When climbing, be it indoors at a gym or outside at the crag, shoes play a pivotal role whether you’re learning the basics or sending a new route. Not only do your shoes provide grip and support, they also shape your foot and create balance points to help you effectively use small holds. While brands large and small have developed shoes with tacky rubbers and soft, durable fabrics, the best climbing shoes should ultimately cater to your needs and feel like an extension of your foot, providing them with superpower-like abilities so you can approach any wall, mountain or boulder problem with confidence.
The best climbing shoes should feel like an extension of your feet and give them superpowers.
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Buying a new pair of climbing shoes can be a frustrating process—it’s very subjective and often comes down to personal preference. When choosing the best climbing shoe for you, consider what type of climbing you intend to do (indoor bouldering and sport climbing, or outdoor multi-pitch trad climbing, for example), the fit you prefer and features such as laces or straps and rubber properties.
The good (and bad) news for climbers is that there exists more climbing shoe styles, brands and sport-specific designs to choose from than ever before. Each shoe will cater to a certain style of climbing, foot shape and type of fit. Over the span of your climbing career, you will most likely rotate through numerous brands and models, and perhaps amass a full quiver of climbing shoes as your interests and skills grow.
Whether you’re looking for an aggressively-downturned, asymmetrical shoe to help you excel at bouldering competitions, a stiffer model for precise edging on long sport routes or a shoe that offers comfort for those all-day multi-pitch ascents, we’ve got you covered with our picks for the best climbing shoes.
La Sportiva’s Katana Lace climbing shoes continue to top best-seller lists year after year, and for good reason. Thanks to an aggressive, downturned shape, they excel on steep and technical terrain but somehow manage to remain comfortable even after you’re lowered to the ground.
The climbing shoes are built on a rigid platform that enables you to efficiently transfer power to hold an edge. Pair that with the downturned shape and the bomber heel hold, and these climbing shoes are glorified edging machines that also excel at slabs, cracks and overhangs.
The 4mm-thick Vibram XS Edge rubber outsole not only provides superior grip on the occasional slab or tiny holds, it also offers enough underfoot sensitivity while still remaining durable. The lace-up design allows you to dial in a glove-like fit that conforms to the exact shape of your foot over time, and shoes come in both men’s and women’s-specific sizing. Note that these climbing shoes can be resoled if they break down over time, so feel free to climb to your heart’s content.
For novice climbers and those tackling all-day multi-pitch routes, the Five Ten Kirigami climbing shoes are seriously comfortable thanks to their neutral shape and rounded toe box, meaning your feet can lie flat instead of scrunching up. Synthetic uppers lined with plush mesh only make them more comfortable.
A medium level of flex supports a wide variety of climbing—they’re great for both beginners and more advanced climbers looking to try a bit of everything. Five Ten is known for their sticky rubber and the Stealth C4 rubber outsoles that extend over the toe provide optimal grip on a variety of terrain so that you remain sure-footed in order to grow your confidence and technique. The climbing shoes are available in both a men’s and women’s version and can be resoled should the rubber wear out after you find yourself at the gym multiple times per week.
Pros:
All-day comfort
Affordable
Sticky rubber
Cons:
Not meant for steep, technical terrain
Best Climbing Shoes For Multi-Pitch
All-Day Comfort That Performs At The Highest Level
When multi-pitch climbing, you need a shoe you can wear all day. Take one look at the feet of climbers tackling the classic routes in Yosemite and you’ll probably notice the TC Pros from La Sportiva—not a surprise given the latest version was designed by big wall climbers Tommy Caldwell and Alex Honnold. Look closely at the leather upper and you’ll see the topo outline of the routes made famous by the two climbers—El Capitan’s Dawn Wall and Freerider.
Unlike the aggressive downturned shoes that scrunch up your toes for powerful big-toe precision, the neutral TC Pro offers enough room so your toes can lie flat, making it easier to slip your feet into thin cracks. The uppers fully cover your ankle bones to protect them from harsh rock scrapes when crack climbing, while a layer of thin foam padding on the ankles and tops of the toes cuts down on potential pain.
The outsoles use 4 millimeters of Vibram Edge rubber for excellent grip and hold on minuscule features, while the rubber is reinforced at the toes for added durability. This is a unisex climbing shoe that can be resoled if need be, so you don’t have to buy a new pair.
Pros:
All-day comfort
Developed in partnership with professional climbers
Jack of all trades for technical multi-pitch routes
Cons:
Expensive
Best Climbing Shoes For Sport And Bouldering
A Highly Sensitive Climbing Shoe That Hooks Like A Dream
For modern-style bouldering and sport climbing, you need a climbing shoe that can perform on steep and overhanging terrain as well as macro volumes. Scarpa designed the ultra-soft and sensitive Drago to cater to such challenging routes. Made with an aggressively downturned last that is highly asymmetric, this climbing shoe is all about precision and power.
A slingshot-style rand keeps the shoe secure when you are applying weight to your toes and helps you stick those heel hooks. The single strap, slipper design makes for easy on and off, and means nothing gets in the way of the large covering of sticky rubber on the forefoot for bomber toe hooking. The soft microsuede upper molds to your foot, while strategically placed Vibram rubber on the outsole enables you to stick to small bumps and edges.
