How to Find Your Shoe Size | Unrivaled Guide 2022

Everyone has been wearing shoes that are too small or too big. This is not fun, and you risk potential injuries. It is essential to know the exact number of your shoes when you go to buy them. Knowing your shoe size before entering the store saves time, avoiding wrong purchases and consequent changes. Follow the steps below to find out your shoe size.

Shoe size: how to take it correctly

“The human foot is a work of art and a masterpiece of engineering”: then there should also be a perfect shoe size for each of us. No one actually has both feet of the same size, shape, or proportions. Obviously, this does not mean that there is no suitable shoe, but simply that in choosing the shoe size you have to take into account some factors.

First of all, you need to know that,  for each foot, there are  4 different “measuring moments” :

•  Static condition: this is the size of the shoe with the foot at rest;
•  Shoe size under load: it is when the person is standing and therefore the size and shape of the foot change. In the book Professional shoe Fitting  by William A. Rossi we read, in fact, the foot at rest is essentially a soft mass of bones and cartilage that suddenly takes on a solid consistency when you get up, thus becoming of a different nature
• Functional measure: it is that in dynamic conditions, that is the one that can be obtained when a person performs movements such as running, walking fast, or jumping;
• Thermal measurement takes into account the changes produced by heat and humidity (which can sometimes cause the foot to swell by up to 5% compared to its measurement in a static condition).

It is obvious that the best time to choose a pair of shoes with the certainty of not having the wrong number is in the evening when the combination of functional and thermal measurements can determine the right size, without the risk of finding yourself with a pair of footwear that does not manage to wear.

Measure the Foot at Home

• Put a sheet of paper on the floor. You will mark the profile of the foot on it. Avoid doing this on a carpet or any other surface where it can be difficult to write.
• Place your foot firmly on the sheet of paper. The leg should be slightly bent and the shin in front of the ankle. Keep your foot perpendicular to the card. You can stand, sit in a chair, or squat.
• Draw the outline of the foot. You can put on the socks you will wear with your new shoes, but don’t put your shoes on.
• Mark the length and width of the foot on the card. Use the marker to draw a straight line on each side of the outline.
• Measure your foot length. Use a tape measure or ruler to measure from top to bottom. Write down this number. It will be decisive for calculating the shoe size.
• Measure the width of the foot. Measure between the lines on the right and left side, then write down the number. Many shoes come in different widths, so this number will determine which version to buy.
• Subtract 5mm from each number. It is used to eliminate the space left between the line made by the pencil and the actual foot.
• Use the measurements taken to compare them with a reference scale. Women and men have different sizes and the measurements vary from country to country.

Also consider the width.

Many shoes also have different versions based on the width. According to this parameter, shoe size is usually indicated by the letters AA, A, B, C, D, E, EE, and EEEE, where AA is the narrowest and EEEE is the widest. Size B is usually the average for women, while size D is the average for men.