Do Brooks Have a Wide Toe Box? 7 Brooks Measured
None of the seven Brooks we cover that a lab has measured has a wide toe box in its standard width. The roomiest, the Glycerin 23, measures 73.9 mm at the big toe, 1.1 mm above the median of the 34 shoes we review that a lab has measured, and the Addiction Walker 2 is the second narrowest of all 34.
On this page
- The short answer
- Which Brooks has the widest toe box?
- Brooks Narrow vs Medium vs Wide vs Extra Wide: what each one buys you
- Which Brooks for a bunion, a hammertoe or crowded toes
- Brooks toe boxes change between versions
- Do Brooks or HOKA have a wider toe box?
- All seven, measured three ways
- Questions patients ask
- Related charts and guides
What Brooks sells instead is width: Narrow to Extra Wide on its best-known running and walking shoes, and Brooks says plainly what each one changes. Narrow, Medium and Wide share one footbed and differ only in how much upper there is; only the Extra Wide is built wider underneath. For a bunion or a broad forefoot that is a real lever. For crowded toes, a Brooks is rarely the answer.
This is a measurement page. Every shoe measurement here is from RunRepeat’s laboratory, which buys one pair of each shoe in a men’s US 9 and measures the inside from a gel mould of it. We have not measured these pairs ourselves, and Brooks publishes none of these numbers. Each shoe links to our specification review.
The short answer
Measured at the big toe, 28.3 mm back from the tip of the shoe where the toes actually sit, the seven Brooks we cover that the lab has measured span 5.6 mm, from 68.3 to 73.9 mm. The median of the 34 shoes we review that carry this figure is 72.8 mm: three Brooks sit at or a little above it, and four below it.
Toe box width at the big toe, in millimetres: RunRepeat laboratory, one pair of each shoe. Bars start at 60 mm rather than at zero, so that a millimetre or two is visible, on the same scale as our toe box width chart.
In order, with each shoe’s place among the 34: the Glycerin 23 (joint 9th), Adrenaline GTS 24 (11th), Adrenaline GTS 25 (joint 16th), Ghost Max 4 (joint 23rd), Ghost 18 (30th), Ghost 17 (32nd) and Addiction Walker 2 (33rd). The Ghost 17 and the Adrenaline GTS 24 have since been replaced by the Ghost 18 and the GTS 25.
Which Brooks has the widest toe box?
The Glycerin 23, on both width measurements; for depth the Addiction Walker 2 leads. It is joint ninth of the 34 at the big toe (73.9 mm), ninth at the widest point of the forefoot (96.1 mm) and tenth for depth (27.7 mm). That makes it the roomiest Brooks, not a roomy shoe: the HOKA Gaviota 6 gives 2.8 mm more at the big toe, and the three Altras on our toe box width chart 8.3 to 9.7 mm more.
The Adrenaline GTS 24 came close at the big toe (73.7 mm), but its replacement, the GTS 25, measured 72.8, exactly the median. The Ghost 18 is the shape to understand: among the narrowest of the 34 at the big toe (70.6 mm, 30th) but joint tenth at the widest point (96.0 mm). Its forefoot narrows by 25.4 mm from the ball of the foot to the toes, the third-steepest taper of the 34, behind only the New Balance 990v6 and the Ghost 17 before it. Room for the bump of a bunion, little for the toes.
The most surprising figure belongs to the Addiction Walker 2. Brooks sells it from Narrow to Extra Wide, B to 4E in men’s, and in the medium width the lab measured it is the second narrowest of the 34 at the big toe (68.3 mm) and at the widest point (92.8 mm). It is deep, though: 28.2 mm over the toes, joint seventh. A walker this narrow in its standard width is a shoe to buy in the width you actually need, and Brooks’s own explanation of its widths, below, says which one that is.
