The 10 Best Women’s Sneakers of 2022
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By Stadium Goods |The 10 Best Women’s Sneakers of 2022
Our picks for the 10 best women’s sneakers of the year.
Matt DeSciora
The playing field is finally even—after years of envying all the great colorways made exclusively in men’s sizing, women are now getting the opportunity to wear shoes in colors they always wanted to. Themes once reserved for men’s shoes only, like Jordan Brand’s “UNC” and “Chicago” colorways, are appearing on women’s sneakers in new, remixed styles. Other sneakers that had never been made available in women’s sizing are being rolled out in women’s-exclusive colorways.
This, along with collaborations by women from various creative fields has excitement in the women’s footwear space at an all time high. To be sure, there was no shortage of great women’s-exclusive releases in 2022.
Earlier in the year we released our “Best Women’s Sneakers of 2022 (So Far)” post, and today we will be updating that list with the best women’s sneaker releases of the year in its entirety. As with the original list, the final version features an impressive mix of a variety of colorways. Because as you’ll see, women’s shoes are not lacking in variety.
These are the Best Women’s Sneakers of 2022.
With all the advancements made in women’s sneakers, the space is still in need of more women’s signature colorways and shoe models. But the Nike Dunk Low “Lisa Leslie” is definitely a step in the right direction. Dedicated to the Basketball Hall of Famer, the “Lisa Leslie” Dunk features the Los Angeles Sparks’ team uniform colors and Lisa #9 jersey number on the side. Here’s to more colorways of this ilk in 2023.
Women’s Air Jordan 1 Mid “UNC”
Even the most diehard Duke Blue Devils fan agrees: the Air Jordan 1 looks great in “UNC” colors. The college basketball-inspired theme was rolled out on the Women’s Air Jordan 1 Mid “UNC,” albeit in a slightly different color block than the original Jordan 1 from 1985, and is one of the top releases for women in 2022.
Women’s Air Jordan 3 “Dark Mocha”
How do you take an already great colorway and make it even better? In the case of the Women’s Air Jordan 3 “Dark Mocha,” add pink accents. Inspired by Neapoltian ice cream, the “Dark Mocha” is basically a carbon copy of the Jordan 3’s “Mocha” release from 2001, except it adds a pink painted heel to top off its look.
Women’s Air Jordan 4 “Canyon Purple”
Collaborations, returning original colorways, and new crop of women’s-exclusive colorways have all contributed to the Air Jordan 4’s popularity in recent years. There are plenty of examples of collaborations and original colorways to prove this, and in the “Canyon Purple,” a women’s-only release with an eye-catching hairy purple suede design, there’s a clear example of how women’s colorways are fueling the vintage sneaker’s hype.
Women’s Air Jordan 6 “Mint Foam”
There aren’t too many Women’s Air Jordan 6s in the wild, which made the “Mint Green” a must-have for many collectors this year. The warm weather inspired sneaker should hopefully kick off the first of many women’s-exclusive Jordan 6s in the near future.
Women’s Air Jordan 1 Mid “Alternate Bred Toe”
There seemed to be more “Alternate” colorways than ever in 2022. But that didn’t lessen the appeal of the Women’s Air Jordan 1 Mid “Alternate Bred Toe” when it debuted earlier this year. The style, which modifies the original “Black Toe’s” color block with the Chicago Bulls’ team uniform colors, looks as though it could have been an original or Player Exclusive colorway worn by Michael Jordan back in the day.
Women’s Nike Dunk Low “Vintage Green”
Vintage Dunks are as Instagrammable as any modern shoe, but finding pairs in the wild to flex on social media in wearable condition can be tricky. Nike knows as much, and saved everyone the hassle of scouring every corner of the world for worn down pairs when it released the Women’s Dunk Low “Vintage Green,” a colorway with all the same aged details you’d find on a pair of Dunks from the ‘80s, ‘90s and 2000s.
Women’s Air Jordan 1 High OG “Denim”
Simply put, the Women’s Air Jordan 1 High OG “Denim” was one of the best women’s sneaker releases of the year. With its frayed denim overlays and Swoosh branding, and its unique gold lace accessory, the “Denim” is the kind of shoe folks love because it looks great whether it's kept in pristine condition or worn into the ground, just like a pair of jeans.
Serena Williams x Nike Air Force 1 Low LXX “Summit White”
Serena Williams’s tennis career may have come to an end this year, but we have a feeling we haven’t seen the last of the California native in the spotlight. In 2022, Serena and her Serena Williams Design Crew took to the Women’s Nike Air Force 1 Low LXX, and the results, as you can see, are quite good. Details such as the unique gold zip shroud that covers the lace area not only provides additional comfort, but a modern look—no easy feat in this day and age considering all the progressively designed Air Force 1s released on a daily basis by the Swoosh.
Billie Eilish x Nike Air Force 1 High
Billie Eilish followed up her two-shoe Air Jordan collaboration last year with an impressive remodel of one of the greatest sneakers of all time, the mighty Air Force 1. Once again opting for vegan materials, Billie juxtaposed a neutral, tonal colorway with a bold redesign featuring more straps on the silhouette than you’ve ever seen before. Technically this collab was released in men’s sizing, but it goes all the way down to size 4 to accommodate women’s feet.