Happy Friday: How One Reader Saves on Shoes

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Sent from reader, Holly:

I went to a mall the other day to look for a new pair of shoes for myself. I went to different stores but all the nice ones of my size were gone from the clearance rack, so I had to find a budget friendly pair from the regular priced section.

As I was looking through the store, I found that some big girls’ and women’s shoe designs are the same or very similar and that girls’ are cheaper while looking the same!! As a savings lover, I had to try on the girls’ shoes and… ta-da!! They fit!! After finding that out, I went home and started visiting different online stores and found many girls’ shoes that are as nice as adults’ for cheaper.

I went to the Payless online store and ordered women’s size 7 in brown and girls’ size 5 in black… and look, they fit the same!! I don’t see any difference in width either. At the time of my purchase, the kids pair was $11.99 while the adult pair was $15.99!!

As a tip, girls’ (make sure to look for “Big Girls” or “Youth”) and women’s shoes are 2 sizes different on average. For example, I’m size 7 in adult size so I would be 5 in kids. Of course every brand of shoes fits differently so I would strongly suggest going to the physical store and trying on the different pairs from different brands and possibly make a sizing list before going online. I hope this will help Hip2Save readers save money.

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Comments 76

  1. Amy

    I do this with youth boys sizes too! Especially on the Nike slides, or similar sandals. They are much cheaper and look pretty similar imo.

    • Collin (Mrs. Hip)

      Awesome! Thanks for sharing!

  2. beth pitt

    This works out with Uggs, which are so pricey. A woman’s 7ish is a girls 5:)

    • Collin (Mrs. Hip)

      Sweet! Thanks for the tip!

  3. Lindsay

    I believe big girl shoes only go to a size 5, so this would only work if you are a women’s size 7 or smaller.

    • Laura

      Big girls shoes often go to size 6, some do only go to a 5 though. I wear size 7.5 or sometimes 8. My winter boots are girls and I’ve bought many other girls shoes. Definitely only works if you are a smaller size.

      • Angela

        Funny because I just had this same revelation! I just found a pair on clearance at Walmart in a girls size 6 and they were too big for me. I wear a size 7-8 depending on the shoe.

    • cmh179

      Wouldn’t work for my size 11M boats ☹️

      • Christine

        Lol…I save on shoe costs by being a size 12 and not finding shoes at all (I’m not into the stripper shoes I find in 12s in the clearance section 😔)
        I will say that I have splurged on two pairs of Tieks, one nude, one navy, and am in total love. They go up to a 13 I believe, so as long as I don’t keep having kids and my feet decide to stay this size for good, I’ll always buy Tieks!!

        • Shannon

          Awesome comment about stripper shoes. Made me smile 😂

        • mari

          what do you love about tieks? ive seen them advertised but would like to know from a real person 😋

      • Michelle

        Same here… I have a hard enough time finding women shoes that fit! When I first married my husband he was surprised at how few shoes I had… He thought all girls had dozens of shoes… 😪 yes those with small cute feet…

        • RM

          I have the same problem being a size 9.5 in womens’s. Big feet but I wouldn’t trade them for shorter legs!! I’m 5’11.5 and always had a slender figure and long legs. Can’t say I wouldn’t trade my legs for smaller feet, but I would love me some cute shoes, I guess you don’t always get what you want, but reaching top cupboards can be a plus too 🙂

          • Jen

            I’m 5’4 and wear a 9.5. I wouldn’t trade my shoe size. I have been able to find some pretty cute shoes. I do admit I pay more for my shoes but they also last a long time!

      • Brianna

        I can’t even find a women’s 13 in most stores, so I settle for men’s shoes or ordering online. I do save a lot of time by not browsing the shoe department or having to make a decision on cuteness. My husband owns more shoes that me!

      • Grandma Cathy

        I feel your pain. I wear a woman’s 11 also.

    • Trineke

      I’ve purchased 5.5 in girls in MANY brands, but mostly in Uggs, Sperry, and Converse.

