Peerko Go Boots – A Full Review | Obsessed with Barefoot Shoes

So, so, so, soooo fun. Instant barefoot shoes love. Great to wear minimalist footwear. All of these things apply. I promise to get into all the nitty-gritty details below, but forgive me a bit of artistic license with the pictures. These boots are just so very photogenic and fun to snap in different ways.

Technical specifications:

Model: Go – Black (has 5 color options)
Upper: High-quality smooth leather
Lining: Synthetic Fleece with 10% wool
Insole: Same material as lining, separate piece attached to midsole
Sole: 3.5 mm recyclable thermoplastic rubber with 1.5 mm profile

Appearance:

Black shoes are very hard to photograph well. If they are matte in finish, they disappear in pictures. If they have any sort of shine, they become reflectors. Usually, people ask me if shiny black is grey after a post, but shoes like this can show any color, even red. You can see a bit of the pink from my shirt and arm next to my hand below, even in the baseline picture.

This is the most neutral picture I could take. I’m fully in shadows with no direct source of light.

As soon as light sources come into the picture, the boots can quickly look like this:

As with other Peerko models, the sole is walled, meaning it looks thick, but your foot is sitting inside that portion of the shoe.

The design is very much like an old-school soldier’s boot. Vintage look, but with an engineered shine that feels very modern and elegant when you want to wear something other than dark pants.

Outfit-wise, play with these any way you like. The combat look lends to wearing with dark colors and pants, but the metallic sheen lets you wear them with dressier outfits. You can style these just about any way you want and there will be tons of outfit inspo available online involving combat boots with any clothing type you’d imagine.

The leather does show creasing with wear, which is normal, and adds to the beautiful vintage look.

Fit:

These fit slightly more snug than my low-cut Peerko, which I reviewed here. This is often the case with lined models due to the extra space taken up by the added material, so not unexpected. The boots also stretched perfectly in a few hours and now the shoes fit exactly as they should – no looser or tighter than I need – including on my larger foot.

With the combination design of laces and zippers it is very easy to get these set as you’d like with the laces and then use the zipper to make them easy on and off from then on out.

They also have the same wide toe box that doesn’t look quite as wide as it really is. My toes are free in these boots.

Yep, those soles are dirty! Worn shoes get dirty. And shoes want to wear never get photographed in-full first (so every pair of shoes I ever received). I take them out, put them on, wear them, and we’re off to the races. It’s amazing I remember to create first look videos on Instagram because I just 👏 love 👏 the 👏 shoes. 👏 I did get these videoed, though, and you can check out those (too-close, sorry) videos here.

Ankle circumference is generous. I have thick ankles and I’ve not maxed them out. If you have very thin ankles you will probably need to lace them tightly at the top, but they will work well for virtually any ankle size. Peerko is one of the few shoes that allow you to say things like this. They have really done an amazing job on their designs.

Sizing:

Peerko’s shoes are currently available in sizes 38-43, but 37 is planned for the future. Molds for soles are expensive, so no company can just pick whatever sizes they want to add, whenever they want. It takes planning, and expansions are usually 1 size at a time. Be patient if you’re still outside the range.

Peerko shoes are designed to work with a variety of foot volumes and that is my personal experience as a person with high-volume, wide feet. The low-cut fit version immediately and these had to stretch and mold a little during the first wear due to the slightly lower volume from the lining. Normal. Fine. Not a problem.

Take care to pay attention to foot shape vs sizing. If you are particularly square-shaped in your feet, you would have problems with the curve here. Most other shapes should be great to go with the chart below. I find them true to size in length and a bit more generous in usable width than indicated by the chart (which is typical).

Make sure you choose plenty of extra room for your toes. Research says 12 mm is ideal, though different brands will have their own recommendations.

Breaking in:

I mentioned above that the leather stretches a bit to mold to your foot if you are high volume. Otherwise, I have had no need to break them in. They are strategically designed shoes with the walled sole and elegant cut, and are instantly comfortable. There have been no hot spots, rough spots, or pokey bits that bothered me. I adjusted the laces and went right to town with my gorgeous boots.

Lining:

These are lightly lined, making them warm under moderate conditions but not suitable for very cold weather. I find the shafts personally the warmest, and the part around my feet less so. If you have particularly narrow/low volume feet you could fill in the space with thick socks and be okay in lower temperatures, but these are not deep-cold boots.

Laces:

Special note about these: they are great for not slipping apart at all. I love that, as it is very frustrating to be retying your shoes. But take care not to get them knotted. I don’t have enough extra laces here for this to be a problem with the Go boots, but with my Empire boots I got a knot that took a maddeningly-long time to remove. The laces stick together like glue.

How do they feel?

You know, I’m trying to follow my typical format but I think I have kept getting ahead of myself. Great! Like my other Peerkos, they are not especially cushy, the sole is thin, and your feet can move as needed.

Cleaning:

I’ve already gotten these boots muddy at the park with my boys. We love this one particular sprawling park with a creek and huge trees. But it’s also FULL of holes. My heel went into one a good 4 inches. The best plan in such cases is to let it dry and use a soft brush like an old toothbrush to get off the dirt, especially in the seams. At the point of these pictures, step 1 was done, but you can see there is still the need on the left boot to brush the seams and get out the remaining dirt.

Peerko has a downloadable PDF with care instructions, but it’s not in English. The important parts are:

Impregnate the leather before use and regularly for best results.
Do not use a washing machine to wash your shoes.
Do not use a heat source to dry the shoes.
Brushes and soft clothes for spot cleaning are the ideal methods.

Purchasing, Shipping, and Returns:

Peerko continues to be in high demand, especially the Empire model, but you have to order differently depending on your country. If you’re in the Czech Republic or Slovakia you can order directly from Peerko. If you’re in the US, check out some of the following options:

I ordered my pair from Young Sole Shoes, and since then have become an affiliate, which means the code OWBSHOES can save you 10% on an order. There are limited sizing currently available.

Ordering from Happy Little Soles is very easy and offers 2 different shipping methods. The DHL Express is a little more expensive but very fast and reliable. My first order with them back in the spring was stuck in the USPS processing for a while, so I highly recommend you spend the few extra dollars for the peace of mind. They also have a loyalty points system that is nice on future orders.

Each company will have their own return policies. YSS, for example, always offers free returns and exchanges.

Company Information:

Peerko is still a very new company, having been born from a crowdfunding campaign in 2018. They started with canvas and in 2020 moved into leather with great results. I highly recommend them on fit, construction, and aesthetics.

Final thoughts:

These shoes start at 130 EUR from Peerko directly (before shipping) and go up from there. They are definitely an investment, but like the low-cut I’ve had for awhile, I think they will last and be worth the money. They are beautiful, versatile, feel great, and extremely well-designed for an elegant cut and foot-friendly experience.

For more information about Peerko, I have a full Brand Review available here on the blog.