You’ve already seen how much a simple piece of tape can seriously lessen the amount of pain caused by your high heels, but a study out of the UK reveals that as many as half of all women and one-third of men are wearing the wrong shoe size.
Shoes can help with foot problems but if they don’t fit well, they can also cause problems like hammertoes, deformities, bunion growth, consistent foot pain, and poorly fitting shoes can also contribute to things like headaches and back pain.
This is because you don’t get to try your shoes on first when you buy them online. Instead, you rely on the labelled size and not how they fit which is why it’s a good idea to shop for shoes in person.
In order to make your online shoe shopping experience better, we present to you 5 TIPS FOR FINDING SHOES THAT FIT ONLINE.
- MEASURE YOUR FEET TO DETERMINE YOUR SHOE SIZE
Measuring your foot size at home is easy, no need to use any special equipment. It is better to measure both feet and settle on the size of the larger foot.
To measure your feet at home, place a piece of paper on a flat, hard surface like a tile or wood floor. Put on a pair of socks then place your foot in the centre of the piece of paper and outline your foot using a pen or pencil.
Try to trace as closely to your foot as possible for the most accurate shape, grab a straight ruler or tape measure and measure the length of your foot, starting from the heel to the tip of the longest toe.
Write down the length of your foot, and then look up a shoe size chart to match your measurements to a particular shoe size. You may have to do additional measuring if you have unusually wide or narrow feet.
- USING A SIZE CHART
Choosing the right size is a critical factor while doing online shopping. Several shoe-size systems are used worldwide. For European brands, the adult sizes range from thirty-five to forty-nine, while the UK sizes vary from six to twelve.
Subtract one size from the U.S men’s size to find the UK men’s size. When it comes to footwear, get five types of measurements centimetres, U.K, U.S, EU, and inches but when using a size conversion chart always measure your foot in centimetres and not inches as the conversion charts are based on this metric.
For example, an Australian shoe size of thirty-eight is equivalent to a European thirty-nine or U.S, eleven. Inches can vary depending on who you ask, so it’s best to just stick with centimetres.
- COMPARE SIZE CHARTS
When buying a new brand of shoe, always make sure you measure your foot to determine the size if you are buying shoes online.
First, double-check to see if the website you’re buying from doesn’t have its size chart
. While shoe brands all use a similar sizing chart, there will be some slight differences from brand to brand. If you don’t look closely at these size charts, you might buy the wrong shoe size for that brand, as some brands will run a bit narrow.
- CHECK CUSTOMER REVIEWS
Another good tip is to look at the customer reviews for different shoe brands. If you see many previous customers complaining that a particular shoe runs small, it might be a good idea to size up.
It is always better for a shoe to be too big than too small. That way, you can put in some insoles or something else to fill in the extra space in the shoe. If you have bought a pair of shoes from a brand you plan to buy again, analyze how your current shoes fit.
If the fit is satisfactory, order the same shoe size you did last time. If not, then account for the difference in size and size up or down accordingly.
- WEAR APPROPRIATE SOCKS OR HOSIERY TO GET SIZE
Wear the socks, and nylons that you would normally wear with the type of shoes you want to buy and redo your measurement. If you wear athletic socks with sneakers, wear athletic socks when taking your foot measurements.
If you wear hosiery with dress shoes, wear the same hosiery when you measure for your shoe size.
The thickness of the sock will have a big impact on the fit of the shoe, so always add a few centimetres to the size before purchase so you don’t end up with a tight shoe or a loose-fitting shoe.
See the video below for more!