Brooks Narrow vs Medium vs Wide vs Extra Wide: what each one buys you
Brooks sells four widths and publishes the letter for each. In men’s, Narrow is B, Medium D, Wide 2E and Extra Wide 4E; in women’s, Narrow is 2A, Medium B, Wide D and Extra Wide 2E. All seven Brooks here come in Extra Wide, and all but the Glycerin 23 and the Ghost Max 4 in Narrow too.
More useful, Brooks is unusually specific about what each width changes. Its own help pages say that Narrow, Medium and Wide shoes of the same model are built on the same size footbed, and that the difference is the amount of upper material, and so the volume. The Extra Wide is the one with both a wider footbed and more upper. In plain terms: a Brooks Wide is a roomier upper on the same footbed, and the Extra Wide is the first width that changes the footbed under your foot.
That matters for which problem you are solving. More upper over the same footbed suits a high instep, a foot that swells through the day, or a bunion that needs the upper to give at the side. A forefoot that spills over the edge of the sole needs the Extra Wide. And neither is a reliable lever for room at the tips of the toes, which is where a hammertoe, a crowded second toe or a big toe drifting across the others meets the shoe; our shoe width chart covers what each letter buys in millimetres across brands.
What nobody publishes is the inside of a Brooks Wide or Extra Wide. The lab buys a men’s US 9 of each model, and neither it nor Brooks prints what the wider versions measure at the toes, or what any women’s version measures. That is the measurement we most want to make ourselves.
From the clinic. When a patient tells me they went up to a wide Brooks and it still pinches, the first thing I ask is which wide. By Brooks’s own account the Wide (2E in men’s, D in women’s) is the same footbed with more upper; only the Extra Wide (4E in men’s, 2E in women’s) changes what is underneath. If the pinch is at the tips of the toes, neither letter is the fix, and the answer is a differently shaped shoe.
Which Brooks for a bunion, a hammertoe or crowded toes
The lab takes three measurements inside the forefoot, and each answers a different problem. Find yours, then read the column that matters in the table below.
- A bunion, a tailor’s bunion or a broad forefoot. The bump sits at the joint, so the width across the ball of the foot comes first, and the width you buy is your lever; if the big toe has also drifted towards the others, the big-toe figure matters too. Four Brooks measure at or above the median there: the Glycerin 23 (96.1 mm), the Adrenaline GTS 25 and the Ghost 18 (96.0 each) and the Ghost 17 (95.2). The Ghost Max 4 and the Addiction Walker 2 are among the narrowest of the 34 at the ball of the foot in their medium width (93.4 and 92.8 mm), so start them at Wide. See also shoes for bunions and shoes for a tailor’s bunion.
- A Morton’s neuroma. The nerve is pinched between the metatarsal heads, on the same line, so the same rule applies: room at the widest point, and a wider fitting before a bigger size. See shoes for Morton’s neuroma.
- Hammertoes, claw toes, a thick or lifted nail, or corns on top of the toes. These press up into the roof, so depth matters more than width. The Addiction Walker 2 has the deepest Brooks toe box (28.2 mm, joint seventh of 34) and the Glycerin 23 the next (27.7, tenth). The Ghost 17 was among the shallowest (24.8, 29th), and the Ghost 18 is only a millimetre deeper. See shoes for hammertoes.
- Crowded toes, or a big toe drifting across the others. This is the big-toe figure, and none of the seven measured Brooks is roomy there: the best is the Glycerin 23 at 73.9 mm. If that is not enough, look outside Brooks: the HOKA Gaviota 6 measures 76.7 mm and the three Altras on our toe box width chart 82.2 to 83.6.
