Pregnancy pillow shapes

We checked what seven pregnancy pillow brands actually publish about the size of their products, on 20 September 2026, reading only manufacturer pages and official UK stockists. Across those eight products, exactly one published a width. The only other width in the table below is ours, taken from the product specification. The one published width comes from a product that has since been discontinued. The seventh brand no longer lists a pregnancy pillow in its UK catalogue at all. We do not name the brands: the figures are kept, with their sources and dates, in our own records.

Why the width is the number that decides everything

Length tells you almost nothing. A 140 cm pillow can be a narrow bolster or a U shape that swallows half the bed. The width is what decides whether it fits your bed and whether anyone can sleep next to you. A UK double is 135 cm wide and a UK king is 150 cm. Those are the two numbers a buyer is measuring against, and almost nobody gives them the third one they need.

What we are not claiming

We have not measured these products ourselves. Everything in the table above is what the manufacturer publishes, or does not publish, on the date given. Absence from this table is not a criticism of a product, and a discontinued line can still be an excellent pillow. We are reporting what is documented, nothing more.

Our own figures come from the product specifications, and the full dataset of pillow footprints against 90, 135 and 150 cm UK beds is published openly under CC BY, with its limits written into it. We are a shop, not a laboratory, and the dataset says so on its first page.

The three UK mattress widths, drawn to scale, with the footprint of a full U shape laid on top. The figures are our own product dimensions, published in full in the open dataset linked below.

On a 135 cm double the U leaves about 65 cm for the person beside you, which is narrower than a single bed. On a 150 cm king it leaves 80 cm and the problem mostly goes away. On a 90 cm single it covers almost the whole mattress, which is fine if you sleep alone and impossible if you do not.

This is the number no manufacturer publishes, which is why we publish ours and put the figures out under an open licence.

These are our own product dimensions, and the bed widths are the UK standard sizes. A double is 135 cm across, a single is 90 cm, a king is 150 cm.

If you share a 135 cm double and your partner is a light sleeper, that first row is the whole decision. A U is the most supportive shape we sell, and it is also the one most likely to start an argument.

You lie inside a U. One arm is behind your back, the other is under your bump, and the tail curls in between your knees. Nothing has to move when you turn over at three in the morning, which is the whole point of the shape and the reason people who own one rarely go back.

Skip it if you share a small double, or if your bedroom is tight. At 70 cm wide it takes roughly one person's width of mattress, and it does not fold away neatly.

Two separate supports rather than one big loop. One sits under the bump, the other against the lower back, and together they make rolling onto your back less likely without taking over the mattress. It is the shape to choose when the bed is shared or narrow.

Skip it if you want head support too. The wing supports your body, not your neck, so you keep using your normal pillow.

One straight length of about 122 cm. You hug the top half and put the bottom half between your knees, which keeps your hips stacked and takes the pull off your lower back. It works on any bed size, including a single, and it carries from bed to sofa without a fuss.

Skip it if you need support behind you while you are asleep. A bolster holds your front; it does not stop you rolling backwards.

The bolster and the U are compared side by side, with lengths and fillings, on our body pillows page.

An inflatable mattress with a hollow cut out for the bump, so you can lie face down again for a while. It is for rest, reading and massage, not for the night. Ours is The Bump Lounger, a blow-up pregnancy pillow that inflates in minutes and folds flat afterwards.

Skip it if what you actually want is a night pillow. This one solves a different problem.

We stock the V and the G; the C, J and wedge we do not. You will see all five sold in the UK. They are variations on wrapping one side of you, so they take less room than a U shape and cost less, but they share one weakness: they support one side at a time, so every time you change sides you have to sit up and move the pillow.

The C shaped pregnancy pillow

A C shaped pillow curves behind your head, runs down your back and comes forward between your knees. It is the closest single sided equivalent to a U shape, and the one most people mean when they say they want something smaller than a U. Typical footprint is around 120 by 70 cm, so it leaves roughly 65 cm of a 135 cm double for the person next to you.