  4. Erika

    I have always wished I could do that but my feet are WAY too big to fit into kids’ sizes. Lol

  5. Emily

    I do this all the time as I am a size 8 in womens (or a 6 youth)!

    • Kylee

      Emily, what brand sneakers do you find to fit comparable to women’s 8??

  6. Michelle

    Anyone have a DSW coupon that they might be willing to part with? I am looking to possibly trade or buy. Please let me know – I have my eye on a special pair for my birthday next week ;o) THANKS!

    • Emily

      Hey I have a 20 off 49 if your interested

      • Michelle

        Yes…that would be great! Is it an online code? What would you like for it? THANKS!

        • Michelle

          Emily…please email kelias at weir dot net. THANKS AGAIN!!

  7. MomOf4

    I’ve been doing this for years. I wear a 6, so a 4 in kids. It definitely saves money, especially on Converse!

    • Collin (Mrs. Hip)

      Glad to hear you have been able to save with this tip as well!

  8. Ashley C.

    I have always bought kids sizes. Almost always cheaper especially when buying cowgirl boots!

    • Collin (Mrs. Hip)

      Awesome!

  9. Melloddie

    Guess lots of us here have been hitting the girls aisles lol. I don’t recall the last time buying sneakers in woman’s. The only time I find this doesn’t work are for work shoes or something nice in high heels but what’s saved in sneakers and flats def goes towards the more adult styles 🙂

  10. Anna

    Wow I have never thought of this thank you so much! I’m a 7.5 so hopefully will work for me too!

    • Collin (Mrs. Hip)

      You’re welcome Anna! Good luck!

  11. Mollie

    I have always gone to the boys section, now I will try the girls. Thanks

    • Collin (Mrs. Hip)

      You’re welcome!

  12. Emily

    I do this with Toms – the only shoes that I buy, and it has the added bonus or being rubber bottoms instead of the foam that is on womens – I feel like the youth sizes hold up way better! But with mine (this may just be me, or this may just be toms since I haven’t tried with any other shoe) I go down about 3-4 sizes. I normally wear a size 6.5-7.5 in women’s but in toms I order a size 3.5 youth. 😄

    • StefH

      Agreed! Kids toms are sized funny and run much larger than other kids shoes! My daughter wears a size 13 shoe…but an 11 in toms.

  13. Shannon

    I have done this. Size 5 girls is a women’s 7 but it seems wider to me which is ok sometimes. I also buy kids clothes usually a girls xxl or xl is the same as a (juniors) xs. But it won’t have darts for the chest or hips.

  14. Chelsey L.

    I’m currently wearing a pair of running shoes that I bought at the Nike outlet in the boys section for $15, the cheapest in the women’s section? $45! I was stoked when I found out I could wear the kids size!

  15. Lun

    Wish this was true for the average size of 9

    • RZ

      For real. Good luck wearing a 9W and fitting into girls’ shoes lol

  16. Mary

    I have never thought of this! Thanks for posting.

    • Collin (Mrs. Hip)

      You’re welcome!

  17. Iluvh2s

    I do this, too! I recently bought a pair of Keen sandals in the boys section and paid almost half the price of the women’s sandals.

  18. Sara

    I totally do this with clothes! I am an XS in women’s and can wear size 10/12-14/16 in girl’s. I’ve found the most amazing deals! Today I bought a pair of Old Navy Performance girl’s yoga pants for $3!

  19. AMF

    This opened a whole new world for me:). I can wait to see what I can find. Thanks for posting.

    • Collin (Mrs. Hip)

      You’re most welcome!

  20. Wren

    I have never thought of this either so thank you for the post. 👣 I am about an 8 so I am going to try this out.

  21. elisabeth brummond

    Did you check the clearance for girls size 5?