Brooks toe boxes change between versions
Our generation comparisons cover four Brooks version changes, each measured by the lab with the same toe-box tests:
| Version change | At the big toe | At the widest point | Toe box height |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ghost 16 → 17 | 72.1 → 69.6 mm (−2.5) | 96.1 → 95.2 mm (−0.9) | 26.8 → 24.8 mm (−2.0) |
| Ghost 17 → 18 | 69.6 → 70.6 mm (+1.0) | 95.2 → 96.0 mm (+0.8) | 24.8 → 25.8 mm (+1.0) |
| Glycerin 22 → 23 | 73.7 → 73.9 mm (+0.2) | 96.3 → 96.1 mm (−0.2) | 23.6 → 27.7 mm (+4.1) |
| Adrenaline GTS 24 → 25 | 73.7 → 72.8 mm (−0.9) | 95.1 → 96.0 mm (+0.9) | 25.4 → 26.6 mm (+1.2) |
RunRepeat laboratory, one pair of each version, as printed on our generation comparisons (each row links to one). A minus sign means the newer version is smaller.
Brooks has moved its toe-box widths less than HOKA has, by up to 2.5 mm at the big toe against HOKA’s 4.2, but it does move them. The Ghost lost 2.5 mm at the big toe and 2.0 mm of depth from the 16 to the 17 and won back a millimetre of each in the 18, so the current Ghost is still narrower at the toes than the Ghost 16 was. The Glycerin 23 kept the 22’s width and gained 4.1 mm of depth, which is why it now suits a hammertoe better than the shoe it replaced. A Brooks that fitted you tells you about that version: try the new one on.
Do Brooks or HOKA have a wider toe box?
Neither, as a brand. Of the 34 shoes we review that the lab has measured, Brooks’ seven run from 68.3 to 73.9 mm at the big toe and HOKA’s seven from 70.2 to 76.7 mm. The middle Brooks, the Ghost Max 4 at 71.3 mm, is 1.6 mm narrower than the middle HOKA, the Mach 7 at 72.9, not much more than the 1 mm we treat as noise between two single pairs. The roomiest HOKA, the Gaviota 6, beats the roomiest Brooks by 2.8 mm. Where Brooks wins is the range of widths: Narrow to Extra Wide, where HOKA lists no Narrow and stops at Wide on some models. Our HOKA toe box comparison has the HOKA side, and Hoka vs Brooks compares the two brands on everything else. Across the 202 road shoes in our running shoe ranking, ASICS averages a shade more room at the big toe than either brand, and Altra about 10 mm more than all three.
All seven, measured three ways
The same shoes on the three measurements the lab takes inside the forefoot, with each one’s place among the 34 shoes we review that it has measured this way; first is the widest or the deepest.
| Shoe | At the big toe | At the widest point | Toe box height | Widths Brooks sells |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Brooks Glycerin 23 | 73.9 mm (joint 9th) | 96.1 mm (9th) | 27.7 mm (10th) | Medium, Wide, Extra Wide |
| Brooks Adrenaline GTS 24 | 73.7 mm (11th) | 95.1 mm (18th) | 25.4 mm (joint 26th) | Narrow, Medium, Wide, Extra Wide |
| Brooks Adrenaline GTS 25 | 72.8 mm (joint 16th) | 96.0 mm (joint 10th) | 26.6 mm (21st) | Narrow, Medium, Wide, Extra Wide |
| Brooks Ghost Max 4 | 71.3 mm (joint 23rd) | 93.4 mm (joint 31st) | 26.8 mm (joint 18th) | Medium, Wide, Extra Wide |
| Brooks Ghost 18 | 70.6 mm (30th) | 96.0 mm (joint 10th) | 25.8 mm (joint 24th) | Narrow, Medium, Wide, Extra Wide |
| Brooks Ghost 17 | 69.6 mm (32nd) | 95.2 mm (joint 16th) | 24.8 mm (29th) | Narrow, Medium, Wide, Extra Wide |
| Brooks Addiction Walker 2 | 68.3 mm (33rd) | 92.8 mm (33rd) | 28.2 mm (joint 7th) | Narrow, Medium, Wide, Extra Wide |
RunRepeat laboratory figures, one pair of each shoe in a men’s US 9, read 28 September 2026. The big-toe width and the height are taken 28.3 mm back from the tip of the shoe; the widest point lies between the first and fifth metatarsal joints. Widths are Brooks’s own listing, men’s and women’s alike; the Ghost 17 and Adrenaline GTS 24 are as they were sold. Read a 1 mm difference as noise. The Brooks Beast GTS 26 (Ariel GTS 26 for women) has no lab review yet, so it has no figure here.
