A couple of years in the past, I developed some ache on the highest proper aspect of my proper foot that would not go away, so I went to a podiatrist. Whereas he stated it was nothing critical, he urged I get a pair of Oofos recovery slides and really helpful not solely carrying them as a substitute of my sneakers as a lot as attainable but additionally carrying them round the home as a substitute of going barefoot.
“All these folks working from dwelling do not understand your toes want extra assist than you assume, particularly as you grow old,” he advised me. “It was a giant drawback in the course of the [part of the] pandemic when everyone was at dwelling on a regular basis.”
Sporting the Oofos helped treatment my foot ache in a matter of weeks, and I’ve since turn into kind of a connoisseur of restoration slides, lots of that are made out of high-tech foam and different cushiony supplies. Ostensibly, they had been developed for each leisure and extra critical athletes for earlier than and after actions, whether or not that is operating, soccer, basketball, tennis or any sport that causes foot fatigue. Nonetheless, they’re additionally really helpful to assist do away with plantar fasciitis.
What are the very best restoration slides?
Whereas I am nonetheless a fan of Oofos slides, I am slightly extra keen on a pair of slides from Oka Recovery that I obtained final yr. Folks have different-shaped toes, although, and completely different preferences for the way agency or gentle they like their restoration slides, so my desire may not be yours. Additionally, admittedly, I have never tried each restoration slide on the market — dozens, if not a whole lot of fashions, are on the market, and a few are fairly just like others as copycats overrun the market.
I’ve additionally discovered that whereas some slides match true to dimension, many match bigger than their dimension would point out and require you to dimension down, whereas some are smaller, maybe requiring you to dimension up. (I’ve famous that for every choose, whether or not they match true to dimension or not.) Except in any other case famous, all of the fashions on this record are unisex, providing each males’s and ladies’s sizes for the slide. I will add extra picks as I come throughout new prime restoration slides.
Greatest restoration slides of 2026
To not be confused with Hoka (which additionally makes a superb pair of restoration slides on this record), Oka slides are typically very cushiony and comfy. Accessible in a number of colours, the Oka slides are barely firmer than my Oofos Oohha slides and are additionally higher with water. They’ve 35 millimeters of “buoyant foam,” 12 cooling vents and “a large higher that cradles with out squeezing.”
The corporate additionally touts the slides’ “stabilizing deep heel cup that locks your foot in place.”
Nevertheless it’s price noting that most individuals ought to most likely order a dimension right down to get the very best match. I am often a dimension 10, however the slide that match me properly was the lads’s 9/girls’s 11. That they had good arch assist, too. Read my full review.
Oofos is among the best-known restoration slide manufacturers — I admire how properly they cushion my toes. (They seem to be a bit softer than some slides.)
Its Oohha mannequin is made out of the corporate’s patented footbed and Oofoam know-how, which it says absorbs 37% extra influence than conventional footwear foams. The closed-cell foam is machine cleanable and “designed to attenuate odor.”
I wore these Oofos for a number of months and was capable of alleviate some foot ache on the highest of my proper foot that I used to be experiencing. They’ve held up properly, even with loads of out of doors use. My solely gripe is that they get slick when water will get on them, so they are not nice within the rain or strolling by way of shallow water. (My toes slide round in slides.)
They do run a bit giant, so I sized down from my normal 10 to a males’s 9/girls’s 11. The slides out there in a number of colours.
Vktry made a reputation for itself with its efficiency insoles, made with carbon fiber. However extra not too long ago, it is ventured into restoration footwear with a set of restoration clogs and restoration slides, each of which retail for $99.
These slides really feel slightly firmer than the Oka and Oofos, and so they have a bit extra of an arch and a deeper heel cup. Each the clogs and slides have a layer of cushiony foam on prime of Vktry’s signature carbon fiber plate. When you can wipe them down with cleaning soap and water to wash, you are not supposed to completely submerge them in water, in order that’s a small draw back.
They do run fairly true to dimension, so begin with no matter dimension you’d usually put on.
Lots of people swear by Hoka’s trainers, and I appreciated its Ora Restoration Slide 3 slides, although my youngsters did not like the colour I chosen. (The corporate affords loads of coloration choices, however I already had just a few darker coloured slides, so I made a decision to go along with a lighter coloration.)
The Ora Slide 3 is a bit firmer than the Oka and Oofos and has good traction on its soles, which look fairly just like a operating shoe’s soles. Additionally they have slightly little bit of arch assist and run huge and pretty giant.
I sized right down to a males’s 9/girls’s 11, and it match fairly properly, however I nonetheless had some room to spare.
Fleks make a number of kinds of restoration slides, sandals and clogs. Considered one of its slides defining attributes is that they are all constructed from 85% recycled supplies, together with efficiency foam waste (which is all these additional scraps of froth from factories making athletic sneakers).
Crafted with nonslip Blumaka technology, the corporate says its footwear is “designed to scale back fatigue and assist muscle restoration,” with every fashion providing “cushioned consolation and foot-cradling ergonomics to ease stress in your toes, legs and physique.” Their grippy floor is a pleasant plus, and so they had simply the correct amount of arch assist and depth to their heel cup. Additionally they do properly with water.
Notice that they run true to dimension and have a medium width.
Roll Restoration, which makes some interesting rollers for muscle recovery, moved into the restoration footwear market pretty not too long ago. I attempted its new SuperPlush Solace, which the corporate payments as its “most premium, most luxurious restoration footwear ever created.”
A pair does run slightly costly at $110. Nonetheless, the slides have some pure suede as a part of the development (with an adjustable Velcro strap that I appreciated), together with Roll Restoration’s patented Cradle-Design footbed, which did cradle my toes properly. Accessible in just a few completely different coloration choices, these slides are springy however slightly firmer than the Oofos’ Oohha slides and never as thick.
I made a decision to dimension down for these, and certainly, they run barely massive. Notice that the SuperPlus Solace seems to be unisex, however Roll Restoration has separate product pages on its web site for males’s and ladies’s variations.
