REASONS TO BUY
Molds to your feet
Sensitive for smearing and pulling
Versatile for hard climbing
REASONS TO AVOID
Leather upper stretches more than other shoes
Too soft for sustained edging
La Sportiva Skwama Review
Your one-stop shop for hard sport climbing and bouldering, this comfortable slipper is incredibly versatile
Although the La Sportiva Skwama has been on the market for more than a decade, few shoes come close to striking the perfect balance for the modern climber.
Credit: Dom Rickicki
By Dominic Rickicki ⋅ October 30, 2026
Our Verdict
The La Sportiva Skwama has been in their lineup for over a decade now (the purple colorway is an anniversary edition). We took it for another spin recently, rekindling our love for this simple slipper and proving its staying power among the climbing community. The Skwama covers all of your bases: edges, smears, toe-hooks, heel hooks – whatever you can throw at it, it can handle. Instead of bringing a bag full of shoes to the crag, we now just bring the Skwama. Whether you're an experienced climber looking to simplify your shoe quiver or an intermediate climber hoping to upgrade from your first pair, the Skwama is one of the most versatile shoes on the market.
Compare to Similar Products
 This Product
La Sportiva Skwama | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Awards |  Best for Sport Climbing and Bouldering |  Best for Crack Climbing | Best for Sport and Trad Climbing |  Your First Outdoor Shoe | Your First Gym Shoe |
| Price | $219 List Check Price at REI | $239 List Check Price at REI | $239 List Check Price at REI | $139 List Check Price at REI | $139 List Check Price at REI |
Overall Score  |
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| Star Rating | |||||
| Bottom Line | A nearly perfect shoe for sport climbing and bouldering, this slipper is your one-stop shop for steep climbing | With this shoe, you can climb pitch after pitch without pain | An awesome shoe for long climbs requiring a variety of crack climbing and edging techniques | A bargain price for a respectable climbing shoe makes this an easy choice for beginners | Sticky rubber and a comfy fit come together at an affordable price, making this an ideal entry-level shoe |
| Rating Categories | La Sportiva Skwama | La Sportiva TC Pro | La Sportiva Katana Lace | La Sportiva Finale | Evolv Defy Lace |
| Comfort (20%) | |||||
| Smearing (20%) | |||||
| Edging (20%) | |||||
| Pulling (20%) | |||||
| Cracks (20%) | |||||
| Specifications | La Sportiva Skwama | La Sportiva TC Pro | La Sportiva Katana Lace | La Sportiva Finale | Evolv Defy Lace |
| Sizing Recommendations | Comfort Fit: down 0.5 EU size Performance Fit: down 1.5 - 2 EU sizes |
Comfort Fit: down 0.5 EU size Performance Fit: down 1 - 1.5 EU sizes |
Comfort Fit: down 0.5 - 1 EU sizes Performance Fit: down 1.5 EU size |
Comfort Fit: down 0.5 - 1 EU sizes Performance Fit: down 1.5 EU size |
Comfort Fit: up 1 EU size Performance Fit: true to EU size |
| Expected Stretch | 0.5 - 1 EU Size | 0.5 - 1 EU size | 0.5 - 1 EU size | 1 - 1.5 EU size | 0 - 0.5 EU Size |
| Downturn | Aggressive | Flat | Moderate | Flat | Flat |
| Asymmetry | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate (sharp toe) | Moderate | Neutral |
| Closure Style | Velcro | Lace | Lace | Lace | Lace |
| Upper | Leather / Microfiber / Rubber Toe Cap | ECO Leather | Leather / Microfiber | ECO Leather / Microfiber | Synthetic vegan |
| Lining | Unlined | Sentex / PU Foam (unlined underfoot) | Pacific (in forefoot and back) | Unlined | Lined |
| Volume Options? | Regular, Low Volume (Women's) | None | Regular, Low Volume (Women's) | Regular, Low Volume (Women's) | Regular |
| Rubber Type | Vibram XS Grip2 | Vibram XS Edge | Vibram XS Edge | Vibram XS Edge | TRAX SAS |
| Listed Rubber Thickness | 4 mm | 4 mm | 4 mm | 5 mm | 3.5 mm |
Our Analysis and Test Results
The Skwama is one of our favorite shoes, nearly perfect for hard sport climbing. Credit: Dom Rickicki
Comfort
The Skwama is a slipper-style shoe, designed to be worn snug. We already size down in La Sportiva shoes for a more performance fit, but we had to size down another half size because the leather uppers stretch. The design is very minimalist, especially compared to La Sportiva's popular shoes with padded tongues – out of the box, the Skwama feels a bit stiff and clunky. But after a few days of climbing to break it in, it molds nicely to your feet, making for a super comfortable shoe with a glove-like fit.
Fit-wise, the Skwama has a fairly broad toe box, unlike other high-performance shoes with a more precise, pointed shape. This shape keeps your toes from overlapping, increasing comfort on longer pitches. Folks looking for a super-precise toe may be disappointed, and anyone with a particularly narrow foot may find it hard to get a snug fit. But we think it strikes an ideal balance of performance and comfort for your average foot, and climbers with wider forefeet should gravitate towards the Skwama.
