7 Best Women's Hiking Boots in 2024

How we test hiking boots

Here is our straightforward approach:

• We buy all the boots with our own money. We love being independent and publishing honest reviews. 
• We test each hiker for days, sometimes even weeks. We pay attention to everything, from the comfort and fit, to the grip, durability, breathability, and stiffness. 
• We also take the boots to the lab! Here, we take different measurements and compare them to average values to give context. We also cut the hiking boots in half and report on everything we find and test! 

How are women’s hiking boots different than men’s? 

This entirely depends on the brand! While there’s a generalised rule that says women’s feet are wider at the forefoot and narrower at the heel, that’s not something we get to confirm in all hiking boots. Usually, it’s best to try the boots on! And, if you’re wearing a size that also exists in men’s hiking boots (once converted), you’re in for a treat because you get to choose which one you want. 

Next to the width, we could also expect some brands to change the midsole because women weigh less, so their midsoles can be designed for lower impact forces. This can be reflected in the different softness of the midsole and shock absorption of the midsole. 

Make sure you need boots and not hiking shoes or trail runners

Getting hiking boots is a great idea when you need footwear that will offer more protection, support and stability than hiking shoes or running shoes. Hiking boots are usually way tougher and keep your ankle secured. 

If you’re having second thoughts, here are the main reasons women choose different footwear for hiking: 

1. Hiking shoes instead of boots: great if you don’t need your ankle secured or you’re not hiking in deep snow. Hiking shoes can also be much more flexible and breathable than hiking boots. 
2. Trail running shoes instead of boots or shoes: great if you want to be fast and agile. Trail shoes are more flexible than hiking shoes and boots, can be much more breathable, and they are great when you’re aiming for a fast & light hike. 

Boot recommendations for women who are just entering the world of hiking 

If you’re planning to buy your FIRST EVER pair of hiking boots, here’s what we suggest: 

1. Don’t buy minimalist hiking boots, but cushioned ones. That means looking for at least 30mm in the heel (lab test: heel stack height). 
2. Choose a mid-range lug depth of 4-5 mm. This will work on most terrains, even moderately demanding ones! 
3. Look for lighter hiking boots (less than 500g or 17.6 oz), as heavier ones can cause premature muscle fatigue if you’re not used to such activities. Heavier ones might also offer much more than you need as a beginner, in terms of protection, insulation, and durability. 

5 things to pay attention to when buying women’s hiking boots 

Hiking boots have many features but we showcase here 6 things you should pay attention to, especially if you’re just entering the world of hiking: 

1. Fit of the boot, which includes nailing the length, width, and everything in between
2. Deciding on the hike difficulty. This one is very important because it basically dictates all the other features like lug depth, protection, durability, and so on. 
3. How stable should the boots be? This depends on the terrain, your pronation, and the weight of the backpack you plan to carry. 
4. Season: should boots be breathable or warm? Waterproof or water repellent? There are boots that you can wear all-year round but it’s important to think the weather through. 
5. Do you plan to hike over sharp rocks or deal with the obstacles on the trails? To translate this to the hiking-lab-tests world, do you need an especially protective and durable toebox or the outsole? 

We will cover each of these bullets below and take a deeper dive into the topic of hiking boots. 

1: How to nail the fit in women’s hiking boots 

We always recommend following these 4 steps when buying new hiking boots. Fit is everything so it’s important to prioritise it and spend enough time on finding the perfect one. 

1. You should go shopping for hiking boots later in the day, afternoon or evening. We recommend this because, by then, our legs are swollen a bit from the whole day of activities and that’s exactly what we need. Swelling happens naturally on the hikes, so trying the boots on early in the morning, when your feet are fresh, does not make sense. 
2. Try the boots on with the hiking socks that you usually wear when hiking (or plan to wear) and orthotics (if you’re using them). 
3. Once you’ve laced the boots, check for hotpots. There should be no pressure points on the one hand, and, on the other hand, there should be no sliding within the boot or heel slipping. The boots should fit comfortably, not too tight and not too wide. If you’re in a specialised store, test the boots on different surfaces and ramps (going uphill, downhill, over large rocks, grass, etc.). 
4. When you push your foot forward to reach the toebox with your big toe, there should be one thumb’s width of room behind your heel. Or, if you glue your heel to the back, you should sense as much space in front of your big toe. 

