Editor’s Note: This post has been updated and revised for accuracy on April 2022 and reflects up-to-date information.
I review children’s shoe brands and rate them based on my experience of having fitted children’s shoes for the last 10 years. I have been working for a specialized children’s shoe store that focuses in children with foot and leg problems, but we provide regular shoe fittings as well.
I have fitted most children’s shoe brands, and I have found that certain brands manufacture shoes that are more effective than others when it comes to keeping children’s feet healthy.
Under Armour shoes have become popular among children. I believe that Under Armour shoe popularity comes from their marketing campaigns that showcase successful and charismatic athletes with attractive sneakers.
There is a growing trend of children leaning towards more fashion-oriented shoe brands such as Nike, Under and Armour. You will notice how the older your kids get, the more they start asking to get shoes from these shoe brands.
There is a large number of children who come to the store and refuse to wear any other shoe brand except Under Armour. Children that don’t have any foot condition and have a narrow or medium width foot can definitely wear Under Armour shoes. However, children who have foot conditions such as flat feet, overpronation, rolled ankles, high insteps, wide or extra wide feet should not wear Under Armour shoes.
Let me make it easy for you and provide you with a checklist to see whether your child can wear Under Armour shoes or not.
Can Your Child Wear Under Armour Shoes? – Let’s Find Out!
✅ Children with narrow feet.
✅ Children with medium feet.
✅ Children who don’t have any foot conditions.
❌ Children with high insteps.
❌Children with wide feet.
❌ Children with extra wide feet.
❌ Children with flat feet.
❌ Children with overpronation.
❌Children with rolled ankles.
❌ Children with low muscle tone.
If after looking at that checklist you are still unsure whether your child can wear Under Armour shoes or not, please do not hesitate to contact me directly: fittingchildrensshoes@gmail.com
The 3 Main Reasons Why I don’t Recommend Under Armour Shoes
Let me elaborate and explain to you the 3 main reasons why I don’t recommend that children wear Under Armour shoes.
Reason #1: Limited Fitting
Under Armour shoes only fit children with narrow or medium width feet. This means that children with wide or extra wide feet won’t be able to fit in these shoes. In addition, children with high insteps won’t be able to fit in Under Armour shoes either. I will expand on this shortly.
Under Armour kid’s shoes are known for being extremely shallow and narrow at the front. This can lead to your child’s toes rubbing against one another or the side of the shoes. Let me prove this to you. Let’s take a look at the difference between a pair Under Armour shoes and a pair of New Balance ones. Do you notice how much pointier and narrow the toe-box of the Under Armour shoe is?
Reason #2: Not Durable
Most Under Armour shoes tend to fall apart too fast. Your child should always outgrow his/her shoes before they are ready to be replaced. Let’s see what other parents are saying about their experiences with Under Armour shoes in terms of durability:
Reason #3: Unsupportive
Under Armour shoes don’t provide the correct amount of support. Their shoes are too flimsy and soft, and don’t provide any shock absorption to attenuate the impact that children’s feet take when they come in contact with the ground. If your child is highly active and involved in high-impact activities, I recommend trying a different shoe brand.
Does Under Armour Care About your Kids’ Foot Health?
I strongly feel like this shoe company doesn’t consider the child’s foot health when they manufacture their shoes.
One of the biggest issues of Under Armour shoes is how they only manufacture kids’ shoes in the most common shoe width: “medium”. This means that only children with narrow or medium width feet can wear Under Armour shoes. Children’s feet come in all different shapes and sizes, and by manufacturing only their shoes in medium widths they don’t take into consideration children with wide/extra wide feet or children with high insteps.
You might be wondering why such a big and successful shoe company doesn’t manufacture shoes in different widths. Maybe the company doesn’t want to put too much emphasis on their kids’ shoe products or they simply don’t care about children with wide or extra wide feet, since they know their shoes are popular and will get sold regardless. Whatever their reason might be, I believe that this shoe company doesn’t put the child’s feet health in mind when manufacturing their shoes.
The Best Shoe Brands for High Insteps, Wide/Extra Wide Feet
Like I mentioned before, children with high insteps, wide, or extra wide feet should not wear Under Armour shoes. Please keep in mind that children with medium feet can also have high insteps. Do you know what the instep of the foot is? The instep is the top part of the foot, and when it’s high, it makes it really complicated to find shoes that fit. Take a look at the image below to identify where the instep of the foot is located:
If your child has a high instep, wide or extra wide feet, and insists to wear Under Armour shoes, your child will end up developing several foot issues that range from blisters, calluses, and corns, to general foot and leg pain.
One of the most common mistakes that I see parents make is to have their children try longer shoes to take the pressure away in the width area. We obviously want a certain amount of growing room in our children’s shoes — 0.3 inches or 0.7 centimeters to be more exact — but shoes that are too long can create several issues to your child’s feet.
Longer shoes will compromise your child’s stability and create several foot issues that range from blisters, calluses, and corns. Shoes that are too long allow the foot to move too much inside the shoes, and that constant friction between the foot and the shoes leads to the issues mentioned above.
Please think twice before trying to please your child with a pair of Under Armour shoes.
Best Shoe Brands for Kids with Wide/Extra Wide Feet ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
To accommodate the different needs of kids, I have put together a selection of the best shoes for children with wide and extra wide feet, as well as for children with high insteps. Disclosure: Keep in mind that we may receive commissions when you click our links and make purchases.
