Blissbury’s $55 Ear Pillow Beats $200 Sleepbuds for Side-Sleepers

Q: If a piercing pillow fixes side-sleeping with AirPods, can a cheap $10 generic donut pillow do the exact same trick?

Yes—often it can, but not always “exactly” the same. The basic trick is simple: any pillow with a properly placed ear cutout can suspend the ear so the earbud is not pressed into your head. The wider web supports that cheaper donut-style or ear-piercing pillows, often sold for roughly $6 to $15, are used for the same pressure-relief purpose and some are explicitly marketed for sleeping with earbuds. What the $55 Blissbury adds is not the core idea, but refinement. The Verge reviewer liked its two ear holes, which make changing sides easier, along with memory foam, adjustable 4-to-5-inch height, and a washable cover. Those details matter because side sleeping is not just about freeing the ear; the pillow also has to keep the neck aligned and keep the ear hole in the right place through the night. A generic $10 donut pillow can work if it is actually designed for the head and ear, not as a seat cushion or medical ring. The cutout must be large and well-positioned enough for the ear and earbud, and the pillow height must match your shoulder-to-head gap. Cheap models may use softer fill, collapse more easily, shift around, or offer only one hole, which can make them less practical. So for many people, a low-cost generic version is worth trying and may solve the problem. But the cheaper it is, the more likely the tradeoff is comfort, durability, and side-to-side usability rather than the ear-hole concept itself.

1 articles · Updated · The Verge · Jul 25

Thomas Ricker recommends Blissbury’s $55 Ear Pillow over $200-plus sleepbuds, arguing the foam pillow works better for side-sleepers who already own regular earbuds.
Two ear cutouts, adjustable 4- to 5-inch thickness and firm memory foam let the pillow relieve pressure on ears and bulky buds while turning in bed.
Ricker said the pillow solved a problem sleepbuds still struggle with: side pressure that can make audio uncomfortable or muffled even on flush-fitting designs.
Sleepbuds still have an edge for snoring—he found Anker’s Soundcore Sleep A30 effective against light to moderate snoring—but said batteries, tiny drivers and charging needs limit them.
After a week with the pillow, he concluded a low-tech accessory can outlast and undercut specialized sleep audio gear that may need replacement after a few years.