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Best Hiking Boot Brands: What to Expect for Options & How to Choose

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Article Categories: Gear
Article Tags: Footwear

If you’re looking for hiking boots, you know that there are a lot of brands out there. This article is meant to tell you about the best hiking boot brands to help make your decision a little easier. Some brands have great missions, endless reviews, cheap options, or a mixture of all.

The list we have cultivated here contains some of the best brands that have experience and science backing their equipment. These brands produce the highest quality, most durable, waterproof and lightweight boots in the game. Some of these brands are on the more expensive side, but we also sneaked in a couple of the cheaper brands that have proven themselves as creators of high value equipment.

Quick Navigation:
Salomon | Keen | Merrell | Timberland | Columbia | Hi-Tec | Notable Mentions

 

Salomon

Solomon Hiking Boots

Founded in 1947 in France by Francois Salomon and family. In 1997, Adidas acquired the company, and in 2005 Adidas-Salomon sold to Amer Sports of Finland for €485 million

Mission:

“Our passion for outdoor sports, new technologies and craftsmanship has driven us – and still does – to create progressive gear to enable you to freely enjoy and challenge yourself in the great outdoors.”

Website:

View Salomon

Our Insights:

Salomon makes some seriously awesome outdoor equipment. Their hiking boots are arguable the best in the world. When you go with Salomon, you know you are getting high quality, tested gear that is going to last you a long time. Because of this, you are going to pay a little more

View Salomon Hiking Boots on Amazon

Salomon Boots

 

Keen

Keen Hiking Boots

Keen is based in Portland, Oregon. Founded in 2005 by Martin Keen. The company’s products are sold in locations throughout the US and Canada and also are distributed worldwide.

Keen makes note of their commitment to give back to non profit organizations around the world. You can take a look at all of Keen’s values here.

Mission:

We make shoes to make a difference. Together, let’s take action for a better world.

Website:

View Keen Footwear

Our Insights:

Keen has some of the most widely used hiking boots on Amazon for both Men and Women. They are comfortable, relatively inexpensive, and high quality. Don’t let us convince you though, check out all the reviews on Amazon.

View Keen Hiking Boots on Amazon

Keen Boots

 

Merrell

Merrell Hiking Boots

Merrell was established in 1981 when two executives for the Rossignol ski company, Clark Matis and John Schweizer, decided to launch a new maker of hiking boots, The pair decided to join forces with Randal Ivan Merrell (R.I. Merrell), a maker of highly-praised custom boots which retailed for $500 a pair. Matis set to work designing a more affordable high-performance boot, which was developed in 1982. Plans were made for production of the new line in factories located in Italy, a leading exporter of footwear to the world market at the time.

At this day, Merrell has grown to a large multinational company selling outdoor footwear across the globe.

Mission:

Comfort, Durability, Design, and Versatility. It’s all about removing the barriers to enjoying the great outdoors.

Website:

View Merrell

Our Insights:

Much like Keen, Merrell has some of the most widely used hiking boots in the world. You will not find a shortage of reviews from people just like you with a simple Amazon search. If you are looking for a quality boot that doesn’t break the bank, you basically can’t go wrong with Merrell. Merrell states how focused they are on making the best boots in the world. If you are looking for a company that supports good causes, Merrell also does support various outdoor organizations. Take a look at the list here: https://www.merrell.com/US/en/causes-we-support/

View Merrell Hiking Boots on Amazon

Merrell Boots

 

Timberland

Timberland Hiking Boots

Timberland LLC is an American manufacturer and retailer of outdoors wear, with a focus on footwear. It is owned by VF Corporation.  They sell apparel, such as clothes, watches, glasses, sunglasses and leather goods.

Timberland’s corporate headquarters are located in Stratham, New Hampshire (I am a little biased since I am from New Hampshire). Timberland also operates from offices in other parts of the world. Horween Leather Company supplies leather shells for footwear to the Timberland Company.

Mission:

At Timberland, we strive to be Earthkeepers in everything we do. We work hard to make our products responsibly, to protect the outdoors, and to serve the communities around the globe where we live, work and explore.

Website:

View Timberland

Our Insights:

If you are looking for a quality company, Timberland is a great example. They do there best to support sustainable efforts, but they also make a large variety of quality footwear. There hiking boots are almost always high quality.

Interested in learning more about Timberland’s efforts? Check it out here: https://www.timberland.com/responsibility.html

View Timberland Hiking Boots on Amazon

Timberland Boots

 

Columbia

Columbia Hiking Boots

Founded in 1938 Columbia Sportswear Company started as a ski apparel company. They are now a manufacturer and distributer of outerwear, sportswear, and footwear. Columbia Sportswear also produces and sells headgear, camping equipment, ski apparel, and outerwear accessories.

Mission:

At Columbia Sportswear, we are committed to building a company of which we can all be proud – not only of the innovative products we create and the financial results we achieve, but the manner in which we achieve them. Whether it’s responsible sourcing, giving back to our communities, or reducing our environmental impact, we believe corporate responsibility is a companywide effort.

Website:

View Columbia

Our Insights:

Columbia is one of the lesser expensive companies on this list. If you are just getting into hiking, are on a tight budget, but still need some quality, Columbia is a great option for you. My first hiking boot was a Columbia. For $50 I was able to get an extremely comfortable boot that lasted me through many miles.

View Columbia Hiking Boots on Amazon

Columbia Boots

 

Hi-Tec

Hi-Tec Hiking Boots

This is a lesser known brand than the others on this list, but there large presence on Amazon has given this company lots of hiking boots sales. With those sales came extensive customer reviews that are quite good. These boots also tend to be in the lower price range. They do pretty much one thing, make hiking boots and shoes.

Mission:

Comfortable, lightweight high-quality waterproof hiking & walking boots and shoes

Website:

View Hi-Tec

Our Insights:

If you are on a budget, this is a great brand to choose. You can get a wide variety of boots on Amazon, and every pair will have loads of reviews helping you decide if it is the right fit for you.

View Hi-Tec Hiking Boots on Amazon

Hi-Tec Boots

 

Notable Brand Mentions:

Each of the below brands also produce very high quality boots with great reputation and reviews from thousands of customers. Consider looking at the products, mission, and features of boots from these other brands as well.

La Sportiva
Oboz
Vasque
Garmont

Max DesMarais

Max DesMarais

Max DesMarais is the founder of hikingandfishing.com. He has a passion for the outdoors and making outdoor education and adventure more accessible. Max is a published author for various outdoor adventure, travel, and marketing websites. He is an experienced hiker, backpacker, fly fisherman, trail runner, and spends his free time in the outdoors. These adventures allow him to test gear, learn new skills, and experience new places so that he can educate others. Max grew up hiking all around New Hampshire and New England. He became obsessed with the New Hampshire mountains, and the NH 48, where he guided hikes and trail runs in the White Mountains. Since moving out west, Max has continued his frequent adventures in the mountains, always testing gear, learning skills, gaining experience, and building his endurance for outdoor sports. You can read more about his experience here: hikingandfishing/about

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