Stride Soles vs Upstep

Basics

Price

Stride is priced at $249 for one pair, $350 for two pairs, and $419 for three pairs.

Upstep is priced at $249 for one, $368 for two pairs, and $487 for three pairs (as of August 14th).

Return Policy

Both Stride and Upstep offer a 180-day remake or return policy, meaning if you don't like your pair within 180 days, you can either get a remake or a full refund. However, the differences are in the details.

Stride has no re-stocking fee and pays for the return shipping label.

Upstep, however, will deduct anywhere from 10%–30% from your return. Here is the breakdown from their website:

Remake Policy

Stride offers unlimited remakes within the first 180 days of purchase.

Upstep offers one remake within the first 180 days of purchase, with additional fees for subsequent remakes.

Data Capture

The most important aspect of creating an accurate orthotic is the data capture. Between asking patients questions, foot scans, and gait analysis, all of these data points are used to make the orthotics.

Foot Image Capture

Probably the biggest difference between Stride and Upstep is how they capture the foot's shape.

Upstep uses what's known as the foam impression crush box. It's essentially a large piece of foam that they ship to you, which you then step on to create a reverse foot impression. They either fill that impression with plaster to get a positive impression to build the orthotic, or scan the negative impression directly.

This method has been around for decades, but is generally not practiced much at podiatry clinics anymore.

While it can be accurate, the room for error is much greater. If there's an issue, the patient has to get another box, creating another time window where pain isn't addressed.

Stride Soles, on the other hand, uses a smartphone-based 3D scanner. The majority of podiatrists have moved over to 3D scanners given their ease of use and patient satisfaction rates. 

To complete the foot scan, a patient simply hovers their foot over the phone as the scan begins automatically, creating a 30,000-dot map mesh of the foot. It uses the same technology as Face ID, Apple's top security feature, and is used widely across both the medical and athletic arenas.

Gait Analysis

Understanding a patient's gait is essential to getting a complete picture of their condition. Orthotics are used in motion, so simply taking a static image of the foot isn't enough to create a complete orthotic. Things like pronation, hip movement, and even limb length differences can't be captured with static imagery.

Upstep does not offer gait analysis.

Stride Soles offers gait analysis. Stride patients are asked to take a video walking away from and toward a camera. The video is then uploaded to the Stride team in Germany for analysis and adjustments to the orthotics.

Foot Report

Stride Soles offers a foot report based on the 3D scans. This report includes information like exact foot length, width, arch height, and heel width, among other facts. It then compares your data against the general population.

Upstep does not offer a foot report.

The Orthotics

While both Stride and Upstep offer similar orthotics to the untrained eye, there are a number of subtle differences that separate the two offerings.

Length

Both Upstep and Stride Soles offer orthotics that are full length, meaning they go to the toes. However, a major difference is Stride has the shell and corrections reach to the toes, while Upstep's shell stops at the midfoot. 

As you can see in the photo below, beyond the forefoot area, Upstep only has foam. Thus, if you have toe pain or want to offset pressure on the toe area, there is no way to do so. 

Stride on the other hand has corrections and undulations all the way up the orthotic. Therefor if you have a toe condition or just want to offset pressure, it's possible to do so. 

Materials

Stride orthotics are made up of three layers. The top layer is vegan leather with perforated holes for maximum breathability. The middle layer is 2mm of EVA foam. The bottom layer is made of TPU—a highly durable yet stretchable plastic.

The semi-rigid TPU is printed using a strong lattice pattern, which also has holes for breathability. One of the advantages of using additive (3D) printing in a lattice pattern is that density can be adjusted based on the type of orthotic or customer preference. For example, the hardness can easily be increased for a running orthotic versus a recovery orthotic.

Upstep also uses a three-layered approach for its orthotics. The top layer is made of synthetic vinyl. The middle layer is made of EVA foam. The bottom orthotic shell is made of hard Polypropylene plastic.

Polypropylene is a very common orthotic material in the United States, as it provides a rigid shell that can easily handle the weight of any patient. The disadvantage of Polypropylene is that the density is locked for all orthotics. If you don't like the rigid orthotic feeling, you don't have another option. For many, that can create problems, as it's not as comfortable for the average individual.

Types of Insoles

Both brands offer a number of orthotic options for work, daily walking, and sports.

Sports

Stride has orthotics for the following sports: soccer, pickleball, running, baseball, basketball, golf, cycling, and tennis.

Upstep has orthotics for the following sports: tennis, hiking, cycling, gym, golf, basketball, soccer, and running.

Children's Sizes

Stride additionally offers orthotics for children (above size 5), while we were not able to find any mention of children's orthotics on the Upstep website.

Conditions

Both Stride Soles and Upstep carry orthotics to account for the top foot ailments, including: flat feet, plantar fasciitis, bunions, neuromas, Achilles tendonitis, and pronation. 

Stride makes orthotics for those with limb length discrepancy, while Upstep does not. Furthermore, neither company make orthotics for those with diabetes. 

Business

Founders

Upstep is an Israeli company founded by three siblings in 2017. It's not clear from our research exactly where the orthotics are made, but we did have our foam box shipped to New Jersey, so we'd assume it's there.

Stride was founded in 2023 by Zac Cartun, MD, a doctor out of Boston, and Greg Gerla, a career entrepreneur out of New York City. The two founded Stride while studying together at INSEAD business school.

Medical Team

Upstep lists Philip Wells as the main medical expert behind their orthotics. LinkedIn lists him as a podiatrist based in the UK. We could not find any other medical experts listed.

Stride's medical team includes chief medical officer Dr. Zac Cartun, MD from UMass Chan Medical School. Orthotics are designed and made in Germany by Dietmar Walter, a third-generation pedorthist and award winner for his contribution to German science. The Stride medical team also includes Dr. Loterra Chou, head of orthopedic surgery at Stanford University, and Dr. Andrew Jacobs, a Harvard-trained orthopedic surgeon at the Hospital for Special Surgery.