Shoe sizes
Men's and women's sizes in US, UK and EU, with the foot length each one is built for.
Start with the centimetres
Every scale on this page is a convention. Foot length is a measurement, and it is the only figure that survives crossing a border or changing a brand. Stand on paper with your heel to a wall, mark your longest toe, measure — at the end of the day, and both feet, because one is usually larger and the shoe has to fit that one.
One size step is a third of an inch, or 0.85 cm. Half a size is about four millimetres, which is less than a foot swells over a day. That is the scale of precision the whole system is working at, and it is why the same person can honestly be two different sizes.
Three things the charts do not say
EU sizes measure the shoe, not the foot. A Paris point is two thirds of a centimetre and the size is the length of the last the shoe is built on, which includes room for the toes. That is why EU 43 corresponds to a 27 cm foot rather than a 27 cm shoe — the number will never match anything you can measure on yourself.
US men's and women's are offset by 1.5. A women's 8 and a men's 8 are not the same shoe; the women's is a men's 6.5. Where a listing says only "size 8", it is worth finding out which range it means before ordering.
UK differs from US by a different amount in each range — half a size in men's and two sizes in women's. There is no single offset to remember.
Men's
| US | UK | EU | Foot length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 6 | 5.5 | 39 | 24.5 cm · 9.6 in |
| 6.5 | 6 | 39.5 | 24.9 cm · 9.8 in |
| 7 | 6.5 | 40 | 25.3 cm · 10.0 in |
| 7.5 | 7 | 41 | 25.7 cm · 10.1 in |
| 8 | 7.5 | 41.5 | 26.2 cm · 10.3 in |
| 8.5 | 8 | 42 | 26.6 cm · 10.5 in |
| 9 | 8.5 | 43 | 27.0 cm · 10.6 in |
| 9.5 | 9 | 43.5 | 27.4 cm · 10.8 in |
| 10 | 9.5 | 44 | 27.8 cm · 11.0 in |
| 10.5 | 10 | 44.5 | 28.3 cm · 11.1 in |
| 11 | 10.5 | 45.5 | 28.7 cm · 11.3 in |
| 11.5 | 11 | 46 | 29.1 cm · 11.5 in |
| 12 | 11.5 | 46.5 | 29.5 cm · 11.6 in |
| 12.5 | 12 | 47 | 30.0 cm · 11.8 in |
| 13 | 12.5 | 48 | 30.4 cm · 12.0 in |
| 13.5 | 13 | 48.5 | 30.8 cm · 12.1 in |
| 14 | 13.5 | 49 | 31.2 cm · 12.3 in |
Women's
| US | UK | EU | Foot length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 5 | 3 | 36 | 22.3 cm · 8.8 in |
| 5.5 | 3.5 | 36.5 | 22.8 cm · 9.0 in |
| 6 | 4 | 37 | 23.2 cm · 9.1 in |
| 6.5 | 4.5 | 37.5 | 23.6 cm · 9.3 in |
| 7 | 5 | 38.5 | 24.0 cm · 9.5 in |
| 7.5 | 5.5 | 39 | 24.5 cm · 9.6 in |
| 8 | 6 | 39.5 | 24.9 cm · 9.8 in |
| 8.5 | 6.5 | 40 | 25.3 cm · 10.0 in |
| 9 | 7 | 41 | 25.7 cm · 10.1 in |
| 9.5 | 7.5 | 41.5 | 26.2 cm · 10.3 in |
| 10 | 8 | 42 | 26.6 cm · 10.5 in |
| 10.5 | 8.5 | 43 | 27.0 cm · 10.6 in |
| 11 | 9 | 43.5 | 27.4 cm · 10.8 in |
| 11.5 | 9.5 | 44 | 27.8 cm · 11.0 in |
| 12 | 10 | 44.5 | 28.3 cm · 11.1 in |
Why a chart can only get you close
A shoe size describes the last — the wooden or plastic form the shoe is built around — and every maker has its own lasts. Two brands can differ by a full size at the same nominal number, and the same brand can differ between a running shoe and a boot. Width is a separate dimension that most sizing ignores entirely.
So: use the centimetre figure to find the right row, then check the maker's own chart, and treat any single number with suspicion. This page will get you to within half a size, which is as far as any conversion honestly goes.