There’s nothing worse than being too hot to sleep. Cue hours of tossing and turning, wrestling with the duvet cover, flipping the pillow onto the cool side, and dangling one foot outside the covers.
In this year’s Good Housekeeping sleep survey, when asked to name the biggest sleep thieves, 26% of readers said, “Being too hot”. Sweaty nights aren’t just limited to the occasional summer heatwave either – they can affect those going through menopause, people who sleep with a heat-radiating partner or pet, or anyone who simply runs hot at night – like my mum, who’s struggled to stay cool at night for years.
Luckily for her, as the Good Housekeeping Institute’s senior homes and lifestyle writer, it’s my job to stay up to date with the latest releases in the world of sleep products – and one, great value innovation really stood out. Here’s everything you need to know about Silentnight’s new £30 cooling sleep mat.
The Silentnight Restore Cooling Gel Pad at a glance
Pros
- Easy to fold up for storage or travel
- Can be inserted into a pillowcase with your normal pillow
- Makes minimal noise when tossing and turning
Cons
- Doesn’t add extra padding
- It slipped off the pillow at times
- Only offers short-term relief
Key specifications
| Dimensions | 60 x 90 cm |
|---|---|
| Weight | 1.7kg |
| Material | Polyester |
| Care instructions | Wipe clean only |
The slim, polyester mat contains three cooling gel pads and can sit on top of your pillowcase, inside with your pillow, or simply on top of your mattress and bed sheet to offer relief to your whole body on hot nights.
For the animal lovers among us, it’s essentially like your pet’s cooling mat, which uses pressure to activate the layer of cooling gel inside. Which means you no longer have to steal your dog’s cooling mat on hot nights…admit it, we know you’ve tried it (or at least considered it).
But can it really keep hot heads cool on sweaty nights? Keep reading for the full verdict from the Good Housekeeping Institute and, most importantly, my mum.
How we tested
As it’s designed to go inside your pillow, we tested this cooling mat in a similar way to the rest of the pillows in our Sleep Awards. We recruited a group of hot sleepers to curl up with it at home for four weeks. We then asked them to provide detailed feedback on the experience, rating the cooling pad for comfort, breathability, overall design and how easy it was to clean.
Our experts also analysed the design in the lab. The cooling pad is wipe-clean-only, so we checked how well it cleaned up and whether it looked as good as new afterwards.
The Good Housekeeping Institute verdict
Score: 86/100
What we liked
Panellists told us they enjoyed “much more consistent sleep” with the well-constructed pad and woke up less during the night. Our experts liked its generous size, which offers versatility, as it can be placed inside your pillow or on your mattress.
Testers found it easy to place inside their pillowcases and it helped keep hot heads (and necks) cool. One panellist said it “completely stopped” her hot flashes.
While the gel is heavy, it’s lightweight enough to be used on the sofa or to take in the car, making it a good sidekick for summer staycations.
It’s important to note that the cooling pad’s effect is subtle, absorbing excess body heat and drawing it away, rather than physically cooling the skin. So, it’s best for offering short-term relief and helping you drift off to sleep, rather than cooling you all night long. Pair it with one of our experts’ best tower fans though, and you’ve got everything you need to sleep in a heatwave.
The cooling pad can also be placed in the fridge to chill its surface before you lay your head on the pillow. Dreamy.
The downsides
Some found the slippery material caused it to slide off the pillow, requiring some adjustment throughout the night. And while the pad is portable, the gel is quite heavy so it’s probably not one to pop in your handbag.
It’s wipe-clean only, so you can’t just pop it in the washing machine after a particularly sweaty night, but if you’re popping it inside your pillowcase, that shouldn’t be too much of an issue. One panellist found its surface a little scratchy, so we recommend placing it under your bed sheet if you’re planning to lie on it.
The final verdict from my mum
My mum used the discreet cooling mat to lie on top of (rather than adding it to her pillowcase) and found it effective at drawing away excess heat – she fell asleep more quickly, with no tossing and turning for once!
It’s not something she uses every night but when the temperatures rise, she has this on standby to quickly slip into the bed. The pad now lives in her bedside drawer, ready to absorb the heat when necessary.
Like one of our panellists, she recommends placing it under the bedsheet, as the fabric isn’t soft enough to snuggle into and she found the material stuck to her legs at times.
Overall though, the majority of our panellists (Mum included) said they’d recommend the cooling pad to friends. At £30, it’s a great value buy you can turn to on hot nights.
Best of all, those extra brownie points have got me one step closer to being the favourite child…
Shop Silentnight’s Restore Cooling Gel Pad at Amazon.
Megan is the Good Housekeeping Institute’s senior homes and lifestyle writer. She loves diving into the latest product releases to find the very best buys on the market and has written hundreds of product reviews on everything from the best vacuum cleaners and coffee machines to the best ice cream makers and robot window cleaners.
When she’s not writing about the newest gadgets and gizmos for your home and garden, you’ll find her running every distance from 5km to 100km or relaxing at home with her cat – there really is no in between.
Megan has an MA in Magazine Journalism and has previously written for Stylist, Glamour, Women's Health, TimeOut, SquareMeal, and YOU magazine. You can find Megan on Instagram @meganlouisegeall.
