How to Make Loud Shoes Quiet? – 5 Ways to Quell Noisy Footsteps

While you can’t deny the charm and attraction of the click-clack sound of heels, not everyone appreciates the rolling of heads as you walk past the hallways. Clicking heels in a professional working environment could be the most annoying thing ever. Unless you are a self-loving person who doesn’t mind some extra bit of attention, loud shoes are definitely not your forte.

Surely, you cannot discard those pointy hard-soled shoes even though they feel awkward in formal settings. So what if you could make those loud shoes quiet once and for all? We have listed five ways to overcome the clicking noise of your heels to make your gait calm, subtle, and more elegant.

While the clicking noise of heels sounds attractive, loud shoes become annoying more often. Wearing oversized, highly moist, and worn-out shoes can be noisy. Apply rubber sole pads and heel caps to soften your footsteps. If you are wearing an up-sized shoe, insert gel cushions and heel grips to maintain traction while treading lightly. When walking through silent spaces like music studios, prefer wearing sound booties.

Clicking Heels – What Makes Them So Annoying?

Besides the fancy designs, pumps and stilettos do have an aural appeal to them. The rhythmic sound of clicking heels as you walk on hard floors feels rather empowering and euphoric, especially when you see people twitch their necks to steal a glance. Well, that’s why women have a special affinity towards loud heels, but let’s save it for another time.

Before you delve into a personal fantasy, don’t forget that the dramatic appeal of clicking heels is only limited to casual events and parties. There’s no room for click-clack in professional office spaces unless you are prepared for a disciplinary hearing or a possible termination.

Imagine wearing those clacking dress shoes to a recording studio or a hospital where even the faintest sounds bounce off exponentially; it would be a total catastrophe. And let’s not forget your favorite trainers and sneakers with squeaky under soles. When wet, the synthetic rubber soles could be just as loud and annoying as their leather counterparts.

Understanding the Reasons Behind Loud Shoes

As discussed in the above section, the following are the main reasons behind loud shoe sounds:

Shoe Material

The material of your shoes, mainly the sole or heel, determines the amount of noise they produce when walking on a hard floor. Shoe soles are manufactured from rigid materials like metal, wood, and leather to withstand heavy weights without compromising balance while walking. Even though most shoe soles are ingrained with rubber for better flexibility and comfort, it often fails to minimize the clacking sound made through wood or metal. 

Size of the Shoe

Wearing shoes bigger than your actual size feel comfortable indeed, as your foot has more room to nestle inside. Secondly, you don’t have to worry about your feet getting swelled up after wearing the fit size all day long.

But here’s a catch, a bigger shoe size makes annoying squeaking sounds since you mostly drag your heels on the floor instead of lifting them. It won’t be selfish if you prefer the comfort of your feet at the cost of loud clicking sounds.

Damp or Moist Shoe

No matter how silent and sneaky, soles made from leather and rubber have one fundamental flaw – they can’t bear the moisture. As someone who owns a pair of sneakers or leather boots, you must’ve noticed the squeaking noise they produce when wet.

If you have been walking on a wet floor or got your feet immersed in the rainwater, some residual moisture is still held between the sole and the insole, resulting in a squealing noise.

Worn-out Soles

Be it the stilettos or men’s dress shoes, most shoe soles are clad up with a flexible material underneath, which soaks up the noisy contact with the floor. But new shoes never remain new for long. Over time, as that layer of flexible under sole and rubber heel tips wear out, your footsteps become noisier. So, if you are experiencing the same issues, perhaps you should follow our guide to make your loud shoes quiet.

5 Ways to Make Loud Shoes Quiet

The pointy heels might stay hushed and silent when you walk on a carpeted floor, but as soon as you step foot on hard-tiled floors, the loud clicks resonate with the entire room. Even though high-heeled shoes cause balancing issues, their aesthetic and style appeal is too much to ignore.

Although your walking makes a difference, you can’t always stay conscious about your gait – even in a professional setting. So, before you consult guidebooks to straighten your walk, here are six easy ways to make loud shoes quiet.

