NEW: Make Mom’s last-minute gift more thoughtful with a gift teaser! 🎁✨

Men's Wedding Shoes

  • Review spotlight

    Learn More About Men's Wedding Shoes

    To narrow down the best wedding shoes for you, start by considering the wedding's theme, location, and level of formality. A wedding at the beach might call for a pair of comfortable loafers, while a church wedding may require more formal attire like a pair of black leather oxfords. If you are outdoors on a hot day, you might want a stylish shoe that breathes with a low ankle, like a pair of suede derbies.


    Ensure your dress shoes complement your outfit by matching the color of your shoe to your suit jacket, and when in doubt, choose black. Black dress shoes go with any suit color, whether you choose a full tuxedo, a navy pinstripe jacket, or a royal purple suit. For a solid neutral option, try brown leather dress shoes to pair with a cobalt or tan suit. For those who prefer to stand out, consider velvet or patterned dress shoes to add color and texture to your ensemble.


    While your shoes may not make it into every wedding photo, choosing comfortable ones will ensure your face shows you enjoy every moment, so it’s a good idea to wear them around the house and often leading up to the wedding to break them in properly.

    From stylish sandals and cowboy boots to both real and faux leather dress shoes, there are many wedding shoe options to choose from on Etsy. The most popular styles of men’s wedding shoes, however, remain the traditional, British-designed classics:


    • Oxfords and wingtips: Universal and timeless, oxfords are characterized by their closed laces that hide the eyelet tabs under the vamp for a polished and clean look. They are often considered the gold standard of formal dress shoes. Wingtips are a style of oxford with a pointed-toe cap shaped like a “W” or an “M,” depending on the viewing angle.
    • Derby shoes: Like oxfords, derby shoes are another formal lace-up shoe, but they have an open lace that gives them a robust, adaptable quality. This is the shoe if you’re looking for polite and formal that isn’t all curtsies and handshakes.
    • Brogues: Technically a styling detail, brogues have carved out a name for themselves as a sub-style of shoe. They have a low heel with a patchwork-style design made from multiple pieces of sturdy leather. The defining feature of any brogue is its decorative perforations around the edges of each stitched piece, including on the toe.
    • Monkstraps: Choosing a formal shoe without laces is often a bold move in and of itself but can pay major dividends in style points and uniqueness. Monkstraps date back centuries and have straddled the line between sandals and dress shoes ever since. Look for single straps for an understated look, or choose two or three straps for more of an edge.
    • Loafers: While they do give off a more laid-back appearance, loafers are no slouch and can hold down a wedding party like any other shoe. While not recommended for a black-tie wedding—though you can totally pull off velvet loafers with a tuxedo—loafers lean slightly more toward comfort and have become a staple men’s shoe for beach weddings and more casual wedding settings.