Review: Rawganique Organic Buckwheat Pillow

Buckwheat pillows are fantastic if you sleep hot, have neck or back pain, and love a breathable pillow that adapts to your head and neck. Here’s our take on Rawganique’s Buckwheat Pillow, which we think is one of the best around.

Rawganique Organic Buckwheat Hulls Pillow

Leaf Score

Highlights: Adjustable, breathable, thermoregulating pillow that molds to support your head and neck. Great for back and neck pain and for anyone who sleeps hot! Made in the U.S. with organic buckwheat hulls and GOTS organic cotton.

View on Rawganique

At a glance:

• Sizes available: Travel, Small, Standard, Queen, King
• Weight: 2.5-15 lbs.
• Cover: GOTS Organic cotton (plus optional organic cotton, linen, or hemp pillowcase)
• Fill: U.S.-grown organic buckwheat
• Price Range: $33.95-$167.95
• Key certifications: GOTS (for cotton)

Rawganique’s Organic Buckwheat Pillow is one of the best buckwheat pillows around. It is handmade to order in the U.S. and comprises a GOTS U.S.-grown organic cotton cover with optional zipper and organic buckwheat hull fill.

What we like about Rawganique’s Buckwheat-Wool Pillow

Rawganique offers its organic buckwheat pillow with or without a zipper. I strongly suggest getting the version with zipper as this allows you to adjust the fill to your needs. It also makes for easier cleaning of the pillow, easier refreshment should you need a refill down the line, and easier airing out of the buckwheat hulls every couple of years. (See care and maintenance of pillows)

As with all buckwheat pillows, this one is breathable and great for hot sleepers as it supports good air flow and temperature regulation. It’s also a good choice if you have neck or back pain as the hulls shift to support proper cervical spine alignment.

Buckwheat pillows are a top choice for all sleep positions. I use mine at the start of my night as a stomach-sleeper, switch to side-sleeping at some point in the small hours, and then end the night on my back while co-sleeping with my toddler. The buckwheat hulls adapt to the position of my head and neck to provide firm support where I need it, without feeling hard under my head (or face).

Rawganique makes every buckwheat pillow by hand to order in the U.S. The outside cover is U.S.-grown organic cotton twill, unbleached and undyed. You can also choose to add an organic cotton, linen, or hemp pillowcase to your order for less than the price you’d pay if buying separately.

Downsides to the Rawganique Buckwheat Pillow

There are a few potential downsides to Rawganique’s Buckwheat Pillow:

Delivery time: These pillows are typically custom made, meaning that it can take a week to 10 days for the company to create and package up your pillows for delivery. In contrast, Turmerry can ship its buckwheat pillows same day if you order before 3 p.m. EST.

Price: Turmerry’s pillows are also slightly more affordable and have similar eco-credentials. And they all come with a zipper as standard. (See my review of Turmerry’s Buckwheat Pillow.)

Again, I strongly recommend getting the zipper version of this pillow from Rawganique. This allows you to adjust the fill, air out the hulls, and clean the cover if necessary.

Weight: All buckwheat pillows are heavy, and Rawganique’s weigh up to 15 lbs. for the King size pillow. This is the same as for Turmerry’s King size pillow though. You can always remove some fill or choose a smaller size if the weight is a concern. Or, consider the slightly lighter Rawganique Buckwheat and Wool Pillow (see our review).

Personally, though, I find I don’t have to move my buckwheat pillow at all during the night. Instead, the hulls move to support my head and neck as I move.

Noise: Some folks are wary of buckwheat pillows because of the noise of the hulls moving around. I’m very noise-sensitive and I don’t find the slight crunch of my buckwheat pillow at all disturbing. In fact, once I’ve settled into sleep, it doesn’t even register if I move around.

No returns: Rawganique doesn’t offer returns on its pillows.

Final thoughts on the Rawganique Buckwheat Pillow

The Rawganique Buckwheat Pillow is a really great option for every kind of sleep position, especially if you sleep hot and like a cooler, more breathable pillow.

I suggest getting the version with the zipper and adding a pillowcase to your order, to reduce your long-term costs and improve the sustainability and durability of the pillow.

Rawganique’s Buckwheat Pillow is one of the best organic buckwheat pillows around. The company has a strong commitment to sustainable, healthy, ethical products, and offers excellent customer service.

Still wary of the ‘crunchiness’ of buckwheat? Consider Rawganique’s Buckwool Pillow (see our review) which combines buckwheat hulls on one side with organic wool on the other.

Rawganique Organic Buckwheat Hulls Pillow

Leaf Score

Highlights: Adjustable, breathable, thermoregulating pillow that molds to support your head and neck. Great for back and neck pain and for anyone who sleeps hot! Made in the U.S. with organic buckwheat hulls and organic cotton.

View on Rawganique