14 Brands Like Earth Shoes for Eco-Friendly Footwear
Arch support and a shoe you'd wear out by choice rarely arrive in the same box. Earth Shoes is one of the few brands that manages both, with structured footbeds under styles like the Skylar flat sandal ($79) and the Printy ruched bootie ($179). The limit is range. Earth's catalogue runs to women's clogs, flats and booties, so a barefoot sole, a trail-capable sneaker or a men's boot means shopping somewhere else.
Here are 14 footwear brands with a comparable comfort-and-materials story, ordered roughly from the closest match outward. Every price below is a full list price read off the brand's own site, and every one of these brands can take your order today.
Two names that used to appear on this list have come off it. Cariuma's storefront now redirects to a password page, and Patagonia has had no everyday footwear line since 2014.
| Brand | Price (USD unless noted) | Best for |
|---|---|---|
| Allbirds | $75 to $160 | A wool or eucalyptus sneaker you can rinse and repeat |
| Veja | $140 (Etna) | A sneaker that reads as fashion first |
| Nisolo | $138 to $268 | Leather loafers, boots and mules built to be resoled |
| Vivobarefoot | Premium | Thin, flexible soles and a wide toe box |
| Saola | $109.95 to $139.95 | Colour, and a recycled-bottle upper |
| TOMS | $50 to $150 | The cheapest way into the category |
| Koio | $265 to $395 | Italian leather sneakers that pass at dinner |
| Rothy's | $100 to $180 | Knit flats you can put through the wash |
| Brother Vellies | $195 to $1,195 | Handmade sandals and boots with real presence |
| Native Shoes | Mid-range | Light, wipe-clean shoes for the school run and the beach |
| Everlane | $98 to $348 | A ballet flat or city boot in a plain palette |
| Lems Shoes | $125 to $210 | A foot-shaped toe box without going fully barefoot |
| NAT-2 | €49.95 to €490 | Sneakers made from coffee, cork or mushroom |
| VIVAIA | Mid-range | Washable flats and heels for an office dress code |
Allbirds
Allbirds is the closest thing to a default answer here, selling merino wool and eucalyptus-fibre sneakers from $75 to $160. The Tree Runner ($100) and the Wool Runner ($110) are the two shoes the brand is known for, and the Wool Runner NZ Mid Waterproof ($160) is the winter version.
Where Earth builds a supportive footbed into a dressier silhouette, Allbirds keeps the shape sporty and the weight down. The wool uppers go in a washing machine on cold, which matters if you wear one pair five days a week.
Sizing runs whole numbers only in most styles, so half-size feet have to pick a side. We'd size up in the Wool Runner if you wear a thicker sock. For a wider field of comparable sneakers, our shoe brands like Allbirds roundup goes deeper.
Veja
Veja is the French sneaker brand that put a chunky V on a low-profile leather upper and made it a uniform, with the Etna at $140. Its supply story is unusually specific: Amazonian wild rubber in the soles, organic cotton in the canvas styles.
Compared with Earth Shoes, Veja gives you almost no arch support. These are flat-lasted sneakers you buy for how they look with jeans, and plenty of owners drop in an aftermarket insole. Earth wins on all-day comfort out of the box.
The Etna is the current entry point, and the Campo and V-10 families sit alongside it. We've broken the full model line down in our sneaker brands like Veja guide.
Nisolo
Nisolo makes leather loafers, mules, boots and sandals with list prices from $138 to $268, which puts it a clear step above Earth Shoes on materials and on price. The Fina Pointed Toe Flat lists at $198 and the Dari Boot 2.0 at $268.
The construction is the argument. These are stitched leather shoes meant to be resoled rather than replaced, so the cost per year lands closer to a $99 pair than the sticker suggests.
One thing to watch: Nisolo discounts hard and often, and the whole women's catalogue was marked down when we checked. The figures above are the list prices, not the sale ones, so treat anything lower as a genuine saving.
Vivobarefoot
Vivobarefoot sits at the premium end of minimalist footwear, building shoes with a 3mm sole, zero heel drop and a toe box shaped like an actual foot. The Primus Lite trainer and the Tracker boot are its two long-running families.
This is the opposite design philosophy to Earth Shoes. Earth cushions and supports the arch, Vivobarefoot removes the cushioning so your foot does the work. People who make the switch usually describe a few weeks of adjustment before their calves stop complaining.
Vivobarefoot's site blocks automated requests, so we've left individual model prices out of this section instead of quoting a figure we couldn't read at the source. Budget for a premium buy.
Saola
Saola sells recycled-bottle sneakers between $109.95 and $139.95, and it's the most colourful brand on this list by a distance. The Bali ($109.95) is the everyday canvas-look style and the Tsavo 2.0 Wool ($139.95) is the warmer one.
Saola shares Earth's comfort-first brief but aims younger and brighter. Where Earth gives you almond, black and tan, Saola runs faded rose, wine and green through the same silhouettes.
Stock is thin on some colourways, with several styles down to two or three sizes when we looked. If a colour matters to you, buy it when you see it. The brand also sells a $1 carbon-offset line item at checkout, which is a claim about the purchase rather than the shoe.
TOMS
TOMS is the cheapest entry point in this category, with women's shoes from $50 to $150. The Alpargata slip-on ($50) is the shoe the company was built on, and the Bennet water-resistant leather boot ($150) is the top of the range.
Against Earth Shoes, TOMS gives up support. An Alpargata is a flat canvas slipper with a thin insole, and it's a summer shoe rather than an all-day one. What you get for the money is a shoe that costs less than a third of most of the boots on this page.
The catalogue is large, with 355 women's styles live, so filtering by category saves time. Espadrille sandals sit around $75 and suede wedge boots around $120.