Add Rubber Sole Pads

If you are too fixed on your high heels and leather boots despite the ungodly noise, they make when treading on hard floors, you might start soundproofing the shoe sole first. Like heels, the front part of the shoe sole is also built from the same tough ingredients that are usually the loudest.

Instead of letting the clicking sound of the heels pair up with the clacking of the front sole and annoy everyone else in the room, get your hands on some non-slip rubber sole pads. Rubber, an efficient shock absorber, dampens the impact between the shoes and the floor, thus limiting the noise of your footsteps. Besides buffering the noise, these rubber pads offer higher traction on slippery surfaces. 

Insert Heel Grips and Gel Cushions 

While it’s a no-brainer to wear shoes that fit your size, when it comes to pumps and stilettos, women often look for a bigger size. Those extra centimeters certainly pay off in comfort, but they ruin your gait. With pumps hanging loosely from your heels, the usual clicking sound will add a loud clap as they touch the floor.

If you want your size-up shoes to fit perfectly without you having to drag them on the floor, consider inserting some heel grips at the back. With an adhesive high-friction gel, heel grips keep your feet from sliding off in the shoe, even if you are wearing tall pumps.

Wearing your tight shoes all day long could form blisters or, even worse – chronic foot conditions. Place Brison gel cushions in spots that feel most itchy and tight while you walk. These cushions are embedded with PU-grade soft medical gel that supports optimum comfort.

Attach High Heel Caps

Ever thought about how those thin stiletto heels bear hundreds of pounds of weight on top? It’s because they’re stoutly built. Most high heels use sturdy metal bits that ensure high strength but emit a loud clicking noise when they hit hard floors.

The Solemates Heel Caps provide that direly-needed flexible backing to heel bottoms, cushioning their impact with the ground and limiting noise emission. Being transparent means these heel silencers won’t shadow the style of your fancy pumps.  

Blow Dry the Wet Shoes

Did you walk past your flooded parking in your leather boots or sneakers, and they haven’t stopped squeaking ever since? Chances are that your shoes’ under sole have locked up moisture. Though they might feet completely dry to wear, there’s still some moisture clad between the sole and insole.

Place your footwear under the sun for a couple of hours or dry the moisture using a blow drier (don’t bring the blower too close as it may melt the rubber sole). Sprinkle some baby powder between the insole and sole before you wear them back.

Wear Sound Booties

No matter how much you try to buffer up your shoes, those fancy stilettos and high leather boots can never go silent. If you are walking into a place where you want absolute silence, like a recording studio or hospital, your regular shoes just won’t work unless you wear sound booties.

Sound booties are textile slippers with an elastic opening that can be worn separately or on top of your standard sneakers. They are a great help in music studios where you don’t want any background noise mixing up with your tracks.

Adopt a Silent Gait – Tips to Walk More Quietly

Although it may seem rather far-fetched, optimizing your gait is an effective way to quieten your footsteps. We have rounded up some helpful tips to help you adjust your gait:

  • Avoid buying shoes that are bigger than your actual size.
  • Quit dragging your feet on the ground no matter what you are wearing.
  • Walking in heels is a lot different than walking in flat shoes, soften your gait without putting too much pressure on the toes.
  • When wearing flat sole shoes, land your feet straight at every step. While wearing tall heels, however, place the heels first, followed up by the toes, to maintain stability and confidence.

People Also Asked

A few frequently asked questions with regards to quietening loud shoes are answered below:

How can I walk more quietly?

Adjust your gait depending on the type of shoes you are wearing. If you are wearing flat sneakers, prefer lowering your feet straight on the floor, but apply the heel-first strategy when wearing pumps.

Can I make loud shoes quiet at home?

Yes, you can reduce the noise-making capacity of loud shoes at home with simple DIY methods. For starters, layer your shoe sole with duct or gaffer tape to lower the impact and increase traction. You can also attach cork pads and felt furniture pads as heel silencers.

What is the best way to stop your heels from stomping?

Although adjusting your gait will help soften the footsteps, applying sole pads and heel caps is the best way to stop your heels from stomping. The flexible rubber dampens the impact of your footsteps on the floor and reduces loudness.