Crane Ladies Memory Foam Athletic Shoes

Last Updated on January 3, 2020

EDITOR’S NOTE: Updates from June 2019  and January 2020 below.

I have never owned a pair of tennis shoes from Aldi, although my husband has had pretty good experiences with several pairs of shoes from Aldi. So when Aldi sold some women’s tennis shoes as a limited-time ALDI Find, I picked up a pair.

The Crane Ladies Memory Foam Athletic Shoes sold for $14.99 at the time of publication and came in sizes 6-10. The Aldi ad stated that select half sizes were available, but I didn’t see any half sizes at my store. They were available in gray with pink trim or black with pink trim. The shoes have a 5mm Memory Foam insole with soft fabric lining, with a breathable mesh and PU upper, and a flexible TPR outsole with EVA midsole. The shoes are made in China.

I usually wear between a size 8 and 9, and I bought a size 9 in these shoes. The 9 is a little large, with more than enough space for my toes. I tried on some shoes in a size 8, and they weren’t as roomy as I preferred. It would have been nice to see some half sizes available.

The Crane Ladies Memory Foam Athletic Shoes on my feet.

As far as how the shoes feel, they are comfortable to stand and walk in. The insides are soft, with no poking parts.

One potential concern I noticed is that the outer soles don’t grip the floor as well as I think they should when I walk on hard, smooth surfaces like my home’s hardwood floors. The outer soles feel slightly slippery on the floor, but not enough, I hope, for them to be a hazard. I’ve noticed this issue with other women’s athletic shoes from Aldi that I have tried on in the store in the past but never purchased.

I also noticed that the liner on the bottom interior of one shoe does not sit flush with the back heel portion of the shoe, leaving a very slight but visible gap. I can’t feel it when wearing the shoe, though.

The bottom liner in one shoe does not go all the way back to the heel. I can’t feel it when wearing the shoe. (Click to enlarge.)

I’ll update after I’ve worn these tennis shoes longer with information about their durability.

UPDATE (6/21/19):

Part of the outer sole of one shoe peeled off. It was so weird. The shoe is still functional, though. (Click to enlarge.)

While on a recent camping trip, a section of the sole on the bottom of one of these shoes peeled off. The shoe is still functional, but a piece of fabric-like material on the outside sole came loose and I gently pulled it off. It was bizarre, as I’ve never seen anything like that happen with a shoe before. Also, the outer rubber sole is starting to wear off on the bottoms of both shoes, leaving a slightly fuzzy surface rather than a more grippy rubber surface. I’m still wearing the shoes, but I don’t know how long they’ll last.

UPDATE (1/3/20):

The outer soles of these shoes have very poor grip at this point, reducing their usefulness just to simple walks around the neighborhood, quick outings to the store, or light gardening work in my yard. These shoes are no longer good for wearing on camping trips, hikes, or other moderate physical activities. I wore them on a recent guided horseback ride on a trail, and the soles have such poor grip that I struggled to keep my feet in the proper position in the saddle’s stirrups, and my shoes kept sliding too far through the stirrup.

The Verdict:

The Crane Ladies Memory Foam Athletic Shoes are available as a limited-time ALDI Find. They are comfortable to wear and the price can’t be beat, although I wish the outer soles had a little better grip on hard indoor floor surfaces. A couple of months after I got the shoes, a fuzzy section of the bottom outer sole peeled off of one shoe. It was a strange thing that I’ve never seen happen with any other shoes. The shoes are still wearable for now, but they don’t appear to be cut out for a lot of physical activity, and we’ll see how they do as more time passes.