Best Sandals for Women of 2026

Six ounces. That's what the listing says for the On-the-Go 600, and it's the number that explains the sandal: light enough that a pair barely registers in a carry-on, and light enough that you stop noticing it's on by mid-afternoon.

What makes it our pick for all-day walking is the way that weight pairs with a cushioned footbed that behaves more like a sneaker midsole than a flip-flop. The arch support is real, the sole is soft without turning mushy underfoot, and the upper sits close enough to the foot that you can cover ground without the sandal slapping. For a theme-park day or a city break, these beat canvas sneakers in July.

Wide feet are looked after too: it comes in wide widths, and the fit is roomy across the forefoot without the whole sandal feeling loose. Grip is the one thing to watch. On smooth, wet floors, tiled bathrooms and a splashy pool deck among them, the outsole is the least secure in this group, so we keep them for pavement and dry ground.

Nothing else in this roundup adjusts at as many points. The Hurricane XLT 2 has three hook-and-loop straps, across the toes, over the instep, and around the heel, and between them they'll fit a narrow foot, a wide one, and the very common foot that is one width at the toes and another at the heel.

On a trail, that's not a nicety. Three points of adjustment keep the sandal on when you cross a stream or pick your way down loose rock, and the footbed underneath has enough structure that a long walk doesn't leave your arches throbbing. It's the most expensive pair here, and the straps and the sole are where the money went.

Break-in is the catch. The front strap is the one that rubs, and a first long walk in a brand-new pair is where a hot spot shows up. Set that strap loose enough to slide a finger under it for the first few outings; it's the adjustment that decides how the first week goes.

Even with that, this is the pair we point to the moment someone says the word hike. It's the most secure sandal here on uneven ground, it dries fast enough to wear straight out of a river, and the fit you dial in on day one doesn't wander. For a trip that mixes a beach walk with a mountain, one pair covers both.

Every summer bag needs one pair that can get ruined and come back. The Swiftwater is that pair: slip it on for the pool, the sprinkler, or the rocky end of the beach, rinse it under a tap, and it's dry before you've found your towel. We recommend it for water and hot pavement rather than a ten-mile day.

It's a molded slide with a soft, foot-shaped bed, and it adds almost nothing to a suitcase. Sand doesn't cling to it the way it does to webbing, which matters if you're the one shaking out the beach bag at the end of the day, and there's no strap to adjust, buckle, or lose.

The look is better than a utility sandal has any right to be. The colors are the brightest in this group, the shape is neat enough to wear to lunch off the beach, and a pair that gets a compliment at a beach bar is doing more than it was hired for.

The Lane is the cork-footbed sandal we point people to when they like the look but don't want to spend premium money. Two buckle straps, a molded cork bed, and a shape that reads more expensive than it is. The brown in particular looks like it came off a much pricier shelf.

Wear them for a full workday and the cork does what cork is supposed to do: firm at first, then shaped to your foot within the first week or so. The buckles take up slack across a high instep, which is the fit problem a plain slip-on slide can't solve, and the neutral browns go with denim, linen, and everything in between.

Our advice is to order up. These run small, and the buckles only close so far, so if you're between sizes the larger one is the one that will fit. Get the size right and this is the best cork-style sandal in the group: the footbed feels like a real one rather than a foam impression of one, and you can wear it hard without worrying about it.

Nothing else here is built for a wedding. The Alicegana is a flat, jeweled, bohemian sandal with an elastic ankle strap instead of buckles: the pair you wear with a sundress to a summer ceremony and then keep wearing to dinner for the rest of the trip.

The comfort is the surprise. A dressy flat usually means a thin sole and a blister by the toast, and this one has padding under the ball of the foot and enough structure to stand around in for an evening. The elastic strap goes on in one motion, which matters more than it sounds when you're getting ready in a small hotel room, and the stitched upper doesn't look like a cheap shoe.

We treat it as an occasion sandal. It'll handle a long sightseeing day, but it isn't the pair we reach for when the plan is hours of pavement, and durability is the part that ages: plan on a season or two of regular wear rather than a decade. For a wedding, a vacation dinner, or a day when you want to look pulled together without heels, it earns its spot.

This is the least expensive pair in the roundup by a wide margin, and it's the one we suggest when someone wants a summer sandal and doesn't want to think about it. A thin strappy flat with a padded footbed, it reads as a neutral, goes-with-everything shoe rather than a cheap one.

The fit is the good news. It's true to size, roomy enough across a wider forefoot, and there's no break-in at all: the straps are soft and the sole is padded from the first wearing. Order your usual size and get on with your summer.

From a few feet away the finish reads like leather, which is the trick that makes these work with a sundress or linen trousers as happily as with shorts. The brown and the lighter neutrals disappear into an outfit instead of announcing themselves, which is exactly what you want from a sandal at this end of the list.

We recommend them for the sandal drawer rather than the sandal rotation: the pair you leave by the door, throw in a weekend bag, and don't fret about at a picnic table. Buy one in the brown and one in the nude and you've covered most of a summer's outfits without giving it another thought.

These are the pair we keep by the door: a thick, plush sole that's kinder to a hard floor than anything else in this roundup, and a price that makes keeping a second pair by the back door easy to justify.

There's a little arch molded into the footbed rather than a flat slab, enough that a tired foot doesn't feel unsupported, and they wipe clean with a damp cloth when something spills. Around the house, out to the mailbox, across a rental's tile floor: this is the ground they were built for.

Sizing is the part to get right. These run large and wide, the top strap doesn't adjust, and the wrong size will slide around or flip off at the heel. If you're between sizes, take the smaller one and try them indoors first.

Where they earn their place is the floor you stand on all day: a rental kitchen, a basement laundry room, a balcony you sweep barefoot. Slip them on for that and they're the least fussy pair here, and the rest of the time they're happy to wait by the door.