How to Wash a Pillow in the Washing Machine

Co-authored by Safir Ali and Jessica Gibson

Last Updated: September 16, 2022

If your pillow is looking yellow, faded, or limp, it's probably time to toss it in the washing machine. Read your pillow's care label to determine if it can be washed and how hot the water in the machine should be. Run the pillow through a wash cycle and add an extra rinse. Then dry it completely in a hot dryer to remove all moisture. Cover your freshly cleaned pillow with a pillowcase and remember to wash the pillow twice a year.

Part 1

Part 1 of 2:

Washing

1
Read the label to determine if the pillow is machine washable. Always check to see if your pillow can be washed in the machine before you toss it in. Locate the care label on a short side of the pillow. The label should say if it can be machine washed and or if it needs to be dry cleaned or hand washed instead.^{[1]
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- If your pillow is synthetic and old, check to ensure it won't fall apart in the machine. Fold the pillow in half. If it doesn't unfold right away, discard the pillow.
2
Avoid machine washing feather, latex, or memory foam pillows. Pillows filled with down or feathers shouldn't be machine washed because the detergent will cause the filling to stick together. Since memory foam and latex pillows will lose their shape if tossed in the machine, steam or dry clean these pillows.^{[2]
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- You should also avoid machine washing pillows filled with buckwheat. To wash these, you'll have to empty the buckwheat filling and set the buckwheat in the sun for a few hours while you wash the pillow casing.
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3
Put the pillow in the machine along with your load of laundry. Your pillow will get cleaner if you remove the pillowcase before tossing it in the machine. You can wash the pillow along with the pillowcase and any other light-colored laundry.
- Avoid overfilling the machine or water and soap won't be able to circulate as effectively.
4
Use a front-loading washing machine if possible. A front-loading machine won't agitate your pillow as roughly as a top-loader machine will, which will help your pillow keep its shape. Try to put two pillows into your front-loading washing machine so the machine drum stays balanced as it runs.^{[3]
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- A balanced machine will also make the water and laundry detergent move through the drum better.
5
Set a top-loading machine to a gentle cycle if you have to use one. If you don't have a front-loading machine, you can still wash your pillows, but you'll need to run a gentle cycle. This is because top-loading machines are rougher as they agitate the pillows.^{[4]
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- It's important to balance the load in the top-loading machine so it spins effectively. If you put a pillow around one half of the drum, put another pillow on the opposite side or fill that side with the same amount of laundry.
6
Set the water temperature according to the care label. Read the label to determine what water temperature setting to use on your machine. For example, the label will either say cold wash, warm wash, or hot wash.^{[5]
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- Some care labels may use symbols instead of words. If the label shows one dot, it recommends cold water. Two dots means warm water and three dots means hot.
7
Run the machine and add an extra rinse cycle. Fill the washing machine with your usual laundry detergent and turn it on. Run an additional rinse cycle to completely remove any traces of laundry detergent. If you can, set the machine to the fastest spin cycle.^{[6]
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- The fastest spin cycle will remove the most water from the pillow which will help it dry faster.
8
Wash your pillow about twice a year. Although pillows don't need to be washed as frequently as your bed sheets, you do need to wash the pillows about every 6 months to remove dust, dust mites, and sweat. Washing the pillow regularly will ensure that it's hygienic.^{[7]
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- Remember to clean your mattress at least twice a year as well.

Part 2

Part 2 of 2:

Drying

1
Put the pillow in the dryer with an already dry towel. Adding a dry towel to the machine will make the pillow dry faster because the towel will absorb the pillow's moisture.^{[8]
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- If you're concerned that the pillow filling will clump together as the pillow dries, put one or two clean tennis balls in the dryer too. They'll bounce and break up the filling.
2
Program the dryer to high heat for 30 to 60 minutes. If your machine has a sanitize setting, select it. If not, use the highest heat and run the machine so the pillow dries quickly. The faster the pillow dries, the less chance there is of it mildewing.^{[9]
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- Avoid setting the machine to auto-dry because it will only sense the moisture on the outside of the pillow.
3
Check the pillow for moisture. It's important to machine dry or air dry the pillow completely because any moisture that's left in the pillow will make the pillow mildew. Squeeze the pillow and feel for moisture that could be in the center. If it feels evenly slightly damp, let it dry more.^{[10]
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4
Put a pillowcase on the clean pillow. Once it's completely dry, put a clean pillowcase on the pillow. While pillowcases are decorative, they're also important in protecting the pillow itself from sweat, lotion, and oil.^{[11]
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- Remove the pillowcase and wash it about once a week.