Big Agnes Rapide SL Pillow review: inflates in two puffs, and your days of waking up with a stiff neck at camp are over

Big Agnes Rapide SL Pillow: first impressions 

Inflatable camping pillows have a bit of a bad reputation for being, well, useless, but this game-changing cushion from Colorado's Big Agnes is here to help rewrite that unfortunate narrative.

It arrives packed away in a stuff sack and is so small you can easily pop it in a pocket or clip it to your backpack. Made using a soft, four-way stretch nylon (that's puncture and tear-resistant), this pillow inflates with just a couple of puffs to become a decent-seized support system that's not as big as your pillow at home, but still gives your head plenty of wiggle room. You can adjust it to make it softer or firmer depending on your needs.

It's designed with ergonomic thickness and shape for a comfortable sleep position, whether you're on your side or back, and it stays nice and stable while you sleep, thanks to what the brand calls a 'minimalist offset I-Beam construction'. Basically, it's quiet, soft and stable.

And if that's not all you need from a camping pillow, it has advanced heat reflective technology so it helps keep you warm and cozy after the temperatures drop, and an
antimicrobial treatment inside the pillow prevents micro-organism growth to keep your pillow fresh and stink-free.

When it's time to pack up and move on, this pillow easily deflates and rolls away. It's on the higher end of pricing for pillows we've tested, but easily worth every penny and turns a camping pillow from nice-to-have to must-have for backpackers who hate waking up with sore necks.

Big Agnes Rapide SL Pillow: in the field 

I've been using my old Klymit Cush pillow for camping for at least 15 years and I love it for its light weight packability, but I often have to fold it up to get the correct thickness, and it struggles to fully deflate these days, so when I heard that Big Agnes was breaking into the UK market, I was excited to try some of their ultralight gear on my adventures.

I actually got this pillow to use on my trek to Everest Base Camp, which turned out to be unnecessary as the pillows along the route were all sufficient, but I've spent the summer using it along with the Big Agnes Rapide SL Sleeping Pad on all my camping trips.

Here’s how it performed:

Weight and packability

When you can roll up a fleece jacket and stick it in the stuff sack of your sleeping bag to rest your head on, it's easy to rule out hauling the extra bulk and weight of a camping pillow, but this model eliminates any debate for me. I often like to give a comparison to help understand how much an item I'm reviewing weighs, but at just 50 grams with the stuff sack, it literally feels like nothing in my hand. Even if I were trying to fastpack my way along the Appalachian Trail, I wouldn't think twice about bringing it.

It packs down into a little stuff sack and fits in the palm of my hand, and it's squashable, so it's easy to fit inside any pocket or even my camping mug. If you really don't have room inside your pack, clip it to the outside via the loop on the stuff sack.

Size, comfort and noisiness

The problem, if there was one, with my old pillow is that it's designed to be versatile, so it's quite long and thin and can be used as a seat or doubled up for a pillow. It's a great design, but it made me think there was no way an inflatable pillow could feel like a regular one, and it turns out that's not true.

This inflates to about two-thirds the width of my pillow at home, which is a decent amount of real estate and means if I'm on my back and want to roll onto my side, I don't have to adjust my pillow.

I like it inflated all the way and find the thickness just right for my neck, even on my side, and it's soft against my skin and nice and stable and supportive.

The soft fabric means it's not crinkly or rustly which also helps me get a better night's sleep.

Ease of use and value

Some valves are really fiddly, but this is super easy to inflate and deflate. I'm not sure if this is what I'm supposed to be doing, but basically, I use one finger to press the middle of the valve then put my mouth over it to blow air in. It takes me precisely two big breaths to inflate it, and all the air doesn't come rushing back out when it's time to close the valve.

My old pillow has an annoying habit of holding onto a little air, and fortunately, this one doesn't share that trait. When I want to pack it away, I just press the center of the valve again while I squeeze the air out, and before I know it it's packed away and I'm back on the trail.

It's not the priciest pillow on the market, but at $50 I can see why lots of backpackers would want to give it a miss. I've always prided myself on a more minimalist approach, but now I know how comfortable this pillow is, I'd happily pay the price and won't go camping again without it.

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