After you have taken a few dance lessons, you feel that you want to become more serious about your dancing. The next thing which you might think of at the moment is how to get dance shoes to dance smoother and feel more comfortable on the dance floor. In this post I want to share some helpful tips on how to buy quality shoes, the once which will make you feel like a real dancer.

How do they need to feel on the foot?

Traditionally students ask me if their shoes should feel lose, free or tight on the foot. My answer to such questions is that the real dance shoes should fit snugly, very close to your toes, but not actually rubbing. This means they'll fit a lot tighter than your street shoes, but they shouldn't squeeze your feet, even when they're brand new. Open toed, Latin shoes, should fit so that your toes come right to the edge of the shoe or hang over a little bit (a quarter or half an inch -- a centimeter or so). I don't want to get into size numbers, because you really do need to try the shoes on and see how they feel.

What would be the right shoe size?

Typically, your dance shoe size will be the same as your street shoe size. However, you should take into consideration that If your foot is narrow, you should go down 1/2 a size. If your foot is wider you should go up 1/2 a size from your regular street shoe. Remember, you want them to be snug, but not painful.

How do I know if the shoes I want buy are good? 

Quality dance shoes are lightweight, comfortable, flexible, made of real suede and/or leather, and have built-in extra cushioning in the sole. They give your foot more freedom of movement than regular shoes while keeping the heel "locked" in place. They have leather/suede soles to give you just the right amount of slip-and-grip on the dance floor while allowing your foot to pivot freely (to avoid knee damage). In general, any leather-soled or suede-soled shoes are "good" and rubber-soled sneakers, hiking boot, etc. are "not good".

What kind of heel type should I choose?

The heel height for Latin and ballroom dance shoes ranges from 1.5" to 3". For beginning dancers, you should choose a heel height that gives you the most comfort. If you are not accustomed to wearing heels, you may want to start with shoes that have a lower heel to start with. Also, there are different shapes of heel, such as slim and flared. A flared heel is a popular choice as it gives you more stability. For men's dance shoes, a 1" heel is designed for ballroom dance styles while a 1.5" Cuban heel is designed for Latin dance styles. Unless you are participating in dance competitions, a 1" heel is generally sufficient for both ballroom and Latin dancing.

What are they most quality shoes brand out there?
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It depends how much you want to invest in your dance shoes. I would recommend to use of the following brands: Supadance, Ray Rose, Aida, Freed, Capizio, Very Fine dance shoes.
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Is it better to buy dance shoes online or at the physical store? 

Based on my experience, I can tell that when you buy your dance shoes first time you are probably should go into the physical store to try and actually find that pair of dance shoes which works just perfectly for you. Once you know the brand and the model which meets both quality expectation and price, you may re-order such shoes every single moment you need them.

What is the average market price for a great pair of dancing shoes?

Truly, dance shoes may run between $50 and $200 a pair., I would suggest to expect to pay about $120-170 on average for quality dance shoes which you will wear every lesson. Remember comfort of your feet is directly reflective of your feet health. So, I would suggest not to by cheap pair but rather save and invest in expensive brand which will serve for many lessons.