Best Skateboard Shoes in 2021

You didn’t think we’d leave you hanging, did you? We showed you the ten best skateboard shoes for men, but now it’s time to talk about what makes them tick. Keep reading to figure out what we’ve done to make this selection, as well as information on cleaning and caring for your skate shoes.

How We Chose Our Selection of Skateboard Shoes

Brand - Brand is a biggie here, especially in the style department. There are a million department store knock-off versions of skateboard shoes, but there’s only a certain amount of quality brands that really hit the nail on the head. You’ll see Nike, Vans, DC and other great brands on this list because they truly know what it means to make an amazing skateboard shoe.

Quality - Quality and brand are associated, and while we’re telling you that brand matters, it doesn’t mean you should blindly follow a brand’s history. You have to take a look under the hood and the quality of your shoe, and determine if it’s going to be worthwhile to snag it. This all relies on materials, user reviews, the expected lifespan and more.

Reviews - User reviews help us determine what we should be looking for in order to narrow our scope. We buy and test all these shoes, and if we didn’t have hundreds or thousands of reviews to scan through, it would be a blind process. User reviews are the preliminary round of how we determine what’s worth our time, and worth your readership.

Durability - The age-old worth of any footwear. Your skate trainers need to hold up against the harsh and unforgiving world, otherwise, you’ll just burn through your skateboard sneakers in a matter of months, and not have the proper capital lined up to grab a new pair. Durability, lifespan, however you want to put it, is a matter of materials and proper sizing (wide feet plus narrow shoe equals a recipe for disaster).

Design - These wouldn’t be men’s skate shoes if they didn’t follow the formula, the iconic look that all skate shoes have to fall into. The best skate shoes come with a classic design, and a few aesthetic elements that really turn heads, and showcase just how dynamically different a specific pair can be.

Price - When hasn’t price impacted your purchase decision? When it comes to quality men’s skate shoes, sometimes you have to ante up if you have any hope of getting the right pair that’s going to last a lifetime. We’ve mixed in higher quality brands that come with a bigger price tag, but also some budget-friendly options to keep your wallet stacked with cash.

Features to Look for in Skateboard Shoes

Materials - You’re going to run into a lot of leather and synthetic materials. That’s a good thing: it’s what these skateboard shoe companies should be aiming for. High durability materials hold up against wipeouts and incorrect footing. If your skate shoes develop some battle scars, that’s awesome, just so long as those scars don’t tear through the material entirely.

Stitching - Ever paid attention to the stitching on your shoes before? You will now. You can easily spot shoddy stitch work on a pair of inexpensive department store kicks, and the even, thorough stitches of a prime skate shoe. It seems insignificant, but if they can’t get the stitches down (you know, the things holding your shoes together), then what else did they skimp out on that you can’t see?

Sole Type - You’re going to withstand some impacts, at least more than an average Joe would while just walking around. Your board can be brutal on your feet, which is why you’ll see a lot of rubber insoles on most of these shoes. They give you shock absorption, while also keeping your heel nice and comfortable at the same time.

Fit - Buying shoes online always have that one fear: what if they don’t fit? Because of their unique design, skate shoes have a bit more room to swim than traditional sneakers, so even if you’re half-a-size off, you should still be good to go. Most of these brands have had enough item returns that they’ve ironed-out the sizing charts.

Types of Skateboard Shoes

High-Cut - The old-school Converse look that everyone rocked in 90’s punk rock. You remember, right? High-cut or high-top sneakers give you less mobility around your ankles, but also provide you with more coverage in case of a nasty spill. Yeah, you have socks, but cotton thread versus leather colliding with pavement? Give me a break.

Mid-Cut - Somewhere in between high and low, mid-cut or mid-top sneakers are the perfect blend between ankle protection, and retaining mobility. You have to display your dexterity when you’re zipping down the road, you have to be up for anything. Mid-cuts are a great way to achieve a balance.

Low-Cut - Low-cuts, low-tops, call them whatever you want. These are a fan favorite for their epic look, and give you the most mobility for your ankles. If you’re pulling some sneaky maneuvers, you’ll want as much movement as possible. Just keep in mind that you’ll have the least amount of leg protection.

Differences Between Skate Shoe and Standard Shoes

They’re not just titled differently, they’re built differently. Skateboard shoes come with a few differentiating features that really give you an entirely different feel while wearing them.

For one, you have padded collars and tongues which you don’t find as often on standard trainers. Your ankles are undergoing some quick jerking motions, and when they’re bending forward, the padding helps to cushion any joint damage you might incur. As for the collars, that adds comfort, and when you’re grinding on the board for three-and-a-half hours, you’ll take every bit of cushioning you can get.

