Shoe size

A shoe size is an indication of the fitting size of a shoe for a person.
There are a number of different shoe-size systems used worldwide. While all shoe sizes use a number to indicate the length of the shoe, they differ in exactly what they measure, what unit of measurement they use, and where the size 0 (or 1) is positioned. Some systems also indicate the shoe width, sometimes also as a number, but in many cases by one or more letters. Some regions use different shoe-size systems for different types of shoes (e.g. men's, women's, children's, sport, and safety shoes). This article sets out several complexities in the definition of shoe sizes. In practice, shoes should be tried on for size and fit before they are purchased.
Deriving the shoe size.
Foot versus shoe and last.
The length of a person's foot is commonly defined as the distance between two parallel lines that are perpendicular to the foot and in contact with the most prominent toe and the most prominent part of the heel. Foot length is measured with the subject standing barefoot and the weight of the body equally distributed between both feet.
The sizes of the left and right feet are often slightly different. In this case, both feet are measured, and purchasers of mass-produced shoes are advised to purchase a shoe size based on the larger foot, as most retailers do not sell pairs of shoes in non-matching sizes.
Each size of shoe is considered suitable for a small interval of foot lengths, typically limited by half-point of the shoe size system.
A shoe-size system can refer to three characteristic lengths:
All these measures differ substantially from one another for the same shoe. For example, the inner cavity of a shoe must typically be 15 mm longer than the foot, and the shoe last would be 2 size points larger than the foot, but this varies between different types of shoes and the shoe size system used. The typical range lies between for the UK/US size system and for the European size system, but may extend to and .
Length.
Sizing systems also differ in the units of measurement they use. This also results in different increments between shoe sizes, because usually only "full" or "half" sizes are made.
The following length units are commonly used today to define shoe-size systems:
Zero point.
The sizing systems also place size 0 (or 1) at different locations:
Width.
Some systems also include the width of a foot (or the girth of a shoe last), but do so in a variety of ways:
The width for which these sizes are suitable can vary significantly between manufacturers. The A–E width indicators used by most American, Canadian, and some British shoe manufacturers are typically based on the width of the foot, and common step sizes are inch (4.8 mm).
Common sizing systems.
United Kingdom.
Shoe size in the United Kingdom, Ireland, India, Pakistan and South Africa is based on the length of the last used to make the shoes, measured in barleycorns ( inch) starting from the smallest size deemed practical, which is called size zero. It is not formally standardised. Note that the last is typically longer than the foot heel to toe length by to in or to 2 barleycorns, so to determine the shoe size based on actual foot length one must add 2 barleycorns.
A child's size zero is equivalent to 4 inches (a hand = 12 barleycorns = 10.16 cm), and the sizes go up to size (measuring barleycorns, or ). Thus, the calculation for a children's shoe size in the UK is:
equivalent to:
An adult size one is then the next size up (26 barleycorns, or ) and each size up continues the progression in barleycorns. The calculation for an adult shoe size in the UK is thus:
equivalent to:
Although this sizing standard is nominally for both men and women, some manufacturers use different numbering for women's UK sizing.
In Australia and New Zealand, the UK system is followed for men and children's footwear. Women's footwear follows the US sizings.
In Mexico, shoes are sized either according to the foot length they are intended to fit, in cm, or alternatively to another variation of the barleycorn system, with sizes calculated approximately as:
equivalent to:
United States.
In the United States and Canada, there are different systems that are used concurrently. The size indications are usually similar but not exactly equivalent especially with athletic shoes at extreme sizes. The most common is the customary, described in more detail below, which for men's shoes is one size shorter than the UK equivalent, making a men's 13 in the US the same size as a men's 12 in the UK.
Customary.
The traditional system is similar to British sizes but start counting at one rather than zero, so equivalent sizes are one greater.
The calculation for a male shoe size in the United States is:
equivalent to:
In the "standard" or "FIA" (Footwear Industries of America) scale, women's sizes are men's sizes plus 1 (so a men's is a women's ):
equivalent to:
There is also the "common" scale, where women's sizes are equal to men's sizes plus .
Children's.
