Bbhugme pregnancy pillow review: Is the celeb fave really worth £145?

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If there’s one thing that’s absolutely an essential item during pregnancy – a time when your bones and organs literally move position – it’s a pregnancy pillow. A good pillow, when used at night or when at rest, can help to take pressure off delicate joints and pressure points, as well as align the spine and support that growing baby bump.

If you follow any pregnancy celebrities or influencers on social media, chances are you’ve probably heard of the coveted Bbhugme pregnancy pillow. Champions of the coveted pillow include Vogue Williams, Ellie Goulding, Princess Eugenie, Izzy Judd, Chessie King, Millie Mackintosh, Binky Felsted and many, many more.

Unhappy with the solutions already on the market to support their pregnant clients during sleep, chiropractors, Hilde, Ann Kristin and Elisabeth, created the Norwegian wellness brand to “empower pregnant women to live a happy and healthy life.” Growing in popularity through mainly word-of-mouth (and Instagram feeds), Bbhugme has since grown to be a trusted brand for effective products and solutions to sleep, nursing and pregnancy.

With five-point support for the most critical areas during pregnancy – legs, belly, lower back, ankles and pelvis – and a jersey spandex outer to keep you cool at night, what’s not to love? Well, it’s the price. At £145, this pregnancy pillow is priced much higher than most on the market. We tested it to see if it’s worth the hefty price tag.

We tested this pillow for several weeks throughout our third trimester of pregnancy during sleep and at rest on the sofa during the day. We then continued to use it as a feeding pillow once the baby had arrived for exclusive breastfeeding throughout the day and night.

Rating: 9/10

The Bbhugme proves that not all pregnancy pillows are created equally. We can’t deny that the Bbhugme is a stylish pillow. Sausage-shaped, the microbead inner is covered with a spandex jersey open-ended sheath, which is flanked by two BPA-free silicone “pebbles”.

Inspired by simple, elegant Scandinavian design, the pillow is fully customisable to suit personal style, with different additional covers and pebbles available. There is a wide range of colours available, including: dusty pink, dusty olive, stone, and patterned designs such as the beautifully named pink wildflowers and green meadow. Pebbles also come in a range of colours including coral and black.

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The pillow arrives folded in a zipped case of a reasonable size. When laid out in full, we were quite alarmed at its size: it’s pretty big. Sitting at a length of 150 cm and height of 20cm, it’s not something that can be easily hidden. However, we didn’t really want to hide it.

Far from being an eyesore, the elegant design of the pillow meant it sat proudly on our sofa or bed, waiting patiently for someone to sink gently into its supportive contours. The pillow is quite weighty – the inner plus the pebbles are 2.1kg – and we did need help when replacing the cover after a wash and adjusting the firmness when in our third trimester.

The main question: is this stylish pillow comfortable enough to justify the almost eye-watering price? Yes, it is. Decadently so. The pebbles can be tightened to push the inner beads together, creating firm support for behind your back. They can be easily loosened to provide a softer, more malleable cushion that really lives up to the hug me name.

Another draw here is that the Bbhugme can be a pillow for everyone. During testing, the pillow was popular with family members and visitors alike. Our partner used the pillow regularly when gaming on the sofa and it was also a welcome support when an elderly relative who required a bit more propping up visited. English rugby player Joe Marler is also a fan, using the pillow as travel support when on tour.

During our third trimester, we mostly used the pillow for left-side sleeping at night, hugging it to utilise the five-point system to take the pressure off painful areas.

Postpartum, we still use the pillow in a firmer setting to prop us up at night when feeding or changing nappies in the dark. For other interesting ways to use the pillow, the brand has a YouTube channel for inspiration.

For better or for worse, we have to conclude that the Bbghugme pillow is a really worthwhile investment. A one-trick pony it is not, and its versatility will take you through your pregnancy and beyond. We have knocked just one point off our overall rating for the cost. As comfortable as it is, the price point makes it prohibitive to many.