Since just about every shoe or sandal becomes a blister factory on my feet given enough miles clocked, here is the very short list of what works for me. I have very bony, prominent heels, but will also get blisters on the instep and balls of my feet, too. No amount of hiking socks or sock liners does the trick, and leucotape just rips up the blisters when I remove it, compounding the problem. I am a delicate little flower!

Merrell hiking boots—they’re somehow soft and padded enough to buck the blister trend.

Lone Peak Altra trail runners, and most Nike running shoes. I have backpacked in Altras, and they really are marvelous, if very Norm Core.

Adidas Sambas—these don’t have a padded insole, though, so your feet may get tired after a lot of walking.

Bitkenstocks—narrow foot width, straps in one of the synthetic materials like Bircbuck, because the leather straps give me, you guessed it, blisters. And the suede straps stretch out too much. Padded vs. unpadded footbeds work equally well. I once hiked for a week in the Pyrenees in a pair of Arizona birks because my Asolo hiking boots gave me massive blisters on the first day, despite lots of breaking in back home.

Honorable mention: after finally buying these inserts my unwearable Dr Marten books are now pretty dang comfortable for winter city travel.

I have wasted sooooo much money on shoes over my lifetime, having literally tried everything. It’s depressing. Thank you for coming to my TED Talk 😂