Groundies Barefoot Shoes Review: Original Barefoot Line vs Wider Barefoot+ Line 

Groundies is a German-based brand with an extensive range of barefoot shoes in on-trend styles. They now offer two widths for Groundies barefoot shoes: The original Barefoot line, and the new Barefoot+ line with a wider toe box.

Since Groundies launched in 2019, it quickly scaled its business and is now one of the largest barefoot shoe companies. Groundies offers one of the most extensive lines of on-trend barefoot sneakers, boots, sandals and dress shoes. If there is a style you’re looking for, chances are Groundies has it. Some Groundies barefoot shoes even have very similar styling to more popular 5mainstream shoes, so they’re a great option if you want to stay fashionable, but with healthy barefoot shoes. 

Groundies generally fit those with narrow to medium width feet, which meant everyone with wider feet was missing out. Well, until now.  

Groundies just launched its Barefoot+ line, which has a wider toe box. In this post, I’ll be covering both the Barefoot and the Barefoot+ line by Groundies so you can see which one is right for you.  

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Characteristics of a barefoot shoe 

I like to have a quick refresher at the beginning of my posts on what makes a shoe a barefoot shoe. For a barefoot shoe (sometimes called a minimalist shoe), we’re looking for: 

Wide: An anatomically shaped toe box that doesn’t squish your toes and allows for proper alignment. This is especially important for the big toe, which should be able to at least lie straight and not be bent in.

Thin Sole: This allows for ground feel and more flexibility  

Flat Sole : Ideally, the shoe is flat from heel to toe with no additional padding in the heel or a toe spring. A zero-drop sole allows your body to maintain natural, proper alignment when standing.

Flexible: Both the sole and uppers should be flexible to allow the foot and ankle to naturally move and bend 

Groundies has several different sole types and now three overall foot shapes, which we’ll go over more in fit and sizing.  

How is the quality for the price? 

Groundies shoes are designed in Germany and manufactured in Portugal. Most styles are made with leather and suede, while some are made with vegan alternatives.  

According to Groundies, they use a special composition for their soles to reduce abrasion and improve longevity and durability. These were some of my first barefoot shoes that I wore pretty often, and the soles held up well. The soles are both glued and stitched to the uppers, so separation isn’t usually an issue. 

None of the Groundies I’ve worn have come with separate removeable insoles. The insides are usually lined with something like mesh or a breathable microfiber, which are really soft and smooth.  

Overall, Groundies look high-quality and feel comfortable to wear.  

Shipping & Returns 

Groundies is based in Germany which means the lower shipping rates for those in the EU. Standard shipping for Groundies is €10 or less around Europe, and €19.95 to the US, Canada, Australia, New Zealand. You can pay €34.95 for faster Express shipping to the US. See a complete list of shipping rates for Groundies here. 

Groundies has a 14 day test guarantee and return policy, meaning you can return them within 14 days, even if they’ve been worn.  

Returns are free for shoes shipped to the US, Germany, Austria, France, Belgium and the Netherlands. For shoes shipped outside of these countries, return shipping is the responsibility of the purchaser. 

Groundies also sells through a growing number of online retailers, including Amazon in the US. Amazon has a more limited selection, but it’s free shipping and free returns. Sometimes they have deeply discounted shoes they’re clearancing out, so you may be able to score a good deal.  They’re also growing their physical presence with brick-and-mortar shops, with 15 stores around Germany.

Groundies Barefoot and Barefoot+ Lines: Fit and Sizing  

Groundies now has three different lines: 

1. the original barefoot line with an anatomical toe box that launched the brand 

2. the barefoot+ line, which has an even wider toe box than the original barefoot line. This launched in March 2023 

3. the “regular” toe box line with a traditional tapered toe box 

After Groundies barefoot shoes launched, it added the “regular” toe box line for more mass market appeal. We’re only going to be focusing on the Groundies barefoot and barefoot+ shoes in this post (the goal here is no squished toes!). 

All of Groundies barefoot shoes use a thin, zero-drop, flexible sole. They have a few different options in thickness and shape. They are all made from made of TPU, which is a rubber-like material. Most of Groundies barefoot styles run between 6mm and 8mm base plus tread, which gives them good ground feel. The sole contains no harmful substances, is durable, non-slip and flexible. 

My size varies slightly depending on the sole used and the type of shoe. 

Groundies Sole Types for the Barefoot and Barefoot+ lines 

GO1 sole | 3.3 mm base and 3 mm tread

Groundies’ original and one of its thinnest soles. I find these run true to size, which is a EU38 for my 23.3cm feet. Shoes like the Melbourne, Milano and Orlando use the GO1 sole. This sole is also used for some boot styles, like the Camden chelsea boots. 

GS1 sole | 3 mm base and 3.9 mm tread

This sole is slightly thicker and less flexible than the GO1 sole. It has a straight edge walled appearance from the side to make it look thicker than it actually is. The size chart gives the exact same measurements for all of the shoes, but I find the GS1 soles to run a little longer than GO1 shoes. They look a little longer too when you hold them up to compare. 

For me, this means either wearing thicker socks or potentially sizing down in the sneakers. This sole is already a little tight in the toe box, so I opted to keep the EU38 in the sneakers and wear thicker socks. Sneakers like the Nova and Universe use this sole.  

For boots, I stick with my typical size EU38 as I wear them with thicker socks and sometimes add an extra wool insole for warmth.  The Sienna Chelsea Boots use the GS1 sole. 