Toddler Shoe Sizes (0 to 10)
- Available in medium, wide, and extra wide widths
- Velcro closure
- ABZORB midsole absorbs impact through a combination of cushioning and compression resistance
- Mesh upper for durability and comfort
- Extra deep
- Order this shoe a whole size larger than your child’s current foot size
- Available in medium, wide, and extra wide widths
- Velcro closure
- ABZORB midsole absorbs impact through a combination of cushioning and compression resistance
- Mesh upper for durability and comfort
- Extra deep
- Order this shoe a whole size larger than your child’s current foot size
- Fits wide and extra wide feet
- Adjustable extra-long straps
- Opens super wide which makes in and out easy
- Breathable mesh
- Order this shoe a half size larger than the end of the AFO footplate
- Available in extra wide widths
- Oversized opening for easy on and off
- 100% Suede
- Hook and loop closure
- Order this shoe half a size larger than your baby’s current foot size
- Fits medium and wide feet (fits high insteps)
- Velcro closure
- Heel stabilizer provides lateral stability
- Removable insoles
- The insoles are Infused with natural Green Tea extract (no chemicals)
- Machine washable
- Order this shoe the same size as your child’s foot size (fits long)
- Available in medium, wide, and extra wide widths (fits high insteps)
- Velcro closure
- EVA-cushioned midsole
- Extra Deep
- Order this shoe a half size larger than your child’s current foot size
- Fits wide and extra wide feet (fits high insteps)
- Dual hook-and-loop straps allow for a secure fit and custom adjustability
- Removable, contoured, leather-lined footbed for breathability and comfort
- Lightweight and flexible
- Order this shoe a half size larger than your child’s current foot size
- Available in medium, wide, and extra wide widths (fits high insteps)
- Leather and mesh upper
- Alternative closure for easy on and off adjustability
- Lightweight EVA midsole for cushioning
- Order this shoe a whole size larger than your child’s current foot size
Little and Big Kid Shoe Sizes (10.5 to 7)
- Fits wide and extra wide feet (fits high insteps)
- Dual hook-and-loop straps allow for a secure fit and custom adjustability
- Removable, contoured, leather-lined footbed for breathability and comfort
- Lightweight and flexible
- Order this shoe a half size larger than your child’s current foot size
- Fits medium and wide feet (fits high insteps)
- Velcro closure
- Removable insoles
- The insoles are Infused with natural Green Tea extract (no chemicals)
- Machine washable
- Order this shoe the same size as your child’s current foot size (shoe fits long)
- Fits medium and wide feet (fits high insteps)
- Velcro closure
- Heel stabilizer provides stability
- Removable insoles
- The insoles are Infused with natural Green Tea extract (no chemicals)
- Machine washable
- Order this shoe the same size as your child’s current foot size (shoe fits long)
- Available in medium and wide widths
- Hook and loop closure system for easy on and off
- Leather/mesh upper
- Durable rubber outsole designed to withstand wear-and-tear
- Order this shoe the same size as your child’s current foot size (shoe fits long)
- Available in medium and wide widths
- Hook and loop closure system for easy on and off
- Leather/mesh upper
- Durable rubber outsole designed to withstand wear-and-tear
- Order this shoe the same size as your child’s current foot size (shoe fits long)
- Fits medium and wide feet
- Hook and loop closure system for easy on and off
- Leather/mesh upper
- Durable rubber outsole designed to withstand wear-and-tear
- Order this shoe the same size as your child’s current foot size (shoe fits long)
- Fits medium and wide feet
- Lace-up closure
- Lightweight EVA foam cushioning in the midsole and heel increases comfort
- Firm heel counter
- Order this shoe half a size larger than your child’s current foot size
- Fits medium, wide, and extra wide feet
- Lace-up closure
- Dual-layer midsole construction featuring top-bed foam cushioning and underfoot Fresh Foam X
- Order this shoe half a size larger than your child’s current foot size
- Fits medium and wide feet
- Lace-up closure
- Top-bed foam cushioning and underfoot fresh foam
- Firm heel counter
- Order this shoe half a size larger than your child’s current foot size
- Available in medium, wide, and extra wide widths (fits high insteps)
- Lace-up closure
- Suede/mesh upper
- Lightweight and flexible
- Order this shoe a whole size larger than your child’s current foot size
- Fits medium, wide, and extra wide feet
- Lace-up closure
- Dual-layer midsole construction featuring top-bed foam cushioning and underfoot Fresh Foam X
- Order this shoe a whole size larger than your child’s current foot size
- Fits medium, wide, and extra wide feet
- Lace-up closure
- ABZORB midsole absorbs impact through a combination of cushioning and compression resistance
- Leather/mesh upper
- Order this shoe half a size larger than your child’s current foot size
- Fits medium, wide, and extra wide feet
- Lace-up closure
- ABZORB midsole absorbs impact through a combination of cushioning and compression resistance
- Leather/mesh upper
- Order this shoe half a size larger than your child’s current foot size
- Fits medium and wide feet (fits high insteps)
- Lace-up closure
- ENCAP midsole cushioning provides good arch and heel support
- Leather and suede upper
- Order this shoe half a size larger than your child’s current foot size
- Fits medium and wide feet
- Lace-up closure
- Supportive leather and mesh upper for breathability and durability
- Order this shoe a whole size larger than your child’s current foot size
- Fits medium and wide feet (fits high insteps)
- Lace-up closure
- ENCAP midsole cushioning provides good arch and heel support
- Leather and suede upper
- Order this shoe half a size larger than your child’s current foot size
Several other shoe brands manufacture stylish yet functional shoes for children. While I can’t get into too much detail about which are the best shoe brands for kids in this article, you can refer to other articles I wrote. Go to the links below:
The Best Shoe Brands for Kids with Wide Feet – The 3 Deepest and Widest Shoe Brands!
If you are still unsure whether your child is a good candidate to wear Under Armour shoes or not, please do not hesitate to contact me directly:
fittingchildrensshoes@gmail.com
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