Mediflow Water Pillow review: yes, you really do put water into this unusual pillow

The Mediflow Water Pillow is a quirky choice that lets you control the thickness and firmness by filling it with water. Caramel Quin puts it to the test.

A good pillow can make a huge difference in alleviating neck pain, but even if you opt for one of the best pillows money can buy, there is no guarantee that it will truly ease your pain. So, to help you find a pillow that will support your neck and (hopefully) improve your sleep quality, we put a selection of the best pillows for neck pain to the test.

I didn’t have a water-filled pillow on my bingo card when I agreed to test pillows. I’d never heard of such a thing. It sounds innately daft – what if it springs a leak? But then waterbeds were popular in the 1970s and 1980s, so this seems a small risk in comparison.

The idea behind the Mediflow Water Pillow is that you can add or remove water to adjust the thickness and firmness of the pillow. The water fills the lower layer of the pillow, and there’s a softer hollow-fibre layer on top, so you don’t feel the water sloshing around underneath your head.

Mediflow Water Pillow review

Specifications

• RRP: £40
• Size: 41x67x16cm
• Sleep position: All
• Filling: Hollowfibre, water
• Firmness: Adjustable
• Trial: None
• Guarantee: 2 years

First impressions of the Mediflow Water Pillow

The Mediflow Water Pillow comes with clear instructions as well as a tool which you use to unlock the cap and then screw in for use as a funnel. Next, you pour tap water in, with more water making for a firmer pillow. They recommend between 2 and 4.5 litres, so I went with 3 litres.

You hold the pillow upright to fill it, so resting it on a chair is a good idea. I'll admit it felt weird pouring water into a pillow, but there were (thankfully) no spillages.

Once you add the water, you use your hands to flatten the pillow to remove the air pocket. Rather like filling a hot water bottle, you want to minimise air at the top. You then put the cap back on firmly.

The water can stay in the pillow for up to a year without needing to add any chemicals. Surprisingly, you can machine wash (cold) the empty pillow and even gently tumble dry it.

What is the Mediflow Water Pillow like to use?

I filled it to ‘medium firm’ but woke the next day with a backache that suggested it was too full (the pillow was too plump) so I tipped a bit out. It turned out that emptying it (which you would rarely do) was harder than filling it, with more risk of spilling.

Laying my head on this felt good. It's a big pillow but it felt soft beneath me, and though it was loud and swishy when I picked it up and moved it, it wasn't like that when I was lying on it. Plus, I didn’t feel like it might leak.

Neck pain is a personal thing, and finding the right pillow is subjective so I recruited three other testers (Laura, Lucy, and Saira), each with different reasons for their neck pain, and handed them the Mediflow.

Laura liked that it looked like a normal pillow - unlike some other options for neck pain such as the Silent Night Therapy Contour Pillow. It didn’t end up being the perfect match for her, but she was a fan of how it felt - soft on top with a nice bit of firmness underneath. Despite trying to make it slosh around or feel strange, she found it felt pretty much like a normal pillow. However, the water at the bottom is cold and heavy, so you can’t adjust the pillow easily and you certainly can’t turn it over.

Both Lucy and Saira rated the Mediflow highly and wanted to keep it. Using water as a pillow filling is odd - yet it works and it's a clever way to adjust the pillow’s firmness.

Lucy (who gets postural neck pain) found she woke less while using this pillow and didn’t get the dead arm that she often gets at night. She also liked that it looked like a normal pillow but she was a bit nervous about the water and was worried she’d lose the funnel. She thought it was worth the money but wanted to know more about the materials and sustainability.

Saira also thought the water pillow idea was weird, so she found it hard to relax while using it. She was constantly aware of the water and worried that the pillow might leak. However, she found it surprisingly comfortable and wanted to keep trying it.

How does the Mediflow Water Pillow compare?

No one expected to love this pillow, including myself, but it was quite a hit in the end. It’s soft on top and supportive underneath, thanks to the water filling. It's also an affordable option.

If you experience neck pain, you need a pillow that offers proper support, not something too soft or flimsy, to help keep everything aligned. The Levitex Sleep Posture Pillow does a great job of this. It comes in four sizes and uses a unique soft and supportive foam.

Another great option is the pricey Dreams Tempur Cloud Air SmartCool Medium Pillow which feels soft but is secretly very supportive.

Or if you’re ok with the firm feeling of memory foam, the Back in Action Memory Foam Pillow is well worth considering.

Should you buy the Mediflow Water Pillow?

Quite possibly, yes. We were unsure of the water pillow idea at first but it certainly works. The ability to easily adjust the pillow’s firmness and thickness by changing how much water you add is a plus point, and we like that it looks like a regular pillow too.

However, this is a heavy pillow and the fact that you can't turn it over is a definite disadvantage.