Best Pillow Protectors and Mattress Covers for Airbnb

Kate and I have learned over the past 5 years of hosting Airbnbs that pillow protectors and mattress covers are a good investment for Airbnb hosts. They protect your bedding and allow you to keep more of your profits.

The best pillow protectors and mattress covers we’ve found are waterproof, noise free (or low noise), durable and affordable.

Through the process of trial and error we’ve found 2 brands of pillow protectors and only 1 mattress cover that meets our needs.

Early Lessons From Hosting

We opened our first Airbnb more than 5 years ago and in those early days we learned some valuable lessons about how guests treat your bedding. Two stories come to mind for me.

The first is from a pair of guests that stayed with us in our first month being open.

We had some grey pillowcases and one of our guests wore makeup on their face while they slept. When we came down after their stay we found what appeared to be a bleached spot on our pillowcase. No amount of washing could change the spot back to the original color.

Interestingly enough, we continued to use that stained pillowcase for years after that, but it still came with a valuable lesson.

The second story that comes to mind is probably from a year or two after opening that first listing. We had a young family staying and one of their children peed in our King bed. The sheets ended up being fine after we washed them.

However, the mattress and pillows were stained.

They remained stained and while we did end up replacing the pillows, the mattress still has a faded yellow circle to this day.

Protect your mattresses and pillows

One of the lessons we learned is that guests will ruin your pillows and mattresses before they actually wear out naturally. We’ve had guests throw up, spill nail polish, drop greasy food, and just generally treat our beds as a countertop.

If you want to save yourself the trouble (and expense) of replacing your mattresses and pillows, you’ll want to invest in some decent waterproof protection.

It took us a few years to decide to buy pillow protectors and mattress covers, and if we’d done it sooner we would have saved ourselves hundreds of dollars.

What to look for

Now, when we buy a new Airbnb we always invest in pillow protectors and mattress covers. Here is what we look for:

Quiet
Waterproof
Durability
Affordable

That’s it.

You want quiet covers that don’t squeak or swish because that will keep your guests up at night. Obviously waterproof is a must if you want to keep out stains from all manner of things. And you’d like your protectors to outlast the products they protect.

If you can get all these things for a fair price then you’ve got a winner.

Fortunately, I’ve gotten to test some of these products in our Airbnbs. So I’ll be sharing the best of what we’ve used.

Top 2 Pillow Protectors

We’ve used both of these pillow protectors in our Airbnbs and both have been exactly what we needed.

Niagara Sleep Solution Pillow Protectors (4 Pack)

Used and tested in our Airbnbs
100% Waterproof
Soft, breathable, low-noise material
Durable and affordable

View on Amazon

We’ve put these Niagara Sleep Solution pillow protectors into a newer listing. They’ve only been in there for about 18 months, but so far we’ve seen no noticeable wear on the pillow protectors.

They are 100% waterproof and the material isn’t completely silent (we’ve yet to find one that is), but the noise isn’t noticeable enough to affect your guests’ sleep. When you lay on the pillow you’d never know there was anything under the pillowcase, which is exactly what we shoot for.

And oh yeah, since they come in a 4 pack it’s about as affordable as you can get.

Now the standard size pillow protector is the only size that you can get the 4 pack. If you need a different size, like for king bed pillows, then you’ll be paying more for each item. Still, it’s a great product from what we’ve experienced and we definitely plan to buy them again.

Utopia Bedding Pillow Protectors (2 Pack)

Used and tested in our Airbnbs
100% Waterproof
Soft, breathable, low-noise material
Durable and affordable
Comes in all standard sizes

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We bought the Utopia Bedding pillow protectors more than 3 years ago for our first two Airbnbs. They’re still holding up today and we expect them to last at least another 2 years.

For all intents and purposes, these pillow protectors are identical to the Niagara Sleep Solution protectors.

They are completely waterproof, soft, low-noise (remember all pillows protectors make some noise) covers that protect your pillows without affecting sleep quality.

These are also comparable in price, so either way you’re getting a great deal and a great product that will save you money in the long run. However, if you have King size pillows, then the Utopia brand is a better deal.

Our Top Mattress Cover

Again, we’ve been using mattress covers in our Airbnbs for several years now and we’ve found only one that fits all our needs.

SafeRest Mattress Protector

Used and tested in our Airbnbs for more than 4 years
100% Waterproof
Soft, breathable, noise-free material
Durable and affordable
Comes in all standard sizes

View on Amazon

We’ve tried out a handful of them over the years and only this SafeRest mattress protector has held up to all our criteria. Typically, you can either find a quiet mattress cover or a waterproof one. This is the only one we’ve found that is both.

It will fit all standard bed sizes up to an 18 inch depth which is enough for all the mattresses we recommend.

This cover will protect your mattresses from sweat stains, urine and all the other odd spillages we’ve dealt with over the years. It’s a bit more expensive than other mattress covers you’ll find on the market, but trust me, it’s worth the slightly higher price tag.

Conclusion

It’s true that pillow protectors and mattress covers aren’t make or break items for your Airbnbs. It won’t affect your guests’ experience and thus won’t affect all the things that bring you more guests.

However, they do affect your bottom line.

After a few years of replacing pillows and dealing with stains in our mattresses, we’ve been able to save money by investing in protection for our bedding. I recommend you do the same. It will allow you to keep more of your profits in the long run.

Happy investing.