Get the Stink Out of Your Shoes With These Shoe-Deodorizing Sprays, Pods, and Pouches (2024)

I hate to break it to you, but your shoes probably stink. That’s okay–it means that they’re well loved and well worn–but it also means that they could use a bit (or maybe even a lot) of shoe deodorizer.

When your feet sweat, the moisture trapped in your socks presses flush against the interior of your shoes, which creates the ideal environment for odor-causing bacteria to thrive. The situation is exacerbated if you’re running in rain or over dewy grass, soaking your shoes and turning them into petri dishes. Odor ensues. What’s more, that rancid smell is actually more than just an odor.

“What some people don’t know is that actual smell is bacteria, and it’s living inside your socks, shoes, and on your feet,” says Luke Lombardo, an RRCA-certified running coach and Ironman triathlete. “Not only is it important to get rid of that nasty smell that’s on your running shoes, but it’s also imperative that you kill the pesky bacteria living in your shoes.”

If you don’t address it, that bacteria could lead to an infection over time. To deodorize your shoes, first allow them to dry completely. Then, remove the insoles, stuff the shoes with some newspaper, and let them hang out overnight in a well-ventilated area. Next, start using odor-reducing and germ-killing sprays or inserts regularly.

If you’re overwhelmed with all the options out there, we’ve got you covered.

• Best Overall: 10 Seconds Shoe Disinfectant and Deodorizer
• Best Budget: Dr. Scholl’s Odor-X Odor-Fighting Spray Powder for Shoes
• Most Versatile: Hex Performance Deodorizing Spray
• Best Pod: GearHalo Sports Deodorizer Pods
• Best All-Natural Spray: Rocket Pure Natural Foot & Shoe Deodorizer Spray

Types of Deodorizers

Typically, shoe deodorizing products come in the form of sprays, pods, balls, pouches, or powders. Any and all of these can do the job reasonably well, though pods, balls, and pouches tend to merely absorb the smell, like baking soda does in your refrigerator. Sprays and powders, on the other hand, are the best choice for killing the bacteria that causes odor in the first place.

For newer, less pungent shoes, pods and pouches can get the job done just fine. But if you’ve got older shoes that soak up sweat and have a particularly bad case of funk, sprays or powders are stronger and the better pick. It’s also not a bad idea to start applying lighter-duty products immediately upon buying a new pair of shoes to help preempt the issue altogether.

Ingredients and Additives

When it comes to sprays and powders, check the ingredient lists to see if anything will clash with your skin, especially if you’re allergic to common antiperspirant ingredients like aluminum. It’s also important to note that some extra-strength formulas can cause skin irritation if exposed directly to your feet.

You can also look for neat additives that could make your runs feel a bit nicer. For example, Gold Bond’s foot powder has menthol, which gives you the same topical cooling effects you’d expect in a frosty menthol-infused breathmint or gum. That cooling effect can keep you from feeling bogged down in the heat of your own feet on a properly sweltering day, which might save you from losing your cool on a long run.

Because we truly want to get to the bottom of which shoe deodorizers are actually best, we test which deodorizers are up to snuff (sniff?) through a highly technical, shall we say, cheese-based experiment. In order to replicate the very specific aroma of stinky running shoes (without risking exposure to harmful bacteria like Staphylococcus), we leveraged the proxy stink of Bavarian Limburger—one of the most pungent cheese varieties out there.

However, smell is not the only reason we chose the German cheese: While body odor has many sources, one key player is Brevibacterium linens, a rod-shaped organism found on human skin that makes feet stink. In a kind of gross—yet cool—coincidence, this same bacteria works to ferment Limburger, which helps explain why it really does smell quite a bit like a sweaty foot.

To simulate a hot and sweaty shoe post-run, we warm Limburger cheese in a microwave and let it sit out to work up a potent stink. Next, we place individual 60-gram wedges inside airtight Ziploc bags containing a slew of odor-eliminating contenders. And we wait for four hours, take a whiff, then until 24 hours, taking another whiff, comparing them to the smell of an untreated piece of bagged Limburger as our control. The products below are those that proved their ability to cut the cheese—stink, that is.

