The Orthopedic Sandal Showdown: The Vionics offer the *Best* arch support of all orthopedic sandals, hands down
I've recently moved into a new apartment with hardwood floors, and as a runner with his fair share of foot issues (historically plantar fasciitis, and lately some Achilles tendinitis) hardwood floors just don't mix with my problematic feet. Finally, I decided I've had enough and sought out some supportive (i.e., orthopedic or orthotic) sandals to wear indoors. After surveying my options, I settled on four sandals from Amazon, representing the major brands in the space:* New Balance, with their PureAlign flipflop ($35)* Vionic (Orthaheel), with their Tide sandal ($65)* Spenco, with their Yumi flipflop (I bought cork & black) (~$45-50)* Neat, with their Zori sandal ($40)What is an orthopedic sandal? These are sandals for folks who tend to be overpronators—folks with low or flexible arches that collapse, allowing your foot to roll inwards. For these people, the typical flat sandal does not offer sufficient support and may actually injure one's foot. So, orthopedic sandals tend to be built for stability with a more substantial and rigid outsole, built with a deeper heel cup (to better align your foot tissue under your heel), and of course, built with a substantial arch hump to better support your foot's arch. People that find relief when using insoles or orthotics in their shoes will find themselves right at home with sandals like these.So in each category, I'll rank the relative place of each sandal, from first (best), to the worst. For a control, I'm also comparing the sandals with my Crocs "Prepair" slide, which was marketed as a "recovery" sandal, but is pretty flat and has little to no arch support whatsoever. Okay, onto the evaluation!----PRICE1) New Balance PureAlign2) Neat Zori3) Spenco Yumi4) Vionic TideNot much to say here, other than that the New Balance is the clear winner on price.MATERIALS/BUILD QUALITY1) Vionic Tide2) Spenco Yumi3) Neat Zori4) New Balance PureAlignThe build quality of the sandals pretty much fell in line with their price. The Vionic Tide featured a nice leather strap, with a soft comfortable liner. At the other end of the spectrum, the New Balance PureAlign isn't shabby, but it feels closer to a typical flipflop you might buy at a local convenience store. The strap, while not uncomfortable, is the most stiff of all the straps—clearly made with not as premium materials. And the footbed is not as soft as the other sandals. Also of note: I bought the "cork" and regular version of the Spenco Yumis, thinking the cork version was made with a similar material to Birkenstocks. Unfortunately, as far as I can tell, it's simply EVA form with a cork pattern/design on it.WEIGHT (weights are for a single mens size 11 sandal)1) Spenco Yumi (174g)2) Vionic Tide (239g) *tied*2) New Balance PureAlign (239g) *tied*4) Neat Zori (244g)I weighed each of these sandals (one foot only) on my scale. Here, the Spenco Yumis really shine. They are featherweights compared to the other sandals, and they really disappear on your feet. The Neat Zoris feel quiet substantial and when pulling the sandals out of their boxes, they definitely felt like they would be the heaviest.ARCH SUPPORT1) Vionic Tide2) New Balance PureAlign3) Neat Zori4) Spenco YumiThe arch support is really the key feature in orthopedic sandals like these, and there was surprising variation. Of course, personal preference varies as to how much "support", or "intrusion" one wants in a shoe, and it's also a matter of acclimation, as many may find an arch that pushes back into their foot to be uncomfortable at first. The Vionic Tides had tremendous arch support, with very little give. You will notice the arch pushing back on your foot. I'm used to rigid insoles in my running shoes, but even then it took me wearing the Vionic Tides for a bit to acclimate to their unyielding support. Once I did though, they felt fantastic and really prevented my foot from rolling in.The surprise contender was the New Balance PureAlign which also offered impressive arch support, though there was more "give" to the arch. Someone looking for good support, but dislikes the intensity of the Vionic Tides may find themselves right at home with New Balance. The Neat Zoris offered reasonable arch support, but the arch design of the sandal means that there can be a lot of flexing of the sandals' arch, so it definitely gives way a bit under weight. The Spencos were rather disappointing here. I would say that they offer more support than the archless Crocs, but not by much. In addition, the arch support is rather flexible, and gives way under foot rolling.COMFORT AND OVERALL RANKING1) Vionic Tide2) New Balance PureAlign3) Spenco Yumi4) Neat ZoriThe Vionic Tide is the most expensive sandal here, and for me, it ends up taking the crown. If you're looking for and can tolerate outstanding arch support, this sandal is comfortable with standout materials. My only complaint is that the straps on the Tide are quite loose, and the sandals can easily slide off my feet (I almost tripped once). There are other Vionic sandals with an identical sole but adjustable strap, and they are already on their way to me. If the adjustable strap solves things, then those will be the sandals I stick with.The honorable mention goes to the New Balance PureAlign. They are the cheapest sandal here, and though it shows from the build quality, the New Balances have them where it counts: great arch support. And again, though the materials are not as nice as its competitors, they are still a comfortable sandal. Those looking for a recovery sandal with great arch support on a budget will love the New Balances. These are a great value..The Spenco Yumis were a frustrating pick. I really wanted to like them, and I had expected that they would be the ones for me. They have really nice build quality, and even though the cork model isn't real cork, they are still a very, very comfortable sandal. I loved how light and invisible the sandals felt. The only problem is the mediocre arch support. Folks looking for a nice recovery sandal and don't need a huge amount of support may be a home here, but I ultimately couldn't choose these for my needs. Also of note: the Spencos are the only sandal with a metatarsal hump/pad, so if you need that in a sandal, check these out!Finally, the Neat Zoris come in dead last. These sandals just really didn't do it for me. First, they are heavy clunkers, and even though they aren't that much heavier than some of the others, the outsole is thick and not really flexible, lending a feeling of greater weight... which gets me to the fact that they were weirdly flexible in other ways. Walking in them, my feet felt like they were fighting the movements and shapes of the Neat Zoris with every step. The toe area is quite dramatically curved up, and so with each step, I felt my toes flexing the toe area. Moreover, the arch had a bit of flex/give to it that was noticeable with every step. Some people on Amazon seem to love the Neat Zoris, but for whatever reason, they just really didn't work for me at all.