Pros:
Soft and sensitive
Great for volumes and hooking
Comfortable
Cons:
Not the best shoe for edging
Best Approach Shoes
Scale A Via Ferrata Or Scramble Up Technical Terrain
Salewa’s best selling approach shoe is now lighter and more flexible than previous generations. The Mountain Trainer 2 GTX inspires confidence on a variety of technical terrain thanks to the aggressively-lugged Vibram outsole that features a climbing zone in the toe that helps you balance on small edges and and special tread in the midfoot area to give you grip on ladder rungs when scaling a via ferrata.
A Gore-Tex liner inside the leather suede upper works together with the stretch gaiter under the climbing lacing system to render the approach shoes waterproof. A 360-degree rubber rand protects the shoe from rock abrasion, while the removable Ortholite footbed ups the comfort level. The Mountain Trainer 2 GTX are available for both men and women.
Pros:
Waterpoof
Protective rubber rand
Precision toe for climbing with via ferrata tread
Cons:
Warm in hot environments
Best Climbing Shoes For Women
A Stiffer Shoe For Precise Footwork On Small Holds
The Vapour Lace WMN climbing shoe is one of the stiffest and most supportive offerings from Scarpa, which means it excels at standing on small edges and precise movements over long routes and multi-pitch climbing. The climbing shoe is not crazy downturned or widely asymmetrical, making it comfortable to wear all day. A full leather footbed that wraps up and over the big toe gives you that custom molded fit, adding to the comfort of the shoe.
The microfiber upper features a plastic zigzag structure to provide support to the lacing system and prevent any stretch as the day wears on. This structure also enables a stitch-free liner to cut down on the possibility of any friction points.
To accommodate the different shape of a woman’s foot, the WMN version of the Vapor Lace is cut lower around the ankle and has a smaller heel cup. It also has a slightly longer toe bed and lower volume forefoot.
A full length Vibram XS Edge outsole sticks to even the most polished edges and is durable enough to endure endless granite abuse. The toe box utilizes stiffer rubber along the edge to help hold its shape, while softer rubber over the toes adds comfort and grip.
While you can rent children’s rock shoes at your local climbing gym, it’s more efficient for your kids to have their own gear, especially if they also climb outdoors. The Black Diamond Momentum climbing shoes come in a large range of sizes for both kids and toddlers to accommodate growing feet. Knit uppers are super comfortable and breathable so little feet don’t get sweaty, and a soft against the skin microfiber lining and hemp footbed for added underfoot comfort.
These vegan-friendly climbing shoes feature a kid-specific flat, neutral last so your kids will be happy wearing them all day running around at the gym. The simple slip-on style with Velcro closure means even the smallest kids can get them on by themselves.
Pros:
Range of sizes
All day comfort
Cons:
Knit not as durable as leather
Best Adaptive Climbing Shoes
Purpose-Built For Lower Extremity Amputees
Evolv
Evolv Eldo Z
Weight: 0.4 pounds | Type: Neutral | Outsole: TRAX SAS High friction rubber | Closure: Lace-Up |
Having a lower extremity amputated shouldn’t stop you from climbing. To encourage more amputees to take up the sport, Evolv teamed up with adaptive climber Malcolm Daly to produce the first adaptive climbing shoe. When paired with the Evolv Adaptive Foot, the Evolv Eldo Z climbing shoe enables amputees to climb to their full potential. The symmetrical flat edge profile of the climbing shoe with its slight camber makes it great for edging on small surfaces. The stiff midsole and high friction rubber outsole ensure precise placement and prevent you from slipping from those tiny holds.
Choosing the right size climbing shoe poses a challenge for a variety of reasons: There’s no sizing standard, every brand is different (from shoe to shoe and year to year) and everyone’s feet are different.
Generally speaking, climbing shoes designed for difficult grades are more snug and tight.Shoes designed for beginners, on the other hand, are looser and more comfortable. At the end of the day, we recommend trying on a shoe in person before making any decisions. If brick-and-mortar stores aren’t available in your area, shop from online retailers like REI Co-op that offer a generous return policy so you can order multiple shoes and return the ones that don’t fit.
Should Your Toes Be Curled In Climbing Shoes?
Watch any documentary featuring professional climbers and you’ll notice their shoes curl aggressively towards the toe. Referred to as “downturn,” this concept calls attention to the asymmetrical shape of the shoe that forces the big toe downward, allowing climbers to use it like a hook.
While aggressive downturn will allow you to hold more weight on small edges and excel through overhangs, you should first consider using a neutral shoe that curls your toes only slightly if you’re new to climbing. A neutral shoe will offer more comfort and support as you learn basic techniques, and encourage you to spend more time on the wall. Once you’ve outgrown your neutral shoes, feel free to upgrade to something more aggressive but consider keeping them around as a fallback pair.
What’s The Difference Between A Neutral, Moderate And Aggressive Climbing Shoe?
Neutral climbing shoes allow your toes to lie nearly flat inside the shoe. This neutral shape is ideal for beginner climbers or seasoned climbers on multi-pitch routes because they offer all-day comfort. Moderate climbing shoes feature a slightly downturned shape which gives your feet more power to tackle a variety of technical terrain while still
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