Long before sneakers dominated the casual footwear space, the best black derby shoes reigned supreme. Back then, the derby’s open-lace look made it a staple of off-duty style, the hard-bottom you turned to when pulling on a pair of wingtips felt a little too corporate takeover-y. But you’d have to be a peculiar type of menswear enthusiast to consider the derby casual today…right? Not quite.
Over the last couple of years, the derby's reclaimed its rightful place in the hearts and closets of stylish dudes. At a moment when the sneaker and the loafer's supremacy is in flux, fashion-wise, the best derbies have stepped in and stepped up their presence. Even if a lot's changed since derbies rose to prominence, one thing hasn’t: the shoe is—and always will be—one of the most versatile on the planet. Especially in goes-with-everything, ready-for-anything black.
Don’t believe us? Go ahead and lace up a pair of the best black derby shoes. We bet you'll quickly find yourself coming back to them day after day (and night after night), awed by their ability to elevate jeans, anchor great trousers, or even sync up with your sharpest suits.
From exquisitely-made designer riffs to cushy, dependable classics that cost less than a boozy night out, there’s a pair (or two) of great black derbies just waiting to be adopted. Your sneakers are already quaking.
The Best Black Derby Shoes, According to GQ
Looking for Something Specific?
Best Black Derby Overall: Dr. Martens 1461 Derby
Dr. Martens’ 1461 looks good with everything—baggy denim, slouchy trousers, crisp work pants—and costs less than everything else. Its endless versatility comes down to the brand’s tough-as-hell leather and chunky, comfortable rubber soles. The O.G. 1461s have that signature yellow thread running around the sole, which adds a punk-adjacent vibe, but we'd go for the blacked-out version for maximal versatility. That said, if you're thinking about going for the original, just print out this picture of Frank Ocean and go on your merry way.
| Sizes | 6-14, whole sizes only |
| Details | Goodyear welt construction, AirWair sole |
Best Dressy Black Derby: Allen Edmonds Trevor Derby
If you chucked your last pair of dress shoes sometime around March 2020, a no-frills pair of derbies is an easy way to guide your feet back into hard bottoms without too much PTSD. That's because, even as derbies tilt more and more casual, Allen Edmonds unapologetically argues for a stricter dress code. The pared-down design and modest shape makes them ideal for every job interview, board presentation, and formal-ish wedding on your calendar. Which means they'll look swell anchoring your trusty navy suit when you knock the cobwebs off that guy, too.
| Sizes | 7-14 |
| Details | Full-grain European calfskin, Goodyear construction, storm welt, made in America |
Best Budget Black Derby: Beckett Simonon Dunham Derbies
We extolled the value proposition that Beckett Simonon offers when we reviewed dress shoes. They’re made of high-quality full-grain leathers, use Blake stitch construction that’s not only recraftable, but also more comfortable compared to a Goodyear welt, and each pair is meticulously made to order. We prefer these derbies over many others for their craftsmanship, certainly. But each pair on this list is well-made in their own right.
What sets these apart from many other options is the classic silhouette. The rounded toe isn’t too bulbous nor too pointy like some stuffier options. On top of a rubber sole, you can also expect to wear these in a myriad of different situations without having to tip toe your way around puddles. The main downside? That made-to-order wait time will cost you a few weeks, so make sure to buy these well before you’ll really need them.
| Sizes | 7-14 |
| Details | Full-grain leather, Blake stitch construction, steel shank, rubber sole |
Best Upgrade Black Derby: Paraboot Chambord Derby
Remember those mysterious, unbranded hard candies you'd only ever find in your grandparent's side table dish, but never at an actual store? Paraboot was like that for a long time. They were one of those shoes that swaggy septuagenerians knew about, but were hard to track down IRL. Paraboot's charming Chambords derbies are easier than ever to acquire these days—and once you do, you'll never want to take them off. They're made with tough, top-notch leather and feature that old-school welt arcing across the front. And they'll last you until you're old enough to stockpile your own mysterious candies.
| Sizes | 39EU-48.5EU |
| Details | Norwegian welt construction, 45-degree stitching at the toe, custom rubber sole, made in France |
Most Comfortable Black Derby: Mephisto Marlon Derby
I was working at a nice department store when I was first made aware of Mephisto. They were one of the more pricy shoes we offered, which surprised me because the name didn’t scream designer. But what I learned was that they were some of the most comfortable dressy shoes I’d ever experienced but were also miles ahead of the cheaper, stubby, foam-infused dress shoes that flood places like Amazon. Mephisto shoes are made in France using time-honored techniques and top-grade materials and second-to-none comfort. The trade off for that cushioned outsole is a sort of dad energy that can put some people off. But the Mephisto Marlon isn’t concerned with keeping up with the trends which, in a way, makes them trendless.
