The Best Skateboard Shoes For Beginners

As a beginner, it’s almost impossible to know which skate shoes to get when everyone you talk to says something different. One person says this brand is best, while another says this one is even better.

You end up with analysis paralysis and can’t pick a skate shoe to save your life.

Ultimately, you just want to find a pair of skate shoes that will help you learn tricks, feel comfortable, look awesome, and don’t destroy your savings account.

You don’t need the absolute best skate shoe out there, you just need something durable that feels great to skate in.

After a decade of skating and wearing just about every shoe you can think of, I have a few no-brainer recommendations for you to make the choice easy.

This list was created and ranked on various factors, including durability, price, comfort, and general style. These shoes offer everything you need to learn your first tricks or start progressing to bigger features without feeling limited.

So if you finally want some clear answers on which skate shoes to buy, that’s exactly what you’ll find here. All backed by real experience wearing and skating these shoes.

The 8 Best Skateboard Shoes For Beginners

You might notice that the star ranking of these shoes doesn’t line up with their numbered order on the list. This guide aims to order things specifically for beginners, not based on the “technically” best shoe.

In our other skate shoe guides, we rank shoes based on the technical specs and skateability for all levels. However, this guide ranks the shoes strictly based on what’s best for a beginner, based on cost, comfort, durability, and ease of skating.

1. Vans Old Skool Pro (Best First Skate Shoe)

The Vans Old Skool’s are one of the best options for any beginner because they are super affordable, are durable where you need them to be, and look great for skating and casual wear. Vans is a killer skate shoe company because all of their shoes take no time to break in. Unlike other shoes that feel stiff and awkward to flick tricks with at first, these shoes feel perfect right out of the box. This means you can focus on landing new tricks rather than trying to get used to a new pair of shoes.

These shoes are vulcanized, which means they have a thinner sole to give you a better board feel. A better board feel ultimately helps you feel more connected when popping tricks and helps you to know where to flick your tricks better. The only downside is that vulcanized shoes like this don’t have good impact protection. Fortunately, as long as you aren’t jumping down big drops or 6 stairs, this won’t be much of a problem.

Getting into the technical specs, the “pro” version of these shoes has a suede toe and heel to better protect the shoe in high-wear areas. There is also Vans Duracap which is like a rubber underlay around the toe to make it harder to break a hole through. This ultimately creates a shoe that you can spend hours sliding and flicking off your grip tape without worrying about ruining them.

They also have pretty awesome stock insoles as far as skate shoes go. Known as Vans Popcush, they have insanely nice heel cushioning that’s good for walking or standing in for long periods of time. Admittedly, those insoles are the most supportive, so you might still consider replacing the insoles for something with better arch support.

Ultimately these shoes are great if you want a good all-around shoe that isn’t too expensive. It doesn’t have very good impact protection or padding around the shoe, but that’s a trade-off for a better overall board feel and less break-in time.

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2. New Balance Numeric 306 Jamie Foy (Most Comfortable)

Go to any skatepark, and these shoes will be one of the most popular you’ll see for good reason. Although New Balance has a ton of super technically skate shoes, this shoe meets in the middle with a more simple “do-it-all” skate shoe that feels awesome out of the box.

The reason this shoe is an awesome beginner skate shoe is because of how comfortable and durable it is. It’s noticeably lighter weight than other skate shoes you’ll find, which can help make certain tricks easier to pop. The shoe is constructed with mesh between the suede side panels, which does wonders for the breathability of the shoe during a hot day of skating. Fortunately, that isn’t at the expense of durability.

Despite the mesh underlays, all of the major flick points are suede, with rubber reinforcements around the toe to prevent blowouts. It’s hard to find a shoe that’s both durable and breathable, but New Balance nailed this one.

The downsides of these shoes is primarily the lackluster insoles that are extremely thin and anything but supportive. Most skaters tend to swap out the insoles for something either more cushioned or supportive, but either way, it’s an easy fix.

The second downside is that the shoe is quite snug with a narrow toe box. If you have narrow feet or don’t typically find skate shoes too tight, this won’t be a problem. However, if you have wide feet these shoes will be miserable for you.

In short, if you want a shoe with better breathability and is generally more comfortable than the Vans Old Skools, these should be your next choice. They fit true to size but are not good if you have wide feet.

