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Sandals Buying Guide: Support, Grip, and Comfort for Warm Weather

By Alex Carter · Published 2026-09-14 · Updated 2026-09-14 · 10 min read

Sandals range from a two-dollar flip-flop to a serious walking sandal with arch support and a grippy sole, and the difference matters more than the price suggests. This guide explains how to choose sandals that support your feet, grip wet surfaces, and stay comfortable all day in warm weather.

Why Sandals Deserve More Thought Than They Get

Sandals are often bought as an afterthought — grabbed on the way to a holiday, chosen for colour, and expected to do a job they were never designed for. Then the holiday arrives, the walking starts, and the problems begin: the flat sole offers no support, the thong rubs between the toes, the foot slides forward on every slope, and by the second day the feet are sore, blistered, and tired. The issue is not that sandals are bad shoes. It is that a sandal is a minimal shoe — there is less of it between your foot and the ground, and less of it holding your foot in place — so the design choices that are forgiven in a closed shoe are exposed in a sandal. A good sandal is designed around that fact. A bad one is just a flat sole with straps.

The good news is that the range of good sandals has never been wider. There are walking sandals with contoured footbeds and deep heel cups, sport sandals with adjustable straps and rugged soles, supportive slides for recovery after sport, and simple leather sandals that are comfortable for short, easy days. The trick is to match the sandal to the day you will actually have, and to be honest about how much walking that day involves. A sandal that is perfect for the beach is not necessarily the right sandal for a day of sightseeing, and the price tag is a poor guide: some of the most comfortable walking sandals cost less than some of the most painful fashion sandals.

Support: The Footbed Is the Shoe

In a sandal, the footbed is the shoe. There is no upper to hold the foot, no lacing to adjust the fit, and no heel counter to keep the heel in place, so the shape of the footbed does almost all of the work. A flat footbed, like the one on a basic flip-flop, gives the foot nothing: the arch is unsupported, the heel is not cupped, and the foot has to work to stay stable with every step. That is why flat sandals feel fine for ten minutes and tiring after an hour. A contoured footbed, by contrast, has a raised arch, a deep heel cup, and a slight metatarsal bump under the ball of the foot, and it supports the foot in the same way a good insole supports it inside a closed shoe.

When you try on a sandal, stand in it and notice where your foot sits. Your heel should sit in the cup, not spill over the back edge, and your arch should rest on the raised part of the footbed rather than bridging over a gap. Walk for a few minutes and notice whether your toes grip to keep the sandal on: toe gripping is a sign that the sandal is not holding your foot well, and it tires the small muscles of the foot quickly. If you have flat feet, a contoured footbed matters even more, because your arch drops further under load and needs the support — our flat feet guide explains the mechanics in full. If you have high arches, look for a footbed with a higher arch and a softer top layer, because high arches need cushioning as well as support. A sandal with a removable footbed is a bonus, because it lets you replace a worn footbed instead of the whole sandal.

Straps and Fit: Holding the Foot Without Rubbing It

Straps are how a sandal holds your foot, and they are also how it hurts you. The best strap systems are adjustable, because feet swell in heat and a strap that fits in the morning can be tight by the afternoon. Look for sandals with at least two points of adjustment — typically one across the forefoot and one around the ankle or heel — and prefer hook-and-loop or buckle closures that you can adjust on the move. A single strap across the toes, or a thong between the toes, gives the foot almost no control, which is why flip-flops are a poor choice for anything beyond short, flat walks.

Fit is checked the same way as for any shoe, with one extra rule: your foot should sit fully on the footbed, with no heel or toes hanging over the edge. A sandal that is too short lets the toes curl over the front edge, which is uncomfortable and dangerous on uneven ground. A sandal that is too long lets the foot slide forward, which causes friction and blisters. The straps should be snug enough to hold the foot without pressing into the skin: you should be able to slide a finger under a strap, but not two. Pay particular attention to the strap between the toes if you are trying thong sandals: if it rubs in the shop, it will rub much more when your feet are hot and damp, and no amount of breaking in will fix a thong that pinches. Leather straps soften and mould to the foot over time, while synthetic straps stay as they are — which is good if they fit, and unforgiving if they do not.

Grip and Wet Surfaces: The Safety Question

Sandals are worn where surfaces are wet — around pools, on beaches, in showers, on wet pavements after a summer storm — so grip is a safety question, not a luxury. The outsole of a sandal should have a real tread pattern, with grooves deep enough to channel water away from under the foot. A smooth, flat sole is dangerous on wet tiles and wet stone, however good it looks. Rubber outsoles grip better than plastic or EVA foam when wet, and some sandals use a specially formulated rubber that stays grippy on wet surfaces. If you will be in and around water regularly, look for sandals described as water-friendly or aqua sandals: they are designed to get wet, dry quickly, and keep their grip when soaked.