Once you’ve nailed the fit, keep in mind that many hiking boots need to be properly broken in. Don’t rush doing a 30-mile backpacking hike without walking in them shorter distances first. 

Wide toebox in women’s hiking boots

In case you have a wide forefoot, it’s best to look for hiking boots with a wide toebox. Because not every lady has the same shape of feet, we measure the toebox in 2 places. 

This helps us understand its width (obviously) and how much it tapers! Pointer toeboxes are narrower at the big toe. 

If you need more width around the big toe (meaning you prefer the least pointy boots), here are toeboxes that are the widest at the big toe: 

In case you need width around the ball of the foot, these are the boots with the widest toeboxes in that area: 

2: Determine hike difficulty (light, moderate, technical)

Generally, we can split the hikes into 3 groups: light, moderate, and technical. Here’s what we consider them to be: 

• Light hiking: you’re going for an easy hike. The terrain is not demanding, you’re not wearing a heavy backpack, and you might even want to mix it in with urban hiking (boots that look good enough to hit the city in them). These boots can be flexible, pliable, and quite not protective. These hiking boots are sometimes mid-cut because they don’t need to offer the highest level of protection and support.
• Moderate hiking: you want to tackle moderate trails, which means you need somewhat deeper lugs that are able to bite into the ground, that is different from easy hard-packed trails. This could be a multi-day hike over demanding terrain, covering smaller muddy areas or single tracks covered with lighter debris. These boots are often protective and stiffer.
• Technical hiking asks for the most rugged hiking boots with deep lugs. These boots are the most protective, and the stiffest because they should be extra stable and supportive and have the best grip for soft and loose terrain, mud, slush, or terrain covered with tree roots, pebbles, and other obstacles. 

Keep in mind that, if you’re planning to do high-altitude hiking, you should also consider mountaineering boots. These boots have extra insulation layers, can be deeper (higher up the leg), and can withstand harsher conditions (ice, snow, freezing temperatures) for longer periods of time with your feet not freezing in them. 

3: Grip and lug depth in women’s hiking boots 

When we talk about grip, we cover 3 things: the thickness of the lugs, outsole thickness, and the hardness of the outsole rubber. 

When measuring the hardness of the rubber, it’s important to note that the higher numbers on the durometer indicate a harder rubber and lower numbers mean the rubber is softer. Harder rubber is more durable and protective, while softer rubber is stickier. 

Depending on the terrain, we split women’s hiking boots into 3 groups: 

1. Boots for light hiking usually have lugs shallower than 4 mm 
2. Boots for moderate hiking have lugs in the 4-5 mm range
3. Boots for technical hiking have lugs deeper than 5 mm

These numbers tell us a lot about the difference between the boots and women’s trail running shoes because, in the world of trail runners, shallow lugs are around 2 mm, while thick lugs are deeper than 4 mm. 

This means that, usually, the deeper lugs mean the boots are ready for more demanding terrain. However, there can be some overlap because it’s not just about the lugs. Some boots are chunky and focused more on the style, so even if they have deeper lugs, they shine best at light hiking. Other boots can have mid-range lug depth but an aggressive slimmer design which makes them great for technical terrain. 

4a: Breathable or warm hiking boots? 

First things first: hiking boots, high-quality ones, especially heavy hiking boots, are not as breathable as, say, running shoes. Different materials come into play, plus boots must be more protective. So, when boots are very breathable, they are so in the hiking realm. 

Testing the breathability of women’s hiking boots in RunRepeat lab 

We test the breathability of hiking boots by filling them with smoke and then watching where it comes out and at which pace. We then assign a 1-5 breathability score to each boot. 5 is the most breathable! 

We also have a look at the uppers under the microscope. Some of these images are so spectacular we want them on our desktop backgrounds. These insights allow us to better understand what’s happening, breathability-wise. 

In case you plan to hike in hot weather or have sweaty feet, it’s best to look for breathable hiking boots. In this case, we also recommend getting thin wool or bamboo socks as they have antimicrobial and moisture-wicking properties. 

For context, the average breathability of hiking boots is 1.45, while the same average for hiking shoes and trail running shoes sits at 2.72 and 3.34, respectively. 

