The Best Vegan Shoes for Work

Since it’s now been a couple of years since we last shared some recommendations for non-leather shoes, it’s time for another roundup of the best vegan shoes for work. (Prior to that post, we also recommended six brands for the stylish vegan professional, for both clothing and accessories.) The brands below offer many casual styles, but they also provide office-appropriate options that include flats, pumps, oxfords, loafers, boots, and booties. What are your favorite vegan shoe and accessory brands? Are you able to buy them from mainstream sites/stores or do you have to get them from more specialized places? 

{related: the best cruelty-free beauty products}

Here are five brands that offer some of the best vegan shoes for work: 

BC Footwear

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Available at Nordstrom and Amazon, as well as BCFootwear.com, these shoes are cruelty-free and PETA-certified as vegan. In addition to not using leather for the main part of each shoe, the company also ensures that all components (linings, etc.) are not made from animal products — and that includes the glue, which is free from casein, gelatin, beeswax, etc. BC Footwear uses uses materials such as microfiber, bamboo, hemp, and high-grade polyurethane, and shoes in its Recycled collection (currently, only two styles are categorized that way) are made from scrap materials from production. The pictured shoes range from $79–$89.

Sudo 

pictured above: one / two / three

Sudo doesn’t have a lot of specific information on its website regarding its production, etc., but it does note that the shoes it makes are “all vegan.” A rep for the company told me that Sudo closed its Boston brick-and-mortar store last year — but it still sells its shoes online, and many styles are available. The pictured ones are $69–$96.

Ahimsa  

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Ahimsa shoes, which are also available at Amazon, are made in Brazil in the world’s only 100% vegan shoe factory, where almost all production is done by hand, and sustainability is a priority. The company’s vegan leather is made from polyurethane, and the website addresses the inherent environmental concerns on the vegan leather page. Ahimsa also makes a small selection of accessories. The pictured styles range from $85 (Amazon price) to $139.

Novacas

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MooShoes.com, which we mentioned in our last post on vegan shoes, sells cruelty-free shoes and accessories from brands like Matt & Nat, Birkenstock, and Olsenhaus — but they also have their own brand, Novacas (which, translated literally, means “no cows” in Spanish). The shoes (and bags) are ethically produced in European factories and are designed as “updated styles of classic favorites.” The pictured styles range from $130–$140.

Veerah

pictured above: one / two / three

Shoes from Veerah are cruelty-free and responsibly sourced (the sustainable materials used include apple peels, plastic bottles, and cork), and at least 1% of proceeds go to charity. Besides the shoes themselves, the brand sells unique, removable “accessories” for them, including fringe, ankle straps, and brooches. Depending on your office, they may not be work-appropriate, but they could work well as little desk-to-dinner additions. Veerah’s shoes are pricier than the brands above, and the pictured styles range from $268–$288.

What have you found to be the best vegan shoes for work? What shoe materials do you choose to avoid leather?