One of the most common questions I hear from patients in my practice is, “What kind of shoes are best for my feet?” That is a somewhat complex answer because some people have high arches, some people have low arches, and most people fall somewhere in between. And in addition, some people have bunions, hammertoes, heel pain, Achilles pain, neuroma pain (pinched nerve in the ball of the foot), or metatarsalgia (bone pain in the ball of the foot). Shoes are best chosen considering your own particular foot type or your own particular symptoms. 

Here is a brief summary of each condition and the corresponding shoe type that tends to work best: 

Lower Arched Feet 

Problems Associated: People with lower arches tend to have different problems than people with higher arches. Their pain tends to be as a result of muscle fatigue as muscles of the foot and lower leg are trying to lift the arch become fatigued. Problems include shin splints, bunions (with time), metatarsalgia, knee pain, and hip and low back pain. 

Recommended Shoe: Most people in this category of foot type would benefit from a separate arch support, which means the most important feature in a shoe for lower arches is a shoe that has a removable liner or insole. 

This removable liner will allow you to beef up support in the shoe with a separate added arch support without the shoe becoming too crowded. There are some shoes on the market that have a very good built-in arch support, but they are quite expensive. Most shoes under $100 will not have enough arch support built in, adding a separate arch support is the most helpful and cost effective way to alleviate pain, but the shoe needs to have room to add an arch support. 

Higher Arched Feet 

Problems Associated: Heel pain (plantar fasciitis or heel spur syndrome-pain at the bottom of the heel, especially in the morning), Achilles tendonitis (pain at the back of the heel), metatarsalgia (pain in the ball of the foot), hammertoes, at risk for stress fractures. 

Recommended shoe: 

Plantar fasciitis: a shoe with a good arch support. This is not a bone problem, rather a soft tissue problem; a ligament holding up the arch is becoming overstressed. Wearing shoes with good arch support or an extra arch insert will decrease the burden on the plantar fascia tissue. 

Achilles pain: a wedge shoe or higher heeled shoe. The public generally thinks that high heeled shoes are not good for you, but for some problems high heeled shoes can be quite helpful. 

Metatarsalgia: A shoe with very good padding, and arch support. Avoid flats. This condition is characterized as pain all across the ball of the foot, mainly because people with high arches tend to only bear weight at their heel and in the ball of their foot, and nowhere else. We want to add padding to the ball of their foot. 

Hammertoes and bunions: A shoe with a higher and wider toe box, or open sandals. Hammertoes hurt because the tops of the bent toes rub on the shoe, simply finding shoes with more room or open toes really helps. Bunions simply hurt because shoes are rubbing on the bump. Wider, roomier shoes work best. 

 Recommended separate arch supports: There are two general types of arch supports, custom and over-the-counter. Custom inserts are pricey ($200+) but can offer specific benefits. Podiatrists will make them custom to a mold of your foot. However, most people shouldn’t need customs for general arch support. There are two over-the-counter arch supports that we recommend that cost between $30-$50 that are great for most people and can last for years and can move from shoe to shoe: Powersteps, Superfeet. These are often available in shoe stores, sporting goods stores, or in a foot doctor’s office. 

The following table can help select shoes for different problems: 

Shoe Type:	Hammertoes	Bunions	Heel Pain	Achilles Pain	Metatarsalgia	Shin Splints	Neuroma Pain
Flats	If Comfortable	If Roomy	Aggravate	Aggravate	Aggravate	Aggravate	If Roomy
Flip Flops	Good	Good	Aggravate	Aggravate	Okay	Aggravate	Okay
Wedge	Probably will Aggravate	Okay	Good	Good	Probably will Aggravate	Okay	Okay
High Heels	Aggravate	Aggravate	Good	Good	Aggravate	Good	Aggravate