Koio
Koio makes Italian-leather sneakers and boots from $265 to $395, which is the most expensive footwear on this list short of Brother Vellies. The Capri leather sneaker ($265) is the core style and the Bergamo leather boot ($395) the winter one.
Koio isn't where you go for arch support. You buy it because a clean Italian leather sneaker reads as a shoe rather than a trainer, and it works with trousers in a way an Earth clog doesn't.
Useful detail: Koio lists the Capri in a wide fit at the same $265, which is unusual at this price. Stock across sizes looked healthy when we checked, with most colourways showing seven or more sizes available.
Rothy's
Rothy's knits its shoes from recycled plastic thread, which is what lets you put them in a washing machine. Flats run from the Square Mary Jane ($100) through the Point II ($125) to the Almond Loafer ($180).
This is the brand to pick over Earth Shoes if your problem is upkeep rather than support. A knit flat that comes out of the wash looking new is a different proposition to leather you have to condition.
The trade-off is structure. There's no meaningful arch inside a Rothy's, and the knit gives with wear, so the fit loosens over a season. Wash cold, air dry, and skip the dryer if you want them to hold shape.
Brother Vellies
Brother Vellies is the outlier on this page, a handmade label founded by Aurora James whose shoes run from $195 Summer Huaraches to $1,195 doodle-painted cowboy boots. The Erongo Vellies ($335) are the signature desert boot.
Nothing here overlaps with Earth Shoes on function. These are occasion shoes made in small runs using traditional African artisan techniques, and they're priced accordingly.
Two practical notes. The catalogue is 65 styles and much of it sits on deep markdown, so the list prices above are what the shoes cost before those cuts. Availability is patchy, with several styles showing no sizes at all, so check before you set your heart on one.
Native Shoes
Native Shoes makes light, moulded EVA shoes you can rinse under a tap, which is why the Jefferson slip-on turns up on so many children and so many parents. Adult and kids' ranges share the same shapes.
Set against Earth Shoes, Native is the low-maintenance option. There's no leather to care for and no footbed to break in, and a hose fixes most of what a summer does to them.
The brand's site sits behind a bot filter, so we've left individual prices out rather than quote figures we couldn't read at the source. It's a mid-range brand, cheaper than Koio or Nisolo. Our brands like Native Shoes roundup covers the nearest alternatives.
Everlane
Everlane runs a real shoe line rather than a token pair, with full prices from $98 to $348. The Day Glove flat ($98) and the Day Crossover Sandal ($98) anchor the bottom, and the Leather Knee-High City Boot ($348) the top.
The palette is where it meets Earth Shoes: black, tan, cream, almond, and shapes that don't date. Everlane skews flatter and more minimal, with less built-in support than Earth puts under a clog.
Worth knowing before you shop: of 250 women's shoe listings we pulled, only 29 were available at full price, so most of what you see is discounted stock in scattered sizes. Our brands like Everlane guide covers the rest of the wardrobe.
Lems Shoes
Lems Shoes occupies the ground between Earth's cushioned footbed and Vivobarefoot's bare sole, pricing sneakers and boots from $125 to $210. The Primal 3 ($125), the Mesa Verde ($135) and the Boulder Summit Waterproof boot ($210) cover most of what people buy.
The signature is a foot-shaped toe box with a flexible sole that still has some cushioning under it. If wide feet are your reason for looking past Earth Shoes, start here.
Stock depth is good, which is rare on this list. The Primal Zen showed 101 of 104 size and colour combinations available when we checked, so you're unlikely to be pushed into a size that doesn't fit.
NAT-2
NAT-2 is a German label that builds sneakers out of materials no other sneaker brand uses: coffee grounds, cork, recycled bubble wrap, hayfield grass and mushroom. Prices run from €49.95 for a canvas Mono to €490 for the Fungi.
Read this one before you click. NAT-2's own site is a portfolio with no cart and no prices, and the brand sells through coilex.com, where 76 NAT-2 styles were in stock when we checked. Prices there are in euros.
Against Earth Shoes this is a design buy rather than a comfort buy. The waterproof Mono ETA (€119.95) and the Rugged Prime rainboots (€149.95) are the practical end. The Sleek at €299 is where the material experiments get interesting.
VIVAIA
VIVAIA knits washable flats, mary janes and low heels from recycled plastic bottles, covering the dressier end of the machine-washable category that Rothy's opened up.
This is the pick if your office has a dress code and your commute has puddles. VIVAIA does pointed toes and block heels that Earth Shoes doesn't, in a knit upper that handles rain better than suede.
VIVAIA's site blocks automated requests, so we've kept prices out of this section instead of quoting numbers we couldn't verify at the source. It's a mid-range brand, roughly level with Rothy's. If you like the washable-knit idea, compare the two on toe shape before you commit, because that's where they diverge most.
How to Pick Your Pair
Start with what sent you looking. If Earth Shoes' footbed is the thing you want more of, Lems and Vivobarefoot take the foot-health argument further, in opposite directions. If it's the sustainability angle, Allbirds and Saola give you the clearest material story at a normal price.
Budget sorts the rest. Under $110 you're choosing between TOMS, Rothy's flats and the entry Allbirds. Above $250 you're paying for leather and construction at Koio, Nisolo and Brother Vellies.
One habit worth keeping: check the list price, not the sale banner. Four brands on this page were running sitewide markdowns when we checked, and a $79 boot that lists at $268 tells you something different to a $79 boot that costs $79. More of our shoe research sits under sustainable.
If you purchase through our links, we may receive a commission. Our editorial team is independent and only endorses brands we believe in.
Written by
Spencer Lanoue
