Korean Shoe Sizing Explained: What Does KR 280 Mean?
If you've ever bought sneakers from a Korean retailer, browsed the resale platform Kream or ordered directly from a Korean brand, you've encountered Korean shoe sizing — a string of three digits that looks nothing like the US, UK or EU numbers you're used to.
Korean shoe sizing is actually the simplest system of them all once you understand what it represents. Here's a full breakdown.
What Korean Shoe Sizing Actually Is
Korean sizing is your foot length in millimetres. That's the whole system. KR 280 means the shoe is designed for a foot that is 280mm (28 centimetres) long. KR 250 means 250mm (25cm). KR 230 means 230mm (23cm).
There's no formula to memorise. No offset between men's and women's. No conversion between half sizes in one system and whole sizes in another. The number on the shoe is a direct physical measurement. If you know your foot length in millimetres, you know your Korean size.
This makes Korean sizing arguably the most rational shoe sizing system in common use. The EU system uses the Paris Point, which is an abstract unit. US sizing is an arbitrary numerical scale. Korean sizing just tells you how long the shoe is for.
Converting KR Sizes to US, UK and EU
To convert from Korean to US or EU, you just need to know what foot length corresponds to each size in those systems.
- KR 230 → US Men's 5 / Women's 6.5 / EU 36.5
- KR 240 → US Men's 6 / Women's 7.5 / EU 38
- KR 250 → US Men's 7 / Women's 8.5 / EU 40
- KR 255 → US Men's 7.5 / Women's 9 / EU 40.5
- KR 260 → US Men's 8 / Women's 9.5 / EU 41
- KR 265 → US Men's 8.5 / Women's 10 / EU 42
- KR 270 → US Men's 9 / Women's 10.5 / EU 42.5
- KR 275 → US Men's 9.5 / Women's 11 / EU 43
- KR 280 → US Men's 10 / Women's 11.5 / EU 44
- KR 285 → US Men's 10.5 / Women's 12 / EU 44.5
- KR 290 → US Men's 11 / EU 45
- KR 300 → US Men's 12 / EU 46.5
Why Korean Sizing Has No Gender Split
Because Korean sizing is just foot length in millimetres, there's no reason for a gender distinction. A 270mm foot is a 270mm foot, regardless of whose foot it is. The shoe built for a KR 270 foot fits that foot.
This stands in contrast to US and UK sizing, where the same foot length is described by different numbers depending on whether you're in the men's or women's chart. Korean sizing cuts through all of that. The only reason the US equivalents differ between men's and women's in the chart above is because the US system itself has the gender split — the KR number is consistent.
Kream, Solebox KR and Buying From Korean Resale
Kream is South Korea's leading sneaker resale platform — similar to StockX or GOAT in the US market. All listings on Kream use Korean sizing. If you're a US buyer using Kream for the first time, you need to know your KR size before you can filter or buy correctly.
To find your KR size: measure your foot length in millimetres (or in centimetres and multiply by 10). That number is your Korean size. If your foot measures 27.5cm, your KR size is 275. Enter that directly into Kream's size filter.
One thing to be aware of: Kream and similar platforms list sizes in 5mm increments (260, 265, 270, 275, 280 and so on). If your foot length falls between increments — say, 272mm — you're between a KR 270 and a KR 275. In that case, apply the same rule as any sizing gap: if the shoe runs roomy, go down to 270; if it runs small or true-to-size, go up to 275.
Korean Sizing on Shoe Labels
If you pick up a pair of shoes made for the Korean domestic market, the shoe tongue, insole or box will typically show the KR size prominently, sometimes alongside the EU size. You may also see it written simply as "280" without the "KR" prefix. On Korean brand sites (like Fila Korea or Asics Korea), sizes are listed in this format by default.
Global brands sold in Korea — Nike, Adidas, New Balance — also use KR sizing on labels when sold through Korean channels. So a pair of Nike Air Max bought in Seoul will show a KR number even though the same shoe in the US would show a US size. The shoe is identical; only the label differs.
Convert your Korean size to US, UK, EU or CM instantly — or enter your foot length to get every size equivalent at once.
Use the Korean size converter →Is Korean Sizing the Same as Japanese Sizing?
Almost, but not exactly. Japanese shoe sizing also uses centimetres of foot length, displayed in whole and half centimetre increments (e.g., 27.0, 27.5, 28.0). Korean sizing uses millimetres (270, 275, 280). The numbers look different but they represent the same thing — KR 280 and JP 28.0 both mean a 28cm foot.
The practical difference is that Japanese sizes appear on Japanese domestic product labels and at JP 0.5cm increments, while Korean sizes appear on Korean product labels at KR 5mm increments. For a buyer, they work the same way: the number directly represents your foot length.
Disclaimer: Korean shoe size conversions to US, UK and EU are approximate. Actual fit varies by brand and model. Always verify against the brand's size chart where possible.