There is also the question of what happens to the footbed when it gets wet. Leather footbeds can become slippery and take a long time to dry, while synthetic footbeds with a textured surface stay grippy and dry faster. Cork footbeds, used by some well-known sandal makers, mould to the foot over time and grip well when dry, but they need care and can be damaged by prolonged soaking. If you buy sandals for a beach holiday, rinse them in fresh water after exposure to salt water and dry them out of direct sunlight, which preserves both the straps and the footbed. For more on what to do when shoes get soaked, see our rain shoes guide and our sneaker care guide.

Types of Sandal, and What Each Is For

Walking sandals are the workhorses: contoured footbeds, adjustable straps, a secure heel strap, and a rugged outsole. They are built for all-day walking on pavements, trails, and uneven ground, and they are the right choice for sightseeing, travel, and anyone who will be on their feet for hours in warm weather. Sport sandals are similar but tougher, with thicker soles, more aggressive tread, and straps designed to stay put in water — the right choice for river walks, boat trips, and wet trails. Slides are sandals with a single wide strap and no heel strap: they are easy to slip on and off, and they are good for short trips, around the house, and for recovery after sport, but they are a poor choice for long walks, because the foot has to grip to keep them on and the heel is unsecured.

Thong sandals and flip-flops are the lightest option and the least supportive. A well-made leather flip-flop with a slightly contoured footbed is fine for the beach, the pool, and short walks on flat ground, but it is not a walking shoe, and wearing flip-flops for a full day of sightseeing is one of the most reliable ways to end up with sore feet. Fashion sandals — heeled sandals, strappy sandals, gladiator sandals — are designed for looks first, and they should be judged as occasion shoes: fine for an evening, a meal, or a short event, but not for a day of walking. If you love the look of a heeled sandal, our high heels guide explains how to choose the most comfortable version of it.

Sandal type	Support	Grip	Best for
Walking sandal	High, contoured footbed	Good, rugged outsole	All-day sightseeing, travel
Sport sandal	High, secure straps	Very good, wet grip	Water, trails, boats
Slide	Low to medium	Moderate	Short trips, home, recovery
Flip-flop / thong	Low, flat footbed	Poor to moderate	Beach, pool, short flat walks
Heeled / fashion sandal	Low	Poor	Evenings, short occasions

Warm Weather, Swelling, and Socks

Feet swell in heat — often by half a size or more over a hot day — and sandals need to cope with that. Adjustable straps are the answer: loosen them as the day warms up, and tighten them again in the evening. A sandal with no adjustment will feel tight by the afternoon, however well it fitted in the morning. Sunburn is another warm-weather risk that people forget: the tops of the feet burn easily through sandal straps, and a sunburn on the foot makes every step painful, so apply sunscreen to the feet as well as the legs, including between the toes and around the straps.

Socks with sandals divide opinion, but there is a practical case for them in some situations. Moisture-wicking toe socks or thin walking socks reduce friction, prevent blisters, and keep the footbed cleaner, and they are worth considering for long walks in walking sandals, whatever the fashion rules say. For flip-flops and thong sandals, socks do not work with the strap design. What matters more than socks is keeping the feet dry: damp skin blisters faster than dry skin, so if your feet sweat heavily, a foot powder or an antiperspirant made for feet can help, and changing into dry sandals at the end of a hot day is worth doing.

Mistakes to Avoid

The most common mistake is buying flip-flops for a walking holiday — they are beach shoes, not walking shoes, and your feet will pay for the confusion. The second is choosing sandals by looks alone and discovering on day two that the flat footbed offers no support. The third is ignoring the heel strap: a sandal without one lets the foot slide forward on every slope, which causes blisters on the toes and strain in the calves. The fourth is buying sandals too small, so the toes hang over the front edge — always check the fit standing, with weight on the foot. And the fifth is wearing brand-new sandals on a long day without breaking them in: wear them around the house and on short walks first, and find the rub points before the holiday rather than during it. For breaking-in advice that applies to sandals as well as shoes, see our break-in guide, and for all-day comfort in general, our guide to shoes that don't hurt after 10,000 steps covers the same principles from the closed-shoe side.

The right sandal is the one that supports your arch, holds your foot without rubbing it, grips when the ground is wet, and still feels comfortable after hours in the heat. Get those four things right and warm weather becomes what it should be: a pleasure, not an endurance test.

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