The Best Sandals for Toddlers with Wide Feet – Supportive, Lightweight, Flexible, and Durable!

Are you having trouble finding a pair of summer sandals for your toddler with wide feet? Do you always have a hard time getting your toddler’s sandals on and when you take them off there are imprints on your toddler’s feet? I have put together a list of the best sandals for toddlers with wide feet based on my many years of shoe fitting experience.

Some parents like to provide their toddlers with a pair of Crocs for the summer, but I strongly disagree with this as Crocs don’t provide any support or stability. The summer shoe brands that I recommend for toddlers with wide feet are See Kai Run, Stride Rite, and Keen. However, not all the sandals made by these 3 shoe brands are capable of fitting the shape of a toddler with wide feet.

My Experience Fitting Children’s Shoes – Over a Decade of Shoe Fitting Experience!

I have been fitting children’s shoes for over 10 years, specializing in children with “complex” foot shapes as well as foot and leg problems, but we provide regular shoe fittings as well. For the last 5 years, I have been helping parents find the perfect pair of shoes for their children online.

There is a very small selection of sandals for toddlers with wide feet, but the good news is that I will help you find them.

The most common mistake that I see parents make is to buy longer sandals for their toddlers with wide feet to compensate for their wide feet. The issue with buying longer sandals is that you might end up compromising your toddler’s stability. Longer sandals also allow for too much foot movement, and that constant friction between the feet and the sandals can lead to blisters and other foot issues.

Do You Know Whether Your Toddler Has a High Instep?

Some toddlers have a high instep in addition to having wide feet, which makes it a lot harder to find sandals that fit. Take a look at the image below to check where the instep of the foot is located:

As you can see there is a lot of extra foot volume that needs to be fitted inside the sandals, so it’s important that the sandals provide extra depth to prevent the top part (instep) of your toddler’s feet from rubbing against the top part of the sandals.

What Makes the Sandals I Recommend Effective for Wide Feet?

1️⃣ Extra Depth: Let’s take a look at the difference between a sandal that provides extra depth versus one that doesn’t:

2️⃣ Rounded Toe-Boxes: Let’s take a look at the difference between a sandal that provides a rounded toe-box versus one that doesn’t:

3️⃣ Oversized Openings: This feature will allow parents to easily slide their child’s feet inside the sandals:

Please note that if you provide your toddler with a pair of sandals that are too narrow, you are making your toddler more prone to developing foot issues such as blisters, calluses, and corns.

Before I show you a selection of the best sandals for toddlers with wide feet, I want to show you what features these sandals provide and how you can make sure that you provide your toddler with the correct sandal size.

The Best Sandals for Toddlers – The 5 Most Important Features!

In addition to providing extra depth and rounder toe-boxes, the sandals that I recommend below provide the following 5 important features:

1️⃣ Substantial Outsoles: This feature minimizes the impact that your toddler’s feet take every time they come in contact with the ground.

2️⃣ Lightweight and Flexible: We want the sandals to be supportive, but lightweight and flexible at the same time so your toddler’s feet don’t get tired easily.

3️⃣ Traction: The sandal must provide good traction to prevent your toddler from falling, especially when walking on wet surfaces.

4️⃣ Quick Dry: This feature helps prevent foot issues as wet skin is more susceptible to developing foot issues.

5️⃣ Padded Heel Counter: The heel counter is the back part of the shoe, and it’s important for sandals to be well-padded to cushion your toddler’s feet and prevent blisters.

Now that you know the features these sandals provide, we are ready to take a look at a selection of the best toddler sandals for wide feet. Disclosure: Keep in mind that we may receive commissions when you click our links and make purchases.

The Best Sandals for Toddlers with Wide Feet ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

All of the sandals that I recommend below come with rounded toe-boxes and provide extra depth, which is going to prevent your toddler’s toes from overlapping or rubbing against each other.

Many of the sandals featured below come in several color options, so if you like a specific model, please make sure to click through and see if they have the desired color.

What Sandal Size Should You Order?

In each of the descriptions of the sandals, I indicate whether you need to order a half size or a whole size bigger than your toddler’s current foot size to provide the correct amount of growing room.

*A half a size bigger translates to 3/16 of an inch or 0.4 centimeters of space between your child’s longest toe and the end of the shoes.

*A whole size bigger translates to 3/8 of an inch or 0.8 centimeters of space between your child’s longest toe and the end of the shoes.

Do You Have a Specialized Children’s Shoe Store in Your Area?

I always recommend parents take their children to be properly fitted for shoes at their local kids’ shoe store, but the problem is that most stores have been closing down and parents end up buying their kids’ shoes online.

Let’s first make sure that you don’t have a good fitting children’s shoe store in your area. Start by taking a look at a resource I created where I describe the best fitting children’s shoe store by state:

The Best Kids’ Shoe Stores In The United States – Where To Go For Proper Fittings

How to Retrieve Your Toddler’s Shoe Size Online

If after looking at that resource you still can’t seem to find a good fitting children’s shoe store in your area, then proceed to take a look at an article I created where I describe the simplest, yet most effective way to figure out your toddler’s foot size from home:

How to Measure Your Kids Foot – 2 Simple Steps to Determine Foot Length and Foot Width

In that article I help parents determine their child’s exact foot length and whether the child has narrow, medium, wide, or extra wide feet. I also will be able to tell you whether your child has a high instep or

What Are Other Families Saying About These Sandals?

Are Any Other Sandal Choices Available?

If none of these sandals are available in your child’s shoe size don’t hesitate to email me at: fittingchildrensshoes@gmail.com

How to Prevent Your Kids’ Sandals from Smelling Bad – Let’s Find Out!

If your toddler wears the sandals for most of the day, the chances are that they might develop a bad smell.

I don’t want you to waste money on any products thinking that they might get rid of the smell, because they don’t work — they might work in sneakers but not in sandals.

There is a home-based product secret that involves using baking soda and vinegar to get rid of the smell. Please make sure you rub it throughout the sandal, especially in the neoprene part. This is the most effective solution to get rid of the smell, and parents who already tried this method said that they have been amazed by how well this works in reducing the smell.

The other thing that I recommend parents do to help reduce the smell is to wash the sandals with a water hose and let them air dry.

What are the Best Sneakers for Toddlers with Wide Feet?

If you are unsure whether your toddler is wearing the correct types of sneakers I suggest that you take a look at the resource below:

Wide Width Shoes for Toddlers – Keep Your Kids’ Feet Healthy!

Have you tried any of the sandals that I recommend for toddlers with wide feet? Is there a particular summer sandal style that has worked well for your toddler’s wide feet? Please share your findings below so other parents can benefit from them.