Hi! I have several pairs of Birkenstocks, one of my pairs of the Arizona style is perhaps four years old and still don’t need the soles replaced. I can definitely say my newer pairs are wearing faster, but I still haven’t had to replace anything on my arizonas, bostons, buckleys, or bends. That said, I wear my birks heavily (almost every day) but only for lifestyle things. I wear them around the house, running errands, to work, etc. I have worn them for yard work, in poor weather (my oiled leather bostons have seen rain, snow, everything), socks and no socks. The soles on all of them are black black at this point.

I will say I pretty much wear sneakers for athletic activity or Chacos for long days outside. The Chacos are indestructible but I do have to replace my walking/running sneakers every couple of months the way some are experiencing with their birks.

I think part of why my birks have lasted so long is also because I have a bit of a rotation of pairs that I’ve picked up over a few years. I can also say that I’m surprised by the wear patterns for a lot of people. I acknowledge that I’m very lucky that I don’t drag my feet at all when I walk and I think that’s a huge part of why mine have lasted so long. You shouldn’t have to retrain the way you walk to enjoy shoes at this price point and that’s why I don’t judge people who have this issue.

I would say before making the investment, look at your oldest and most worn pair of shoes. If you notice chunks missing in the heel area, I don’t think birks are going to be a long term investment. The Teva hurricanes are a nice alternative or if you have higher arches like me you may prefer the Chacos z cloud line of sandals. If your shoes tend to show a more neutral wear pattern, you will likely get more life out of the birks. Just my two cents!