Tennis Footwear 101: Find Your Best Tennis Court Shoes

When you’re looking to upgrade your tennis gear, we recommend starting from the bottom – your tennis footwear. Shoes play a huge role in your tennis performance, comfort and safety.  

Are you wearing the best tennis court shoes for your game? Read on for top tips from our tennis footwear experts. Even better, stop by one of our racket store locations in Colorado or Nevada, and our tennis footwear experts can help you find the perfect fit for your unique feet.  

What is the Best Tennis Footwear? 

Court shoes are hands-down the best shoes to wear for tennis. They are made to provide the lateral support and stability you need for side-to-side movements on the tennis court.  

Your go-to tennis court shoes should be hard court tennis shoes made for all surfaces. However, many brands also make court shoes for specific playing surfaces as well. (Spoiler alert: We’ll get to that down below.)  

How Do You Know When It’s Time for a New Pair of Tennis Court Shoes?  

If you can see the sole of your court shoes running flat/thin or feel decreased traction, it’s time for a new pair. Visible damage to your court shoes (such as rips or holes) or decreased sensation of support also indicates it’s time to replace them. 

Tennis court shoes are essential to protecting your feet, ankles and entire body from injury on the court. Keeping them in good shape is a worthy investment. Just think of all the doctor’s appointments you’ll save on later! 

Should You Have More than One Pair of Shoes for Tennis?  

If you play racket sports like tennis frequently (more than twice per week), we recommend that you have at least two pairs of court shoes to alternate between. This allows the materials in your court shoes to recover between play and offer optimal support for your feet during your next game.  

Alternating  between two pairs of court shoes has the added benefit of enabling both pairs to last longer! This shouldn’t impact your shoe budget overall since it’ll take twice as long before you need to buy your next set. 

If you play tennis or other racket sports on various surfaces, having multiple pairs of court shoes is extra beneficial. More on that next. 

Should You Wear Different Court Shoes on Different Court Surfaces? 

Although you can play with standard court shoes on any surface, we recommend wearing specific shoes for indoor gym/wooden floors, indoor carpeted courts, or clay courts. Wearing the ideal shoe for each of these surfaces will help prevent injury and improve your ability to move quickly and safely on the court.  

What Court Shoes Should You Wear for Indoor Tennis? 

If you’re playing indoor tennis on a standard hard court, typical all-surface court shoes are ideal. However, if you’re playing indoor tennis on a gym or wood floor, you’ll want a specific indoor court. 

Indoor court shoes typically have a softer sole called a gum sole. These gum soles help you get a better grip (and slip less) on an indoor gym court surface that is more slippery (and less gritty) than a standard hard court.  

On the flip side, you should not wear indoor court shoes on a traditional hard court surface. Indoor court shoes are not as durable and will wear out quickly on a hard court. 

What Court Shoes Should You Wear on Clay Courts? 

You can play on clay courts with hard court shoes. However, we recommend wearing court shoes that are specifically made for clay courts when possible.  

Clay court shoes have a herringbone (zig zag) tread pattern sole on the bottom to help keep the clay from getting stuck into the grooves. This sole also helps you get an optimal grip and slide with control to help you get to the ball quicker.  

Why Are Tennis Court Shoes So Narrow? 

Tennis shoes are often narrower to help hold your foot and ankle in place during the side-to-side motion that is typical when playing tennis. A narrower design reduces foot movement within the shoe, helping players maintain balance and avoid ankle injuries. 

If your foot is more wide than narrow, there are still many great court shoes available. We have many tennis footwear recommendations for players who have a wider foot or prefer a wider toe box. Some of our favorite wider court shoes include K-SWISS, Mizuno and New Balance.  

Do Tennis Court Shoes Slide? 

Tennis court shoes have a harder sole that allows them to slide more on the court than standard street sneakers. They can slide when you need them to slide but also provide support to keep you stable when you don’t want to slide around.  

What Are the Best Tennis Footwear Brands? 

We recommend trying a wide array of tennis shoe brands to ensure you find the best fit for your unique feet and playing needs. Some of our favorite tennis footwear brands include:  

• Adidas

• ASICS 

• Babolat

• Fila

• HEAD

• K-Swiss 

• Lacoste

• Mizuno

• New Balance

• Nike

• Prince

• Wilson

  
  

What Are the Best Tennis Court Shoes for Women?

 

There are many options when it comes to tennis court shoes for women. We recommend visiting your local racket sports store to try on a wide array of shoes to find the best fit for you.  