The one exception currently is the Boot Bananas, which we haven’t been able to test yet. But we’ve got a pair and will give them an official smell score once we see how they fare against the Limburger.

Battling stinky clothes, too? Here’s everything you need to strip your laundry and get it smelling clean.

This top-performing spray not only works fast—knocking out mold and bacteria like MRSA in just ten seconds—but it also smells really good. Our testers noted that it completely eliminated the odor of the cheese without adding the scent of chemicals. “Subtle, almost fruity smell,” one tester said. “I’d make a candle out of this.”

Is this the most naturally sourced concoction on this list? Not quite. But we’re willing to forego the “all-natural” label when a spray can kill bacteria this effectively and stay blissfully stink-free for a full day.

While this classic, low-cost Dr. Scholl’s deodorizer is technically a spray, it leaves a finish that many people find pleasantly similar to the low-moisture comfort of a powder. It cuts through stink fast, leaving behind a neutral odor that doesn’t smell like much of anything at all—some of us appreciate that instead of an obnoxious fragrance.

Its effects are also surprisingly sustainable. A spray a day will keep even the ripest of shoes tempered for far longer than others on this list.

Hex’s versatile spray is a do-it-all “Febreze for runners”—we’ve used it on pretty much everything we’ve managed to get sweaty. (That includes not only our socks, shoes, tech tees, and running shorts, but also our car seats, foam rollers, and couch cushions.)

Since activewear fabrics typically use super tightly woven threads, Hex designed its formula specifically to penetrate those stubborn fibers that really trap stink. Based on our testing, we found it starts working quickly and also helps keep new odors away for longer.

These amazing little bean bags received top marks from every one of our testers. The beads inside these pods are activated by heat, so we suggest tossing them in your shoes while they’re still toasty from a run for the best results.

Even at room temperature, Gear Halo’s pouches wicked moisture, eliminated nearly all stink, and smelled clean and fresh. “This actually smells really nice!” one tester said. “It’s a pleasant, lightly floral scent with no trace of the cheese.”

If you’re put off by harsh chemicals, this formula from Rocket Pure draws on a half-dozen natural agents, like alcohol derived from organic cane sugar, citrus extracts, and cedarwood oil, to inhibit bacterial growth (and moisturize your feet). Plus, all three scents are downright awesome.

“I’m smelling something mild, yet clean and fresh,” one tester said of the peppermint and eucalyptus scent. “It’s hard to place, but I can hardly smell the cheese behind it.”

These sneaker balls are—as the name suggests—perfect for your shoes, but they’re also great for tossing into your gym bag to soak up some of your more general workout funk. While they’re not as powerful as sprays, they do seem to outperform most other balls and pods.

Their funk-fighting power only lasts about two months at the most, but you can twist them open and closed to ensure that their effectiveness isn’t wasted when not in use.

For particularly strong odors—in shoes that have sat in their stench for longer than they should have, perhaps—this extra-strength elixir will do the best job neutralizing them. Perfect for shoes, gym bags, gloves, padding, and any other sports gear, this spray will serve you well if you tend to sweat buckets.

Better yet, even though it’s stronger than most, it won’t irritate sensitive skin—it even has a moisturizing agent.

Abundantly available in convenience stores, this Gold Bond powder has a lot going on in its chemical makeup—all good things. First and foremost, because it’s a powder, it will instantly suppress any chafe-inducing moisture. Second, it has a tinge of menthol, which should soothe sore, hot feet on an especially grueling run.

It’s not a standout in terms of odor-fighting strength compared to the other powders we’ve tested, but because of its wide availability, we consider it the most prudent choice.

If you’re not the best at remembering to swap out old deodorizer pods when they’re spent (no shade—some of us aren’t always on top of it either), check out these banana-shaped deodorizers that “ripen.” They turn old-banana brown when they’ve lost their moisture-wicking and stench-fighting oomph.

We haven’t given the Boot Bananas a proper bout against a piece of cheese yet—we just got these in. But once we have more testing notes on them, we’ll update you here.