Material
Pillow
The filling decides the method. Fibre and feather wash, solid memory foam must never be submerged, and drying through is the hard part either way.
- SurfacePorous
- WashingHand
- Colour run riskLow
- Reviewed7 September 2026
What pillow can and cannot take
- Heat Avoid
- Water and soaking Use with care
- Acids, including vinegar Use with care
- Strong alkalis Use with care
- Solvents Avoid
- Chlorine bleach Use with care
- Abrasives Use with care
Always test on a hidden area first and let it dry before you treat the visible mark.
General rules for pillow
Take the pillowcase and any protector off first and deal with those as laundry, because on a protected pillow that is frequently the whole job.
Then find out what the filling is. Fibre and feather pillows can be washed, two at a time to keep the drum balanced, and need a long slow dry with regular shaking so the filling does not stay damp in the middle.
Solid memory foam is spot clean only, and the honest position is that a memory foam pillow that has been soaked through is finished.
Check the label
What is inside the pillow decides everything. Feather, down and hollowfibre pillows can usually be washed on a gentle cycle in warm water. A solid memory foam pillow must not be machine washed or submerged at all, because the foam cracks and degrades.
Stains on pillow
- Baby sick Take the pillowcase and protector off and wash those, because on a protected pillow that is often the whole j...
- Blood Blot first, then use cold water and a tiny amount of compatible detergent. Work from the edge, rinse or blot...
- Body oil Blot surface oil from pillow without rubbing. Use a barely damp mild wipe only if the maker permits water-bas...
- Breast milk Dry-blot without pushing milk into the filling. Treat only a tiny superficial spill on a covering whose maker...
- Bronzer Lift loose bronzer from pillow before it is rubbed in. Blot cream bronzer, follow the material or care label,...
- Coffee Blot pillow first. Remove only a cover explicitly approved for removal and washing. Do not unzip an integral...
- Concealer Lift thick concealer from Pillow, blot without rubbing, then use a very small amount of diluted washing-up li...
- Cooking grease Lift and blot cooking grease from Pillow, then use a small amount of diluted washing-up liquid only if the ma...
- Deodorant Rub a fresh white deodorant mark off pillow while it is dry. For residue that remains, follow the care label...
- Hair dye Blot hair dye from Pillow, test the mildest compatible cool detergent route, clean inwards, remove residue an...
- Lipstick Lift lipstick from Pillow with a blunt edge, blot without rubbing, then use a very small amount of diluted wa...
- Motor oil Blot motor oil from Pillow, absorb as much as possible, then use a small amount of diluted washing-up liquid...
- Nail polish Keep the material dry and touch off accessible free liquid only if contact is safe. Do not add nail remover o...
- Period blood Lift any tissue with a spoon edge, then blot. Use cold water and a tiny amount of compatible detergent for th...
- Pet urine Blot until nearly dry, then use only the cool-water quantity pillow can tolerate. Use a labelled pet urine en...
- Sweat Blot sweat from Pillow, use a hidden-tested cool detergent solution with very little moisture, remove residue...
- Tomato sauce Lift tomato sauce from Pillow, blot from the edge with a tested cool detergent solution, remove residue with...
A pillow is a bag of filling, and the filling is what determines whether it can be washed at all.
Fibre and feather can be washed
Most pillows take a gentle cycle in warm water with a small amount of mild detergent. Feather and down pillows are squeezed rather than wrung, because wringing breaks the quills and mats the down.
Solid memory foam cannot
Machine washing cracks and degrades the foam, and it must not be submerged. Spot cleaning is the only option, and a memory foam pillow that has been soaked through does not recover.
Drying is the real difficulty
A pillow can feel dry on the outside with a damp core, and a damp core grows mould and smells. Dryer balls or dry towels help, and time is the main ingredient.
It is next to a face
Which raises the standard. A pillow that still smells faintly is a pillow to replace rather than to live with.
Sources
What we checked and when. Where a manufacturer instruction disagrees with anything here, follow the manufacturer.
-
How to wash pillows, Sleep Foundation
publication
Sleep research organisation guidance that most pillows can be washed on a gentle cycle in warm water with a small amount of mild detergent, that solid memory foam pillows must not be machine washed or submerged because the foam cracks and degrades, that feather and down pillows are squeezed rather than wrung, and that dryer balls or dry towels help a pillow dry through.
Checked 7 September 2026
-
How do I clean a spill on my mattress, Tempur
manufacturer
Foam mattress manufacturer guidance that the foam material should never be soaked, washed or allowed to become wet, that a spill is blotted rather than rubbed, that a non removable cover should not be saturated, and that the item is air dried completely with a fan blowing across the area.
Checked 7 September 2026
-
A guide to newborn laundry, American Cleaning Institute
trade body
Cleaning trade body guide to pre-treat breast milk, formula or spit-up with an enzyme stain remover, soak fresh marks for at least 30 minutes and older marks for several hours, launder, and keep stained items out of the dryer until the mark has gone.
Checked 7 September 2026