Dress shoes play an integral role in a man’s attire, and finding a pair that aligns with both personal style and budget can be a daunting task. However, with a vast array of options available at Zappos, an online retailer specializing in footwear and clothing, this quest becomes significantly more manageable.
On this page, we will be examining the top men’s dress shoes that are available on Zappos for less than $150. These options will provide you with the opportunity to enhance your sartorial choices without incurring substantial expenses.
Before getting into our top affordable dress shoe picks, however, we’ll cover what you can expect from shoes at this price point. In this manner, if you don’t find our selections too appealing, you can do your own browsing to land on the shoe that fits you the best!
Although shoes are essential to wear, they can often be quite expensive. This is particularly the case when working in most professional environments as you’ll likely need to wear dress shoes.
Unfortunately, it’s one of those expenses that you can’t avoid even if you’re not a shoe buff. At Bespoke Unit, we love shoes but we also realise that not everyone shares our passion.
Therefore, sometimes you simply want shoes that stick to a reasonable budget and offer the best value for money.
What To Expect From $150 Shoes
Whilst $150 is indeed a lot of money, it’s on the lower end of typical shoe prices. Therefore, you won’t necessarily be able to access the quality or more premium shoes simply due to the sheer construction costs for the manufacturer.
One of the greatest risks in buying cheaper shoes is that the materials and construction methods cut a lot of corners. After all, shoe makers need to make a profit no matter the budget!
Nevertheless, this runs the risk of cheaper shoes wearing poorly, being uncomfortable, or even falling apart! Therefore, you should keep in mind a minimum of features in order to guarantee and element of quality when buying on lower budgets:
Full-Grain Leather Uppers
Overall, dress shoes are made using various grades of leather that use different parts of the hides. Cheaper shoes will often use inferior parts, which can still produce decent-quality leather.
Similarly, retailers rarely offer much detail on the grades or types of leather that make up budget shoes as they’re often not very sexy.
However, really cheap shoes will often use synthetic or engineered types of leather that are usually very poor quality. They can have a strong smell and fall apart quick easily. Furthermore, they’re not a natural material and very hard to maintain as scuffs don’t always polish out.
Additionally, there are cheap leathers known as “wet blue”, which can crack and deteriorate as well as lose its pigmentation very quickly.
Aiming for full grain leather means that you avoid these so-called “man-made” materials. Whilst it will rarely consist of the higher grades when on a budget, you can still get decent quality shoes for the price.
Welting Rather Than Cementing
Welting is a technique used for fixing the soles onto the shoe. There are several techniques that can achieve this but they can drastically affect the cost in manufacturing the shoe.
One of the most common methods that you’ll encounter among cheaper shoes is known as cementing. It’s the cheapest and fastest way in which an adhesive compound glues the sole to the shoe.
Whilst it’s the best method for rubber soles, it’s also very cheap to do. The benefit of this is more affordable footwear. However, cemented soles can’t be replaced and may come away from the shoe over time.
If you can find a pair within your price point, go for Blake or Goodyear welted shoes. Both are more expensive techniques where the sole is attached via stitching. Blake stitching is cheaper and offers good value for money but finding Goodyear welted shoes under $150 will guarantee extra durability and quality.
Outsoles & Insoles
Other corner-cutting areas for cheaper shoes are the outsoles and insoles. In the case of the outsole, you’ll likely come across rubber materials. However, even these can vary in quality and finish.
Seek out soles that give a little more than a single chunk of rubber. For instance, you could potentially find some leather soles with a reinforced heel, which provide extra durability. However, leather soles do require more care so rubber might be more to your liking.
With regards to the insole, cheaper shoes will often skimp on cushion and only provide a flat footbed. If you’re going to be wearing these for work, try to find shoes that offer something a little extra and preserve your feet!
- Style: Oxford Shoes
- Formality: Business Professional
- Pricing: $124.95 [Buy Now On Zappos]
Florsheim is a celebrated historical brand in the USA and is well-known for providing excellent value. For instance, these oxford shoes are manufactured using full-grain leather.
As a result, they look the part and the cemented rubber soles are quite subtle and not a huge giveaway of their low price. If you’re looking for a versatile dress shoe for any formal occasion, including black tie, this is probably your best option under $150!
- Style: Oxford Shoes
- Formality: Business Professional
- Pricing: $169
- On SALE for $108 [Buy Now On Zappos]
Made in Brazil with a burnished leather upper, the Massimo Matteo Bal is part of the affordable Classic 19 range. They’re extremely versatile and can be worn in any formal environment such as the office or black tie.
You’ll note that the rubber soles are cemented, which is a telltale sign of their low price. While they can’t be resoled, they should offer you decent performance for a good number of years.
- Style: Derby / Bluchers
- Formality: Business Professional
- Pricing: $135 [Buy Now On Zappos]
We’re really fond of Johnston & Murphy as they offer excellent quality and fair prices. Made from calfskin leather, these are very durable derbies for their price point and look very stylish indeed.
Derbies or Bluchers are easily identified by their open-throat lacing system unlike the Oxfords above. This makes them somewhat more casual than Oxfords. However, you can still wear them with business professional attire.
- Style: Derby / Bluchers
- Formality: Business Professional
- Pricing: $124.95 [Buy Now On Zappos]
Sitting comfortably under the $150 price point, the Florsheim Midtown clearly deserved a mention. Although a wide range with a variety of styles, we are particularly fond of the plain-toe Derby shoe.
Like the Oxfords above, they’re made with full-grain leather, and they also feature an Ortholite footbed, which likely explains the additional cost. As a result, they’re far more comfortable and will probably be suitable for long days spent on your feet.
Nevertheless, it’s worth remembering that these are derbies and not oxfords. As a result, they’re not quite formal enough for particularly conservative environments.
- Style: Brogues
- Formality: Business Professional
- Pricing: $114.95
- On SALE for $94.95 [Buy Now On Zappos]
Stacy Adams is simply a fantastic brand when on a budget. We love the style of these traditional brogues and find them very hardy given their ornate style. Featuring all the hallmarks of traditional brogues including perfing, pinking and a toe cap medallion, these are traditional in style.
Therefore, they look their best with a tweed suit but work just as well as a business casual shoe with chinos. There are three options to choose from in this model of brogue. We find that the mid-brown shoes are the most versatile. However, you can also pick from a tan or brown leather instead.
Shoe Content
