One of the best things you can do when you have foot pain is protect your feet from shock and pressure. This applies whether the pain comes from plantar fasciitis, achilles tendonitis, sprain, or some other condition.
In addition to wearing well cushioned shoes, padded and compression socks can also help reduce the pain. In this buying guide, we recommend the best padded socks for foot pain on the UK market.
Table of Contents
- What To Consider When Buying Padded Socks for Foot Pain
- Best Padded Socks for Foot Pain: Top 5 Reviews
What To Consider When Buying Padded Socks for Foot Pain
A. Padding
Check the amount of padding in the socks and where it is located.
If you have heel pain, you want socks with a padded heel to provide targeted shock absorption. If your pain is mostly at the centre of your foot, look for socks with padded arch supports.
Some socks don’t have padding in one specific place. Instead, they are thick or double layered throughout to provide pressure and shock absorption everywhere.
B. Compression Socks
Most of the socks we’ve picked are compression socks, also called foot sleeves. That’s because they are the best types of socks for all kinds of foot pain.
Compression socks work by gently applying pressure on different areas of your foot. This improves blood flow, which reduces swelling, inflammation, and pain.
Compression socks are helpful for conditions like plantar fasciitis, achilles tendonitis, ankle pain, sprains, arthritis, and oedema among others.
C. Focus Areas/Zones
If you decide to get compression socks, check the areas or zones they focus on. That is, where they apply pressure.
The best compression socks for foot pain focus on three areas: ankle, heel, and arch. These three zones address most kinds of foot pain.
D. Size & Fit
Finally, make sure you buy the right size. Ill-fitting socks will either not help you at all or they can worsen the pain.
Too-tight padded and compression socks are especially bad.
Check the size recommendations or chart provided by the seller. If you fall between two sizes, go with the larger size.
If you have wider than average feet, go one size up.
Best Padded Socks for Foot Pain: Top 5 Reviews
1. Atlecko Plantar Fasciitis Socks 2 PAIRS
These are our favourite padded socks for foot pain. They come as a 5-piece kit for foot pain relief. Here’s what’s included.
- 2 pairs of compression socks with eight target compression zones from the ankle to the arch.
- A pair of arch support pads.
- A pair of silicone heel cushioning cups.
- A pair of shoe inserts.
- A foot massage ball. Use it to massage your feet to relieve pain, reduce soreness, and improve blood flow.
With this kit, you can manage just about any kind of foot pain, whether it’s plantar fasciitis, arthritic pain, swelling, or just normal soreness from standing on your feet for too long.
If you want, you can use the Atlecko compression socks with your own pain relief aids. They work well with kinesiology tape, shin and calf supports, insoles and other items.
The socks are lightweight and highly breathable. They feel comfortable in any weather. They are also comfortable to wear with any kind of shoes.
The Atlecko compression socks are available in two shoe sizes: S and M for sizes 3 to 9 and L and XL for sizes 10 to 13.
What we like about them:
- Complete foot pain relief kit.
- Helpful for most kinds of foot pain.
- Good value for money.
2. Rymora Plantar Fasciitis Foot Compression Sock Sleeves
The Rymora compression foot sleeves are designed to be unobtrusive and easy to wear with shoes.
They are lightweight with a highly elastic feel that makes them feel like a second skin. You can even wear them with your regular socks.
The bottom of the socks has additional material to provide some padding and shock absorption. It’s not much, so we recommend wearing these socks with a pair of cushioned shoes.
You can also use the Rymora compression socks with insoles, heel cups, and other aids to provide additional support and pain relief.
The Rymora compression socks are a blend of three materials: polyester for breathability, nylon for durability and to keep the socks lightweight, and elastane for elasticity (which provides compression).
The socks are designed to compress your foot in four areas: the achilles tendon, the ankle, the heel, and the arch. So you can use these compression sleeves to address a wide range of pains.
The Rymora Plantar Fasciitis compression socks are available in four sizes from small to extra large. The manufacturer provides a chart that lets you pick the right size based on the circumference of your ankle and arch.
This is more precise than shoe size, and ensures a perfect fit.
You can also choose your preferred colour. Options include black, pink, white, and fluorescent.
What we like about them:
- Multiple compression areas.
- Wide range of sizes and colours.
- Padded bottom for shock absorption.
3. ZaTech Plantar Fasciitis Compression Socks
If you prefer full padded socks rather than those that leave the toes uncovered, we recommend the ZaTech compression socks.
They look like regular socks, so you can use them as such. But they provide all the benefits of compression socks.
Targeted compression areas provide support for the achilles tendon and ankle, stability for your heel and support for your arch.
The socks don’t have as much padding as we’d like, so be sure to pair them with well cushioned shoes or other orthotics like insoles and heel cups.
The ZaTech compression socks feature a smooth seamless toe. This ensures you don’t experience any friction, especially if you already have bunions or anything that can be worsened by chaffing.
The compression socks are available in five sizes from S to XXL. A chart is provided to help you pick the right size based on your shoe size.
If you have wider feet, go up one size to ensure a comfortable fit.
There are also plenty of colour options that include both dark and bright colours.
As for the material, the ZaTech socks are a blend of polyamide (great for durability and moisture-wicking) and elastane/Spandex (for elasticity and compression).
What we like about them:
- Good foot support.
- Wide range of sizes and colours.
- Made from a quick-drying and sweat-wicking fabric.
- Versatile – can be used as regular socks, compression sleeves, and ankle braces.
4. Modetro Ankle Compression Socks, 2 Pairs
Instead of 3 or 4 target compression areas, the Modetro ankle compression socks provide graduated pressure everywhere from your ankle to your arch.
In total, it applies medium to firm pressure on seven areas. So they can target a specific problematic spot where you are experiencing pain.
They also provide overall support to help with arch, heel and ankle problems.
Like most compression socks, the Modetro socks don’t have much in the way of padding. Wear them with comfortable shoes. You can also use them alongside insoles and gel padding.
The Modetro ankle compression socks are thin and lightweight, so you can wear them under your regular socks or on their own. They are perfect for running, workouts and walking.
The pack includes 2 pairs and you can choose between two sizes: S/M or L. Use the provided arch circumference and shoe size chart to pick the right size for your feet.
You can also choose your preferred colour from three options.
What we like about them:
- Good value for money – two pairs at a low price.
- Highly targeted compression and support.
- Comfortable and moisture wicking.
5. NatraCure Cold Therapy Socks
These are a bit different from our other picks. They are not compression socks but rather cold therapy gel socks.
Cold or ice therapy is great for relieving pain caused by swelling and inflammation. These NatraCure socks are much better for cold therapy compared to placing an ice pack on your feet.
The socks are made from a stretchy fabric consisting of nylon and Spandex. They have pockets at the bottom, at the top over the toes, and behind the heel.
The socks are available in a small/medium size that fits 5 to 7.5 women shoe sizes and 4.5 to 8 men shoe sizes.
In addition to the socks, you get two full length and two half length cold gel packs. These go in the pockets.
Place them in the freezer to chill then insert them inside the pockets in the socks. The full length packs go under the feet, while the smaller packs can be inserted over the toes or behind the heel.
The NatraCure cold therapy socks provide instant pain relief. Use them to relieve pain from sprains, plantar fasciitis, swelling, or soreness.
Bonus tip: they are also great for cooling down your feet if you sometimes get hot feet.
The NatraCure cold therapy socks are, obviously, not for walking around with. If you also need pain relief and support as you walk around, get padded compression socks in addition to these cold therapy socks.
Why we like them:
- Easy and effective cold therapy.
- Fast pain relief.
- Multiple pockets to relieve pain in different areas at the same time.
