10 Easy Home Remedies to Remove Smells from Shoes

Shoe care specialist Marc Sigal shares easy ways to make your shoes smell fresh again

Co-authored by Marc Sigal and Dan Hickey

Last Updated: November 3, 2026 Fact Checked

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• Deodorizing Methods
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• Odor Prevention Tips
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• What causes smelly shoes?
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Removing bad smells from your favorite shoes is simple—all you need are some readily available home supplies like baking soda, vinegar, dryer sheets, or sanitizing spray. We spoke to shoe care specialists and podiatrists to share the best ways to deodorize your shoes, with effective tips for preventing odors. Plus, we’ll get to the bottom of what causes shoe odors in the first place.

How do you get shoes to stop smelling?

Shoe care specialist Marc Sigal recommends leaving baking soda in your shoes overnight to absorb odors. He also says sanitizing sprays, like Lysol and Mycomist, or UV light inserts like Sterishoe can kill odor-causing bacteria inside your shoes. Other methods include:

• Spraying shoes with a 50/50 mix of vinegar and water, then letting them air-dry.
• Washing or replacing your insoles.
• Leaving deodorizers like activated charcoal, dryer sheets, bar soap, or cotton balls sprinkled with essential oils in your shoes overnight.

Steps

Section 1 of 3:

Best Ways to Deodorize Smelly Shoes

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   Baking soda Sigal recommends sprinkling baking soda or cornstarch inside your shoes to combat smelly odors. “Leave it for a few hours or overnight, then vacuum it out. That helps take out some of the smell.” Baking soda is a natural odor neutralizer, making it an easy and cheap way to get your shoes smelling fresh again!

   • Board-certified podiatrist Catherine Cheung, DPM, recommends mixing an antifungal powder with the baking soda to absorb even more moisture from the shoe.

   Meet the wikiHow Experts

   Marc Sigal is a shoe care specialist with over 19 years of experience in dry cleaning and shoe care service.

   Matt Underhill is a sneaker authentication expert who shares tips and tricks on identifying and caring for shoes with his 317K+ followers.

   Catherine Cheung, DPM, is a board-certified podiatrist with over 20 years of experience specializing in all aspects of foot and ankle care.

   Miguel Cunha, DPM, is a board-certified podiatrist and the founder of Gotham Footcare in Manhattan, New York.

   Kate Rowley is a cleaning influencer who shares cleaning tips and product recommendations to her 270K+ followers.
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   Vinegar or rubbing alcohol spray Distilled white vinegar is a great, natural option for eliminating odors. Fill a spray bottle with a 50/50 mix of vinegar and water, then spritz your shoes all over (inside and out). Let them dry completely before wearing them, and repeat as needed to keep odors under control.

   • Rubbing alcohol works similarly to vinegar. Spray a light layer of alcohol inside your shoes and wait for them to dry. As the alcohol evaporates, it’ll take the odor with it.
   • Warning: Do not mix vinegar with bleach or use vinegar on your shoes if you’ve recently cleaned them with bleach. When these chemicals mix, they can create toxic fumes.
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   Washing or replacing your insoles “The smell sticks to the insole more than anything,” according to sneaker authentication expert Matt Underhill. “I would wash the insole or replace the insole…if you’ve worn the shoe a lot and it smells.” To deodorize your insoles, remove them and spray them with a 50/50 mix of vinegar and water, then let them air-dry in the sun. Or, hand wash your insoles with a mild soap and water, then air-dry completely.

   • Alternatively, wash the shoes themselves if they’re washing machine-safe and cleaning the insoles hasn’t fully removed the odor.
   • Canvas shoes or athletic shoes made from fabric (nylon, polyester, etc.) are typically machine-safe. Place the shoes, laces, and insoles in a mesh or lingerie bag and run a delicate cycle with cold water and liquid laundry detergent.
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   Activated charcoal Bags of activated charcoal can last up to 2 years and are super effective at eliminating odors from shoes. Just leave a bag in each shoe whenever you’re not wearing them for around-the-clock odor absorption.

