Best Barefoot Shoes for Narrow Feet (2024)

Need help finding the best barefoot shoes for narrow feet? Even those with slimmer feet can benefit from the foot-shaped toe box of barefoot shoes.

Feet come in all shapes and sizes, and our shoes should too. While I often refer to barefoot shoes as having a wide toe box, what I really mean is an anatomically foot-shaped toe box, which is much wider than most conventional shoes.

Not every barefoot shoes is a good fit for every foot. If you have narrower feet, you might’ve tried a barefoot shoe and found that your feet were swimming in them. This may just mean you need a shoe that is narrower overall, but still has a foot-shaped toe box. Here I’ve rounded up the best barefoot shoe brands for narrow feet.

Note: This post contains affiliate links. This means if you click on one of them,we mayreceive a small commission at no additional cost to you. Thank you for your support!

The Benefits of Barefoot Shoes

Before we dive into our list of top barefoot shoe brands for narrow feet, let’s first understand the concept of barefoot shoes and why they are worth considering. Unlike conventional shoes, which often come with tapered toe boxes and thick, cushioned soles, barefoot shoes aim to mimic the feeling of walking barefoot while providing some protection.

Here are some key benefits of wearing barefoot shoes:

1. Enhanced Foot Strength: Barefoot shoes allow your feet to move naturally, helping to strengthen the muscles, ligaments, and tendons in your feet, ultimately leading to better foot health.
2. Improved Balance and Posture: With a flexible and minimalist design, barefoot shoes encourage proper alignment, which can lead to improved posture and balance.
3. Better Sensory Feedback: Barefoot shoes offer a closer connection to the ground, allowing your feet to feel and adapt to different surfaces more effectively.

Do those with narrow feet still need barefoot shoes?

Yes! Even if your feet are overall narrow, the toes still need proper room to splay. A tapered toe box means the big toe cannot stay straight and in proper alignment.

Choosing the Right Fit

One of the most critical aspects of choosing any pair of shoes is ensuring that they fit your feet. Shoes that are too tight or too loose can lead to discomfort, and change in walking gait and lead to foot or whole body problems over time. When shopping for barefoot shoes for narrow feet, keep these tips in mind:

Measure Your Feet: Start by measuring the length and width of your feet. Many brands provide sizing guides to help you find the best fit, but I know buying online can be tough. That’s why I created the Barefoot Shoe Guide to share all of my insights on barefoot shoes.

Monitor changes in your feet: If you’ve just started wearing barefoot shoes, you may feel most comfortable in some of these narrower options at first. However, many people start to find that after wearing less restrictive footwear and spending more time barefoot, their feet do grow and expand. This is a good thing! It usually means your muscles are getting stronger and your feet are simply spreading out to where they want to be without a tight shoe squishing them all of the time. If this does happen and these narrower barefoot shoe options start to feel too tight, then it may be time to start looking at some other brands.

Here are some brands that fit narrow to medium width feet best. The fit can change from style to style among the brands, especially with different material or construction for the uppers.

Top Barefoot Shoe Brands for Narrow Feet

Wildling Shoes: The knit Nebula is a stretchy material with a sock-like fit, so I’ve found this to be one of the best fits from Wildling for narrower feet. Shop at Wildling US for those based in the USA or Wildling International.

Mukishoes: Mukishoes has on overall narrower fit in the adult sizes. Use code KELLYMUKI for 10% off.

Xero Shoes: Xero shoes are fairly narrow through the mid foot and the toe box. The men’s sizes are slightly wider and start at Men’s US size 6.5/women’s 9.

Vivobarefoot:Men’s sizes fit slightly wider. I find that the fit depends a lot on the style, but some of their knit shoes (like the Primus knit) are good for narrower feet. Use code KELLY10 for 10% off at Vivobarefoot. In April 2024, use my boosted code KELLY25 for 25% off.

Origo Shoes: Origo shoes have adjusted their fit a few times over the last few years, but the casual sneakers generally a good fit for those with narrow feet.

Groundies Barefoot Shoes:Groundies has three different sole shapes: a regular/conventional sole with a tapered toe box (avoid this one), the original barefoot line, and the Barefoot+ line for wide and extra wide feet. The original barefoot line is a good fit for narrow feet.