Walking is the world’s most brilliantly simple form of exercise.
Just find a good pair of walking shoes and head out the door.

We’ve walked a lot of miles and worn many different types of shoes… lightweight urban hikers, extra-supportive walking shoes, minimalistic running shoes, sneakers for walking and even flip-flops.

It’s all part of our market research designed to help you save time and get the best walking shoes for your money. What we’ve developed is a practical, comprehensive buyer’s guide to walking shoes. 

Our criteria for good walking shoes is fairly simple:

• A good pair of walking shoes should fit perfectly, no matter what type of feet you have… Yes, here you can find wide toe box shoes, shoes that fit flat feet, diabetic feet, wide feet, pronated feet, high-arched feet or even big-foot feet. Because your comfort is our goal.

• Your shoes should be light weight yet stable, supportive and anatomically designed. A cheap pair of sneakers won’t fit the bill if you’re walking regularly.

• Your walking shoes should be a good value and last a reasonably long time. They won’t break down after you’ve put just a few miles on them.

When it comes to maintaining an active, healthy lifestyle, nothing is easier or more effective than walking. But you already know that. That’s why you’re here… Looking for a good pair of walking shoes that’ll get you where you want to go.

So have a look around.

If you have heel pain, read this post on Plantar Fasciitis. 

If you’re interested in increasing your fitness levels by walking with poles, click here. 

If you’re a senior, looking for ways to stay mobile, click here. 

Take a look at some great accessories that will make your walks more enjoyable like pedometers, after-market insoles, walking poles, hiking socks and handy hydration systems.

Get a great selection of walking shoes for women and walking shoes for men.

We’ve categorized all the best walking shoes into the following five groups:

1. Best Sandals for Walking

Hot summer days and vacation travel sometimes demand sandals that you can also walk in. Technically, these are not walking shoes, but the sandals we’ve chosen are widely regarded as the best for walking. Our selection offers both comfort and style for hours at the beach or other vacation destination.

2. Best Sneakers For Walking

Sneakers are not the best shoes for walking. These are the lightest and least supportive of all the shoes we’ve researched. Generally speaking, we don’t recommend plain old sneakers for walking, but we also know the realities of the marketplace… Many people just make do with sneakers, so we include some of the better ones in our walking shoe buyer’s guide.

3. Best Trail Running Shoes For Walking

If you shop at most chains or discount shoe stores, you won’t find walking shoes. Instead, the salespeople will push you into a running shoe, saying that they’re essentially the same.

Ha! Don’t fall for it.

Running and walking demand completely different things from a shoe, so the only running shoes that we normally recommend for walking can be found in the trail running category. Trail Running Shoes are substantially sturdier and more rigid than most lightweight running shoes. Therefore, they can work well as walking shoes for some people. If you try walking in lightweight running shoes, you’re just asking for foot problems.

4. Best Supportive, Orthopedic Shoes For Walking

There are a few brands, such as Vivonic, Kuru, Brooks, Birkenstock and Aetrex that are anatomically designed to provide extra support for problem feet.

If you’re overweight, this is the category for you. You won’t find these brands on the shelf at a standard, run-of-the-mall shoe store. So if you have heel spurs, plantar fasciitis or diabetes-related foot issues, this is the category for you.

 5. Best Light Hiking Shoes For Walking

It’s easy to find a good pair of walking shoes in this category. These are the most durable, most substantial shoes of the bunch. We don’t review hiking boots, but some of these models would work perfectly well for short backpacking trips or long day hikes. Take a look at Oboz, Solomon, Keen and Merrell.