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25 Best Garden Shoes for Grownups (Updated!)

When you plant your tootsies in a great pair of garden shoes, getting wet and dirty will be the furthest thing from your thoughts when you’re planting, pulling weeds, shoveling dirt, or just slogging through mud. These versatile shoes and boots should be comfortable and as hard-working as you are, and be made from materials that are easy to hose off at the end of the day.

We’re here to help you find the best garden shoes to fit your needs as well as your budget, and we’ve included a few options that are some of the most coveted gifts for serious gardeners who dig playing in the dirt.

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Should I Get Garden Shoes or Boots?

Frankly, we think you should opt for a pair of shoes AND some garden boots as well. Here's why. If you're going to spend hours in the garden, you need footwear that will handle not only the hours you're going to spend working but that also are appropriate for the season.

When you're planting and pulling, consider boots as your best garden ally. Look for those that feature a cushioned insole, warmth saving neoprene liners, and extra-grippy soles to keep you stable in the mud.

In the summer, when the soil and even the water are a lot warmer than they are in the spring and fall, you're less likely to care about dirty feet and more interested in lots of cooling ventilation. Clearly, you'll still want sturdy soles with robust tread as no matter what the time of year, the garden can be a slippery place.

What's Best - Rubber or Synthetic Soles?

To make a clear decision on this question, you'll want to be clear about exactly how you intend to use your garden footwear. There are so many kinds of soles that it's good to know the advantages of each and this article from Shoesconsultant.com spells out the differences nicely.

Sometimes it's as simple as whether or not shoe weight is important to you. Natural rubber is going to be heavier than synthetic when it comes to both soles and uppers, although it's also going to be seriously durable, and as we mention in some reviews above, might actually be more planet-friendly than synthetics.

Look for Versatility As Well As Price

We've done our best to include lots of garden boots and shoes at a wide variety of price points, each with a unique set of features. One of the things we've also tried to do is point out when an affordable model has similar styling and amenities as a more expensive and well-known brand.

If you're short on cash this year, know that all the budget-friendly brands we've featured get rave reviews from casual wearers as well serious gardeners. If you do decide to lay out a little more green for that brand name pair you've been coveting, you'll feel a lot less guilty if you opt for a style that can double as rain, camping, or hunting footwear too.

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