We're Breaking Up With Boring Footwear—European Fashion Insiders Are Wearing These 7 Fresh Shoe Trends Instead

After finally mastering the capsule wardrobe and perfecting how to dress for each season, the one area I still manage to fall down in is what to wear on my feet. Don’t get me wrong, I love shoes, but therein lies the problem. With so many options on the market (and a fully stocked wardrobe), I often find myself fully dressed but running around at the last minute trying on multiple shoe options and simply settling for the one that’s comfiest. But what if I’ve been missing out on the perfect shoe—one that is both fashionable and functional? Well, according to the best dressed in Europe, I may have been doing exactly that.

As fashion editors we spend a lot of time compiling runway trends , but most often its the street style outside the shows that gives us the best outfit inspiration. After all, see through dresses and towering platforms may be all very well and good for the runway, but street style set know how to breathe new life into pieces we already own ourselves. Wondering what all of 2025’s biggest shoe trends have in common? European fashion insiders were wearing them long before fashion month even started.

Thankfully there’s no need to get FROW tickets to find out which trends will surface in 2025, as stylish Europeans are filling our feeds with plenty of outfit inspiration from their home countries that I’ve been busily taking notes on. After hours of thorough research, I’ve rounded up the seven shoe styles that cropped up time again on the international style set, and I have no doubt these will be everywhere over the next year or so. So, for a mix of current trends, classics and those yet to be adopted by the mainstream, keep scrolling for the European shoe trends that are worth saving for later. There’s a lot to look forward to in 2025.

The Shoe Trends Everyone from London to Copenhagen is Wearing in 2025

1. The Trend: Boat Shoes

The Location: Belgium

Style Notes: Love them or hate them, this throwback take on the loafer has been quietly bubbling up as the “ugly” shoe of 2025, and as anyone who wears Crocs, dad sneakers or rubber shoes will know, it’s often the ugly shoes that get the most attention (but feel the most comfortable). It makes sense that the boat shoe would be so popular, we’re always on the look out for a new flat shoe trend that feels dressier than trainers, and this sturdy-soled wonder may just be the next best thing.

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2. The Trend: The Contemporary Court Shoe

The Location: Copenhagen

Style Notes: You can always expect to get tons of style inspiration from Scandi women, but the one thing I didn’t see coming was a heel. Given just how reliant cities like Copenhagen are on cycling for transport, flat shoes tend to reign supreme, but these season has introduced the court shoe 2.0, a sculptural spin on the classic with a softer silhouette and often a statement heel that doesn’t need to be sky high to get the attention that it deserves. Good news for demi-heel devotees.

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3. The Trend: Mules

The Location: Paris

Style Notes: The French have a penchant for reworking classics to make them feel new again, and mules are back on the agenda for a chilly spring with some sunshine promise. There’s no need for bells and whistles when a pared-back and minimalist mule is all an outfit needs to look polished, and according to Parisians, a pointy toe is best worn with midi skirts or slip dresses and a longline coat for an easy outfit with a little je ne sais quoi.

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4. The Trend: Patent Slingbacks

The Location: Spain

Style Notes: Who could have predicted that the return of the slingback would cause such a stir that near on three years later we would still be discussing them at length? Well, we could actually. Not only does this eternally chic shoe look great with just about anything, but the popular kitten heel height is easy enough for all-day wear too. Spanish dressers have picked up on the power of a patent slingback in particular given just how great they look with tights during the cooler months, and there’s something in this classy, “office siren” pairing that we expect to see much more of in A/W ’25.

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5. The Trend: Embellished Ballerina Pumps

The Location: Amsterdam

Style Notes: Mesh flats may have been the look du jour in 2024, but for 2025, I’ve noticed a uptake in the amount of embellished ballet pumps making their way onto the market. Dressy by day, and perfect for comfortably chic evenings, keep an eye out for studs, sparkle, and chunky adornments over the coming months, this elevated shoe is sticking around for another season and I couldn’t be happier.