GP1 | 5 mm base and 2.5 mm tread

These are zero-drop, though the outer wall creates the illusion of a thicker heel. These also are made to have more of a pointed toe box. They did this by simply extending the toe but not reducing the width. If you really want a shoe that has more of the appearance of a conventional shoe, then check out Groundies barefoot shoes with the GP1 sole. Shoes like the Springs style use this sole. 

GX1  | 4.0 mm base and 4.5 mm profile

This sole is used for some of Groundies’ boot styles. It has better grip and slighlty more protection for winter weather. Boots like the Tegernsee use the GX1 sole.  

Barefoot+ GO1 sole  | 3.3 mm base and 3 mm tread

The first shoes from Groundies new Barefoot+ line use the GO1 sole. That means Groundies thinnest and most flexible sole with a 3.3 mm base and 3 mm tread. The major difference is the wider width.

According to the Groundies size charts, the Barefoot+ line is 7 to 9 mm wider than the original barefoot line, depending on the size.

When I measured the outsoles of my EU38 shoes, I get almost 1 cm wider at the base of the toes in the Barefoot+ sole compared to the original GO1 sole. They also run a few mm longer compared to the regular Barefoot GO1 sole.

Active | 2 mm base and 2.5 mm tread

The thinnest and most flexible sole, used for athletic shoes in Groundies’ Active line.

All Terrain | 2.5 mm base and 3 mm tread

This sole is for Groundies All Terrain line of hiking boots and trail runners, with a more rugged, non-slip multi-terrain sole.

Groundies Size Charts

Here is a side by side of Groundies size charts for both men and women in the original barefoot measurements and the new barefoot plus measurements.

Comparison between Groundies Barefoot lines and Barefoot+

Here you can see the Groundies Barefoot GO1 (Orlando in White) compared to the Barefoot+ GO1 (Amsterdam in Beige Flower Print)

Since Groundies don’t come with an insole, I simply stepped on top of the shoe to show the difference in the width of the original Barefoot GO1 sole and the new Barefoot+ GO1 sole.

Groundies Barefoot Shoe Reviews

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1 Groundies Orlando – GO1 sole 

The Orlando were one of my earlier pairs of barefoot shoes in my journey to healthier feet, and they’ve been a popular Groundies style for a few years now. The uppers are made with leather and suede, and they have some fun color combos besides just black and white. 

Fit & Sizing: Overall, I find this one of Groundies’ narrower barefoot shoes, even compared to other styles that use the same sole. The uppers don’t allow a lot of spread, so I find the Orlando to be a better fit for those with narrower feet. When I try these on now, I would appreciate a little extra room for my pinky toe. 

I find these fit true to size. For me, that’s an EU38 based on my 23.3cm foot measurement. According to the Groundies’ size chart, the EU38 is 24.8cm, which means I should have 1.5cm of extra space. I don’t feel like I have quite that much extra space, which is fine because I usually aim for about 1.2cm. 

2 Groundies Kopenhagen – GO1 sole 

This is an all leather sneaker that is no longer available, but I wanted to include this here as a comparison to the Orlando. Both use the GO1 sole, but as you can see (and I can feel), the toe box is much roomier due to the construction of the upper. These run true to size and fit up to medium width feet best. 

3 Groundies Nova – GS1 sole 

The Nova is one of Groundies’ popular sneakers using the GS1 sole that has a thicker appearance, even though it’s only slightly thicker than shoes like the Orlando. 

The toe box has a very slight taper, and these don’t have quite as much toe box width as shoes like the Kopenhagen. Because of the walled sole, they don’t spread as much.  

Fit & Sizing: I find that these run slightly longer than the GO1 sole, even though they use the same size chart. For sneakers, I could either size down to an EU37, or opt for socks. For me, wearing socks with these is fine as I don’t want to lose the extra width in the toe box by sizing down.  

These fit up to medium width feet best. 

4 Groundies Amsterdam – Barefoot+ GO1 sole

The Amsterdam comes in both the original GO1 sole and the Barefoot+ GO1 sole. The uppers on the Amsterdam are a soft goatskin leather with a shimmery printed design. The inside is lined with microfiber, and comfortable to wear with or without socks. 

Other current styles offered in the Barefoot+ width are the women’s Orlando and Melbourne sneaker styles and the Lily ballet flat. For men’s, the Palermo dress shoe is available in this wider width. See all Barefoot+ styles here.

Fit & Sizing: If you’ve tried Groundies barefoot shoes before and found them too narrow, then the new Barefoot+ will be a much better fit. The extra space in the Barefoot+ toe box feels pretty significant. I have medium wide feet, and these are super roomy. Like roomy enough to do some full toe splay exercises. They also have decent volume in the toe box.  I find these fit true to size, and opted for an EU38.  

Like I mentioned above, the new Groundies Barfoot+ fit are great for wide and extra wide feet. Groundies has yet to release a size chart for the Barefoot+ line, but I found these to be a few millimeters longer than my Original GO1 soles, and 7-10mm wider. For my EU38, my measurement was about 10cm for the width at the base of the toes.

I followed up with Groundies to see if they have guidance on the new width, and they said the Barefoot+ soles run about 5 mm wider than the original GO1 sole in the same size, but we’ll see if they update that when the official size chart comes out.

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Any questions about Groundies barefoot shoes, including the new Barefoot+ line? Drop them below.