We are all concerned about shoe sizes, whether we are making the right selection of the size of our shoes. While doing this, we often consider only the length of the shoe.
But we never think of whether the width of the shoe is correct for our feet!
Suppose you are getting a shoe of the size 8 that’s exactly perfect for the length of the feet, but you might experience a little tightness while walking in the shoe and then immediately decide to size up for the shoe, whereas what you actually need is, getting the wider size and not the lengthier one!
Yes, we often make this mistake of not considering the width of the shoe while making the purchase and blame the sizing of the shoe.
The correct shoe width is equally important as the length of the shoe we are buying for our feet.
But the problem is…we do not have a proper knowledge of the shoe widths and have no idea how to know the width of the shoe or where to find them.
Well, this article will help you gain knowledge about the various widths available for shoes in the US and make the right purchase thereafter.
In the US, the letter D denotes regular width for men and measures wide for women, whereas the letter E denotes wide in men and extra wide for women.
But first, let’s learn how to measure the width of your feet so that you know which shoe width you actually need!
How to measure the width of your feet?
In order to measure the width of your feet, just follow the simple steps below:
1.) Take a pen, a white sheet of paper and a measuring tape
2.) Place your feet on the white paper
3.) Take the pen and mark points on the paper of the widest parts of your feet on both sides (this will be the area of the starting of your toes, the bulged areas on both sides of the feet that just below the toes)
4.) Take out your feet from the paper and draw a straight line connecting the two dots
5.) Now, take the measuring tape and measure the length of the line and that’s the width of your feet
What do the letters in men’s shoes indicate?
For knowing what do the letters mean regarding the width of the men’s shoes, look at the table below:
| Letters | Shoe width |
| B | Narrow |
| D | Medium/regular |
| E | Wide |
| EE | Extra wide |
What do the letters in women’s shoes indicate?
Women’s feet width are always narrower than men and so the letters or the shoe width for the same letters differ for both. Let’s have a look at them as well:
| Letters | Shoe width |
| AAAA | Very narrow or extra narrow |
| AA | Narrow |
| B | Average/medium |
| D | Wide |
| EE | Extra wide |
Knowing just what the letters mean is just not enough, we need to know what width in measurement do the letters provide!
Men’s shoe width measurement chart/ Difference between size D and size E in men’s shoe width:
| US Men’s shoe size | Width D | Width E |
| 6 | 3 ½” | 3 11/16″ |
| 6.5 | 3 ⅝” | 3 ¾” |
| 7 | 3 ⅝” | 3 ¾” |
| 7.5 | 3 11/16″ | 3 15/16″ |
| 8 | 3 ¾” | 3 15/16″ |
| 8.5 | 3 ¾” | 4″ |
| 9 | 3 15/16″ | 4 ⅛” |
| 9.5 | 3 15/16″ | 4 ⅛” |
| 10 | 4″ | 4 3/16″ |
| 10.5 | 4 ⅛” | 4 5/16″ |
| 11 | 4 ⅛” | 4 5/16″ |
| 11.5 | 4 3/16″ | 4 ⅜” |
| 12 | 4 5/16″ | 4 ⅜” |
| 12.5 | 4 5/16″ | 4 ½” |
| 13 | 4 5/16″ | 4 ⅝” |
| 13.5 | 4 ⅜” | 4 ¾” |
Women’s shoe width measurement chart/ difference between size D and size E in women shoe width:
| US women’s shoe size | Width D | Width E |
| 5 | 3 9/16″ | 3 15/16″ |
| 5.5 | 3 ⅝” | 4″ |
| 6 | 3 11/16″ | 4 1/16″ |
| 6.5 | 3 ¾” | 4 ⅛” |
| 7 | 3 13/16″ | 4 3/16″ |
| 7.5 | 3 ⅞” | 4 ¼” |
| 8 | 3 15/16″ | 4 5/16″ |
| 8.5 | 4″ | 4 ⅜” |
| 9 | 4 1/16″ | 4 7/16″ |
| 9.5 | 4 ⅛” | 4 ½” |
| 10 | 4 3/16″ | 4 9/16″ |
| 10.5 | 4 ¼” | 4 ⅝” |
| 11 | 4 5/16″ | 4 11/16″ |
| 12 | 4 7/16″ | 4 13/16″ |
Which is wider shoe D or E?/what is the difference between D and E width?
Width for a man’s feet and a woman’s feet are different. A woman’s feet are usually wider than a man’s feet.
So, whereas a size D means average or medium width in men, it means wide for women. The width E is wide for men and extra wide for women.
How much wider is 2E than D?
Just as the letters increase, suppose from A to B to D to E to EE, the width increases by ½”. This measurement gap applies to both men and women’s shoes.
What are E fit shoes?
E fitting shoes means the shoes for men and women who have wide feet and need some extra spaces in the toe box areas.
That said, the width is the feet and the shoes will not be marked for the toes, but the area from where the toes emerge from the feet.
What is the difference between D and EE boots?
While D means medium for men, it means wide for women. On the other hand both E and EE mean wide for men and for women it’s extra wide for EE.
How do I know if my foot is wide?
If your feet feel too much pressed by the side walls of the shoes or boots, and there is no space for your toes to wiggle, you should know that your feet are wide for the width of the shoes.
Also, if your foot width is 4 3/16″ for a size 10 shoe (in men) or 4 9/16″ for a size 10 shoe (in women), your feet width will be considered wide.
And it’s a wrap!
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Taking adieu with the hope to meet soon in my next post!
Till then take care and have a great day ahead!
