Shoes for My Son's Wide Feet

Updated on February 17, 2010
S.K. asks from Minneapolis, MN
34 answers

Hello! As the warm weather is finally approaching I am looking for sandals for my 19 month old son. He has wide feet so I am looking for suggestions as to shoes that will fit well. Does anyone have brand or store recommendations? Thanks!

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So What Happened?

Thank you! We ended up getting Adidas at Kohl's, but now I have many more ideas.

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S.F.

answers from Madison on

Lands End sandals should work well. They tend to be a little wider and have two adjustable velcro straps.

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S.P.

answers from Minneapolis on

Nordstrom's is the BEST at fitting wide feet. We always take my son there, because even Stride Rite doesn't work. Geox makes great sandals for wide feet. They are available at Nordstrom's and even have a store at MOA.

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N.S.

answers from Omaha on

I too have to recommend Stride Rite. My niece had this problem as a baby and my sister-in-law always bought her shoes at Stride Rite.

More Answers

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K.K.

answers from Milwaukee on

See Kai Runs have a wide footbed (I buy these from Zappos.com). Preschoolians also have interchangable inserts in narrow, normal, and wide.

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C.H.

answers from Minneapolis on

My son has the same issue...we really like Sketchers, which you can find at Kohl's or Famous Footwear, and they cost alot less than Stride Rite. We have also really liked some of the options from The Children's Place (again, not that expensive).

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M.P.

answers from Minneapolis on

Hi S.,

I know how you feel, my son had wide feet as well. I could not find anything for my son that was a reasonable price. I didn't want to spend a lot of money because he was growing out of things so quickly. Not sure if this is an option that you might like - but I just went to Once Upon a Child and bought his shoes from there. You could find all sorts of different brand name shoes for about $5.00 or less. Since they were used, they were already stretched out a bit. I also found that the sandals with the two velcro straps were the best and most comfortable for him. If the shoe didn't open up all the way - his foot would not fit in.

Good Luck!

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A.H.

answers from Omaha on

We went to Stride Rite. It was the only place we could find that had shoes wide enough for my son. We also found some shoes at the Gap that worked well too. Good Luck!

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S.P.

answers from Minneapolis on

Chaco makes sandals for chidlren. The straps can be adjusted to fit any size feet - and they are absolutely wonderful. You can find them at REI.
Good luck!

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D.S.

answers from Houston on

I have an ebay store specializing in toddler wide shoes. So I don't spam let me know if you want to know the name of it. Hint type in what your looking for in the ebay store area if your interested. Most are used but I refuse to pay $40 pair or sell for that unless thats where the bid goes. Cant find what your looking for let me know I can find any wide shoe on ebay. the cost will vary and how long it takes me will vary by what is available. You just have to know how to do the searches. I do the leg work you just buy them.

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K.T.

answers from Minneapolis on

I agree with the other posters, at least for the summer you can find sandals with two Velcro straps. Even Target has some- I like the Cherokee ones because they hold up and they are flexible like Stride Rite shoes. I would check those for tennis shoes too. I bought two pairs of these for my son because I have yet to find a better shoe. When he grows out of the ones he has now I am going to buy a third pair:
http://www.target.com/Toddler-Boys-Cherokee-Demarcus-Athl...
They are flexible but still supportive. They have two Velcro straps so you can open it up which makes it super easy to put them on, will work with wide feet, and also with Velcro you can buy up because you can keep it tighter until your child grows into them more. They hold up very well- my son is extremely active and spends practically all day on his feet. And they are very breathable too- if you look at the picture, they are navy, orange, and white. The white part is actually like a netting. Can't get any more breathable than that for a tennis shoe. Anyway, they are awesome and worth trying out. Lol I never thought I would be so excited about a pair of shoes. I hope Target keeps carrying them for a while. If not, Stride Rite would definitely be my second choice for wide feet but they are so expensive

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B.H.

answers from Minneapolis on

Stride Right
Kmart

The only stores I know of that carry wide shoes.
My daughter needed a 5 double wide at age1 and I had to special order her shoes from Stride Right. They are worth the money trust me.

Crocs come pretty wide in general too!

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H.B.

answers from Des Moines on

I always had good luck at Stride Rite. My son had wide feet as well.

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D.W.

answers from Milwaukee on

My son has wide feet too, I always got Teva brand sandles when he was a toddler. I've also gottem him Land's End brand now that he's a bit older.

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K.V.

answers from Lincoln on

If you live in Lincoln, JR. shoe world is great! Three out of four of my children have hard to fit feet and we always come out of there with a pair of shoes for them. The staff are great and they even have coupons on their website. For the smaller children, I highly recommend Stride Rite shoes. K.

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J.C.

answers from Davenport on

My 19 month old has the same problem, we just went shopping this weekend and I found some great sandles at The Children's Place that work really well and they were only like $6.50 I think. I have a hard time spending a lot of money on his shoes cause he grows out of them so fast so I'm always looking for nice inexpensive options. Oh we also got a pair of Nike sandles that work really well but I found them at a consignment shop but I'm sure you could get them online or any any store that sells name brand shoes. Good luck.

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B.J.

answers from Minneapolis on

Hi S.
If you live in Mpls/St. Paul- there is a shoe store in Anoka that specializes in wide feet and large sizes.
I can't think of the name offhand-- but if you want the name, easy to find and email me back and I'll check with my sister-in-law.
Have a great day.