| Sizes | 8-13 |
| Details | Norwegian welt construction, 45-degree stitching at the toe, custom rubber sole, made in France |
Best Rugged Black Derby: Majordome L88 Split-Toe Cross-Grain Derby
Sometimes, you need to ask more of your derbies. You need to put them through their paces beyond the air-conditioned, carpeted office building and to environs a little less manicured like gravel roads and, uh, your local park. A regular pair of leather-soled derbies aren’t built for all that, much less a rogue puddle. Instead opt for these mud-ready kicks from the Swiss shoemakers at Majordome. They’re made from a sophisticated cross-grain leather that will age gracefully over time and helps them work even better with casual slacks, and that premium leather sits atop a water-resistant Goodyear storm welt and a heavy-duty lugged sole to take on rough and rugged terrain.
I like to think of these as the upgrade to the Dr. Martens—better construction, better materials, easier to resole, can actually be dressed up, pricier. So if you’ve got the patience to save up the money, I’d go with these.
| Sizes | 8-11.5 |
| Details | Goodyear-welted Vibram rubber-lug soles, crafted in Spain from cross-grain leather |
Best Black Derby for Menswear Nerds: Alden Cordovan Plain Toe Blucher
For every piece of menswear, there is an ultimate version of it. In this instance, it’s a pair of Alden shell cordovan plain toe bluchers. The leather itself comes from the thickest part of a horse (the rear-end!) which gives it a natural water resistance, sheen, and durability that menswear nerds geek out about. Compared to the more common cow leather, shell cordovan is thicker and tends to ripple rather than wrinkle. Combined with Alden’s long history of top-tier shoemaking, the Plain Toe Blucher has been elevated to end-game status for every menswear lover. It’s crafted in America using Goodyear welted construction, impeccable stitchwork, and the highest-end materials available.
The downsides? Shell cordovan is a beast to break in, not to mention prohibitively expensive. But I’ve had my pair for almost a decade without a need for repairs, so I don’t expect to need another replacement until I’m about ready to retire.
| Sizes | 7-13 |
| Details | Goodyear storm welt construction, double leather sole, made in America |
More Black Derbies We Love
Edward Green
Dover Leather Derby
Much like the Shannon, Edward Green's Dover derby is one of the styles the house has built its name on. Yes, it's a fortune, but it's been hand-sewn using a boar's bristle needle. (And that's just one of countless exquisite details about its best-in-class manufacturing.)
How We Test and Review Products
Style is subjective, we know—that’s the fun of it. But we’re serious about helping our audience get dressed. Whether it’s the best white sneakers, the flyest affordable suits, or the need-to-know menswear drops of the week, GQ Recommends’ perspective is built on years of hands-on experience, an insider awareness of what’s in and what’s next, and a mission to find the best version of everything out there, at every price point.
Our staffers aren’t able to try on every single piece of clothing you read about on GQ.com (fashion moves fast these days), but we have an intimate knowledge of each brand’s strengths and know the hallmarks of quality clothing—from materials and sourcing, to craftsmanship, to sustainability efforts that aren’t just greenwashing. GQ Recommends heavily emphasizes our own editorial experience with those brands, how they make their clothes, and how those clothes have been reviewed by customers. Bottom line: GQ wouldn’t tell you to wear it if we wouldn’t.
How We Make These Picks
We make every effort to cast as wide of a net as possible, with an eye on identifying the best options across three key categories: quality, fit, and price.
To kick off the process, we enlist the GQ Recommends braintrust to vote on our contenders. Some of the folks involved have worked in retail, slinging clothes to the masses; others have toiled for small-batch menswear labels; all spend way too much time thinking about what hangs in their closets.
We lean on that collective experience to guide our search, culling a mix of household names, indie favorites, and the artisanal imprints on the bleeding-edge of the genre. Then we narrow down the assortment to the picks that scored the highest across quality, fit, and price.
Across the majority of our buying guides, our team boasts firsthand experience with the bulk of our selects, but a handful are totally new to us. So after several months of intense debate, we tally the votes, collate the anecdotal evidence, and emerge with a list of what we believe to be the absolute best of the category right now, from the tried-and-true stalwarts to the modern disruptors, the affordable beaters to the wildly expensive (but wildly worth-it) designer riffs.
Whatever your preferences, whatever your style, there's bound to be a superlative version on this list for you. (Read more about GQ's testing process here.)