Biggest Shoe Size in the World: Who Holds the Record?

The biggest shoe size ever recorded is a US 37AA, and it belonged to Robert Wadlow. His feet were a whopping 47 cm (18.5 inches) long. Just imagine trying to find shoes for feet that size!

And what about the biggest shoe size today?

That record belongs to Jeison Orlando Rodríguez Hernández from Venezuela, who wears around a US size 26.

And get this: his right foot is 40.55 cm (15.96 inches) long, while his left measures 40.47 cm (15.93 inches). Even at that size, one foot is slightly bigger than the other.

I wear a US 9 myself, so trying to picture a size 37AA next to my shoes is pretty wild.

And forget walking into a shoe store and asking whether they’ve got your size. At US 26 or 37AA, you’re going to need someone to make your shoes for you.

There’s actually a pretty interesting story behind how both men ended up with feet this big.

What Is the Biggest Shoe Size in the World?

The biggest shoe size ever recorded belonged to Robert Wadlow, an American who wore a whopping US size 37AA.

If you’re wondering what that would be in other countries, Guinness World Records lists it as a UK 36 or roughly an EU 75. His shoes measured 47 cm (18.5 inches) long.

That’s almost a foot and a half of shoe! I don’t think you’d have much luck finding a size 37AA in the clearance section of your local shoe store.

Put a Size 37AA Into Perspective

Who Was Robert Wadlow?

So how did Robert Wadlow, a kid born in Alton, Illinois, in 1918, end up growing to nearly nine feet tall?

It had to do with his pituitary gland. He had a condition called hyperplasia, and his body was producing far more growth hormone than normal.

He eventually reached 8 ft 11.1 in (2.72 m). Just one inch short of nine feet!

His feet were growing along with the rest of him, and he eventually needed those massive US size 37AA shoes we’ve been talking about.

Sadly, he didn’t live very long. Wadlow died in 1940, aged just 22.

What’s incredible is that, even after all these years, his Guinness World Records are still standing. Nobody has officially surpassed his height or the size of his feet.

So when you hear about Robert Wadlow’s size 37AA shoes, remember that he was also the tallest man ever recorded.

Who Has the Biggest Feet in the World Right Now?

Something I find pretty interesting is that even the guy with the biggest feet in the world has one foot slightly bigger than the other.

It’s only a difference of 0.08 cm, but I love that little detail. Most of us have one foot that’s a bit longer than the other, and apparently that doesn’t change when you’re wearing a US 26.

So if you’ve ever wondered why one shoe feels a little tighter than the other, well, you’re in good company.

When Did Jeison Realize His Feet Were So Big?

Jeison realized his feet were unusually large when he was still a child. Guinness says that around his ninth birthday, he noticed his feet were already much bigger than his friends’ when they compared sizes.

By the time he was 10 years old, Jeison says he was already wearing a Venezuelan size 45, and he had the biggest feet in his family.

His feet didn’t slow down either. By 15, he says he had reached a Venezuelan size 50, with his feet continuing to grow rapidly.

So while most kids that age were simply outgrowing their shoes, Jeison was quickly moving into sizes that were becoming extremely difficult to find. Eventually, buying regular shoes would no longer be an option at all.

Can You Actually Buy Size 26 Shoes?

At that size, ordinary retail shoes aren’t a realistic option for Jeison Rodríguez. His footwear has to be specially made to accommodate feet measuring more than 40 cm long.

Before he had access to properly fitted custom shoes, things were even more difficult. Jeison sometimes had to wear sandals made from old tires and fabric because he couldn’t find shoes in his size. Guinness says he wore them to get to school and other appointments.

He also recalled having shoes made from trouser material when he was younger, but they would last only two or three weeks. Sometimes, he simply went barefoot.

So, when your feet are this far outside normal retail sizing, you need someone who can actually make a pair that fits…

Who Makes Jeison Rodríguez’s Shoes?

That job has fallen to Georg Wessels, a German shoemaker whose family business specializes in making footwear for exceptionally tall people.