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3. Lakai Cambridge (Best For Progression)

If you are buying your first-ever skate shoe, the Cambridge will be total overkill. However, if you are looking to progress and looking for a new set of skate shoes to do it with, these should be your pick. Since they are slightly stiffer with a beefier toe and heel, flicking tricks in these feel awesome, and they support your foot decently well for a vulcanized shoe.

Lakai’s are well known for being one of the best skate shoes in terms of comfort, and tend to have better padding around the shoe to protect your feet when a trick goes sideways. This particular shoe is one of the most durable ones, with a full suede toe cap that holds up even after the stitching around the toe wears out in the first few sessions. The side panels are made of a thick mesh material but don’t easily fray or wear through, even when working on heelflips.

What I love about these shoes is how locked your feet feel. The tongue is super padded, which will help boost your confidence when trying a new trick, and the thicker rubber around the toe and heel give the shoe a nice easy-to-flick feel. If you’re learning kickflips and heelflips, that extra rubber will also help a bit to make sure the shoe doesn’t wear out in just a few weeks of skating.

The downside to these shoes is that the ankle collar goes relatively low around your ankle. When learning how to ollie, you might find yourself rubbing your ankle against the grip tape from time to time.

They are also quite low-profile shoes that are not well suited to anyone with wide feet. I’ve never had an issue as a more narrow-footed skater, but I know many wider-footed guys who find these too cramped for comfort.

These shoes are a solid choice if you want to start progressing your tricks with a durable shoe with a great board feel. However, these will feel a bit overbuilt if you’re just learning the basics of skateboarding.

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4. New Balance Numeric 272

The 272 is one of New Balance’s most basic skate shoes “technically,” but is an ideal skate shoe for beginners for a few reasons. The first is that its low-profile design offers an amazing board feel and makes learning tricks easier than with a bulky shoe. The second is that it has a unique outsole with an inverted cone heel that helps with impact protection and prevents heel bruising. So when you feel ready to start trying a trick down a drop or small stair set, these shoes have you covered.

This shoe comes in all leather or all suede, but I’d suggest the all-suede version because it slides and flicks nicer over your grip tape. Most all suede shoes get super hot and sweaty, but the inner mesh and breathable toe help to solve this problem.

When you first put these in, they feel stiff and clunky to skate in, but after a session or two, they break in nicely. Once they’re broken in, they fit better to your foot, and flicking tricks feel more precise. Since this shoe doesn’t have thick blocky rubber around the foxing tape as the Lakai Cambridge does, sliding these shoes across your board feels pretty consistent from the first to the last day you wear them.

The major downside to these shoes is that they are quite narrow and snug, like most New Balance skate shoes tend to be. If you have wide feet, these again won’t be a good option for you. However, if you don’t typically find shoes to fit narrow, these shoes fit true to size.

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5. Vans Slip On Pro (Best Budget Option)

Slip-on skate shoes are one of the best options for beginner skaters since they are cheap, durable, and have some of the best board feel. The only downside is that they have little to no foot padding and protection, which can lead to some sore feet after a heavy session. With that said, the Vans Slip-On Pros have a few things under the hood to help make them a more enjoyable slip-on to skate.

Since the entire toe is suede, you can flick a trick just about any way you want and not worry about the shoe. Even if you want to practice transition and work on your knee slides, not having laces is a huge bonus. Since these are the Pros, they have Vans Duracap, a rubber underlay around the toe to make the shoe more durable. They also have those super cushiony insoles I mentioned earlier called Vans Popcush, but again, they aren’t very supportive.

Slip-ons are an acquired taste for skating and not necessarily everyone’s style for casual wear. Since they have such little material, you will get some of the best board feel of any skate shoe with these. Remember that this is a trade-off for less protection around your foot overall, which can make an accidental kick of your board pretty damn painful.

Ultimately if you are looking for a good skate shoe that won’t cost you much, it doesn’t get better than these. However, with the cheaper price, you lose out on general foot protection and foot support. Just remember to go up 1/2 a size to make sure these don’t fit too tight!

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6. Vans Gilbert Crockett High Tops (Best Overall Foot Protection)

Most high top skate shoes feel bulky and heavy and get super hot after an hour or two of skating in them. However, the Crockett’s are unique in that most of the shoe is made of canvas, with rubber-backed suede only around the toe and heel of the shoe. What this gives you is a lighter weight and more breathable high top shoe that still holds up against your grip tape.

