How to clean a buckwheat pillow (without ruining the hulls)

A buckwheat pillow is a fabric cover filled with a few pounds of hulls, and cleaning it well means treating those two parts separately. The cover washes like any pillowcase. The hulls have to stay dry, because a soaking is the one thing they don’t recover from.

What you’ll need

• A large container or bag (big enough to hold all the hulls)
• Your washing machine or a sink for the cover
• A tray or clean sheet, plus a sunny, dry spot

Step 1: Separate the hulls from the cover

Unzip the pillow and pour the hulls into your container. A well-made buckwheat pillow has a zippered inner liner built for exactly this. Work slowly with the opening held low, since loose hulls scatter and are a nuisance to chase across the floor. Set the container somewhere dry while you handle the cover.

Step 2: Wash the cover on its own

With the hulls out of the way, launder the cover on a normal cold or warm cycle, following its care label. The cover is what touches your skin and hair every night, so it does the real work and needs washing on the same schedule as the rest of your bedding. Make sure it is completely dry before it goes back in with the hulls, because any leftover dampness soaks straight into them.

Step 3: Freshen the hulls in the sun

The hulls themselves rarely need more than a good airing. Spread them in a single layer on a tray or clean sheet and leave them in direct sun and dry air for a few hours, stirring them once or twice so every hull gets some exposure. Sun and moving air deodorize and dry them on their own, with nothing else involved. Reach for this whenever the hulls start to feel a little stuffy.

Step 4: Refill and you’re done

Once the cover is bone dry and the hulls are cool and fully aired, funnel the hulls back in and zip everything up. This is the moment to fine-tune the fill: add or take out a handful to dial in the loft and support that suits how you sleep.

Handling spills

A spill or a sweat-soaked night calls for quick action:

1. Pour the hulls out right away.
2. Spread the affected hulls out and let them dry completely; rushing this is what leaves an odor behind.
3. Wash the cover and dry it fully.
4. Put the pillow back together only once every part is truly dry.

If a batch of hulls got truly soaked through, you can replace just the fill instead of buying a new pillow. Being able to swap the hulls is one of the quiet advantages of buckwheat as a pillow filling.

Keeping it fresh long-term

• Use a pillowcase over the cover so it needs washing less often.
• Air the hulls in the sun every few months.
• Store it dry. Never leave a buckwheat pillow in a damp bathroom or basement.

A buckwheat pillow that stays dry and gets aired now and then will last for years of nightly use. If you are still shopping for one, our buying guide walks through what separates a pillow worth keeping from one you will want to return.