About me: 48 yo perfusionist, coach for nationwide online biggest loser where you can win big $ and mom to 7 yo twin girls.

B. J

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C.L.

answers from Minneapolis on

Stride Rite used to replace the shoes for free if your child wore them out before they outgrew them. I don't know if they still do that. As your child gets older, New Balance also makes more wide sizes.

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C.K.

answers from Minneapolis on

Stride Rite!!

If you go to their website, they have a sizing chart you can print off. We measured my son's feet at home, and then saved money by buying some shoes off of Craigslist. Brand new, Stride Rites retail for $40-$50, but they do pop up on Craigslist and eBay for much less. Good luck!

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K.R.

answers from Minneapolis on

You can go to Shoe Zoo, in Uptown Minneapolis. As a shopping experience it can border on hellish, but they have the best selection, best quality, and most knowledgeable staff.

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A.D.

answers from Des Moines on

Hi S.,

My son is now 4 and has wide feet as well. I always go to Payless because they have brands that come in the wide sizes and it isn't going to cost a whole bunch. I have found that airwalks are a good brand for tennis shoes and actually the generic crocs work well for sandals. Hope this helps.

K.B.

answers from Milwaukee on

I would look at Payless. They have wide shoes for kids (stride rite? brand), not sure if they have sandles but worth a look!

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K.A.

answers from Omaha on

Do you have a Stride Rite by you? I hear they are good, a little pricey, but they make the shoes specifically for your child.

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C.Z.

answers from Omaha on

My son has always had wide feet and the shoes that I found worked the best for him were from Stride Rite. They are costly but in the long run, worth the money as he wouldn't wear shoes from other stores that weren't "wide." I have seen recently that Payless is offering more styles/sizes in wide but did not look at the children's section as my son is 12 now.

Good luck!

C.

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G.G.

answers from Appleton on

Try the "see kai run" brand (look online to see where they are sold)...they have shoes for wide feet.

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J.F.

answers from Madison on

All 3 of my kids have had fat, flat feet when younger. I have always purchased stride rite shoes. I find an outlet store and they are usually a lot cheaper. They last a long time.

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S.S.

answers from Minneapolis on

Both my sons have extra-wide feet, meaning not even the SmartFit from Payless could accomodate them. There are few brands for really wide feet, so it's important to get them professionally measured to see what they really need. We always have GREAT luck at Peterson's in Anoka. It's family-owned with great customer service--they really know what they're doing. They have a few kids' brands, but our favorite for that age was always Stride Rite.

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C.T.

answers from Milwaukee on

My daughter's feet are wide, as well as high on top, so she can't slide her foot into regular sandals. Every summer Toys R Us hs sandals which have 2 velcro straps. One around the ankle and one over the top of the foot. So this way I can undo the straps completely, she puts her foot on the shoe and I velcro the straps over her foot to the size she needs. It works beautifully and I just got a pair this past Friday - $10.99!

B.W.

answers from Minneapolis on

I've never been very impressed with the quality of stride rite... my boys have had various pairs over the years and they jsut don't hold up for the price you pay for them.

Payless has a brand called SmartFit Not only are they great for wide feet, but they are reasonably priced and they hold up AMAZING! They have super cute sandals too.

The Albertville outlet mall has a Crocs store... those are great for fat little feet too.. its all my boys wear from about April-November!

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J.M.

answers from Des Moines on

Hi Sara,

Stride Rite shoes have always worked really well for my 5 year old and he has wide feet.

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K.C.

answers from Janesville-Beloit on

Stride Rite generally has wide shoes. However, if your little one has feet like my son, stride rite won't work. We tried there and at the time they had 6 pair in the store labeled wide. We could only get his foot into 1 of those. They just weren't wide enough. My son needs extra wide shoes and they are very hard to find. If you are anywhere close to Madison, WI there is a shoe store called Monona Bootery and they specialize in hard to find shoe sizes. We have had to start buying my son's shoes there as he also has extremely wide feet. He needs extra wide shoes and they are the only ones we have found who carry them. We can occasionally get him into the "skater style" shoes like DC brand because they don't narrow down at the toe, but usually have to go to the Bootery. We just bought him new tennis shoes and sandals there and they were great. They measure his feet and we have never had a problem finding anything to fit him and usually have a couple different options. Good luck! I sympathize with your problem!

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C.D.

answers from Sioux Falls on

Stride Rite. Watch for their sales! We're in Sioux Falls and they have a big sale in January and another in July where I get many shoes for $10 or $15. There are also Stride Rite Outlets in various places. Good Luck!

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D.S.

answers from Milwaukee on

I have heard that StrideRite will measure feet for shoe size and carry a bigger selection for children with wide feet. I know that Wal-mart and Shopko also carry wide shoes, but if you have already tried there, I would try StrideRite.

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M.T.

answers from Madison on

I also love the brand 'See Kai Run', the styles are so cute, the foot bed is wide, the leather is super soft and the rubber soles are very flexible! I get mine on ebay, usually at half the price they retail for.

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T.N.

answers from Minneapolis on

Stride Rite shoes come in wides. I know they have an outlet at Albertville, and are also sold at the "Little Feet" stores. One is near Ridgedale, but there may be others. I've also had great luck with sites like www.Zappos.com or www.onlineshoes.com which allow you to search in numerous ways, including style, size and width. They have free shipping and free return shipping if they don't fit and are very competitive price-wise. Good luck!

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