Children's sizes are equal to men's sizes plus . Children's sizes do not differ by gender even though adults' do:
equivalent to:
Children's shoe stores in the United States use a sizing scheme which ends at 13, after which the adult range starts at 1. Alternatively, a scale running from K4 to K13 and then 1 to 7 is in use. K4 to K9 are toddler sizes, K10 to 3 are pre-school and 1 to 7 are grade school sizes.
Brannock Device.
A slightly different sizing method is based on the Brannock Device, a measuring instrument invented by Charles F. Brannock in 1925 and now found in many shoe stores. The formula used by the Brannock device assumes a foot length less than the length of the last; thus, men's size 1 is equivalent to a foot's length of :
Women's sizes are one size up:
The device also measures the length of the arch, or the distance between the heel and the ball (metatarsal head) of the foot. For this measurement, the device has a shorter scale at the instep of the foot with an indicator that slides into position. If this scale indicates a larger size, it is taken in place of the foot's length to ensure proper fitting.
For children's sizes, additional wiggle room is added to allow for growth.
The device also measures the width of the foot and assigns it designations of AAA, AA, A, B, C, D, E, EE, or EEE. The widths are 3/16 inches apart and differ by shoe length.
Some shoe stores and medical professionals use optical 3D surface scanners to precisely measure the length and width of both feet and recommend the appropriate shoe model and size.
Continental Europe.
In the Continental European system, the shoe size is the length of the last, expressed in Paris points, for both sexes and for adults and children alike. Note that the last is typically longer than the foot heel to toe length by to cm or 2 to Paris points, so to determine the shoe size based on actual foot length one must add 2 Paris points.
Because a Paris point is of a centimetre, the formula is as follows:
equivalent to:
The Continental European system is used in Austria, Belgium, Denmark, France, Germany, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, and most other continental European countries. It is also used in Middle Eastern countries (such as Iran), Brazil—which uses the same method but subtracts 2 from the final result, in effect measuring foot size instead of last size—and, commonly, Hong Kong. The system is sometimes described as Stich size (from "Pariser Stich", the German name for the Paris point), or Stichmass size (from "Stichmaß", a micrometer for internal measurements).
Mondopoint.
The Mondopoint shoe length system is widely used in sports industry to size athletic shoes, ski boots, skates, and pointe ballet shoes; it was also adopted as the primary shoe sizing system in the Soviet Union, Russia, East Germany, China, Japan, Taiwan, and South Korea, and as an optional system in United Kingdom, India, Mexico, and European countries. The Mondopoint system is also used by NATO and other military services.
The Mondopoint system was introduced in the 1970s by International Standard ISO 2816:1973 "Fundamental characteristics of a system of shoe sizing to be known as Mondopoint" and ISO 3355:1975 "Shoe sizes – System of length grading (for use in the Mondopoint system)". ISO 9407:2019, "Shoe sizes—Mondopoint system of sizing and marking", is the current version of the standard.
The Mondopoint system is based on average foot length and foot width for which the shoe is suitable, measured in millimetres. The length of the foot is measured as horizontal distance between the perpendiculars in contact with the end of the most prominent toe and the most prominent part of the heel. The width of the foot is measured as horizontal distance between vertical lines in contact with the first and fifth metatarsophalangeal joints. The perimeter of the foot is the length of foot circumference, measured with a flexible tape at the same points as foot width. The origin of the grade is zero.
The labeling typically includes foot length, followed by an optional foot width: a shoe size of 280/110 indicates a foot length of and width of . Other customary markings, such as EU, UK and US sizes, may also be used.
Because Mondopoint takes the foot width into account, it allows for better fitting than most other systems. A given shoe size shall fit every foot with indicated average measurements, and those differing by no more than a half-step of the corresponding interval grid. Standard foot lengths are defined with interval steps of 5 mm for casual footwear and steps of 7.5 mm for specialty (protective) footwear. The standard is maintained by ISO Technical Committee 137 "Footwear sizing designations and marking systems."
East Asia.
In Japan, mainland China, Taiwan and South Korea, the Mondopoint system is used as defined by national standard Japanese Industrial Standards (JIS) S 5037:1998 and its counterparts Chinese National Standard (CNS) 4800-S1093:2000 and Korean Standards Association (KS) M 6681:2007.
Foot length and girth (foot circumference) are taken into account. The foot length is indicated in centimetres; an increment of 5 mm is used.
