How to measure kids’ feet

If your little one is nearly ready for their first pair of proper shoes, you may be wondering about the best way to measure their feet. Up until now, you’ve likely found it easy to buy shoes for your baby since baby shoes, and booties are sized by how many months old they are.

But when your child gets to toddler age, things can become confusing. While clothing sizes for toddlers correspond to their age, shoe sizes are given in numbers. For example, little shoes will be labelled with a size of 3.5 to 10, while sizes 10.5 to 13.5 are considered big kid sizes. When they outgrow the biggest pair, the system switches to the adult system, and they will start with a pair of size ones.

It is important to understand how shoes are sized, though. Buying shoes that are too small can cause pain or discomfort, or if they are too big, the child could trip and fall. Additionally, the wrong size can lead to developmental problems later in life. The bones in a child’s foot are not yet fully formed, and shoes that are too narrow or small may cause toe deformities or conditions like flatfoot.

Luckily there are a few methods for how to measure a child’s shoe size, so you can be sure you are buying the right size shoes for your child. In this article, we’ll explain what these are.

You can measure your child’s feet in three ways: With the type of foot measuring gauge used in a footwear store, by drawing around their foot to create a footprint, or by measuring the length of their foot while they are standing against a wall.

Some tips for measuring your child’s feet accurately include measuring both feet, as each can differ in size and avoiding measuring them in the morning, as feet can swell throughout the day.

Read on to find out more about how to measure kids’ feet.

Three ways to measure kids’ feet

Here are three common ways to measure a child’s foot:

1. Foot measuring gauge

You’ve probably come across a foot measuring gauge while shopping in a shoe store, but you can buy them to use at home too.

Using a device like this is the most accurate way to measure your child’s foot. All you will need is the measuring gauge and a pen and paper to record the reading.

Here’s how to measure your kid’s foot using a foot-measuring gauge:

1. Place the gauge on an even floor surface
2. Ask your child to stand up straight and face forward
3. Place one of their feet on the gauge, taking note of where the heel should be
4. Write down the length (and width, if the device has this feature)
5. Place their other foot on the gauge, taking note of where the heel should be
6. Write down the length (and width, if the device has this feature)
7. Compare the readings and use the largest one to determine their shoe size

2. Footprint

While a foot measuring gauge will give you the most accurate reading, it’s not always easy to get your child to stand still for long enough to take one.

An alternative is to trace around their foot to make a footprint. To use this foot-measuring method, you will need a piece of A4 paper, a pen and a ruler. Then, you can measure their feet by following the below steps.

1. Place the piece of paper on an even floor
2. Ask your child to stand on it
3. Use the pen to trace the outline of each foot, ensuring that you keep the pen upright, so it does not slip underneath the foot and give an inaccurate result
4. Ask the child to step off the paper and, on both outlines, measure the distance from the back of the heel to the tip of the longest toe
5. Compare the measurements and take the largest one to determine their shoe size, using the kids’ shoe size chart at the end of this article

3. Basic measurement

This method of foot measurement requires a pen, a piece of A4 paper, a ruler and a wall.

This is what you do:

1. Place the piece of paper on an even floor surface and against the edge of a wall
2. Ask your child to stand on the piece of paper with the back of their heel touching the wall
3. Using the ruler, draw a line where the longest toe ends
4. Ask the child to step off the paper and measure the distance from the line to the wall edge
5. Use the chart at the end of the article to determine their shoe size based on this distance

Tips for measuring your child’s feet and buying kids shoes

As mentioned earlier, it is essential to ensure that your child is wearing the right-sized shoes. With that in mind, here are some tips to help you with this: 

• Remember to measure both feet, as each one may differ in size. When determining their shoe size, always use the larger measurement.
• When measuring, ensure your child is standing on their entire body weight, as this is when the feet are at their largest.
• Avoid measuring your kid’s feet in the morning, as they can swell throughout the day. This is why it’s also best to try on new shoes when they’ve been up for a few hours.
• When shoe shopping, have your child try on the shoes and walk around in them before you buy them. That way, they can tell you if they’re uncomfortable.
• While the shoes are on the child’s feet, feel for their toes at the ends to see whether there’s too much or too little space. There should be about one centimeter from the tip of their biggest toe to the end of the shoe (the toe box).
• When online shoe shopping, it’s a good idea to buy the same shoe in various sizes so they can try them all on, and you can return the ones that don’t fit properly.
• If your child’s feet are between sizes, choose the bigger size so that they can grow into them.

