Sneaker Cleaning Guides

How to Get Salt Stains Out of Shoes and Boots, by Material
Road salt leaves white lines on winter shoes. Brush it off dry, wipe the marks with diluted vinegar, wipe again with plain water, dry overnight. How it changes for leather, suede, canvas and rubber. Read more...
How to Clean Dress Shoes Without Drying Out the Leather
Clean leather dress shoes with a dry cloth, a damp cloth and very little soap, then dry them slowly and condition them. What the makers say, rain and salt marks, the soles and the inside. Read more...
How to Wash Vivaia Shoes: Which Styles Can Go in the Machine
Most Vivaia flats, loafers and sneakers can be machine washed, but heels, sandals, most boots and some loafers can't. Which is which, Vivaia's wash and dry steps, and spot cleaning the rest. Read more...
How to Clean Salomon Shoes: XT-6, Speedcross and GORE-TEX Pairs
Salomon's routine is a soft wet brush, clean water, rinsed insoles and slow drying, never the washing machine. How it applies to the XT-6, Speedcross and GORE-TEX pairs, and where soap comes in. Read more...
How to Get Tar Off Shoes: Soles, Canvas, Leather and Suede
Tar comes off a rubber sole with scraping, a little oil and soapy water. Canvas takes more work, leather and suede are a cobbler's call, and WD-40 calls the sole tip an untested user idea. Read more...
Hydrogen Peroxide for Cleaning White Shoes: What It Can and Can't Do
Peroxide works on white canvas as a baking soda paste. What it does on leather, mesh and soles, whether to soak or sun them, and what hair developer on shoes really is. Read more...
How to Clean Balenciaga Runners, Track, Speed and Triple S
Balenciaga Runners come pre-worn, so clean only new dirt: dry wipe, foam on mesh, a damp cloth on nylon, air dry. Track, Speed sock shoes, Triple S, and why none of them go in the machine. Read more...
How to Clean adidas Gazelle, Gazelle Indoor and Gazelle Bold
Gazelles are suede on a rubber or gum sole. Let mud dry, brush, erase, blot lightly, do the sole on its own. What adidas says, where we differ, and what changes on the Indoor and the Bold. Read more...
How to Clean Cheer Shoes: Varsity, Nfinity, Rebel and Chassé
Cheer shoes clean by hand in a few minutes. The method, what each brand says (they disagree on soaking), glitter and sateen panels, and why the washer and dryer are out. Read more...
How to Clean New Balance 327: Suede, Nylon, Lugs and Heel Wrap
The 327 mixes suede with nylon on a lugged, heel-wrapped sole. How to clean each part, why the nylon gets a different method, the big N, and black and named colourways. Read more...
Can You Put Converse in the Dryer? No. How to Dry Chucks Instead
Converse rules out the tumble dryer for every material it uses. What heat does to canvas, glued rubber and white pairs, how to dry Chucks properly, how long it takes, and suede pairs. Read more...
How to Clean New Balance 574: Suede, Mesh, Midsole and Colourways
The 574 is suede and mesh on an ENCAP or ABZORB midsole, and each part wants different handling. The order to clean it in, the no-cleaner method, and grey, black, pink and leather pairs. Read more...
Mild Soap for Cleaning Shoes: Which Soap Suits Which Material
Which soap to clean shoes with: dish soap, laundry detergent, castile, bar soap, hand soap and saddle soap, matched to canvas, mesh, leather and suede, with the mixes to avoid. Read more...
How to Clean Puma Speedcat OG and Ballet Without Ruining the Suede
Speedcats are suede or leather on a rubber sole. Brush and blot the suede, wipe the leather, clean the sole on its own, dry away from heat. What Puma says, and the Ballet's straps. Read more...
Leather Cleaning Brush: Which Bristles and How to Use One
What a leather brush is for, why boot makers mostly name horsehair, soft versus stiff, how to brush boots and shoes properly, and the one leather that shouldn't be brushed at all. Read more...
How to Remove Grease Stains From Shoes, Material by Material
Grease comes out in order: blot, soak it up with powder, then wash out what's left. Canvas, mesh and rubber in detail, motor oil and bike grease, old stains, and the mistakes that set it. Read more...
How to Clean Air Max 90 Sneakers (and the 95, 97, 1 and Plus)
Air Max 90s mix textile, leather and TPU over a foam midsole and a Max Air heel. How to clean each part, what changes on the 95, 97, Air Max 1 and Plus, and why the washer stays out of it. Read more...
Can You Wash Brooks Shoes in the Washing Machine? Brooks Says No
Brooks rules out the washer, its hand-wash setting and the dryer. What Brooks says instead, why a machine is the wrong tool for a running shoe, and how to rescue a pair that already went through. Read more...
Saddle Soap for Leather Boots: How to Use It, and When Not To
Saddle soap is the heavy cleaner for smooth leather boots: brush, damp lather, wipe off, dry, condition. How to use it, what it isn't for, and the points boot people argue about. Read more...
Can You Wash New Balance Shoes in the Washer? No, and What to Do
New Balance advises against the washing machine and the dryer for all its shoes. Why, which parts suffer most, the hand method it suggests, and what to do if your pair has already been washed. Read more...
How to Clean Shoes With Vinegar (and the Jobs It Can't Do)
White vinegar earns its place on shoes for salt marks, stubborn suede marks and a light odour mist. The ratios, the method, the materials to test first, and what it won't do. Read more...
How to Clean Heels: Leather, Patent, Suede, Clear Straps, Inside
Heels clean by material: a dry cloth on leather, a barely damp one on patent, a dab on suede, nothing wet on satin. What designer makers say, clear straps, heel tips, the inside and storage. Read more...
How to Clean the Inside of Shoes (Lining, Insoles, Fur and Smell)
Insoles out, a barely damp soapy cloth on the lining, a vinegar mist for smell, then a full air-dry before anything goes back. Plus leather linings, fur and fleece, and gunk in the toe. Read more...
How to Clean Dr. Martens: Smooth, Patent, Suede and Waxy Leathers
Dr. Martens' own routine is a damp wipe, a dry cloth, then wax and polish. How that changes for patent, suede, nubuck, waxy and vegan leathers, plus laces, soles and the inside. Read more...