Questions patients ask
Do Brooks run narrow?
At the toes, most do. Four of the seven Brooks we cover measure below the 34-shoe median at the big toe, and two of them, the Ghost 17 and the Addiction Walker 2, are among the three narrowest of the 34. Across the ball of the foot they are closer to average, and Brooks sells Narrow to Extra Wide on its best-known models.
Which Brooks has the widest toe box?
The Glycerin 23: 73.9 mm at the big toe (joint ninth of the 34 shoes in our lab set) and 96.1 mm at the widest point (ninth). The Adrenaline GTS 24 came close at the big toe (73.7 mm), but the GTS 25 that replaced it measured 72.8.
Are Brooks good for bunions?
Several are, in the right width. A bunion sits at the big toe joint, so check the width across the ball of the foot: the Glycerin 23, Adrenaline GTS 25 and Ghost 18 measure 96.0 to 96.1 mm there, above the median. The Ghost Max 4 and Addiction Walker 2 are among the narrowest at the ball in their medium width, so start them at Wide. A soft upper with no seam or overlay over the joint matters as much as the millimetres.
What is the difference between Brooks Wide and Extra Wide?
Wide is 2E in men’s and D in women’s; Extra Wide is 4E and 2E. Brooks says its Narrow, Medium and Wide versions of a model share the same footbed and differ in how much upper material, and so volume, they have; the Extra Wide adds a wider footbed as well.
Does Brooks make narrow shoes?
Yes. Narrow is B in men’s and 2A in women’s, sold on the Ghost 18, Adrenaline GTS 25 and Addiction Walker 2 among others. By Brooks’s account it is the same footbed as the Medium, with less upper.
Is the Ghost 18 wider than the Ghost 17?
Slightly: 1.0 mm wider at the big toe (70.6 against 69.6 mm), 0.8 mm at the widest point and 1.0 mm deeper. It is still narrower at the toes than the Ghost 16 was (72.1 mm).
Do Brooks or HOKA have a wider toe box?
Neither, as a brand. The middle HOKA of the seven in our lab set measures 72.9 mm at the big toe and the middle Brooks 71.3, a gap barely above the 1 mm we treat as noise; the roomiest HOKA, the Gaviota 6, beats the roomiest Brooks, the Glycerin 23, by 2.8 mm. Brooks sells more widths.
Which Brooks is best for wide feet?
For a foot that is wide all over, an Extra Wide, because by Brooks’s account it is the only width built on a wider footbed; on the lab’s figures the Glycerin 23 is the roomiest Brooks at both the toes and the ball. If your toes need room more than your forefoot needs width, none of the seven measured Brooks is roomy at the toes in its standard width.
Related charts and guides
The figures for the 34 lab-measured shoes we review are on our toe box width chart, and what each width letter buys is on the shoe width chart. For Brooks in particular, see the best Brooks walking shoes and Brooks walking shoes for women; for shoes chosen around room, wide toe box shoes and shoes for wide feet.
Sources
- RunRepeat, testing methodology: shoes bought in a men’s US 9; toe box width taken 28.3 mm from the tip of a gel mould of the inside of the shoe, the widest point between the first and fifth metatarsal joints, and toe box height at the same 28.3 mm. Read October 2026.
- RunRepeat, laboratory reviews of the Brooks Glycerin 23, Adrenaline GTS 24 and 25, Ghost Max 4, Ghost 17 and 18 and Addiction Walker 2, read 28 September 2026; the Ghost 16 and Glycerin 22 as printed on our generation comparisons.
- Brooks Running support, “How do I know which width to choose?” and “What is the difference between the various shoe width options?”, on its width letters and what each width changes. Read October 2026.
- Brooks Running, men’s and women’s shoes available in widths. Read 6 October 2026.
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