If you usually hike in cold weather, worry not because we have a list of the least breathable hiking boots for you right here. If you also want these boots to be waterproof (maybe you’re hiking in rain, snow, slush), move on to the next chapter. 

4b: Waterproof hiking boots for women

There are a few DOs and DONTs we should cover here. You SHOULD opt for waterproof hiking boots if you plan to hike a lot in wet weather. Maybe you'll be crossing streams, hiking through tall wet grass, or simply hiking when it’s raining or snowing. 

If not on the boot, you can find the waterproof/GTX note on the box. 

You should NOT choose waterproof hiking boots if you think those would be breathable or if you might run into only a few wet areas. Waterproof hiking boots are a) more expensive and b) less breathable than the non-waterproof ones, so if you don’t really need them, best to choose the regular ones. 

Keep in mind that water can still get into your boots if it slides down your trousers. If you anticipate that happening, best to look for waterproof gaiters. For more advice on waterproof hiking boots, we wholeheartedly recommend our guide: Best Waterproof Hiking Boots. 

5: Durability of women’s hiking boots 

Ladies who are doing research on the durability of hiking boots are usually the ones who already had their boots fall apart prematurely or who know they will seriously abuse the boots! And, we’re here to answer all the questions. 

In our lab, we test the durability of the a) toebox, b) heel padding, and c) outsole. For these tests, we use a dremel which we press against the surface. These tests are standardised, meaning that for each, we always use the same pressure, RPMs and time duration. 

Testing the durability of the toebox on women’s hiking boots 

Once we’re done with the dremel, we look at the damage and assess the rating on a 1-5 scale, where 1 is the least durable and 5 the most durable. We use the same principle to assess the damage of the heel padding. 

However, when we test the durability of the outsole, we don’t have to assess the damage because we can measure it precisely. 

Testing the durability of the outsole in RunRepeat lab

We use a tyre tread gauge to measure the dent we made on the outsole, the deeper the dent, the less durable the outsole. 

Heel drop in boots is wildly different from trail running shoes

If you’re coming here from the world of trail running shoes, you should be knowledgeable about the difference in heel-to-toe drop between running shoes and hiking boots. 

For context, here’s our current lab data (at the moment of writing this guide): 

Being aware of these changes is important because heel-to-toe drop utilises different leg muscles depending on its height. Just like zero drop running shoes utilise the foot muscles the most, the high-drop shoes utilise the highest leg muscles, like hip muscles. To learn more about this, please read our Ultimate guide on heel to toe drop. 

Pregnancy and hiking boots: what to choose 

While we covered the majority of features in hiking boots, if you’re pregnant, it’s very important to look for a stable hiking boot. You will gain weight and stability and support are your priority. 

Stability is about the width and stiffness of the platform. It’s best when the platform is wider and stiffer, so that there’s no wobbling! 

We also measure stiffness in our lab by bending the boot to 90 degrees with a digital force gauge. 

Testing the stiffness of a women’s hiking boot: the more force is needed, the stiffer the platform 

Women wearing men’s or unisex hiking boots: sizing 

If you found what you want in a boot that’s available in men’s or unisex hiking boots, it’s important to check the sizing. Given that conversions can vary, you can:

1. Use a conversion size chart https://runrepeat.com/size-charts/danner 
2. Or find your size in the men’s chart by looking at the length (given in cm). This is the most accurate approach that applies to all footwear categories and switches between men’s, women’s, and unisex footwear. 

Also good to know 

Now that we’ve covered almost everything, and you feel like you could soak more knowledge in, here are 3 details you can pay attention to when buying hiking boots:

1. Find out whether the insole/lining is antimicrobial. This comes in handy especially if you have sweaty feet. 
2. Find out if the boots can be resoled. Some brands offer this, so as long as the upper (usually made of leather) is in good condition, you can have your boots resoled at a fraction of the price of a new hiking boots pair. 
3. If you plan to enter even more demanding hiking waters, which means you’ll have to wear crampons for a better bite on ice and snow, you should look for crampon compatibility. There are different crampon types and, therefore, different compatibility options. Whether you’ll be able to put the crampons on your boots is information you can find on the boot box.