The Ear Hole Pillow for Side Sleepers
A pillow with an ear hole, precisely placed so your head is fully supported while your ear floats free — touching nothing. Side-sleeping, without the sore ear.
- Made in England
- 12+ years
- Try risk-free
The pillow we’d point you to
- Everyday
The Original P.W.A.H® (V1)
Our best-selling ear pillow, a dependable everyday all-rounder.
Price range: £35.00 through £80.00Select options This product has multiple variants. The options may be chosen on the product page
An ear hole pillow does one simple thing an ordinary pillow can’t: it gives your ear somewhere to go. The Original Pillow with an Ear Hole has an open centre, so when you lie on your side your ear rests in the hole instead of being pressed into the bed.
The uniquely designed Original P.W.A.H® allows you to sleep on your side whilst also cushioning your ear from the pressure and friction of a conventional pillow.
All of our pillows are made to order in England from the highest quality materials. No expense is spared in their construction.
The Original Pillow with a Hole™ is useful for:
- Post operative healing.
- Relieving sore ears.
- Comfort for pressure-prone ears.
- Sleeping with ear piercings.
- To make side-sleeping easier and more comfortable.
- To allow the wearing of ear-plugs, hearing aids or headphones.
- Comfort for those who find ear pressure worsens tinnitus.
pressure on your ear when you sleep on your side.
Why does side sleeping hurt your ear?
When you sleep on your side, the full weight of your head rests on your ear for hours at a time, and unlike the rest of you, your ear has almost no padding of its own. Night after night, that pressure and friction adds up. For many people it’s just a nuisance: numbness, aching, waking up to reposition. For others it develops into something more persistent such as sore ears, pressure sores, or chondrodermatitis nodularis helicis (CNH), a painful nodule on the ear caused by exactly this kind of sustained pressure.
You shouldn’t have to train yourself out of the sleeping position your body prefers. The answer is simpler: take the pressure off the ear, and keep sleeping on your side.
Which pillow is best for side sleepers with ear pain?
One with a hole in it precisely positioned so your head is fully supported while your ear floats free, touching nothing.
If you sleep on one pillow, the PWAH V2 is our most refined: it works standalone, and its walled-side construction gives it the softest, plushest feel in our range. If you prefer sleeping on two pillows, the Original V1 is designed to sit on top of the pillow you already love — and pairs beautifully with our Pillow Without A Hole underneath.
Every pillow we make has a YKK® zip, so you can add or remove filling until the height suits your shoulder width exactly, which is something side sleepers need more than anyone, and something ordinary pillows can’t offer.
Side sleeping with new ear piercings
A healing piercing pressed into a pillow all night is one of the most common causes of irritation bumps, soreness and slow healing — and for side sleepers, “just sleep on the other side” only works until you roll over. The Doughnut PWAH sits on top of your own pillow and keeps the piercing completely clear while it heals; if piercings are a long-term part of your life, the V2 is the permanent solution. We’ve written a full guide to sleeping with ear piercings.
Side sleeping with CNH or ear pressure sores
CNH overwhelmingly affects people who sleep on the same side every night — pressure and friction, repeated over years. Relieving that pressure is the first thing to address, and it’s the reason this pillow exists at all: our founder created it from personal experience. Read our complete guide to CNH and ear pressure sores.
Earbuds, hearing aids and headphones in bed
The same hole that protects a sore ear also makes room for whatever’s in your ear. Side sleepers who fall asleep to podcasts, wear earplugs, or keep a hearing aid in overnight will find their device no longer digs in, it simply sits in the open space.
See the range in action
- Everyday
The Original P.W.A.H® (V1)
Our best-selling ear pillow, a dependable everyday all-rounder.
Price range: £35.00 through £80.00Select options This product has multiple variants. The options may be chosen on the product page - Nightly use
The Original P.W.A.H® V2
A refined, quilted PWAH for comfortable nightly use.
Price range: £65.00 through £115.00Select options This product has multiple variants. The options may be chosen on the product page -
The Pillow Without A Hole™
A luxurious full sized pillow. You spend over a third of your life in bed, so we spared no expense here.
Price range: £50.00 through £80.00Select options This product has multiple variants. The options may be chosen on the product page
Sleeping on your side leaves your hips and knees aching rather than your ear? That’s a different fix — see the Original Leg Pillow with a Hole, made to sit between your knees.
These are not cheap textiles, and you wouldn’t want them to be.
It’s expensive to make things this well. Well sourced materials with nothing hidden in them, made by people paid a proper wage, sewn from scratch here in Liverpool. Look at what else is out there: the rest of the market is made overseas, down to a price. We went the other way and chose quality over price. That’s why nobody else makes them like this.
- Made in Liverpool, England
- Premium YKK® zips
- OEKO-TEX® organic cotton
- Yorkshire coil fibre, spun since the 1950s
- Fairly paid team
Side-sleeper & ear hole pillow questions, answered
How do I wash it?
Machine washable and tumble-dryable — wash at 30°C and tumble dry. Pop a tennis ball in the dryer with it to redistribute the filling and keep it plump. Full guidance is on our Care Instructions page.
How do I use it on my side?
The Original V1 works best on top of your usual pillow, so you keep the height and neck support you’re used to while your ear drops into the hole. The V2 is a standalone pillow designed for side-sleeping. Either way, lie on your side with your ear over the opening so it rests in clear space.
Is this an ear hole pillow for side sleepers specifically?
Yes — it’s made for exactly that. The hole sits where your ear lands when you lie on your side, so your head is fully supported while your ear stays clear of the pillow. You can sleep on your side all night without the ear getting sore.
Will it help ear pain when I sleep on my side?
It’s designed to keep pressure off the ear, which is the usual cause of a sore or tender ear after a night on your side. It’s a comfort aid rather than a medical treatment — if you have persistent ear pain it’s worth seeing your GP, but most side sleepers find that taking the pressure off makes all the difference.
Can I adjust it for my shoulder width?
Yes. Every pillow has a YKK® zip, so you can add or remove filling until the height matches your shoulder width — something side sleepers need more than anyone, and which ordinary pillows can’t offer.
How big is the hole — will my ear fit?
The opening is approximately 10cm × 9cm, which gives your ear room to sit in clear space without touching the pillow. If you’re unsure it suits you, our no-risk returns mean you can try it and send it back if it isn’t right.
The Original P.W.A.H® comes with a refund guarantee.
If you are not satisfied, return it to us within 14 days of receipt, in any condition, and we will refund you.
(But we’re sure you’ll love it)