The Best Slides and Sandals for Summer

Summer footwear gets bought in a hurry, usually the week a heatwave starts, and then worn for four months straight. The category is also genuinely three different products pretending to be one: the slide you wear to the pool, the sport sandal you hike in, and the contoured sandal you stand in all day.

Getting the type right matters more than the brand. A soft foam slide used as daily walking footwear will leave your feet aching, and a heavy technical sandal is overkill for a trip to the shops.

Three purchases, not one

Slides and clogs are one-piece moulded footwear with a strap across the instep. They are cheap, waterproof and easy to clean. They provide minimal support, and they are best for short distances and quick trips.

Sport sandals use webbing straps and an adjustable fit to hold the foot in place. They handle water, uneven ground and long walks far better, at the cost of looking technical.

Contoured footbed sandals are built around a shaped cork or foam bed with arch support and a heel cup. They start firm and mould to your foot, and they are the only type here designed for standing around for hours.

What actually matters when you choose

1. Footbed material

Cork and latex moulds to your foot and gives genuine support, but it dislikes water and needs a break-in. Moulded EVA foam is light, waterproof and immediately comfortable, but it compresses where you load it and never recovers its shape. Polyurethane footbeds sit between the two: firmer than EVA, more water-tolerant than cork, and more durable than either at the same thickness.

2. Straps and how they hold the foot

Suede and leather straps look better and soften with wear, but they stain and should not get wet repeatedly. Webbing straps dry fast and adjust easily, and they are the right choice for water. Moulded foam uppers, as on most slides, are comfortable and completely unstructured, so your toes grip to keep the shoe on, which gets tiring.

3. Arch support and heel cups

A contoured footbed with a raised arch and a heel cup spreads load across the whole foot. A flat slab of foam puts the work on your heel and toes. If you spend the summer standing, this is the single most important difference between two sandals that look alike on the shelf.

4. Grip on wet ground

Smooth rubber on wet tile or pool decking is the classic summer fall. Look for siping, the thin cuts in the tread, and a softer compound that stays tacky when cold or wet. Deep mud lugs are not helpful here and reduce the contact area on hard surfaces.

5. Break-in, cleaning and fit

Cork footbeds should be kept dry; webbing sandals can be rinsed and hung up; foam slides can go under a tap. None of them should be left in a hot car, because heat distorts moulded foam and dries cork until it cracks. On fit, remember that a slide has nothing to hold your foot forward, so it should be snug across the instep without your toes gripping.

What we would not pay extra for

• Designer branding on a moulded EVA slide. The material is the same across price points.
• Memory foam in a sandal. It compresses fastest in exactly the places you need it.
• Waterproof leather. The straps and the footbed will still suffer.
• A tread pattern borrowed from a hiking boot. Wrong tool for pavement.

How to decide which one you need

1. Be honest about your longest regular walk in sandals. Over thirty minutes, disregard plain slides.
2. Choose the footbed: cork for support, EVA for water, polyurethane for a middle ground.
3. Match the straps to your environment: webbing for water, leather or suede for dry heat.
4. Check the heel cup. If your heel slides sideways, the size or the shape is wrong.
5. Wear them for ten minutes in the shop, then check the return policy before committing.

When you need a proper shoe instead

If you have plantar fasciitis, diabetes, or any condition affecting sensation in your feet, open footwear is a poor choice for anything beyond short distances. Sandals offer no protection from stubbed toes or dropped objects, and no heel counter to stabilise the foot. In those cases a breathable shoe with a supportive insole will keep you cooler than you expect and protect your feet far better.

How this guide was put together

This comparison is based on manufacturer material specifications, published footbed descriptions and consistent themes in long-term owner reports. We have not measured cushioning or grip in a laboratory, and we do not quote prices because they change with the season. Where we describe comfort or break-in, we are summarising what owners consistently report. Always check the current price and the returns policy before buying.