  22. Ana

    I save on shoes by not buying them. 😂

  23. Leslie Ramey

    We did with sports shoes when I was younger. I wore a 7 and could get boys or girls running shoes. You can save money on Converse this way!! 😀

  24. Mourrene

    Wow…I never knew you could do this…won’t work for me since I’m an 8.5. Does anyone know a good place to buy wide width shoes for women? I have a friend who has a really hard time finding those.

    • MK

      I wear 6.5 wide and most of my shoes and sandals are from Macy’s. Have tried several stores but Macy’s works best for me, and if you shop during clearance and during special shoe events you can grab great deals. I always shop online, order different sizes and order a whole lot like 20 pairs or so, try them all at home and return whatever does not work usually I keep only 1-2. I have shopped clearance summer sandals and kept about 6-7 pairs last year. Around Christmas time got regular priced $99 leather flats MK and another brand for almost half off with their online shoe event. I keep looking at Macy’s website and shop if I find something as it is very difficult to get shoes for me ☺️

    • Colleen

      Try Zappos – free shipping and free returns I think also!

    • Andrea

      Torrid has cute shoes & boots & pretty much all of them are wide width. Their regular prices are a little on the expensive side, but they usually send out coupons if you sign up for their mailing list. Also they sometimes have clearance online or in stores. You can really make a good deal with that. Check their website for store locations near you.

    • Wehaf

      Some brands carry youth sizes up to 6 or 6.5 which should be equivalent to women’s 8.5. Youth shoes are usually wider, too. So you may be able to occasionally take advantage of this (especially with boys shoes).

    • Tracy

      QVC has a lot of shoes in wide sizes. They also have a lot of shoes in the larger numbers too. You can return within 30 days.

  25. jessica

    I’ve always done this and was surprised that not many people knew, I’m a size 7.5/8 womens and can fit a 5/6 kids, i buy myself marching mommy and me shoes all the time, just got some from payless that look similar to toms for $4 each after 20% off. Also if you are a size small in clothes, you can possibly wear 14/16 in kids clothes, found my friend the cutest size 16 jeans and same pair in a 4 for her daughter

    • angeld001

      I buy girls clothes in 14/16 all the time! 🙂 I have also found that if the item is a vest or a cardigan, I can wear those in a smaller size from the girls section. In fact, about a month ago, I bought two hooded cardigan things and got one in 14/16 and the other in 7/8 in girls. All that mattered was the length.

  26. Donna

    I do this too! I’m a women’s 7 so a 5 in girls. I found this trick out a few years ago when I couldn’t find women’s Sperry shoes that fit me. They were either to big or to small & on a whim I tried on girls sized & they fit perfect 🙂 I’ve also bought Nike shoes like this and saved a ton 🙂

  27. Erin

    I didn’t know that youth and women’s shoes came in the same styles! And I would have thought that youth wouldn’t hold up as well, since kids only wear a particular size for a limited amount of time. I’ll have to keep that in mind with athletic shoes. I’m not so sure about other styles–I would never wear most of the shoes my daughter owns!

  28. Rebecca

    I find this to be true in reverse as well. On my daughter’s 8th birthday we went shopping at target and she wanted some shoes. We were perusing the clearance aisles and found a nice sandal. While she was trying on, I wandered to the women’s section and found a very similar, if not the same, sandal for cheaper. She wears a 3 in youth, so we bought a women’s 5. She enjoyed the bragging rights of wearing women’s shoes at 8 yrs old!

  29. Cleo

    Can’t do it with shoes, but have regularly shopped in boys for tops…most recently bought a sale rash guard in size 14 at target for $6. The women’s was $39. Great for jackets, sweatshirts, fleece, etc.

  30. Mary Jane

    I do this too. I did it with adidas, uggs and many more. But I hate payless shoes quality, seriously. I don’t buy anthing from there unless 10$ off 10$ purchase coupon becomes available. I spend 2-3$ to buy kids shoes. 😜

  31. Michelle

    Would still love to trade/buy a DSW coupon…anyone have $20 off $49? I’d like to treat myself to a cute pair of adidas for my birthday on Monday. THANKS SO MUCH!

