US, EU or Inches? Baby Shoe Sizes Explained

Every pair on this site is labeled the same way: a US size, a foot length in inches and the age it typically suits. The EU equivalent and the same length in centimeters live in the size guide. Of those numbers, only one is a measurement.

The foot length is the real number

Foot length, in inches or centimeters, is the length of your child's foot. It does not depend on the brand, the country or the shape of the last. If you measure the foot at home and get 5.1 in (13 cm), that is a fact you can carry from one store to the next.

US and EU sizes are not measurements. They are positions on a scale, and every manufacturer maps that scale slightly differently. Two pairs both marked US 6 can be about a fifth of an inch (4 to 5 mm) apart, and a whole size at this age is only about a third of an inch.

How US kids' sizes work

The US children's scale starts at 0 and climbs to 13. That stretch covers infants and toddlers, often written with a C, as in 5C or 10C. Then, instead of carrying on to 14, it resets and starts again at 1 for youth sizes, written 1Y, 2Y, 3Y and up. So youth 1 is not the smallest size in the range. It is one of the largest, roughly a seven or eight year old foot, and it sits directly above toddler 13. If a 1 appears right after a 13 on a size list, nothing is broken.

Why EU sizes look tidier than they are

EU sizes climb without resetting, which looks more logical. Underneath, they are built on an old unit, the Paris point, about a quarter of an inch. That is why you see EU 19.5 and EU 26.5 on our chart: those are the points where the two systems do not line up, and rounding them away would cost you accuracy exactly where a growing foot needs it.

Why we print the US size and the inches

The US size is the number you already know how to read. The foot length is the number that is actually true. The label shows it in inches; if you think in centimeters, 1 in is 2.54 cm, so a 5.1 in foot is 13 cm and a 5.9 in foot is 15 cm. Our size guide shows both.

So which one do you shop by

The foot length. Always. Measure the foot, take the larger of the two, and match that number, in inches or centimeters. US and EU numbers are useful for comparing against a pair your child already wears well. They are not a substitute for the tape measure. If a listing shows no foot length at all, ask before you order.

Then add growing room

You want roughly 0.4 in (1 cm) beyond the longest toe. Our chart already builds that in: the foot length column is your measurement, and the insole column is what the shoe measures inside. Too little and the shoe is outgrown in six weeks. Too much and it slides forward on every step. And length is only half of it: width decides just as much.

How to use our size guide

1. Measure both feet standing, heel against the wall, in the late afternoon.
2. Take the longer foot, in inches or centimeters.
3. Find that length in the foot length column, in inches or centimeters, and read across for the US size. The EU size is right beside it.
4. Between two sizes, go up.

The short version

• Inches and centimeters are measurements. US and EU are labels.
• US children's sizes reset after 13, so youth 1 is a big size, not a small one.
• Measure both feet standing, buy for the longer one, add about 0.4 in (1 cm).

Our size guide has the full chart in US, EU, inches and centimeters, plus the two minute measuring method.