Best Sandals for Women Who Wear AFOs – Extra Deep and Oversized Openings!

Are you having a very hard time finding a pair of sandals to accommodate your AFOs? Do you feel like you try several different shoe brands and styles but no sandal is capable of fitting over your AFOs? Women who wear AFOs have a very hard time finding shoes that fit, and their quest gets even harder when they need to look for seasonal shoes such as sandals. I will show you a list of the best sandals for women who wear AFOs based on my 10+ years of shoe fitting experience.

Whether you need to wear sandals with your AFOs directly depends on your foot or leg condition. Some women depend on AFOs to walk and need to wear them whenever they leave my house.

How Do I Know Which Sandals Work Best for AFOs?

Well, I have been working for a shoe store that focuses on helping women with complicated foot shapes as well as foot problems (flat feet, rolled ankles, heel pain) find the correct pair of shoes for their feet. I’ve had the opportunity to help many women with foot problems find the correct pair of shoes for their feet, and you won’t believe what a difference the correct pair of shoes can make!

Several medical professionals refer women to the shoe store that I work for to be fitted for the correct pair of shoes and orthotics. Some women bring their orthotics with them while some others are fitted for orthotics at the shoe store.

Finding a pair of shoes for a woman who wears AFOs takes a great deal of patience and expertise. I have been fitting women’s orthotics for several years and still takes me a lot of time to find shoes that work well with AFOs. With that said, there are certain shoe brands and styles that are my go-to ones when accommodating AFOs, and over the years I became familiar with the best sandals for women who wear AFOs.

Can You Wear AFOs with Your Sandals?

As long as you find a sandal that can accommodate your AFOs and it’s not too big for your feet you can definitely wear AFOs with sandals. To wear sandals with AFOs the sandals need to provide wider openings and extra depth to accommodate for the additional room taken up by the AFO.

Why Is It So Hard to Find Sandals that Accommodate AFOs?

AFOs take a lot of extra space inside of the shoes, and most shoes are not manufactured to accommodate AFOs. With that said, it’s really important that the shoes you wear with the AFOs fit properly or you won’t get the full benefits that the AFOs have to offer.

Stop Buying Longer Shoes for Your AFOs!

One of the most common mistakes that I see women make is to buy longer shoes to accommodate their AFOs. Yes, longer shoes will allow extra room for the AFOs to fit inside of the shoes, but you will be compromising your stability and not getting the full support from the shoes and AFOs by walking around in shoes that are too big.

What Makes the Sandals that I Recommend Ideal for Accommodating AFOs?

1️⃣ Adjustable Straps with Multiple Points of Adjustability

The sandals that I recommend are adjustable in several places, and one of the key places is around the heels. This will allow you to open up the sandal completely to accommodate the AFOs. Take a look at the images below for better visualization purposes:

2️⃣ Extra Depth

This feature allows the AFOs to sit deeply inside of the sandals which increases comfort and creates a better fit all around. Sandals with extra depth will also help prevent the top part of your foot (instep), from rubbing against the top part of the sandals. Take a look at the image below for better visualization purposes:

3️⃣ Rounded Toe-Boxes

This feature helps prevent the front part of the AFOs from destroying the front part of the sandals:

4️⃣ Available in Wide/Extra Wide Widths

This is an optional feature, but sandals that are available in wide or extra wide widths are going to be a lot more effective when it comes to accommodating an AFO.

Where Can You Find Sandals that Provide These 4 Features?

Some women visit their local shoe store while some others prefer to buy their shoes online. I suggest that you check if your local shoe store carries sandals with the features recommended above, and because each shoe brand and style fit differently, you should get your feet properly measured at your local shoe store. If you don’t have a local shoe store that you trust or you simply prefer to shop online, I will show you a list of the best sandals for women who wear AFOs.

Are Open Toe Sandals Better than Closed Toe Sandals for Accommodating AFOs?

Not necessarily. The advantage of open toe sandals is that they usually come with 3 points of adjustability (front, back, and around the instep), but I have fitted certain closed toe sandals that work really well for AFOs as well.

Without further ado, let’s take a look at the best sandals for women who wear AFOs. Disclosure: Keep in mind that we may receive commissions when you click our links and make purchases.

Best Sandals for Women Who Wear AFOs – Extra Deep and Oversized Openings!

Please note that whether these sandals will be wide enough for your feet and AFOs directly depends on what type of AFO you wear and how much space it takes.

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If you are looking for a different type of shoe to accommodate your AFOs such as an everyday pair of walking/running shoes or boots, I suggest that you take a look at the resources below:

AFO Friendly Shoes for Women – Extra Deep and Available in Wide and Extra Wide Widths

Mary Jane Shoes for Women Who Wear AFOs – Stylish and Comfortable Shoes!

Boots for AFO Braces – The Best Fashion Boots for Women Who Wear AFOs

Thank you for reading! We hope you found helpful this post on the best sandals for women who wear AFOs. Please feel free to share this post with your community on social media as well as your experiences in the comments section below. If you have any questions or need any assistance, you can also contact us via e-mail and we will get back to you as soon as possible.