Explainers on shoe prices
Each piece works from BLS data and primary sources, with the numbers checked against the indexes on this site.
September 2026, against +3.7% for all items.
at September 2026 prices; $257.88 with overall inflation.
History
Month-by-month BLS data on the 2020 shoe price drop, the 2021–2022 rise and the flat years after, compared with all items, apparel, factory and import prices.
Shoe Prices in the Late 1970s and the 1977 Import DealsWhy 1979 to 1981 brought the steepest shoe price rises in the BLS men’s, women’s and kids’ series, set against 13.5% inflation and the 1977 footwear import limits.
Why Shoe Prices Rose Less Than Inflation Since 1978Since 1978 U.S. shoe prices about doubled while overall prices nearly quintupled. What the BLS record shows about imports, factory output and constant quality.
Reading the data
How BLS replaces a discontinued shoe, when it uses hedonic quality adjustment for footwear, and what that means when you compare a 1985 pair with one from 2026.
How the CPI Prices a Pair of Shoes Each MonthWhere BLS data collectors find shoe prices, how they replace a discontinued pair, what 1982-84=100 means, and why October 2025 is blank in every footwear index.
Men’s vs. Women’s Shoe Prices Since 1978, ComparedMen’s shoe prices rose 97.3% from 1978 to 2025 and women’s 62.6%. Yearly rates, extreme years, seasonal swings and factory prices from BLS data, side by side.
Buying
How the boys’ and girls’ footwear index moved since 1978, what July, August and September look like in the monthly data, and why kids’ shoes are tracked apart.
How to Convert an Old Shoe Price Into Current DollarsBring a shoe price from an old receipt or catalog forward with the BLS footwear index, with worked 1990 and 2005 examples and the limits of the method.
When Shoes Cost Least During the Year, by MonthBLS data from 2015 to 2025 show shoe prices dip in December, January and July and run highest in spring and fall. Month-by-month gaps, and what they do not promise.
Trade and costs
What the BLS producer price index for footwear measures, why factory prices rose 79.9% from 2000 to 2025 while shelf prices rose 17.7%, and what margins show.
U.S. Footwear Tariffs and What They Mean for Shoe PricesGeneral duty rates from HTSUS chapter 64 for sneakers, rubber and leather shoes, why they swing with material and value, and what BLS import prices leave out.
Import Prices for Shoes and How They Compare With Shelf PricesThe three BLS import price indexes for footwear, what they include and leave out, how they moved since 2000, and why October 2025 still has values for them.