With nearly 2,000 footwear styles to choose from, needless to say, we know a thing or two about footwear. One of the most common questions that continues to pop up for our blue-collar customers is the difference between steel and composite toe work boots.

Some people are fans of footwear with composite toe caps, while others can be fans of footwear made with steel toe caps.  We are proponents of both.

Footwear made with either of these toe caps are tested to the same ASTM F2413-05 Standard Impact Compression requirements.

The main reason for composite toes is areas where protective toe footwear is needed along with people needing to pass through metal detectors such as in prisons or with the transportation industry.  Composite toe caps used in footwear with other non-metallic components is ideal for this use.

Many people believe that composite toes work better for cold weather and high heat conditions since steel reacts differently to these temperature extremes.  Cold weather boots and high heat boots have been made for years with steel toe caps aided by the other materials used in the footwear. We have seen no proof that steel toe caps perform better or worse than composite toes in adverse temperatures.