If you’re not sure where to start, here are a few of our team members’ favorite tennis court shoes for women:  

• K-Swiss: K-Swiss is one of our best-selling tennis footwear brands. Our female customers rank the Hypercourt Express 2 as one of their all-time favorites. K-Swiss shoes are often wider in the toe box, which accommodates a wider foot.  

  
  

• Lacoste: Lacoste makes one of our most recent favorite court shoes for women. The Lacoste AG-LT21 court shoes are wide at the bottom to provide great lateral support. They're also airy to make sure your foot doesn’t get too hot. These premium court shoes come at a slightly higher price, but we think they’re well worth the money. 

  
  

• Babolat: The Babolat Jet Tere court shoe is great for fast, agile players who want to move freely around the court. 

  
  

• Wilson: The Wilson Intrigue is the newest line of women’s court shoes that launched in February 2025. It’s a high-performance tennis shoe built exclusively for women and personalized for female athletes.  

  
  

These brands are just the beginning. It’s important to find the best tennis footwear for your unique feet, so stop by one of our locations to try on these brands and more with one of our tennis shoe experts.  

What Are the Best Tennis Shoes for Men?

 

We highly recommend trying on a variety of court shoes to find the best shoes for your tennis game. If you’re looking for recommendations, a few of our team favorites include:  

• K-Swiss: The K-Swiss Hypercourt Express 2 is one of the top selling men’s tennis shoes. It’s a lightweight, breathable tennis shoe, making it the ideal choice for a variety of playing styles and levels. 

  
  

• Wilson: Wilson provides great options in men’s tennis court shoes. The Wilson Rush Pro court shoe is designed for rock-solid stability, support and abrasion resistance. 

  
  

• ASICS: Asics offers another one of our go-to men’s tennis court shoes with the Asics Gel Resolution. The Gel Resolution is designed to help you experience better stability on the court. 

  
  

• Mizuno: The Mizuno Wave Exceed Tour is another great option in men’s tennis court shoes when searching for the perfect fit. This court shoe continues to set the standard for premium performance racket sports footwear. 

  
  

What Are the Best Tennis Shoes for Plantar Fasciitis? 

 

Plantar fasciitis requires footwear that offers excellent arch support, cushioning, and stability to alleviate discomfort during activities like tennis. Here are some top-rated tennis shoes that cater to these needs: 

• Babolat SFX 4: The SFX 4 provides supreme comfort on any surface. The larger volume in the forefoot and the comfortable design provides unrivalled first fit experience. This court shoe’s OrthoLite® die cut insole provides exceptional comfort, breathability and durability. 

  
  

• KSwiss Ultrashot 4: The Ultrashot 4 provides unrestricted lateral movement and stability with a custom graphite winglet, combined with a new outsole that ensures superior grip, traction and durability.  

  
  

• ASICS Gel Resolution: This popular court shoe creates advanced stability and cushioning for players who like to control the game from the baseline. 

  
  

• New Balance 996: Built for speed, endurance, and flexibility on the court, these tennis shoes take your game to the next level – with a higher collar and tighter heel lockdown for stability. 

  
  

• HEAD Revolt Pro 4.5: The Head Revolt combines extreme durability and comfort with upgraded stability and flexibility. 

  
  

In addition to shoes that help alleviate plantar fasciitis pain, you could also try socks for plantar fasciitis or a plantar fasciitis recovery kit. 

Tennis Socks 

The best tennis footwear goes beyond court shoes. Tennis socks can also help keep your feet comfortable and protected while you’re on the court.  

For tennis socks, you’ll want to wear socks that have cushion in the ball and the heel. We’re big fans of Thorlo and OS1st socks for tennis.  

If you struggle with plantar fasciitis, we offer special socks for plantar fasciitis and a plantar fasciitis recovery kit to help provide the compression and support you need.   

Where to Buy Tennis Court Shoes? 

Your tennis court shoes should be an ideal style/model, size and fit to protect you from injury when playing tennis. That’s why we recommend visiting your local racket sports store to have a court shoe expert help you choose the best tennis shoes for your feet.  

Our team of racket sports experts would love to help you find your next pair of tennis shoes.  Visit one of our Game-Set-Match, Inc. locations to find the best shoes for you and your unique feet. We carry more than 5,000 pairs of shoes to ensure a great fit for every customer! 

Our shoe experts will ensure you go home with the perfect size and fit to avoid blisters, bruises and endless returns (the worst part of online shopping).   

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