Buyers Guide to Mountain Bike Shoes for Big Feet

I usually take a euro size 50, I used to crush my feet into shoes that were too small for me as I just got by with what was available. Being able to order from manufacturer websites has brought more options, but that means rarely getting a deal, and most inflate the RRP so that the retailers can look like they are discounting, so those of us with clown feet end up paying the inflated prices for our inflated feet.

A few years ago I started wearing "foot shaped" shoes in everyday life, and as my feet and toes have regained their natural shape buying cycling shoes has become an even greater problem.

Lake should be on the list as I find they are generally available in lager sizes and wider fittings, best of the bunch IMO but still far from ideal.

I also sometimes have to order from the US, it can be worth doing a search on the amazon.com or I occasionally use an importing service as I think some manufacturers don't allow parallel imports through the supply chain.

Charliedontsurf, a good article and a subject that has bugged me for years. I’ve made do with the same pair of Specialized BG SPD shoes for commuting, road and MTB duties for years because I had been unable to find anything more comfortable. They are slowly dying a death and will soon need replacing, so the suggestions here are perfectly timed. Luckily I found a pair of road shoes last year that fitted, so only need to get something for normal SPD pedals now.

As for 5:10, fully agree. If you can find a pair that fit well, buy two. They may be for flat pedals, but the extra sole and grip makes the Primeblue pair I have really good for skydiving.

Like MSP, what I really want it a shoe that's shaped like a natural foot.

My podiatrist tells me to cut my toenails straight across and not rounded 🙄

It's not the length it's the girth that gives me issues. My feet to all intents are square...

Popped to the LBS yesterday as I was fed up with random sizing issues and tried on some RC shoes. I'd temper my enthusiasm for their large sizes as they seemed to come up small for a given size. I went for the Freerider Pros prime blue if anyone's interested... 😉

UK 12 here. The Trailcross GTX is the best flat pedal MTB shoe ever made. Runs a 1/2 size big.

UK size 13 here, I'm usually on the hunt for a new pair of MTB shoes every 2 years. The constant frustration of trying to get anything over a size 11! Another issue is that a fair number of MTB-specific shoes are slightly undersized, e.g. if I go for a pair of 5 10's I need to go up to a 13.5 to get the right fit.

Only a paltry UK12 here but I have found the Endura MT500 Burner spd shoes work well...I went and bought a second pair while they were £65. Winter time is Shimano MW701 and had no problems finding Uk12 sizes around.

For those with wide feet, and where your toes are largely all in line at the end.  I've found the Lake offerings - with their wide last (so a proper wide shoe not just the same small width sole but more baggy fabric bear the end) - have worked well.  Basically they seem to not cut off the little toe side of the shoe off at an angle in the way many others do - so your small toe side is less prone to being crushed than with specialized or Shimano (and Italian shoes which seem to be the WORST).

I'm able to be a size or even 2 sizes smaller with the Lake wide shoes than anything else I had / have (my Shimano winter boots are 2 full sizes longer to get my foot in, using the same socks).

Five Ten Freerider links to Wiggle, CRC and Tweeks all link to ranges that stop at size 12 or 12.5. Great for revenue generating cookies. Less good as part of a Buyers Guide to Mountain Bike Shoes for Big Feet.

This from the article...

Note: Try not to get too excited by the usual shopping links below, the links generated don’t factor in available shoe sizes (sorry about that, it is annoying yes). But, who knows, you could be lucky. Worth a clicksee…

I see Specialized shoes mentioned - keep in mind that they size up a bit smaller than Shimano or Northwave, half to a full size in some models. I'm a I am a euro 49 and it is slim pickings for SPD shoes.

Etnies go up to size 14 in some of their mtb shoes. I have a pair of Semenuk Pros and my tiny size 11s are true to size (and damn good).

Long suffering UK Size 13 here. Recently replaced my battered 5 10s (pre adidas) with Crank Bros Boas also in a 13. The fit feels pretty similar.

I can also recommend Lakes as they go up to a size 50 across their ranges (although ive only used their road shoes).

Good to see this article & thanks for the comments, too.

As someone who doesn't quite fit into a Euro size 50 (I need a 51 wide-fit), & having tried the likes of Lake (even in their longest & widest fit/last) & others in vain, I've relied on Sidi Dominators (& more recently Sidi Eagles) in 51 wide fit (wide='Mega' fit in Sidi-speak) for the past twenty or so years, where they actually made up to a 52 Mega ...

... until a couple of years ago that is, when Sidi stopped making any MTB/CX/gravel shoes in anything bigger than a 50 in the wide fit!

After years of searching, I had thought that that Sidi model in a 51 Mega was literally the only clipless shoe from any manufacturer that fitted me.

So, as I now try to eke a long life out of the couple of pairs of Sidis that I have left, I was recently intrigued to see that Shimano do in fact do the XC3 / XC300 in up to a 52 wide.

The XC3 seems to be the biggest Shimano go in a shoe, & is now, I think, the only off-the-shelf clipless shoe in size 51 or 52 (& in wide fit) from any manufacturer.

If anyone knows of any other wide-fit size 51 clipless shoes then I'm all ears! 😀

Not that I have the cash for it, but there are 'full-custom' bespoke-sized shoes out there such as those from Bont, plus some independent shoe builders like Lamson in the US - the shoe is built specifically to your foot measurements ... but expect to take out a mortgage to buy a pair! 😞