Shoe Size Conversion: US, UK, EU and CM Charts That Make Sense
Measure your foot in centimetres and convert from that. Every national scale is just a different way of counting the same length.
29 September 2026 · 7 min read · Reference
Shoe sizes look arbitrary until you see what each country is counting. Then they become simple arithmetic on one number: the length of your foot.
Measure first
- Stand on a sheet of paper with your heel against a wall, wearing the socks you intend to use.
- Mark the tip of your longest toe. It is not always the big toe.
- Measure from the wall to the mark in centimetres, and do both feet. They differ for most people.
- Use the larger foot, and measure in the afternoon when feet are at their largest.
Convert from that measurement with the shoe size converter, not from a size you wore in another brand.
What each system counts
- UK and US count barleycorns: one third of an inch per size, a unit fixed by English statute in the fourteenth century. UK and US men's sizes differ by exactly one.
- Europe counts Paris points: two thirds of a centimetre per size, so EU sizes step in smaller increments.
- Japan, China and Mondopoint simply state the foot length, in centimetres or millimetres. This is the only system with no hidden assumptions, and it is what the military and ski boot industries use.
All the national scales size the last, the shape the shoe is built around, which is roughly a centimetre longer than your foot. That allowance is why charts from different makers disagree by half a size.
Men's chart
| Foot length | US men | UK | EU |
|---|---|---|---|
| 24.4 cm | 6 | 5 | 38 |
| 25.2 cm | 7 | 6 | 39.5 |
| 26.1 cm | 8 | 7 | 40.5 |
| 26.9 cm | 9 | 8 | 42 |
| 27.8 cm | 10 | 9 | 43 |
| 28.6 cm | 11 | 10 | 44.5 |
| 29.5 cm | 12 | 11 | 45.5 |
| 30.3 cm | 13 | 12 | 47 |
Women's chart
| Foot length | US women | UK | EU |
|---|---|---|---|
| 22.3 cm | 5 | 2.5 | 35 |
| 23.1 cm | 6 | 3.5 | 36 |
| 24.0 cm | 7 | 4.5 | 37.5 |
| 24.8 cm | 8 | 5.5 | 38.5 |
| 25.7 cm | 9 | 6.5 | 40 |
| 26.5 cm | 10 | 7.5 | 41.5 |
| 27.4 cm | 11 | 8.5 | 42.5 |
US men to US women: add 1.5. A US men's 8 is a US women's 9.5 in the same shoe.
Why brands still disagree
Converting correctly gets you close, not exact. Three things move the answer:
- Last shape. A running last is longer and narrower than a boot last at the same nominal size.
- Vanity sizing. Some brands quietly run large so the number feels better.
- Width. US sizes carry a width letter (2A to 6E). Europe mostly does not, which is why a correctly converted size can still pinch.
Italian brands in particular tend to run small, and many sports brands run about half a size large.
Children's sizes
Children's scales restart at zero and run on the same barleycorn step, so a child's UK 13 is followed by an adult UK 1. Children's feet grow roughly two sizes a year until school age, so measure every three months and leave about a centimetre of growing room.
Quick conversions
This article is for general information. Please verify figures against the relevant standard before using them in critical work. About accuracy