From Classic to Controversial, These 8 Shoe Trends Are Coming in Hot for 2025
Now arriving: 2025 shoes! To get you prepared for the next year in fashion, we've been giving you the download on everything from the hottest designer buys to know to the prettiest shoes to feast your eyes on and everything in between. Spring 2025 has so much in store for us, so I can say with certainty that the season was worth the wait, at least when it comes to our wardrobes. One of the most exciting categories you'll want to focus on? Shoes.
After combing through the runways, I've landed on nine shoe trends that are having the biggest impact this season. With the surprising new slippers inspired by The Row's runway and the elegant flats that are currently having a renaissance, consider this list your North Star for all things stylish footwear. Continue on to get your fill of the major spring 2025 shoe trends to know.
Just a Peep
Whether you're ready to revisit the past or are excited by the modern iterations on the trend, there's no question that peep-toe shoes are on track for a noteworthy return in six months. The spring/summer 2025 collections were resolute in their support of the look, with designers across the style spectrum from Prada to Tory Burch to ACNE Studios showcasing their unique takes. At Khaite, round-toe glove pumps were sliced right down the center to reveal a mere hint of skin. Similarly, at Tory Burch, the pumps featured conservative cutouts right at the big toes. These two specific styles are what we're already predicting to be key buys when they hit the market next season.
Cool-Girl Clogs
Call it the Chloé effect, but suddenly elevated clogs are back on the menu for fall, especially those with studded details and cool hardware that give them a cool-girl twist.
Nouveau Thongs
While thong sandals are nothing new, 2025 is bringing a modern twist on the '90s staple shoes. Carven featured a pair of hybrid sandal pumps with a more straight across strap shape while Chloé's take involved an ankle strap and barely-there kitten heels. Both felt altogether fresh and are ushering in a new era of minimalist sandals.
Rounding Off
Pointed- and square-toe shapes have dominated for far too long, and now it's time for round toes to step back into the spotlight.
Totally Transparent
Brandon Maxwell almost exclusively featured a single shoe style on his spring runway: transparent sandals. They came in the form of slides with low-to-the-ground block heels that acted as a casual contrast to the more elegant clothing in the collection. Tibi likewise showed transparent ankle boots in that effortlessly cool way only Tibi can master. Both had us thinking: it's only been less than a decade since PVC shoes were at the height of the trend cycle. Could 2025 be the year we embrace transparency again?
Such a Throwback
In the sneaker world, what's new is old again. It's all about retro silhouettes that revive the styles of decades past, whether that be the '80s-inspired runners at Miu Miu or the high-top '70s-inspired court shoes at Loewe, so if you've been eyeing a new everyday pair to style with everything from jeans to dress, consider this your definite green light.
Personality Pieces
Yep, 2025 is the year personal style will flourish. Be it through the addition of a pillbox hat, antique brooch, or pair of statement-making shoes, our accessories have never said so much about who we are. For footwear, that means more embellishments, hardware accents, and fun-loving fringe will be infiltrating the shoe department.
Lovely Laces
Certain niche aesthetics burn bright and then fade out quickly, but balletcore seems to having true staying power. Delicate lace-up flats with ballerina-inspired ribbon ties are getting a designer stamp of approval and it indicates that the trend—and ballet flats as a whole—are here to stay.
Anna is an editor on the fashion team at Who What Wear and has been at the company for over five years, having begun her career in the Los Angeles office before relocating to New York, where she's currently based. Having always been passionate about pursuing a career in fashion, she built up her experience interning at the likes of Michael Kors, A.L.C., and College Fashionista before joining the team as a post-graduate assistant editor. Anna has penned a number of interviews with Who What Wear's cover stars over the years, including A-listers Megan Fox, Issa Rae, and Emma Chamberlain. She's earned a reputation for scouting new and emerging brands from across the globe and championing them to our audience of millions. While fashion is her main wheelhouse, Anna led the launch of WWW Travels last year, a new lifestyle vertical that highlights all things travel through a fashion-person lens. She is passionate about shopping vintage, whether it be at a favorite local outpost or an on-the-road discovery, and has amassed a wardrobe full of unique finds. When she's not writing, you can find her shooting street imagery on her film camera, attempting to learn a fourth or fifth language, or planning her next trip across the globe.