Stride Soles know more than a thing or two about consumers’ feet.

The custom orthotics maker can create different options based shoe type, sport or foot condition. And after 4,810 custom-orthotic orders placed by 3,966 customers between November 2024 and April 2026 in the U.S., Stride Soles know a lot about foot-health from customer-completed surveys on self-reported conditions, arch type and pain regions.

Here are some key findings from Stride Soles data about foot health:

People generally are wearing shoes that are too big: Stride Soles estimates that the average buyer’s shoe runs about 1.25 inches longer than the foot inside it, based on the firm’s 3D foot scans.

Pain is constant by the time people buy custom orthotics: About 44 percent said their feet hurt all the time, and 82.2 percent said they hurt constantly or after any long day.

Pain isn’t just in the foot: More than one in four buyers also noted the knee as a pain point on their questionnaire. In fact, knee surfaced 346 times, back was 136 and hip was noted 128 times.

Some women’s shoes might not be built for women’s feet: Women report bunions at nearly three times the rate of men, at 18.1 percent versus 6.4 percent.

Feet problems come in pairs: The data indicated that 86.4 percent of buyers reported pain in both feet rather than one, with a quarter at 24.2 percent naming two or more distinct conditions at one.

Most common pain regions cited (respondents could cite more than one zone): Mid-foot was cited at 42.2 percent, inside arch at 41.2 percent, heel at 40.3 percent, ball of foot at 39.7 percent and center knee at 28.4 percent to round out the top five complaints.

There is a knee gap: Women out-reported men on the top five pain regions, but the eye-opener was knee pain. There was an 11-point spread on the number of women who flagged knee pain at 37.6 percent, versus men at 26.3 percent.

Flat feet and plantar fasciitis dwarfed all other pain conditions: The top one was flat feet cited by 32.7 percent of respondents, followed by plantar fasciitis at 32.2 percent. Bunions was third at 9.1 percent, followed by arthritis at 9.0 percent and achilles tendinitis at 8.7 percent to round out the top five.

Men’s conditions skew structural and posterior: Flat feet at 33.8 percent and plantar fasciitis at 32.4 percent were the top two conditions complained about by men. Achilles tendinitis was third at 9.6 percent followed by arthritis at 8.6 percent and bunions at 6.4 percent for the top five.

Women’s conditions skew forefoot and inflammatory: Plantar Fasciitis was the top complaint at 33.1 percent, followed by flat feet at 29.8 percent. Bunions was third at 18.1 percent, followed by arthritis at 10.6 percent and metatarsalgia at 8.6 percent for the top five.

Stride Soles was co-founded by Greg Gerla, who is also chief executive officer, and Dr. Zac Cartun.

Each orthotic produced is hand designed by pedorthists in Germany using CAD software that adjusts structure, density and cushioning to fit each person’s unique feet profile. All orthotics are made from smartphone-based 3D scans of one’s feet for a perfect fit. The podiatry team in Germany also will review uploaded walking videos to assess ankle, knee, and hip alignment throughout the gait cycle. The material is durable TPU in a proprietary multi-density lattice that’s engineered to last three to four years. The orthotics are delivered within 10 to 15 days of the order for $249.