I bought these shoes for a trip to Rome. Everyone always says wear comfortable shoes. What attracted to me to these is that they are the shape of your foot. I do not like closed toe shoes because they pinch my big toe. These looked perfect for crowding. Amazon recommended a 1/2 size up so that's what I ordered. While everything else fit well, my big toe was right at the end and I know it would be uncomfortable after a lot of walking. I reordered a whole size up and those are what I am keeping. They are so comfortable. Like walking with slippers on. BUT they are very wide. I don't have a narrow foot, just medium width, but they are very wide. They look rather dorky, but I am keeping them anyway. It's worth the comfort. The other thing is the laces are a pain to cinch up (whatever they are made of) and the tongue is uncomfortable. I will wear socks. I flip them outward and lace over them sometimes. They would be 5 stars if it wasn't for the minor things. I wear an 11 shoe normally but ordered a 12.

I am healing from plantar fasciosis and am moving to shoes with a wide toe box and zero drop in order to strengthen the top of my feet. The Altra brand was suggested by several websites as a "transitional" shoe, somewhere between most running shoes with a narrow front and barefoot, minimalist type shoes. I chose an older style at a lower price since I didn't know how my feet would do in them. I had to take out the liner inside and lace them further down due to the swelling in my feet from the plantar fasciosis. Now they are great. In addition, I have had no issues with the stiff tongue that others mentioned in their reviews. When wearing ankle socks, the tongue doesn't even touch your leg. As I am breaking them in, they are feeling even better. I will be trying more Altras in the future!

I would've loved to have given a 5 star review, but the outer material has start to come apart on one shoe and the glue that holds the sole has started to give way on the side in such a short time.

These are amazing shoes and one of the only brands I find fits my custom orthotics well and have a wide toe-box so my toes are not scrunched together I have several styles of these shoes and all are equally amazing. Some of the comments about the shoe "lip" being uncomfortable. I can see how this might bother some but I have not found it to be uncomfortable. I do wear these with thinner but cushioning socks. Oh, and I have put these in the washer once (make sure to remove shoe-laces so they don't get stuck in holes of the washer "drum") and they look as good as new. I would not wear these for weight lifting as the sole is too soft, but great for walking or running.

I specifically bought Altras because I have an issue where my toes are squishing together and causing the feeling of an ingrown big toenail. I had previously tried just sizing up other brands, such as New Balance, but it didn't do the trick.

These shoes are noticeably better on my toes due to the purposefully larger toe box. It hasn't relieved the problem entirely, but I definitely notice a difference wearing these versus "standard" toe box shoes. I do wish these had more support. When I previously tried some New Balance 880s, I LOVED the amount of cushion and support, so a blend of the two would be nice! I typically wear a size 8 in athletic shoes but sized up to 8.5 here (and needed it). I might have been able to get away with a 9, even. I may try different types of Altras over time to see whether a different version gives everything I'm looking for.