Getting the right fit is crucial when shopping for shoes online, especially with major brands like Nike and adidas. Fortunately, this guide highlights the key sizing differences between their sneakers, so you can confidently choose the right size regardless of the brand. Whether it's basketball shoes to running trainers, this article should help you navigate the variations in length, width, and overall fit to avoid any sizing mishaps.
How should they fit?
To choose between Nike and adidas, it's important to understand the proper fit. Their footwear is popular for various activities like training, exercise, and everyday wear, but determining which one will be the best and most comfortable for you requires knowledge of how shoes should fit first.
According to Nike, your shoes should fit comfortably, allowing your toes enough room to wiggle and stretch to avoid any irritation. Moreover, if you're walking and your shoes start to slip off, or your ankle is constantly rubbing against the collar, it's a sign that they don't fit properly. Therefore, you may need to go half a size up or down to find the right fit.
Clarks support this idea, recommending leaving about one finger's width between your longest toe and the end of your shoes, with the natural bend occurring around the balls of your feet. This can be applied to all kinds of footwear, including the Nike Ultrafly or adidas Ultraboost running trainers, basketball shoes like the Nike Giannis Immortality 4s, or sneakers designed for everyday wear.
So, with how your shoes should fit established, it's time to see how the two brands compare for size.
Nike vs adidas size guide
As seen in the picture below, Nike trainers are actually a touch bigger than adidas running shoes, thus making them a full 44 in EU sizing.
As a result, it seems as though Nike shoes, particularly running trainers, fit true to size, while you may need to go half an EU size larger in adidas sneakers. Make sure you check out our guide on measuring shoe size to help you figure out what size you need.
Although the length of your shoes is an important factor in getting the right fit, it is not the only consideration. The width of your shoes also plays a crucial role. However, it can be challenging to compare the width of shoes between different brands, as they may have varying sizes depending on their intended use.
As shown below, Nike does provide some indication of when you need a wide-fitting shoe (a men's US 10 with a foot as wide as 4.2 inches, or 10.67cm, is considered a wide fit), but the same information isn't as easy to find for adidas.
That said, more generalized information can be found online about when you need wider-fitting shoes and their subsequent codes. Here is a breakdown of the for a Men's US 8 shoe:
- B - Approx. 8.73cm
- D - Approx. 9.68cm
- 2E - Approx. 10.64cm
- 4E - Approx. 11.59cm
If you need wider-fitting shoes without actually buying wide-fit trainers specifically, then I would personally recommend checking out some of the best Air Force 1s or Nike Dunks, as you should find they come with a little more room than your average pair of Nike or adidas trainers because of their roots in basketball. Conversely, you may find running trainers provide a tighter fit seeing as they're designed to be tight, streamlined, and designed for performance above all else.
Which shoes fit wide feet?
Being a little larger in size, you may find Nike shoes offer a slightly better fit for wider feet. However, it's worth noting adidas offers a selection of exclusively wide-fit footwear. In said range, you'll find a selection of top football boots, basketball shoes, and even gym trainers.
That said, Nike also has its own collection of wide-fitting shoes, which includes extra-wide variations of the highly popular Nike Revolution 7s mentioned in our guide to Nike and New Balance sizing.
Ultimately, both brands make significant efforts to accommodate wider feet, ensuring that there is a suitable pair of shoes available to meet the needs of all individuals.
Which shoes run narrow?
Although we've established that Nike shoes may be a little more comfortable for wide feet, both brands still produce several shoes that you may find fit slightly narrower than most. Ultraboosts, for instance, are high-performance running shoes that are designed to fit snugly to keep them lightweight and ensure a secure fit.
Flyknit Nike trainers may also exhibit similar behavior. From our experience, the knitted fabric of Flyknit shoes tends to wrap tightly around the feet, resulting in what can often feel like a snug fit.
Nike also mentions some of its Free trainers can, at times, feel tighter than alternative Nike models due to the internal webbing used to keep your feet in place for a more secure lock-in.
To steer clear of a tight-fitting shoe, basketball shoes are worth considering as they tend to offer a roomier fit. One example is the adidas Harden Vol. 8s, which are designed to accommodate the rapid lateral movements required in basketball and, therefore, typically provide a wider fit compared to adidas Ultraboosts, for instance. If you're looking for something a little more suitable for everyday wear, then we'd suggest checking out the aforementioned Nike Air Force 1 range, which was originally designed for basketball when it first arrived in 1982.
However, it's important to keep in mind when comparing Nike vs adidas sizing that the difference between shoes' widths may differ for various models. Therefore, we suggest that you try on the shoes you intend to purchase (if possible) to ensure that they suit your feet well. If not, then hopefully our guide has given you a little more insight into which size to go with.
- Read More: Best sneaker deals
That's it! Hopefully this guide has helped you find the right size for your feet. Stay tuned for more guides like this at RealKit.