    • Collin (Mrs. Hip)

      Happy Birthday Michelle! 🙂

  32. April

    I used to do this with clothing items when I was smaller lol. I had no idea until a friend told me most of her workout clothes she buys in the kids section.

  33. Melanie

    So what you’re saying is if I want to save money on shoes and shop at the Giant shoe store for my giant size 11 feet, I should look in the section for Big Kid Giants to save some cash? Works for me! 😉

  34. MommySpendsLess

    I’ve known the trick for men’s shoes for a while – I’m a womens 8.5-9 and a mens 7 usually fits but I didn’t have any idea about the youth/womens size conversion! I thought the numbers went straight up and just changed departments. I’ll have to keep this in mind for both me and my 7.5yo size 3 daughter 🙂

  35. tiffinpa

    Seriously, why have I never tried this? Thank you for the suggestion. I wear a 6.5 to 7 so I’m sure I wont have an issue finding big girls shoe sizes that fit. I have all boys, so I never had a reason to look in the girls section. I do, however, remember reading a suggestion a while back to look in the girls department for small black hand bags. They’re much cheaper and perfect for a formal event.

  36. crystalsnow

    My mom was able to do this with North face jackets!

  37. AMBER

    Is anyone else an avid runner or athlete and tried this trick? I’m worried a girls shoe wouldn’t have the same amount of support/cushioning as a women’s shoe…I would think women’s shoes would be designed to help prevent joint/knee injuries whereas girls shoes wouldn’t necessarily be made to cater to those kind of worries? Any thoughts?

    • Shannon

      Kids clothing and shoes are typically made cheaper with less details than women’s clothing. I bought a pair of kids nikes and they wore out faster. I think the companies know parents won’t spend a fortune on something that their kid will wear for 1 year max. I have a kids dress from gap it has no lining or pockets. I wear a size 7 women’s and I can fit into and 5 or 5.5 kids size. But the shoe is usually too wide.

    • Anna

      I wouldn’t do this for running. I usually can find good deals online. I don’t recommend stocking up (shoes can deteriorate) but I will buy one model older (usually designated by a number after the model name). Once you know what brand/models work for you online can save you money.

  38. LauraL

    thanks – I didn’t know about the woman to girls.

    When my elderly mother’s feet swelled up – it was difficult to find shoes that fit. There were some in the men’s section that fit. Not the greatest style but at least they were safe and comfortable on her.

  39. AnnieL.

    Glad I’m not the only one :-). Well actually I’m in my mid 20’s and have never even converted to shopping women sizes for myself. I Still shop in juniors and kids that I’ve shopped at since I’ve been in middle school…Lol. I was kind of embarrassed about it when I got of legal age and still wore kids clothes but now that I know others do it as well, I’ll no longer feel strange about it. My friends ask me where I got this outfit at or where those shoes came from and when I tell them, they are like oh nevermind LOL. I’m petite and wear a size 5 shoe in women’s, so the kids and juniors are definitely my go to thing. Thanks for making my day!!! Oh and the only thing I can’t really find in kids that I love are dress pants

    • Terri

      My daughter is in her mid 20s and wears a size 5 women’s, so a girl or boys shoe fits great. She has a hard time finding high heels or adult shoes for her small feet. She also buys kids clothing. Boys clothes overall are always cheaper than girls. She loves being able to wear those ‘light up sole’ sneakers they sell for kids, at her age. She has fun wearing them around.

  40. Pat

    I get free shoes from my girl friend in MO. She is a diabetic and buys shoes all the time and after wearing them once she doesn’t like them. I have a closet full of sketchers and other shoes. LOL. New in the box. I am so lucky. I get shoes on amazon and use survey dollars to pay for them, or get them on Kmart or Sears and use points to pay for them for the kids. I also use paypal money (again survey money) to pay for them too at Kmart or sears and also use points for them so almost free. Works for me.

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