It's best to break in this slipper while climbing, and after just a few days, it molds easily to your foot. Credit: Dom Rickicki
Smearing
With a split sole and an extra cutout under the forefoot, you can easily smear the Skwama over large surfaces, just the kind of holds you find on modern sport routes in the gym and technical boulder problems outdoors. Even though it specializes in steep, overhanging climbs, it can hold its own on more vertical slabs, too.
Even though the Skwama is a relatively soft slipper, it strikes a nice balance of flexibility and support, making it surprisingly versatile. If you're looking for a shoe to smear up long pitches of low-angle granite, like Yosemite's “Freeblast,” the Skwama will likely feel unsupportive. But it's supportive enough to climb vertical sport routes without feeling underpowered, and on single-pitch climbs with more sloping footholds, the Skwama was a secret weapon for us.
The Skwama is great for boulder problems and long pitches on overhanging rock, but it's also surprisingly good for vertical or slightly sloping routes that require technical footwork. Credit: Dom Rickicki
Edging
Soft slippers like the Skwama tend to score lower in this metric because the relatively soft rubber often feels like it rolls out from under your toe when you put your full weight on small edges. But the Skwama doesn't roll easily, and although it lacks the support for sustained efforts, we were surprised by just how supportive it was on tiny edges.
We wouldn't put it up against other shoes designed for hard face climbing – it's still too soft for that. But with a stiffened midsole and a bit of extra support under the toes, it's incredibly versatile for cragging and bouldering. If you spend your days climbing at steep sport crags like the Red River Gorge, the Skwama will work; if you climb the vertical cliffs of Smith Rock or Index, it will likely feel desperate compared to a stiffer shoe.
The Skwama is pretty soft through the middle, but you'll notice the flex increases as you get closer to the toes. Credit: Dom Rickicki
Pulling
The Skwama perfectly balances sensitivity and power, helping you maintain body tension on overhanging routes and boulders. The stiffer flex under the toes made it easier to keep our feet on small edges, but we could also press into flatter holds and create tension. Our lead tester had one specific experience that speaks directly to Skwama's pulling power:
"For my last route of the day, I chose a long 12a, assuming I would burn out and lower off partway up. As I got more pumped, I was impressed by how I could use the Skwama to pull in more over my feet and keep weight off my arms. I surprised myself by clipping the chains 35 meters later – I feel like I really took advantage of these shoes on that pitch."
It has exactly what we could ask for in a steep climbing specialist: a healthy patch of sticky rubber on the toe, and a stiff but sensitive heel. The toe patch has enough surface area for hard toe hooks on aretes, and we could haphazardly slap our feet onto a hold but still get the rubber to stick. The heel of the Skwama is a bit of a blend – stiffer than a traditional, molded heel cup, but more sensitive than a big golf ball heel. Although it is, again, nicely balanced, our lead tester never could quite get the heel to fit well. “No matter what size I tried, there was always a small air pocket. Which was surprising, because La Sportiva shoes normally fit my feet perfectly.” Of course, your experience may be different.
The Skwama has all of the features that make a shoe great for steep climbing: a sensitive yet stiff molded heel, a split sole, and an upper defined by the size of the rubber toe patch.
Crack Climbing
As a soft slipper, the Skwama is meant to be worn with your toes crimped at the front, which makes crack climbing generally unpleasant, if not downright painful. It will work fine for the odd jam here and there, but we wouldn't ever point anyone to this shoe for crack climbing, specifically.
You may see this shoe on the feet of professional climbers on hard trad climbs, but those are usually climbs where jamming isn't the primary footwork technique. Anyone crack climbing with sustained jamming will be better served by a stiffer, flatter shoe.
What makes the Skwama so good for steeper-than-vertical climbing also makes it pretty unpleasant in cracks. Credit: Dom Rickicki
Should You Buy the La Sportiva Skwama?
If you want just one shoe for bouldering and sport climbing, then you can confidently put the Skwama at the top of your list. It's incredibly adaptable within this context, both in the gym and outdoors on real rock, and it excels on harder, overhanging walls. It's even a good choice for climbers with wider feet who don't normally like the fit of La Sportiva shoes. It's versatile enough for vertical climbing, too, but if you're focused on climbing long trad routes, you may want a shoe that's a bit more supportive on edges.
What Other Rock Climbing Shoes Should You Consider?
The Scarpa Instinct VS is a directly comparable alternative if the fit of the Skwama – or La Sportiva shoes, in general – just doesn't work for your feet. The La Sportiva Otaki is a similar-fitting slipper, but it's much stiffer, making it a better choice for vertical walls. Even though it trades a bit of smearing and pulling power for improved edging, it's just about as versatile as the Skwama. If you want a more precise toe, the La Sportiva Solution is as tried-and-true as either of these long-standing shoes.
—Dominic Rickicki
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