How often should you measure a child’s foot?

Every parent knows from experience how quickly children grow. But did you know that between the ages of two and six, their feet can grow up to half a size every three months? With this in mind, experts recommend measuring your child’s feet once a month to make sure their shoes are still fitting them well. As they get older, kids' feet grow at a slower pace, and they may only need a shoe change every five months or so. However, it is still a good idea to measure their feet at least every three months.

How can you tell if your kid’s shoes are too big?

It makes sense to opt for a shoe size that’s a little bigger so that your child can grow into them. However, in the following scenarios, it may be best to buy them a smaller size:

• The child frequently trips over or twists their ankles
• When the child is walking, their heels lift out of the shoes
• The child is walking differently or dragging their feet
• The child has blisters on their feet

How can you tell if your kid’s shoes are too small?

There are also some telltale signs that your child’s shoes are too small for them. Some of these are:

• The child has blisters on their feet
• There’s no space at the end of the shoe
• The child is suffering from hip, back, knee or joint pain
• The child doesn’t want to wear the shoes anymore
• The shoes are cutting into the child’s skin

How do you convert kids’ shoe sizes?

You may be wondering how to convert the foot measurements you’ve taken from centimeters to inches. Or maybe you want to order a pair of children’s shoes from a different part of the world, but you don’t understand the country’s shoe sizing system.

To help, we’ve listed some of the most common kids’ shoe size conversions in the table below.

Kids shoe size chart

Foot size (inches)	Foot size (centimeters)	USA shoe size	Euro shoe size	UK shoe size
3.25 in	8.3 cm	0.5	16	0
3.5 in	8.9 cm	1	16	0.5
3.625 in	9.2 cm	1.5	17	1
3.75 in	9.5 cm	2	17	1
4 in	10.2 cm	2.5	18	1.5
4.125 in	10.5 cm	3	18	2
4.25 in	10.8 cm	3.5	19	2.5
4.5 in	11.4 cm	4	19	3
3.625 in	11.7 cm	4.5	20	3.5
4.75 in	12.1 cm	5	20	4
5 in	12.7 cm	5.5	21	4.5
5.125 in	13 cm	6	22	5
5.25 in	13.3 cm	6.5	22	5.5
5.5 in	14 cm	7	23	6
5.625 in	14.3 cm	7.5	23	6.5
5.75 in	14.6 cm	8	24	7
6 in	15.2 cm	8.5	25	7.5
6.125 in	15.6 cm	9	25	8
6.25 in	15.9 cm	9.5	26	8.5
6.5 in	16.5 cm	10	27	9
6.625 in	16.8 cm	10.5	27	9.5
6.75 in	17.1 cm	11	28	10
7 in	17.8 cm	11.5	29	10.5
7.125 in	18.1 cm	12	30	11
7.25 in	18.4 cm	12.5	30	11.5
7.5 in	19.1 cm	13	31	12
7.625 in	19.4 cm	13.5	31	12.5
7.75 in	19.7 cm	1	32	13
8 in	20.3 cm	1.5	33	14
8.125 in	20.6 cm	2	33	1
8.25 in	21 cm	2.5	34	1.5
8.5 in	21.6 cm	3	34	2
8.625 in	21.9 cm	3.5	35	2.5
8.75 in	22.2 cm	4	36	3
9 in	22.9 cm	4.5	36	3.5
9.125 in	23.2 cm	5	37	4
9.25 in	23.5 cm	5.5	37	4.5
9.5 in	24.1 cm	6	38	5
9.625 in	24.4 cm	6.5	38	5.5
9.75 in	24.8 cm	7	39	6

You can measure your child’s feet in three ways:

1. With a foot-measuring gauge 
2. By drawing around their foot to create a footprint
3. Measuring the length of their foot while they are standing against a wall

Here are some tips to help you buy the right size shoes for your child: 

• Measure both feet
• Ensure your child is standing on their whole body weight
• Avoid measuring feet in the morning
• Have your child try on the shoes and walk around in them
• Feel the toe box to see whether there’s too much or too little space
• When online shoe shopping, buy the same shoe in various sizes
• If your child’s feet are between sizes, choose the bigger size