Women's Shoe Size Conversion
A women's US size is a UK size plus two, so a US 7 is a UK 5. The European number is the trap: an EU 40 does not mean the same US size for a woman as it does for a man, because the two scales map the same European figure to different American numbers. The chart below is the women's scale in full, and the sections after it explain the offsets so a looked-up size fits.
Women's shoe size chart
Every row is one catalog size, aligned across the four systems. Read across from any column you know.
| EU | US | UK | CM |
|---|---|---|---|
| 34 | 4 | 2 | 21 |
| 34.5 | 4.5 | 2.5 | 21.5 |
| 35 | 5 | 3 | 22 |
| 35.5 | 5.5 | 3.5 | 22.5 |
| 36 | 6 | 4 | 23 |
| 37 | 6.5 | 4.5 | 23.5 |
| 37.5 | 7 | 5 | 24 |
| 38 | 7.5 | 5.5 | 24.5 |
| 39 | 8 | 6 | 25 |
| 40 | 8.5 | 6.5 | 25.5 |
| 40.5 | 9 | 7 | 26 |
| 41 | 9.5 | 7.5 | 26.5 |
| 42 | 10 | 8 | 27 |
| 42.5 | 10.5 | 8.5 | 27.5 |
| 43 | 11 | 9 | 28 |
US is UK plus two for women
The women's American scale sits a fixed two sizes above the British one: a US 5 is a UK 3, a US 7 is a UK 5, a US 9 is a UK 7, with no drift up the range. That is a full size wider a gap than the men's plus-one offset, so mixing up a men's and women's conversion rule is a common way to end up two sizes off. Always convert with the women's scale for women's shoes.
The same EU number is not unisex
European sizing looks like one shared scale, but a women's EU 38 is a US 7.5 here while a men's EU 38 converts to a different US number, because each audience maps the European figure through its own last. So an EU 40 on its own is ambiguous: it answers to one US size for a woman and another for a man. When a listing gives only an EU number and no gender, check which scale it belongs to before converting. The men's chart shows the other side of the same EU numbers.
What a typical women's foot measures
In an analysis of 1.2 million 3D foot scans across about thirty countries, the most common adult female foot length was 245 mm in North America and Europe, and shorter in Asia, near 235 mm. A 245 mm foot maps to EU 38, US 7.5 and UK 5.5 on the chart above. If your measurement lands well away from 245 mm, measure again in the evening with weight on the foot before assuming an unusual size.
Width is where women's lines fall short
Most women's ranges are cut in a single width, so a broad foot at a given length loses room as the sizes climb rather than gaining a wider fitting. New Balance is one of the few that lists women's D wide and 2E extra-wide fittings. Width is a girth measurement around the ball of the foot, not a longer shoe, so sizing up for width leaves the shoe too long. Measure girth, then look for a brand that offers the fitting.
Frequently asked questions
What is a women's US 8 in UK and EU?
A women's US 8 is a UK 6, and an EU 39 in our catalog. The US-to-UK gap for women is a steady two sizes. See the full US to EU chart for every size.
Is a men's EU 40 the same as a women's EU 40?
The European number is the same, but it converts to a different US and UK size by gender, because men's and women's shoes are built on different lasts. Use the women's scale for women's shoes and the men's scale for men's.
How do I convert a women's size to men's?
Work from foot length in centimetres, the one number both scales share. Measure your foot, read the CM column above, then cross to the men's chart at the same centimetre value rather than guessing an offset.
Learn more: how to measure foot length, why one foot length has many sizes, and the printable foot measuring sheet.
Sources
Jurca, Loercher and Xiong, Analysis of 1.2 million foot scans, Scientific Reports, 2019.
New Balance, women's width fitting guide.
SATRA Technology, shoe size systems and the barleycorn.