Wessels has made custom shoes for Jeison as well as other Guinness record holders, including Sultan Kösen, the world’s tallest living man.

Wessels traveled to Venezuela to meet Jeison and provide him with custom footwear. Jeison later traveled to Germany himself to visit Wessels and get new shoes.

Jeison has explained that Wessels makes his footwear using special materials specifically for him.

It’s quite a journey just to get a new pair of shoes, but when you’re around a US size 26, there isn’t exactly a size dropdown waiting for you on your favorite sneaker website.

Who Had Bigger Feet: Robert Wadlow or Jeison Rodríguez?

Robert Wadlow, and by a surprisingly large margin. His feet were about 6.5 cm (2.5 inches) longer than Jeison Rodríguez’s largest foot.

Here’s how the two record holders compare:

And just to put that into perspective, I wear a US 9. Wadlow’s shoe size was 28 sizes above mine. That’s the kind of number that makes a normal shoe size chart run out of columns.

Which Famous People Have Really Big Shoe Sizes?

Jeison Rodríguez and Robert Wadlow are in a league of their own, but they’re certainly not the only very tall people associated with unusually large shoe sizes.

Here’s a fun way to put some of these sizes into perspective:

Shaquille O’Neal famously wears a US size 22. At 7 ft 1 in, even his sneakers look enormous next to an average pair.

Professional wrestler Paul Wight, better known as Big Show, has also been widely reported as wearing a US size 22.

Then there’s Sultan Kösen, the tallest living man. Guinness has reported his shoe size as US 24, which sounds enormous until you put him next to Jeison. Guinness specifically noted that Jeison’s feet were larger than Sultan’s when announcing Jeison’s size 26 record.

Jeison takes us up to US size 26, while Robert Wadlow makes another huge jump all the way to 37AA. Guinness confirms both record sizes.

And then there’s me at US 9.

I think I’ll stay out of this competition.

Does a US Size 37AA Mean Robert Wadlow’s Foot Was 37 Inches Long?

Not at all. His feet actually measured 18.5 inches (47 cm), which is enormous, but still a long way from 37 inches!

You see, the number on your shoe box isn’t the actual length of your foot. It’s a number assigned by the shoe sizing system.

Take a US size 10, for example. You wouldn’t expect someone’s foot to measure exactly 10 inches just because that’s the size they wear.

Want to see how your own measurements compare? I’ve got a guide on measuring your feet at home that walks you through it.

What Does the AA in Robert Wadlow’s Size 37AA Mean?

The AA refers to the width of his shoes. The 37 tells you the size, and the AA tells you the width.

You’ve probably seen something similar on regular shoes, like 9D, 10E, or 11EE.

Generally, AA is a narrow width designation, but here’s something worth knowing: width letters don’t represent one fixed measurement. A 9AA and a 12AA, for example, won’t have the same width in inches.

And brands can interpret those width letters a little differently too.

Why Don’t Shoe Sizes Match Exactly Between Countries?

You might see Robert Wadlow’s record-breaking size listed as US 37AA, UK 36, or approximately EU 75. Those different numbers don’t mean his feet somehow changed size when he crossed a border.

They come from different shoe-sizing systems.

UK, US, and European sizing each use their own numbering conventions. That’s why the same foot can have one size number in the US, another in the UK, and a much larger-looking number in European sizing.

Final Thoughts: That’s a Lot of Shoe

Writing about shoe sizing all the time, I’m used to worrying about half sizes, toe room, and whether a shoe runs a little narrow.

But looking at the biggest shoe size in the world puts those everyday sizing problems into a pretty funny perspective. When your shoes have to be specially made for you, “Should I go true to size or half a size up?” isn’t exactly the problem anymore.

And maybe that’s my favorite thing about this record. It shows just how far human feet can fall outside the sizing systems the rest of us take for granted.

So, the next time your size is sold out, spare a thought for Jeison. At least you have a chance of finding yours somewhere else.