This shoe obviously helps protect your ankles better from a rogue board simply because of the higher ankle collar. But it also has Vans Wafflecup, which is a cupsole design to offer better support and impact protection than any other vulcanized shoe on this list. When it comes time to start trying bigger tricks or your first few stair sets, these soles prevent your feet from feeling tired and bruised so you can comfortably skate longer.

The downsides of this shoe are that it has a thinner ankle collar than other high-top skate shoes you might be used to, and the laces tend to rip easily. Particularly so for the bottom three laces. They also will have less board feel compared to other skate shoes you’ve worn in the past since they have more under-foot protection with a cupsole outsole.

But if you love the look of high-top skate shoes but don’t want the bulk and weight they typically bring, the Vans Crockett’s are one of the best choices. Just keep in mind that these shoes tend to fit a 1/2 size big!

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7. Etnies Windrow Vulc (Great For Flat Ground)

The Windrow is a super thin skate shoe with a narrow toe box to give you an amazing board feel with a tactile flick that feels consistent every time. For practicing tricks on flat ground, the thinness of these shoes is awesome since you can feel exactly where you’re popping and sliding your feet across your board. Then with a reinforced suede toe cap, the shoe holds up without blowing a hole, even after weeks of skating.

There’s really nothing too unique about this shoe in terms of design or insole quality. That creates a no-BS skate shoe that is the ultimate classic skate shoe to learn new tricks with. However, the thin insoles and relatively unpadded upper don’t do much to help protect your feet from feeling bruised or tired.

That’s why I’d suggest these skate shoes, primarily if you’re focused on flat ground tricks. With a thinner shoe like this, you’ll find it easier to get your feet in the right positions when flicking tricks and feel your decks concave.

However, if you’re starting to session ledges, rails, drops, or small stairs, these shoes will lack the protection your feet will appreciate.

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8. Vans Half Cab Pro

The half cabs are one of the most common beginner skateboard shoes since they’re relatively affordable, have a sweet style, and are super durable. They feel like a regular Vans skate shoe, but with more protection and suede than you’d normally expect to beef up the shoes.

Just like other “Pro” versions of Vans skate shoes, these have rubber-backed suede around the toe to make it harder to wear through. They also have those uber-comfy Popcush insoles, but again, they don’t have that great foot support despite the cushioning.

What I love about the half cabs is that they give your ankles that extra protection, but without feeling as bulky as a high-top shoe. That extra padding feels a bit more inspiring to do tricks with and helps to protect your feet when riding the bowl and bailing out.

The only downside to these shoes is that they get super hot since they are fully suede and have almost nothing to make them breathable. During the fall and spring, I enjoy skating in these shoes, but the summer is too hot for my liking with these.

They also tend to get quite floppy over time which gives the shoe a very loose and unsupportive feel. Some skaters love that loose-fitting and moldable shoe, but for others, it feels harder to flick tricks with. If you’ve never experienced that difference before, it is totally subjective, so you’ll have to try these shoes to understand your tastes.

Although these shoes aren’t the best at holding their shape, they are insanely durable with the amount of suede around the toe and rubber underlays. If you want a shoe that lasts, this will do the trick, but don’t be surprised when it doesn’t have that supportive and stiff new-shoe feel after a couple of sessions.

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What Makes A Good Skateboard Shoe?

There are several things that go into making a “good” skateboard shoe. Understanding these few aspects of a shoe will help you find the right skate shoe for you next time you’re in a skate shop or looking online.

– Shoe Materials

The first and most important factor that goes into making a good skateboard shoe is the material of the upper. Since this is what slides against your grip tape, it needs to hold up to prevent your shoes from getting a hole.

The two best materials you’ll find in skate shoes are suede or leather. Both of these materials are extremely durable and are more difficult to wear through than less robust materials like canvas.

Many skate shoes have a combination of materials, with suede and canvas being the most common. Although canvas is less durable, it’s not necessarily bad to have on a shoe because it is far more breathable than suede or leather. That’s why many skate shoes have suede or leather around the toe box and heel (the major flick points), with canvas on the side panels.

Since the side panels don’t slide against the grip tape as much, you get the best of both worlds. A durable shoe where you typically slide your feet, but breathable in other areas.