The J shaped pregnancy pillow

A J shaped pillow is a shorter C: the head curve is there, the leg section is there, but the back is cut away. It is the cheapest of the wrap-around shapes and the easiest to move in the dark. If what wakes you is your knees rather than your back, a J shape does the job.

The V shaped pregnancy pillow

A V shaped pillow is often sold in the UK as a reading and back support pillow. In pregnancy it can be laid along your body, with one arm behind your back and one in front for your top leg, or stood up behind you to keep your head and shoulders propped if heartburn is what wakes you. It does not reach your head and your knees at the same time. We stock one, the V Pillow (73 � 34 cm), and the positions are in our guide to how to use a V shaped pillow.

The G shaped pregnancy pillow

A G shaped pillow is a C with a tail that comes round the front, so it supports the bump as well as the back. It is the bulkiest of the single sided shapes and usually the most expensive. We stock one, the G Cloud: 170 � 70 cm, grey velvet, with a zip-off cover.

The wedge pregnancy pillow

A wedge is a triangular cushion that goes under the side of your bump, thin edge tucked towards you. It is by far the smallest shape, the only one that fits a 90 cm single bed without taking it over, and the only one you can put in a suitcase. A wedge pillow paired with an ordinary pillow between the knees covers most of what a full length pillow does. It does nothing for your back, so if lower back ache is what wakes you it is the wrong tool.

None of the shapes we stock today is a C shape, a J shape or a wedge. We are telling you what they do anyway, because a page about shapes that only describes the ones we happen to sell would not be worth reading. If a single sided shape suits you better, our bolster does the same job for less money and is far easier to reposition in the dark.

It is nearly always a mismatch between the shape and the way you sleep. If you turn over several times a night, a wrap-around shape will fight you. Either move to a U, where both sides are already supported, or move to a bolster, which is small enough to bring with you when you turn.

The other half of the problem is bed width. A pillow that is too big for the mattress ends up under you rather than around you. Measure the bed before you choose the shape.

Every full-length pillow adds a warm surface against you, so shape matters here too. A U wraps you on both sides and holds the most heat. A wing or a bolster leaves more of you exposed to the room.

Which pregnancy pillow shape takes up the least space in a shared bed?

The wing shape, by area. Its two wings sit against your bump and your lower back and cover 36 cm of the bed's length, where a full U covers 130. Across a 135 cm double it still takes 64 to 78 cm, depending on its band, about the 70 cm of a U.

How much of a double bed does a U shaped pregnancy pillow take?

Our Full Body U measures 130 cm long by 70 cm wide when it is laid flat. A standard UK double is 135 cm across, so the pillow covers just over half of the bed. On a 90 cm single it covers most of it. That is the single most useful number when you are choosing a shape.

Why do people get tangled in a pregnancy pillow?

Because they turn over inside a shape that is not made to be turned inside. A U lets you swap sides without moving anything, which is why it feels easy. A C or a J wraps one side of you only, so every time you turn you have to sit up and reposition it, and by three in the morning the pillow ends up on the floor.

Can you use a pregnancy pillow on a single bed?

Yes, but not every shape. A bolster or a wing works on a 90 cm single because it sits along you or beside you. A full U at 70 cm wide leaves you 20 cm of mattress, so on a single bed we would steer you to the bolster or the wing instead.

If the reason you are choosing a shape is hip pain specifically, the four sleeping positions and what each shape puts between your knees are set out on sleeping positions for hip pain while pregnant.

If you would rather see the four side by side with their prices, they are all on one page: our maternity pillows.

What is a small size pregnancy pillow?

Usually a wedge or a two piece wing, rather than a shortened U. A wedge is roughly 26 to 30 cm across and supports the bump only. A two piece wing gives you a belly piece and a separate back piece, so you get support on both sides without one large pillow between you and whoever else is in the bed. Both fit a 90 cm single.

Written and kept up to date by Serge, who runs Pregnancy Pillow UK. He is not a midwife, and nothing here is medical advice. Sleep position guidance follows the NHS and Tommy's. Last reviewed: 20 September 2026.