How to match formal shoes with your suits

Getting a tailored suit and finding the right tie to go with it is only half the battle. No amount of matching and pairing will save you from the plague of mismatched shoes.

The beauty of formal shoes for men is that they can make or break your look. It can help you stand out or stick out like a sore thumb.

It’s only natural that you need to be cautious and diligent of the type of shoes (colour) you’re choosing for your tailored-suit.

Without further ado, let’s jump on the comprehensive guide to matching formal shoes to your suits!

Navy blue suits

An essential suit in a man’s wardrobe, navy suits go with all three main shoe colours above. The navy blue suit conveys elements of affability and trust, both of which are incredibly important for business settings. This approachable suit colour, therefore, pairs well with a range of shoe colours. But brown is the one. Choose from branded formal shoes for menand be dapper as ever.

Grey suits

While grey suits on average are just as versatile as navy blue suits, light grey suits are lower down on the formality spectrum. While lighter grey suits are not ideal for formal business wear, they can be worn in office settings with a more relaxed dress code. Because these suits can be worn in a range of settings, and because they are lower down on the formality spectrum, they can be worn with black, brown or oxblood/burgundy shoes!

Brown suits

Brown Suits, like brown formal shoes for men, are considered on the less formal end of the clothing spectrum. While a standard brown on brown combination won’t work if the colours closely resemble each other, opting for a pair of shoes that’s a darker shade of brown will almost always work (to keep the observer's eyes from looking downwards). If you are looking for a greater level of contrast, opt for oxblood/burgundy shoes. Please note that black shoes with brown suit combinations should be avoided at all costs!

Black suits

Black Suits will represent some of your most formal attire (barring tuxedos), and hence should be paired with the most formal of men’s dress shoes, black shoes. Despite being a neutral colour like grey, black doesn’t provide the same wide-reaching canvas that grey does for pairing your shoes with. While you can technically pair your black suit with contrasting coloured shoes, the effect is too blatant, as opposed to a more seamless, relaxed blend with a grey suit, and brown shoes,