I pointed a thermal cam at a luxury cooling pillow to see if it actually helps you stay cool in a heatwave — here are the results, and how it compares to a cheap alternative

(Image credit: Future) Sleeping on a hot, stuffy pillow in summer is a nightmare when I want to fall asleep fast. In fact, research shows that your body naturally cools as you go to sleep, so a heat-trapping pillow means you don't get the temperature drop you need to drift off.The best pillows should avoid this problem, and we've found that luxury cooling pillows are top notch at regulating temperature. But is there a cheaper way to keep your head cool at night? Or is a fancy pillow packed with cooling tech the only way to keep you comfortable on a hot night?To find out, I grabbed my $93 Helix Cooling Memory Foam Pillow, the $20 Beckham Hotel Collection Bed Pillow, and a trusty thermal cam. Here's how much heat each pillow absorbed and shed when our testers slept on these headrests in our lab...Key takeaways: At a glanceHot temperatures make it difficult to sleep, as your body naturally cools before bed. Some pillow materials trap warm air rather than help it circulate. As a result, you get a hot head that can't cool down.Cooling pillows claim to use special materials that help wick away warmth, to keep you comfortable.However, our thermal cam tests showed for a neutral feel, a cotton cover might be enough.And flipping to the cool side won't always provide the relief you need — one of our pillows was actually warmer on the unused side.How we tested a cheap vs a luxury cooling pillowTemperature regulation testing is a key part of our rigorous mattress testing methodology. So when it came to analyzing our pillows, I turned to our tried and tested method.In a comfortable environment, we ask a tester to lie on the pillow for 15 minutes. This is ample time for heat to transfer and cooling properties to kick in. The tester then gets up and we continue to measure the temperature of the pillow for the next 15 minutes. This allows heat to disperse (... or not).For pillows, I also employed a flip test. After the above tests, I flipped the pillow to see how cool the other side was.Meet the pillows:I used two pillows for this test. One, a luxurious memory foam pillow packed with cooling tech. The other, an affordable pillow with 'down alternative' fill (that's probably fiber fill).Get instant access to breaking news, the hottest reviews, great deals and helpful tips.Test 1: How quickly does the pillow get warm?For part one of the test, sleep writer Frances Daniels graciously agreed to lie on each pillow for 15 minutes. We used a side sleeping position as its the most common and a breathable but not cooling mattress (the DreamCloud Classic Mattress).Click through the gallery to see what happened: Image 1 of 6 The Helix Cooling Memory Foam Pillow on the left, the Hotel collection pillow on the right (Image credit: Future / FLIR) Minute 1 The Helix Pillow had a cooler starting point (74.2°F versus 76°F). As soon as Frances lay down, it's no surprise the temperature went up on both. By minute 1, the Helix Pillow (left) saw a slight jump in heat, while the Hotel Collection pillow rocketed up to 89°F, a leap of 13°F. We marked the center of each pillow, which is where Frances rested her head. This is also where we took a temperature reading every minute.VerdictThe Helix Cooling Memory Foam pillow is delightfully chill when you touch it. So when you first settle into that GlacioTex cover, it's going to feel great.From there, the temperature gradually rose but never tipped over into uncomfortable. Frances noted (as did I during my testing period) that once the pillow had warmed to your body temperature, it hardly wavered.The Beckham Hotel Collection pillow also impressed, and did so with the help of just a cotton cover. After a big initial jump in temperature (13.3°F), it slowly cooled and evened out. However, you won't get that initial 'aaah' of Helix's chilled cover.Test 2: How quickly does the pillow cool down?The work continues once our tester, the lovely Frances, has stepped away. For the next 15 minutes I monitored the temperature at the center of the pillow. This shows us how quickly the heat dissipates.Click through the gallery to see what happened: Image 1 of 6 (Image credit: Future / FLIR) Minute 1 After Frances hopped off, both pillow saw a significant drop in heat. The Helix Pillow lost 5.3 °F, while the Beckham Hotel Pillow dropped by 6.7 °F by the end of the first minute. So if you sit up in bed for a sip of water, your pillow will start cooling as soon as you're gone. VerdictA good cooling pillow should drop excess heat quickly. This means when you sit up in bed or step away for a few minutes, you can return to a blissfully chilled sleep surface.You won't get that with either of these options.The Helix Cooling Pillow took a long time to lose just 4°F of warmth. Even after 15 minutes, it wasn't back to the icy feel we started with. However, the edges and corners of the pillow kept cool. So if you're willing to move around, you don't have to sleep on the warm patch.The Beckham Hotel Collection Pillow dropped to a cooler temperature quicker. After this initial heat shed, it remained roughly 2°F higher than when we started — that's a neutral feel.These results back up our hands-on testing. If you get up to use the bathroom or grab a drink during the night, you won't return to a cool pillow. However, you should get back to something with an even, neutral finish.Test 3: What about the 'cool side'?There are few moments quite as satisfying as the brief relief of the cool side of the pillow. But in the spirit of investigation, I wanted to see just how cool this cool side is...Having completed our tests, I flipped the pillows to reveal the so-called 'cool side'.First up, the Helix Cooling Pillow. While the pillow wasn't as blissfully chilled on the other side as I expected, it did drop 1.4°F. Image 1 of 2 The warm side of the Helix Cooling Memory Foam Pillow (Image credit: Future / FLIR) However, I was in for a shock with the Hotel Collection Pillow. A quick flip revealed the pillow was actually warmer on the other side. 1.8°F warmer, to be precise.That's not a huge temperature jump. But it's not what you want when you're awake at 3 a.m. Image 1 of 2 The warm side of the Beckham Hotel Collection pillow (Image credit: Future / FLIR) Should you save or splurge on a cooling pillow?So, should you spend or save on a cooling pillow? My test results show that cooling tech might not live up to its high promises. If it's a breathable feel you're after, cotton covers and airy fill can make a big difference.However, I'd note I tested the Helix Cooling Memory Foam Pillow at home during some brutal weather. (It's been heatwave after heatwave in my city.) Throughout it all, my pillow stayed neutral, if not cool.And we know from testing over 130 of the best mattresses online that cooling tech can make a serious difference to your sleep comfort. The best cooling mattresses we've tested feature either specialist materials or use natural fabrics to create a chilled feel.And luxury pillows do have their benefits, including enhanced durability. After being tossed around our Sleep Lab, the Helix Pillow looked in better shape than the Hotel Collection alternative.My advice? You don't need to splurge to sleep cool, but investing in sleep comfort pays off in the long term.Our favorite cooling sleep products Kinetic Labs Gel Ice Packs Coop Sleep Goods Cool+ Pillowcase Set BedJet 3 Climate Comfort System Follow Tom's Guide on Google News and add us as a preferred source to get our up-to-date news, analysis, and reviews in your feeds. Ruth is an experienced Senior Staff writer at Tom’s Guide, covering all things sleep and mattresses. She writes to help people sleep better, from how-tos to the latest deals to mattress reviews, and has interviewed an array of experts who share her passion. She is also our specialist on memory foam — she’s flown around the world to see memory foam being made — and leads our hotel mattress content. She has a deep interest in the link between sleep and health, and has tried enough mattresses, from Helix to Nectar to Simba, to know the right bed really can make a difference to your wellbeing. Before joining the team at Tom’s Guide, Ruth worked as a sleep and mattress writer for our sister website, TechRadar.