The length is followed by designators for girth (A, B, C, D, E, EE, EEE, EEEE, F, G), which are specified in an indexed table as foot circumference in millimetres for each given foot length; foot width is also included as supplemental information. There are different tables for men's, women's, and children's (less than 12 years of age) shoes. Not all designators are used for all genders and in all countries. For example, the largest girth for women in Taiwan is EEEE, whereas in Japan, it is F.
The foot length and width can also be indicated in millimetres, separated by a slash or a hyphen.
Soviet Union (Russia, Commonwealth of Independent States).
Historically the Soviet Union used the European (Paris point) system, but the Mondopoint metric system was introduced in the 1980s by GOST 24382-80 "Sizes of Sport Shoes" and GOST 11373-88 "Shoe Sizes", and lately by GOST R 58149-2018. Foot lengths are aligned to 5 mm and 7.5 mm intervals.
Standard metric foot sizes can be converted to the nearest Paris point ( cm) sizes using approximate conversion tables; shoes can be marked with both foot length in millimetres, as for pointe ballet shoe sizes, or last length in European Paris point sizes (although such converted sizes typically come to 1 size smaller than comparable European-made adult footwear, and up to sizes smaller for children's footwear, according to ISO 19407 shoe size definitions). Optional foot width designations includes narrow, normal (medium or regular), and wide grades.
Infant sizes start at 16 (95 mm) and pre-school kids at 23 (140 mm); schoolchildren sizes span 32 (202.5 mm) to 40 (255 mm) for girls and 32 to 44 (285 mm) for boys. Adult sizes span 33 (210 mm) to 44 for women and 38 (245 mm) to 48 (310 mm) for men.
ISO 19407 and shoe size conversion.
ISO/TS 19407:2015 "Footwear - Sizing - Conversion of sizing systems" is a technical specification from International Standards Organisation. It contains three conversion tables (for adults and children) which feature major shoe sizing systems (e.g., Mondopoint, United States, European, United Kingdom, China, and Japan). Each table is based on actual foot length measurement (insole) in millimetres; typical last length ranges are also included.
The standard includes conversion tables for Mondopoint (USSR/Russian/Chinese/Japanese/Korean systems) using length steps of 5 mm and 7.5 mm, European Paris point system, and UK -inch system. The standard has also been adopted as Russian GOST R 57425-2017.
The standard is maintained by ISO/TC 137, which also developed ISO/TS 19408:2015 "Footwear - Sizing - Vocabulary and terminology"; currently in development are companion standards ISO/TS 19409 "Footwear - Sizing - Measurement of last dimensions" and ISO/TS 19410 "Footwear - Sizing - Inshoe measurement".
Difficulties.
Differences between various shoe size tables, makers' tables or other tables found on the Web are usually due to the following factors:
Further, some tables available on the Web simply contain errors. For example, the wiggle room or different zero point is not taken into account, or tables based on different US systems (traditional and athletic) are simply combined although they are incompatible.
Moreover, though the ISO had released a technical specification (ISO/TS 19407:2015) for converting shoe sizes across various local sizing systems, the organization noted that the problem of converting shoe sizes accurately has yet to be fully resolved. At best, its own published standards for shoe sizes conversions only serve as "a good compromise solution" for shoe-buyers.
Please note that the following tables indicate theoretical sizes calculated from the standards and information given above. 
Shoe sizing.
The adult shoe sizes are calculated from typical last length, which is converted from foot length in mm by adding an allowance of two shoe sizes:
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where "L" is foot length in mm.
Direct conversion between adult UK, Continental European and Mondopoint shoe size systems is derived as follows:
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formula_4
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Exact foot lengths may contain repeating decimals because the formulas include division by 3; in practice, approximate interval steps of 6.67 mm and 8.47 mm are used, then resulting lengths are rounded up to 0.1 mm, and shoe sizes are rounded to either size point or closest matching Mondopoint size.
Children sizes are approximations converted from foot length by adding an 8% allowance at the toes and matching the result to the closest practically available last size.
Size conversion.
The standard also includes quick conversion tables for adult shoe sizes; they provide matching sizes for shoes marked in Mondopoint, European, and UK systems. Converted values are rounded to a larger shoe size to increase comfort.
External links.
Average Shoes size for Women.