Types of shoes

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Dress and casual
Dress shoes are categorized by smooth and supple leather uppers, leather soles, and narrow sleek figure. Casual shoes are characterized by sturdy leather uppers, non-leather outsoles, and wide profile.
Some designs of dress shoes can be worn by either gender. The majority of dress shoes have an upper covering, commonly made of leather, enclosing most of the lower foot, but not covering the ankles. This upper part of the shoe is often made without apertures or openings, but may also be made with openings or even itself consist of a series of straps, e.g. an open toe featured in women's shoes. Shoes with uppers made high to cover the ankles are also available; a shoe with the upper rising above the ankle is usually considered a boot but certain styles may be referred to as high-topped shoes or high-tops. Usually, a high-topped shoe is secured by laces or zippers, although some styles have elastic inserts to ease slipping the shoe on.
Men's

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Men's shoes made from real crocodile skin, in a conservation exhibit at Bristol Zoo, England
Men's shoes can be categorized by how they are closed:
• Balmorals (American English), Oxfords (British English): the vamp has a V-shaped slit to which the laces are attached; also known as "closed lacing". The word "Oxford" is used by American clothing companies to market shoes that are not Balmorals, such as Blüchers.
• Blüchers (American), Derbys (British): the laces are tied to two pieces of leather independently attached to the vamp; also known as "open lacing".
• Monk-straps: a buckle and strap instead of lacing
• Slip-ons: There are no lacings or fastenings. The popular loafers are part of this category, as well as less popular styles, such as elastic-sided shoes.
Men's shoes can also be decorated in various ways:
• Plain-toes: have a sleek appearance and no extra decorations on the vamp.
• Cap-toes: has an extra layer of leather that "caps" the toe. This is possibly the most popular decoration.
• Brogues (American: wing-tips): The toe of the shoe is covered with a perforated panel, the wing-tip, which extends down either side of the shoe. Brogues can be found in both balmoral and blucher styles.
Women's

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Women's shoes on display in a shop window, 2005
There is a large variety of shoes available for women, in addition to most of the men's styles being more accepted as unisex. Some broad categories are:
High heels may be shoes with heels 2 inches (5 cm) or higher. They are often seen as having more sex appeal than low heels (see article for discussion) and are thus commonly worn by women for formal occasions or social outings.
Kitten heels are low high heels from about 1.5 to 2 inches high, set in from the back of the shoe.
• Sneaker boot and sneaker pump: a shoe that looks like an athletic shoe, but is equipped with a heel, making it a kind of novelty dress shoe.
• Wedge Sandals are sandals but have the ankles higher as if wearing a high heels shoe.
• Mules are shoes or slippers with no fitting around the heel (i.e. they are backless)
• Slingbacks are shoes which are secured by a strap behind the heel, rather than over the top of the foot.
• Espadrilles are casual flat or high-heeled fashion sandals of a style which originated in the Pyrenees. They usually have a cotton or canvas upper and a flexible sole of rope or rubber.
• Pumps, known in the UK as ballerinas, ballet pumps or skimmers, are shoes with a very low heel and a relatively short vamp, exposing much of the instep. They are popular for warm-weather wear, and may be seen as more comfortable than shoes with a higher heel. In the US a pump is a high-heeled typically slip-on women's dress shoe.
Unisex

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The flip-flop sandal, worn both by men and women
• Clog
• Platform shoe: shoe with very thick soles and heels
• Moccasin: originated by Native Americans, a soft shoe without a heel and usually made of leather.
• Sandals: open shoes consisting of a sole and various straps, leaving much of the foot exposed to air. They are thus popular for warm-weather wear, because they let the foot be cooler than a closed-toed shoe would.
• Saddle shoe: leather shoe with a contrasting saddle-shaped band over the instep, typically white uppers with black "saddle".
• Loafer: a dress or casual shoe without laces; often with tassels, buckles, or coin-holders (penny loafers).
• Boating shoes, also known as boat shoes and deck shoes: similar to a loafer, but more casual. Laces are usually simple leather with no frills. Typically made of leather and featuring a soft white sole to avoid marring or scratching a boat deck. The first boat shoe was invented in 1935 by Paul Sperry.
• Boots: Long shoes (covering the ankle) frequently made of leather. Some are designed to be used in times of bad weather, or simply as an alternate style of casual or dress wear. Styles include rubber boots and snow boots, as well as work boots and hiking boots.
• Slippers: For indoor use, commonly worn with pajamas.

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