If the Shoe Fits offers many styles and brands of comfort shoes including Dansko, Soft Walk, Aravon, Dunham, Naot, Keen, Clarks, H.S. Trask, Olukai and Crocs.

Comfort
A variety of factors go into making a shoe comfortable. Comfort embraces the whole shoe and the interaction of all its parts, and is not determined by any single factor such as fit or design.

Size
Shoe size must conform to foot size. But "size" is more than length and ball width. It also means heel width, arch fit, heel-to-ball, top line fit, box toe space, total volume space, etc. Proper fit means complete proportional fit.

Shape
Unless there is a reasonable match between shoe shape and foot shape, then fit, regardless of "proper size," is largely nullified. Hence the last, often overlooked in shoe comfort, is of vital importance.

Flexibility
An average pair of feet flexes at the ball about 7,000 times a day. Whatever the degree of "flex resistance" by the shoe is the degree to which a work overload is imposed on the foot at the expense of comfort. Shoe flexibility involves the outsole, insole, upper materials, and the construction of the shoe.

Design of Style
For some people certain styles are more comfortable than others, whether an oxford, pump, boot, sandal, slip-on, etc. But style also involves heel heights and heel styles, and patterns, and these also bear an influence on shoe comfort. Obviously a fragile high heel sandal isn't going to be as comfortable as a loafer or oxford.

Weight
The heavier the shoe the more "foot-lift" work load on the foot, with consequent lessening of comfort. For example, a difference of only four ounces in the weight of a pair of shoes can make a difference of over one ton of foot-lift load daily. Foot-lift load affects foot fatigue and strain.

Inside-Shoe climate
According to qualified investigators inside-shoe climate is among the most important shoe comfort factors -- and, one of the most overlooked by shoe retailers. Inside shoe climate involves temperature, humidity, moisture, breathability, insulation, in short, the thermal conditions enveloping the foot.

Materials
A shoe upper material contributes to comfort in proportion to its breathability; (2) conformably; (3) weight; (4) suppleness or softness.

Tread
How a shoe treads (this is influenced by the last, heel, sole, construction and design or style) obviously influences how the foot treads. If there is a foot imbalance resulting from improper shoe tread, the consequence is lessening of shoe comfort.

Underfoot Resilience
The feet bear a cumulative total of about 800 tons of impact body weight daily in a series of about 7,000 "step shocks". Under natural conditions (resilient soil, etc.) the foot is equipped to absorb such impact. But under the unnatural conditions of non-resilient ground surfaces common to us, it is not. Hence a measure of underfoot cushioning built into the shoe is essential to shoe comfort.