The Best Summer Shoes for Men Who Are Really Going Through It

Especially when that outing is anywhere near water, because (and this is true) most footwear isn’t meant to get all that wet. But the kind that is absolutely thrives under (water) pressure, offering you traction when things get slippery, quick-drying uppers to avoid any lingering dampness, and some protection against whatever might be underfoot if you end up in the water yourself.

Fun-Loving Loafers

We’re not saying that loafers aren’t a year-round proposition—lug soles have turned them into four-wheel-drive vehicles—but when it comes to the classics, the dainty and anything not made out of leather, summertime is primetime. And because it’s primetime, we’re all about playing some of the more breezy, esoteric cuts that are fronted by details like basket-woven uppers and freaky little cutouts, all of them just as easy to wear as their more classic counterparts in all loafer-amenable scenarios, all still without despotic shoelaces. Loafers are fun. Don’t let anyone tell you otherwise.

Freaky Mules

It really do be mule season. Some (me) would contend that it’s always mule season, but even for us year-round weirdos, summertime is when things peak. The whole quiver is viable, there’s no sock litigation—a “do you” scenario—and they stay ventilated even with a closed toe, which also helps to keep out some street grime.

By freeing the heel, mules also capture the insouciance of summertime well, and a pair of leather mules will make even the most haphazard outfits seem, at the very least, somewhat intentional. They’ll tone down a suit, elevate some jeans, make music with shorts and eliminate any knot considerations from a bodega run, all without much fuss. And in an unserious season, it’s hard to take yourself too seriously when you can walk out of your shoes.

Blank Canvas Sneakers

We know we’re not breaking any news here, but we’re not trying to. If anything, we’re just reminding you how great canvas sneakers are, and how well they go with all the things you’d normally want to wear during the dog days. They mesh with some beat-up jeans on a subatomic level; they can handle a bit of a break but also look good with a cropped pant; they don’t discern between short shorts and long ones; they can take an absolute beating and come out the other side looking better; and they’re as pared down as sneakers come, for those concerned about things like “heat” and/or “humidity.” In other words, they’re a near-perfect summer sneaker that wears the battle scars of a Good Time™ proudly.

Bodacious Boat Shoes

Whether boat shoes are actually trending or just the product of algorithmic propaganda is almost irrelevant at this point, because a lot of them are really good. The classics are classic-ing, the riffs are solid and there’s been some true weirdo DNA injected into the genre in recent months, which we’re not mad about in the slightest.

As a result, one of the most pigeonholed shoes in recent memory is packing a ton of versatility into its moc-toe these days. Of course they’ll play with a pair of chinos and a button up—the control group, if you will—but they also look great with some washed denim and a t-shirt or some Big Shorts and white socks, just like some loafers would. Unlike most loafers, however, you get a rubber sole with some legitimate traction and also some laces for days when the step count is noteworthy.

Retro Runners

We love some technical gear, especially when it comes to running shoes and even more when it comes to running shoes we’ll be running in. But when it comes to basically any activity that Strava isn’t monitoring, we’re leaning toward the old school gear in a big way this summer—particularly retro running shoes. You know, the kind you probably wouldn’t want to run a 10K in but very much the kind that you’d want to wear for an entire weekend’s worth of chores.

And when it comes to Doing Things, few shoes look, feel or age better than a retro runner. Better yet, they don’t really discriminate when it comes to bottoms—they look great with shorts (mesh or otherwise, preferably short), jeans, cargos, fatigues, carpenter pants and really any other useful pair of pants.