Next, we get onto the bottom grips that help you maintain proper contact with the board. Most sneakers have this weird, not-really-helpful series of grips underneath that work on pavement, and not much else. Skateboard shoes are designed to remain on grip tape with little to no problem, but also help with traction on pavement so you can come to a stop instead of skidding on the asphalt. If you wipe out, you want to get back on your feet and stay there. Standard shoes will have you slipping around from the momentum.

The last major difference between skateboard shoes and standard shoes that we want to talk about is the outsole. You’ll notice that our top pick, Vans, has a unique waffle exterior on the outsole. If you take a look at our guide on the best Vans shoes, you’ll see that they’re on just about every pair. They stick to their skating roots. It helps keep contact with the grip tape, but also concrete if need be.

Skateboard Shoes FAQ

Q: What Are Skateboard Shoes?

A: Skateboard shoes are sneakers designed with nothing but skateboarding in mind. You might find some pairs that are also great for walking, but they’re primarily used to skate. Skate shoes come with specific grips along the bottom, as well as a thicker, more stuck-out outsole to help keep your stance on the grip tape of your skateboard. They also have a style all their own which is far too often emulated in dollar-store brands, making genuine brands really stand out.

Q: Are Skateboard Shoes Good for Walking?

A: They’re not built for it, but when you look at the features in skate shoes, they actually make decent walking shoes. That is if you’re solely sticking to the city.

Skateboard shoes help to keep major traction and retain your stance when you’re on rough concrete. They often have vulcanized rubber along the outsole, which basically means they’re going to hold up very well against contact with man-made materials.

So in short, if you’re going on a nature walk or up a dirt path, your skate shoes are going to get stuck-up with dirt and not be very useful at all. They’re best in their natural environment: on grip tape, and on concrete, and that’s about it.

Q: Do Skateboard Shoes Make a Difference?

A: If you’re actually a skater, then yes, otherwise you’re just trendy. Skateboard shoes help you keep your center of gravity on your board, which is absolutely huge. You’ll see the best pro skaters in the world wipeout because they doubted themselves for a half-a-second. Why did they doubt themselves? They felt their center of gravity being thrown off.

If you were to walk from one end of your house to the other, you’d be pretty confident, with a clear path, that you wouldn’t trip. You’re mentally prepared to walk, not to trip or fall. When you make that walk and you trip, you think “Oh no, how could this happen to me?” and you lose your footing. Whether you hit the ground or recover doesn’t matter, that’s you losing your center of gravity, if only for a moment.

Now picture that while you’re grinding or you’ve just launched from the half-pipe. It’s a lot scarier, and you need every bit of help you can get. We talk about vulcanized rubber, outsole designs, all that good stuff, but they all play back into your center of gravity, and retaining control and grip on your board. You’re not going to get that with standard trainers.

Q: How Should I Tie the Laces on my Skateboard Shoes?

A: You’ve got a couple of options. Your main goal is to keep the laces out of your way while skating, but you also don’t want to look like a dork and duck them into the collar of the shoe. Besides it looking bad, it usually doesn’t hold up very well.

You’ll want to stick to three different lacing methods: cross lace, zipper lace, and straight lace. We’ve provided a video below to show you the best way to lace up.

Q: How Long Does a Pair of Skateboard Shoes Usually Last?

A: Well, that’s up to you. You can find average life expectancies and all that good stuff, but it’s all about how much you use them, and how rough you are on your footwear.

If you’re skating every single day (big up from us, respect) then you’re going to burn through them faster. Even though they’re better for contact with the grip tape on your board, you still have to imagine that grinding against it for hours on end is going to begin to wear down the rubber.

A good quality pair of skate shoes, ones that you use for about ten hours a week on your board, should be able to last you between three to five years. That means proper care, giving them a little rinse and scrub every now and again, and not letting bacterial growth eat away at the interior. Grab odor eaters, use the baking soda trick, but do not let them fall out of sorts. 

Q: How do I Make Skate Shoes Last Longer?

A: One way to keep them for longer is to ensure they’re properly protected. You’ll need to get a high-quality waterproof shoe spray to withstand unexpected puddles and rainfall that you endure before you’re able to get indoors.

You should also be airing them out instead of letting them sit in a cubby. Well, ventilated areas are essential to preventing massive bacterial growth. One of the most common reasons that you have to retire your skate shoes is that bacterial damage has burned through the insole, and then worked its way into the midsole. Combined with inevitable wear and tear from the bottom of your shoes versus grip tape and concrete, it’s not something you want.

Lastly, you should be stuffing them when they’re dry and not being used. Some balled-up newspaper (who has a newspaper lying around anymore, or more practically, a brown paper bag from the grocery store. Stuff the shoes to help maintain their shape. Drooping toe boxes and skewed heels, even if they’re just sitting in an odd shape when you took them off most recently, will slowly bend and damage your materials.