In other cases, you will find mesh between suede paneling on a shoe which is even better than canvas in terms of durability. New Balance regularly uses this type of design in their skate shoes.

When you’re looking for new skate shoes, just make sure they have suede or leather around the toe box so they don’t wear out faster than you’d hoped.

– Vulcanized VS Cupsole

Every outsole of a skate shoe is typically flat to create the best grip between your feet and your board. However, the difference between outsoles isn’t usually in the shape of the sole, but rather the type of sole.

A vulcanized sole is much thinner and gives you a better board feel. That means you can actually feel the concave of your board through the shoe, and it feels more intuitive to know where to position and slide your feet while skating. The downside is that you don’t have good impact protection, leading to sore and tired feet when skating larger features.

On the other hand, you have cupsole skate shoes, which have a thicker sole and fantastic impact protection. You can jump down drops and stairs without worrying about bruising your feet as much, and the shoe feels more robust overall. The downside, however, is that you get less board feel, making certain tricks more difficult to learn as a beginner.

Although cupsoles are great, they aren’t ideal for your first few skate shoes. Instead, you should opt for a vulcanized shoe to maximize the board feel and help you to land tricks easier. After all, you likely aren’t skating anything that big at this point, where impact protection is a must-have in your shoe.

The only exception is if you want or need a more supportive shoe. In that case, cupsoles will be better.

– Padding

Before you buy a pair of skateboard shoes, you need to consider how much you care about foot protection. When you are trying a new trick it’s only a matter of time until your board chops your foot or you land primo. With thinner and less padded shoes, this can mean a bit of pain for the price of better board feel and a lighter shoe.

More padded shoes feel a bit bulkier but are nice to have when a trick goes sideways and hits your foot in a weird way.

Most skate shoes are quite well padded, however, low-profile skate shoes and especially slip-on skate shoes have very little protection. If foot protection is important to you, Lakai generally has the most well-padded skate shoes overall.

Which Skateboard Shoe Should You Choose?

If you’re just getting into skateboarding and this is your first “real” pair of skate shoes, I recommend the Vans Old Skool Pros. However, if you are looking to improve what you already know with a more technical shoe, I would recommend the New Balance Numeric 306.

Shoe	Specs	Our Rating	Where To Buy
	New Balance Numeric 306	Vulcanized shoe for great board feel Very lightweight Feel great out of the box, no break in needed Consistent flick through the lifespan of the shoe Very durable upper with internal backing to improve the lifespan Suede & mesh construction	Check Price On AmazonFind At Tactics Boardshop
	Lakai Cambridge	Durable suede and mesh that doesn't easily wear out Thicker rubber on the toe and heel for more responsive flicks Well-padded around the tongue to make your feet feel secure Are vulcanized shoes with a great board feel	Check Price On AmazonFind At Tactics Boardshop
	Vans Slip On Pros	The most affordable skate shoe you'll find Amazing board feel since it's an ultra low-profile shoe Fully suede toe cap reinforced with rubber underlays You can't rip laces that don't exist	Buy From VansFind At Tactics Boardshop
	Vans Gilbert Crockett High Tops	Lightweight and breathable for a high-top shoe Amazing support and impact protection with Vans Wafflecup Reinforced flick points with rubber-backed suede Comfortable insoles	Buy From VansFind At Tactics Boardshop
	New Balance Numeric 272	Better heel protection without sacrificing board feel Breathable despite being fully suede Keeps a consistent flick for the lifespan of the shoe Has a rubber underlay on the toe cap to improve durability	Check Price On AmazonFind At Tactics Boardshop
	Vans Old Skool Pro	Durable rubber-backed suede on the toe and heel Classic Vans tread with great grip Super comfortable and cushioned insoles with Vans Popcush Fit true to size	Buy From VansFind At Tactics Boardshop
	Etnies Windrow Vulc	Great board feel with a thin outsole A narrow toe box for a tactile feeling flick Reinforced suede around the toe to improve durability Have a classic skate shoe style	Check Price On AmazonFind At Tactics Boardshop
	Vans Half Cab Pros	Lightweight and breathable for a high-top shoe Amazing support and impact protection with Vans Wafflecup Reinforced flick points with rubber-backed suede Comfortable insoles	Buy From VansFind At Tactics Boardshop