My first pair of climbing shoes were classic purple, La Sportiva Mythos. Blissfully ignorant of 90s climbing style, I wrongly assumed they were women’s shoes.

That spring, in flat-lasted comfort, I got my top rope on at Smith Rock. The Mythos were so comfy that I kept them on all day—belaying, eating lunch, even down the trail into the outhouse (gross!).

Nearly a decade later, I got my first pair of actual women’s climbing shoes, specifically designed for our lower volume feet and smaller frames. And, since then I haven’t spent much time looking back at the unisex offerings.

The past few years have delivered higher performance and better designs to the women’s climbing shoe market. Brands have even begun releasing both men’s and women’s models simultaneously, a testament to the growing representation of women in climbing.

These are my top picks for women’s climbing shoes. They aren’t just smaller, pinker afterthoughts of men’s designs, but actually built from the ground up with the female climber in mind.

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La Sportiva Kataki

I raved about these shoes in my full review last winter, and I’m still smitten with them. A newer addition to La Sportiva’s ever-expanding women’s shoe line, the Kataki is a technical performer. They are a moderately downturned, asymmetrical “quiver-of-one” shoe, that incorporates a neoprene sock-like tongue to eliminate dead space. I loved the low volume, narrow fit, and the laces gave me ultimate control and adjustability. And, La Sportiva’s S-Heel design felt locked on and grippy when I had the opportunity to throw a heel.

For technical, micro-edge, thinness of all kinds these are my absolute favorite shoes. They provide an ideal combination of sensitivity and stiffness for those fun times when the holds are just absolute shit.

Evolv Shakra

Right out of the box I loved the way the Shakra fit. The shoe’s design positions your toes for high performance without the pain of having to downsize. A pronounced bump curved up under my toes filled dead space and gave me a secure fit, while the Knuckle Box created space for my big toe to bend.

The Evolv Shakra is a moderately downturned, asymmetric shoe delivering both performance and comfort. The Shakras are similar to the Evolv Shaman, only built on a more flexible midsole with a narrower female friendly last. These shoes aren’t the most supple shoes I’ve ever worn, but the mid-range stiffness was great for more vertical (less steep) adventures. Ample toe and heel rubber provide options for fancy bouldering footwork.

These shoes are slightly wider in the forefoot than other models I tested, so if you have wider feet these might be your jam. I wore these in my straight shoe size, US women’s 8.5, and they were a perfect fit. The vegan leather stretched a scant half a size for me, so buy these how you like them to fit.

Scarpa Maestro Eco Wmn

The Scarpa Maestro Eco Wmn might be the very first women’s specific trad shoe—and it’s about time. I tested a pair of low-cut Maestro Eco Wmn and found the construction quality on these tradsters to be top tier. Peeking inside I could see where the stitching is routed up away from the big toe edge to eliminate hot spots and improve sensitivity. Combined with a well-padded tongue and supple eco leather I could climb comfortably all-day in these.

Compared to my unisex La Sportiva TC Pros, the Maestro just fit my foot better: less dead space around my arch and heel without having to down size. Scarpa has perfected a tensioned rand, and this was on display in the Maestro Eco Wmn’s as I felt like I could use all the power of my big toe to stand on tiny edges without feeling pain. The women’s Maestros have a slightly softer midsole than the men’s version, giving them enough flexibility to smear confidently on those oh-so-poorly-protected slab pitches. And, when I jammed these bad girls into granite cracks, they were secure and supportive, deforming enough to feel secure while never letting my toes get crushed. They even performed well on finger cracks, biting into the rock even when there wasn’t a lot of space to make contact.

The Maestro has a slightly taller toe profile than the TC Pros, but the difference is negligible for me. I’ll take the slightly taller forefoot in favor of an overall better fit and sensitivity any day. I tested the Maestro in a US women’s 8, EU 39.5, for all-day high performance comfort.

Five Ten Anasazi Pro Wmns

The Anasazi last is a time-tested, well-loved classic. And, the Pro version is a nice addition to the Five Ten family, offering slightly more heel tension and added rubber over the toe.

With past pairs of the Anasazi LV WMNS, I’ve needed to downsize myself into agony to achieve a secure fit in the heel cup. But, thankfully the new Anasazi Pro has enough forward tension through the heel that pedal torture is no longer necessary. The fit was secure without being overly aggressive, which felt natural with the flat, stiff last. On the top of the shoe a patch of thin, flexible rubber helps make these more versatile than other Anasazi models, and also helps keep the toe box from stretching out. These synthetic shoes, which are mostly constructed out of rubber, stretch very little overtime … but they do soften up slightly. I tested a US women’s size 8, just a half size down from my street shoes.

I usually prefer more downturned shoes, but the precise toe and stiff last made these a great choice for vertical or slightly overhanging routes. The Anasazi Pro is a true all-arounder that can be successfully worn in a tight performance fit for cruxy technical climbing or in a comfort-first size for women looking to step-up from a more entry-level shoe.

La Sportiva Women’s Solution

I’ve worn successive pairs of the Women’s Solution since I first reviewed them for Rock and Ice magazine back in 2014. They were one of the first high-performance women’s specific shoes to reach the market and the lower-volume fit, smaller heel cup and softer flex were a much appreciated upgrade from the unisex version. Recently updated to a pink-free color scheme (orange is the new pink), but otherwise unchanged, the Women’s Solutions remain a standout shoe for sport climbing and bouldering.

With an ultra-secure heel cup, plenty of toe rubber and a gapless neoprene sock that cinches down with one velcro tab, these are my go-to shoes for anything steep. The asymmetrical downturned shape feels precise and powerful at my big toe, helping me pull-in on slick little holds. A supple .9 mm midsole provides support without feeling stiff. I wear these in a tight 37 to my size 8.5 street shoe, and they stretch about a half-size through their lifespan. While not overly durable, the 4mm Vibram XSGrip 2 rubber holds up to the usual wear and tear.

Four-plus years since their introduction, I still haven’t found an aggressive women’s shoe that I like better than the Women’s Solution for steep climbing. I have to admit I’m a little sad to see the hot-pink phased out, but not everyone wants barbie feet.