here’s the thing: you can’t write about sleep products without sleeping on them. This is our testing philosophy at Reviewed. We tested two of Purple’s most popular pillows, the Purple Pillow and Purple Harmony, as part of our pillow roundup.
I slept on each pillow in various positions for about a week and evaluated their comfort, adjustability, heat retention, etc. I sleep on my side and stomach, so tried Purple Harmony to grab the zzz’s on my side, and Purple Pillow to sleep on. Reviews Editor Sarah Hagman tested the Purple Pillow in the back sleeping position because it’s her preferred position.
After some time at home, both purple pillows made it into the Reviewed lab for a fire test with our Senior Scientist, Julia MacDougall. Well, she didn’t expose them to actual flames, but she did measure their temperature under a heating blanket. She also evaluated how well they bounced back after resting overnight under the 25-pound weight, and even washed parts that could be cleaned (in this case, the lid).
Cleaning Notes: You can tumble dry the Purple pillowcase on low heat, but you should lay the Purple Harmony cover flat to dry.
7. What we love about purple pillows
Reviewers on the site, as well as several Reviewed staff members, swear by the purple pillow. Many people praise them for their comfort and support, and the foam mesh material doesn’t flatten even after years of use.
That said, the pillow is also very buoyant. They remind me of an overzealous gym trainer who looks crazy but really just screams you can do it. The material has some good points, but not that much. Personally, I find them not forgiving enough for me to snuggle in, so when I sleep with the Purple Pillow (even with the booster off) or on my side, I feel like my head is tilted and not aligned with my Spine alignment and harmony.
For some people, sleeping with their heads tilted can cause neck pain. But for those of you who have had a headache from being too soft, or find yourself complaining about a compressed pillow months after purchase, either of Purple’s pillows could be the solution. They don’t even need to be fluffed or reshaped like down-and-down alternatives or even shredded foam filled down.
Kyle Hamilton, who works on product testing at Reviewed, used the original Purple Pillow for two years. Even after all that time, it never subsided. Reviewed’s Operations Manager, Dylan Prowse, praised it for the same reason, saying, “It holds its size and shape really well.” Kyle is a big fan of the OG Purple Pillow, he also fell for Harmony.
In his experience, it pays off. He finds the Harmony pillow better for side sleepers than the Purple Pillow, citing its extra height to better fill the space between his head and broad shoulders. With this evidence and my experience as a narrow-shouldered person who doesn’t like Purple products, I think people with wider shoulders like Kyle and Dylan would be best suited for the Harmony and Purple pillows.
What about hot pillows? Purple claims that pillow using its grid structure are less likely to retain heat. I didn’t notice that pillows absorb heat and hold it in, Dylan specifically noticed how cool the pillows he was using made him feel. However, our lab tests revealed that both Harmony and Purple Pillow retained heat. So whether it warms you or not is a toss-up.
8. What we don’t like about purple pillows
As mentioned, purple pillows are not for everyone. Unfortunately, I fall into the “not everyone” category in this case. Let’s be blunt: I don’t like Purple’s pillows. Confused? Which makes us both. After hearing great reviews from others, I’m still trying to understand how these pillows fall so low in my book.
But after testing a dozen pillows, I realized that there are two key factors in choosing the perfect pillow: preferred sleeping position, and the space between your head and the bed. My biggest issue with the purple pillow has nothing to do with the material itself – it’s the height that bothers me. I find that both Harmony and Purple Pillow are too thick for my comfort.
When I tried to put two pillows on my side, I felt my head being pushed upwards, which forced my neck and spine to misalign. (Forget about using the purple pillows as a prone pillow – it’s almost impossible for me to even lie on these pillows.) Sarah, our supine sleeper, also found the purple pillows too high.
Another small downside to the Purple Pillow is its weight. It may seem impossible, but how can that be? I am also not certain. But when I lugged the pillow home from the office, it felt as heavy as my rather large cat. Sure enough, when I weighed it, it weighed 12 lbs (my cat weighs 15 lbs, not too far off).
This may seem like a minor inconvenience, but it turns out that it can be a nuisance for anyone with an adjustable bed frame. Dylan uses an electric purple bed frame with heavy pillows that sometimes pull the sheets off the mattress when she sits up. For some reason, the Harmony isn’t as heavy, so it’s easier to tuck into a pillowcase — and probably less likely to stain your bed, too.
9. Are purple pillows right for you?
This purple pillow is for sleepers who want serious support in a cool package, but aren’t afraid to try something different. If you are looking for a firm, fuzz-free pillow for back and side sleepers, the Purple Pillow may be the perfect headrest for you.
It responds quickly to pressure yet retains its shape night after night. This isn’t a common trait with most traditional pillows, which require consistent shape and re-fluffing. In addition to excellent support, unlike memory foam pillows, the Purple Pillow’s mesh allows for plenty of airflow to help maintain a comfortable sleeping temperature. The pillow’s breathability makes it a must-have for many thermal pillows.
This pillow has many great qualities, but many sleepers (including myself) may not find it completely comfortable. While I’m a big fan of my Purple Hybrid Premier mattress and feel the pillows have good support, I can’t get over its weight and my inability to shape it. That said, for those who want to rest in something comfortable, the original Purple Pillow is not.
10. Are purple pillows worth it?
Some people will find purple pillows to be a great investment. Personally, I can’t even sleep on them, so I’ll never buy them. They were too thick for my narrow shoulders. However, the same attributes I don’t like make Pillow sing for others, like Kyle and Dylan.
While some people will love the Purple pillow, I found myself going back to the other pillows we tested that I thought were more versatile and attractive. For example, our favorite Coop pillow has shredded foam that can be removed by the handful until you have the desired amount. Purple tries to implement some customizations, but it’s not enough. In my testing, the inability of the purple pillows to “squeeze,” or compress, is what ultimately made them, uh, squishy for me.
If you’re looking to reinforce your pillow, the Purple Harmony or Purple Pillow might be just the thing for you. I wouldn’t recommend jumping straight from a comfy pillow to these because it was a challenge for me, but if you’ve switched to a dense, firm foam pillow and love the feel, go for it.
Like other sleep companies, Purple offers a generous return policy, allowing you a trial period to test it out for yourself. If you’re not satisfied, you have 100 days from the date of delivery to contact the company and request a return — though the company recommends at least 30 nights of sleep on the pillow to give your body time to adjust. This might work for Purple Pillow, which gives you the option to adjust its height. But when it comes to the company’s non-adjustable options, you can probably quickly figure out whether the pillow is right for you—and I know I did.