How to Choose Rock Climbing Shoes

Made without animal-derived materials, the men's La Sportiva Skwama Vegan climbing shoes deliver the same precision fit and exact control as the originals but with foot-contouring SkinLike™ insoles.
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Imported.
View all La Sportiva Men's Climbing ShoesBest Use | Rock Climbing |
---|---|
Climbing Shoe Type | Aggressive |
Last | Slip-lasted |
Upper | Microfiber/rubber toe cap/rubber rands |
Lining | Dentex (heel) |
Outsole | 4 mm Vibram XS Grip2/S-Heel |
Footwear Closure | Strap |
Can Be Resoled | Yes |
Vegan | Yes |
Gender | Men's |
Weight (Pair) | 1 lb. 0.2 oz. |
Climbing Shoe Volume | Low |
Sustainability | From a Climate Neutral Certified brand |
34 EU | 35.5 EU | 36.5 EU | 37 EU | 37.5 EU | 38 EU | 38.5 EU | 39 EU | 39.5 EU | 40 EU | 40.5 EU | 41 EU | 41.5 EU | 42 EU | 42.5 EU | 43 EU | 43.5 EU | 44 EU | 44.5 EU | 45 EU | 45.5 EU | 46 EU | 46.5 EU | 47 EU | 47.5 EU | 48 EU | 48.5 EU | 49 EU | 49.5 EU | 50 EU | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
U.S. Men's | 2.5+ | 4 | 4.5+ | 5 | 5.5 | 6 | 6.5 | 6.5+ | 7 | 7.5 | 8 | 8.5 | 8.5+ | 9 | 9.5 | 10 | 10.5 | 10.5+ | 11 | 11.5 | 12 | 12.5 | 12.5+ | 13 | 13.5 | 14 | 14.5 | 15 | 15.5 | 16 |
U.S. Women's | 3.5 | 5 | 5.5+ | 6 | 6.5 | 7 | 7.5 | 7.5+ | 8 | 8.5 | 9 | 9.5 | 9.5+ | 10 | 10.5 | 11 | 11.5 | 11.5+ | 12 | 12.5 | 13 | 13.5 | 13.5+ | 14 | 14.5 | 15 | 15.5 | 16 | 16.5 | |
EU | 34 | 35.5 | 36.5 | 37 | 37.5 | 38 | 38.5 | 39 | 39.5 | 40 | 40.5 | 41 | 41.5 | 42 | 42.5 | 43 | 43.5 | 44 | 44.5 | 45 | 45.5 | 46 | 46.5 | 47 | 47.5 | 48 | 48.5 | 49 | 49.5 | 50 |
Mondo | 24 | 24.5 | 25 | 25.5 | 26 | 26.5 | 27 | 27.5 | 28 | 28.5 | 29 | 29.5 | 30 | 30.5 | 31 |
For boots: Add one half size to your street shoe size. You should be able to slip one finger behind your heel when you are standing up with the boot unlaced and your toes touching the front. If the boot is too short, your toes will get smashed walking downhill. Too long and your heel will slide up and down and give you blisters.
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I've had two pairs of the vegan skwama, the leather was my first pair and lasted a long time. Recently bought another pair of the leather ones. I really liked the vegan ones, they fit great and green is my color so it was a no brainer. However, I give it 3 stars as both pairs of the vegan skwamas have ripped between the pull tabs in the back after a few months. Not as durable as real leather.
So far it’s every bit as great as the original skwama. I did size up .5 from the original, because they felt a little tighter and I’m not expecting much stretch.
First of all, La Sportiva is the only brand that makes shoes that fit my feet. My feet are too large for womens' sizes, and most mens' sizes have too much space in other areas of the shoes. La Sportiva mens' sizes are the only ones that are low-volume enough that they're a good all-around fit. I also fit into the Butora Gomi womens' size, but they aren't vegan! These shoes are excellent. They break in well and have sticky rubber. For me, there's no reason to look for another vegan aggressive shoe. There's probably no reason to opt for the model that uses leather, either.
Very very good shoe, I would say they break in less than a regular skwama but they feel great. if you are used to a solution or a Drago, the tip of the shoe will feel less precise. FOR PEOPLE WITH WIDE FEET, my foot it quite wide and I usually find it hard to not feel totally squished on the sides of my foot in la Sportiva shoes, this is no exception. if you have a very wide foot it will be a tad uncomfortable but still definitely wearable. these fit similar to theory's
I've had the leather Skwama's for years, and love them, but I wanted to move towards a vegan shoe to reduce my impact on animal products. This shoe was slightly tighter to get into and had a slower break in, but it did break in and feels pretty awesome on my feet. I'm impressed with the climbing abilities of this shoe and don't see any limitations.
Absolutely stellar shoe. It feels like you just stick on overhangs. I've never bought la sportiva because most of their shoes use leather -- now you can! Unfortunately this shoe caused me to develop achilles tendon issues and now I'm out of climbing. If it hurts your achilles at all, return them. It's not worth it
Large toe box for wide thick feet. I have medium width and real arches. Returned them for another pair of Vegan Cruelty Free shoes. Rated them a 4 because I did not get to test them out. Best of Luck. Take Care and Climb Safe! Steve Thaw, Moraga, CA
The moment I slipped these climbing shoes on they had the perfect fit and they would have a life of quality climbing ahead of them!
I’ve had these shoes for about a half a year, and they are great!