   • Activated charcoal is available online or at most home goods stores.
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   Sunlight Leave your smelly shoes outdoors or in a window that gets full sun for up to 24 hours. The UV rays in sunlight can help eliminate moisture and odor-causing bacteria. For the best result, unlace your shoes and lift up the tongue for better air circulation. If you have removable insoles, take those out and set them in the sunlight, too.
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   Essential oils Some essential oils, like tea tree oil or clove oil, have antimicrobial and antifungal properties that can help eliminate odors caused by bacteria. Just sprinkle a few drops of oil onto some cotton balls and stuff your shoes with them overnight. You’ll wake up to much fresher smelling footwear!
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   Dryer sheets If you love the smell of scented dryer sheets on your fresh laundry, then this method is for you. Simply stuff a few of your favorite dryer sheets inside your shoes overnight and throw the sheets away in the morning. The dryer sheets will absorb the bad smell in your shoes and leave behind a clean scent.
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   Bar soap Try leaving a dry bar of soap inside each shoe overnight to remove foul odors (and leave a fresh, clean scent behind!). Just make sure not to use them to wash yourself afterward, as they may absorb some odors and bacteria while they’re in your shoes.

   • Unscented bars will still remove odors, but they won’t leave a fragrance behind.
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   Deodorizing/sanitizing sprays, inserts, or powders Sigal says that applying a simple Lysol antibacterial spray inside your shoes is often a quick fix for smelly shoes. “Another great product is called Mycomist sanitizer. You just spray inside the shoe and help kill any of the bacteria,” he adds.

   • Sigal continues, “There’s also a product called Sterishoe, and that helps deodorize and sanitize shoes.” This insert uses UV light to kill 99.9% of the bacteria that cause shoe odors.
   • Cleaning influencer Kate Rowley also recommends a product called Boot Bananas. “They look like a banana and then they have this odor-absorbing mesh on the inside. You just stick them in your shoe and they keep your shoes nice.”
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    Other home remedies In addition to the remedies listed above, the internet is full of other DIY tricks for making your shoes smell good again. Here are some more options to try:

    • The freezer: Place your shoes in a plastic bag and freeze them overnight to let the cold kill bacteria.
    • Teabags: Place 1 or 2 dry black tea bags in each shoe and leave them for up to 24 hours. The tannins in black tea will absorb any unwanted scents.
    • Cat litter: Fill 2 socks with kitty litter, knot them closed, and leave them in your shoes overnight to absorb odors.
    • Newspaper: Crumple a few sheets of newspaper and stuff them in your shoes for 24 hours to neutralize lingering smells.
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Section 2 of 3:

Preventing Smelly Shoes

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   Always wear socks with your shoes. Socks help protect your feet from uncomfortable friction inside your shoes, but they also serve another purpose—to absorb moisture from your feet so it doesn’t linger inside your footwear! Choose socks made of breathable materials like cotton, moisture-wicking wool, or moisture-wicking synthetics to keep your feet (and your shoes) dry.

   • Socks are extra important if you’re an athlete or just tend to have sweaty feet.
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   Rotate shoes so you don’t wear the same pair every day. “Do not wear the same pair of shoes every day so that the shoes can air out and get rid of any contaminants or fungal infections,” advises Dr. Cheung. “You should have two pairs of work shoes and at least two pairs of running shoes so you can change them at least every other day, if not more often.”
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   Let your shoes dry out completely before wearing them again. “You want to let the shoes air dry and you want to make sure that they're completely dried up before using them again,” explains board-certified podiatrist Miguel Cunha, DPM. “If it's in the winter, you could put them near your vent or a heater. Even if it's the air conditioning, some flow of air is going to help dry them up quicker. You could even put them up to a hand dryer. Some of these hand dryers are really strong, and they can at least help get some of the moisture out of the shoe.”

   • You could also consider buying a wooden boot tree or shoe tree to help dry out and deodorize your footwear. Trees made of woods like cedar can help wick away moisture from sweat and bodily oils.
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   Stay on top of your foot hygiene. Wash your feet thoroughly every time you shower to clean away sweat, bacteria, and debris that may be contributing to foot odor. Never share your shoes or socks with another person, and always wear sandals or flip-flops in areas like gyms, saunas, pools, locker rooms, or other places where people tend to walk around barefoot.
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Section 3 of 3:

What causes smelly shoes?

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   Most shoe odors are caused by bacteria that feed on moisture and dead skin cells. Lots of people blame sweat for shoes that smell bad (your feet have over 250,000 sweat glands, after all), but your sweat actually has very little odor to it. It’s actually the bacteria that metabolize dead skin cells and the proteins and minerals in your sweat that create odors. This is why it’s so important to keep your shoes dry and wear socks—it gives these bacteria less to eat!
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   Fungal infections can also cause your shoes (and feet) to smell. Fungal infections, like athlete's foot, can develop when your feet spend lots of time in warm, damp environments (like locker rooms). In addition to a persistent foot odor, signs of a fungal infection on your feet or toes include:

   • Itching or burning between the toes
   • Peeling or flaky skin
   • Redness or irritation
   • Cracked skin
   • Small blisters
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