What Are the Best Mary Janes?

I’ve owned this patent pair of mary janes for around two years now, and I reach for them often. While the heel is a little higher than kitten-height, it’s blocky, so I can wear them for a day at the office without feeling an ache (or a pinch). You also don’t have to faff about with the buckle; it’s just for show: The last strap actually hooks and unhooks, so you can slip the shoes on and off in a matter of seconds. I don’t recall having to break them in, but I did wear them with socks for the first few times to be on the safe side. On the whole, I sort of consider these a bit of a dupe for the coveted Carels below (for a tenth of the price).

Tessa Domzalski, the creator behind the YouTube channel ModernGurlz, also likes the mary janes from Charles & Keith (though her two-tone pair is no longer available). Domzalski said that due to her feet being a little wider, it took her some time to break in the shoes, but she can now stomp around in them with no problem. Like me, she also finds the heel incredibly comfortable.

“People go crazy for my orthopedic-ish mary janes,” says Strategist senior editor Hilary Reid. While not technically orthopedic (“spiritually orthopedic,” though, says Reid), they’re comfortable enough to wear while walking 60 blocks home or on a gentle holiday hike. They also look far more expensive than they are, and Reid says they’re often mistaken for Miu Miu. While she owns the classic black, I like the slightly girlier chrome option.

Isabella Weatherby, founder of the British brand Peachy Den, says wearing mary janes “instills a sense of nostalgia to being back in the school classroom.” Her pair of choice comes from the independent British brand Home of Hai and are made of leather and velvet. Weatherby, who “inherited flat feet,” says she always prioritizes comfort in footwear. “My mary janes are the perfect intersection between timeless style and an orthopedic shoe,” she says.

I take our travel writer Kat Gillespie’s practical-footwear suggestions very seriously: She trekked the Himalayas, after all. While she didn’t pack the Campus Mary Janes for that expedition, she does say that they’re suitable for wearing both to the office and beyond in almost all seasons. “They’re really lightweight yet solid, and were immediately comfortable — no blisters, no wear-in time, which is kind of crazy for this style of shoe,” she says. “I am a big city walker and can do miles and miles in these. They have thick rubber soles with good traction.” They’re scuff-resistant, too, says Gillespie, who says that after over a year of consistent use, they still look box-fresh.

“These remind me of the shoes on Bratz dolls — in your face and ideal for stomping around,” says Strategist writer Ambar Pardilla. Though they are chunky, these mary janes from Larroude are actually lightweight and remarkably comfortable, says Pardilla (who has been known to end up with a twisted ankle from shoes with only a wedge). “I feel balanced because of the platform,” she adds.

“I love these mary janes so much I actually have a tattoo of them,” says Vivian Chen, writer of the fashion newsletter The Molehill. “Seeing the robin’s-egg-blue interior lining against the black leather makes me happy — it’s a very Alice in Wonderland color scheme.” To style, Chen will pair these mary janes with socks, which, along with the dainty bow, make the style more doll-like.

Strategist writer Lauren Ro managed to get the iconic Carel three-straps on sale — she chose the lower-heel style as she wanted an everyday kind of shoe. But what surprised Ro about them is how comfortable they are. “As with all new shoes, there was a tiny bit of blistering, but after a couple of wears they broke right in,” she says. “I also have bunions, and though these shoes look narrow, they actually accommodate them just fine. I can wear these all day long.”

Pardilla also owns this metallic pair of pumps from Suzanne Rae. “Unlike a lot of glittered shoes (of which I own a lot of), they don’t leave a trail of glitter behind me,” she says. “They’re conversation-starter shoes: Everywhere I wear them, someone’s bound to say, ‘Where did you get those?’” They’re pretty practical, too, says Pardilla: While she wouldn’t wear them for a hike, she labels them a solid shoe for a long night.

Illustrator Poppy Almond’s pair of mary janes comes from Acne. “They’re the perfect balance of fun with the star details and cool with the chunkier gum soles,” she says. “They have this supersoft leather that makes them one of the comfiest and most reached-for shoes in my collection at the moment.”

Emilia Petrarca, freelance writer and founder of the newsletter Shop Rat, invested in these mary janes after spotting them on a Simone Rocha store manager. “I saw she posted a picture wearing these mary jane flats, and I think I had the most basic human instinct that I was just like, Oooh, shiny!” The shoes are made from a foil Petrarca says is bendy and moldable but not at all flimsy: “I don’t feel like I’m going to ruin the foil when I walk around. I wore them yesterday to run some errands; they’re definitely comfortable, and the strap helps them feel snug on my feet.”

[Editor’s note: These are no longer available to buy new, but there are plenty on Vestiaire.]

Three of the people we chatted with told us about their Margiela Tabi mary janes, including presenter Jasmine Muller. “They combine the distinctive split-toe Tabi style, inspired by traditional Japanese socks, with the classic mary jane strap,” she says. Yotka has owned her pair since spotting them on Chopova Lowena’s Laura Lowena in London. “The mary jane has a girlish association — prep school, Sunday school, sweet 16s, etc. — but I really liked how Laura wore them in a more punk and sporty way, not so precious,” she says. Yotka advises anyone buying a pair of Tabis to go out and have a rubber sole added to them immediately or the leather sole will suffer. But Yotka found her pair comfortable right out of the box, sturdy, and recognizable. “I think it’s a nice version of a Tabi because it does seem like a shoe people recognize at first, even if they aren’t quite as hard-core fashion-obsessed,” she says.