Why don’t Americans take shoes off inside the house?

[Anonymous]

I’m Asian American and we are no shoes at home. But I wear shoes all the time when visiting in-laws because they have dogs. If you have dogs, it no longer makes sense to be no shoe. Ugh.

[Anonymous]

2/3 of Americans remove their shoes inside.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/home/2023/10/02/take-shoes-off-indoors-house/

And by the way, you are as American as your husband. I don’t see first generation Swedes or English calling themselves English American or Swedish Americans. I’m also first generation Asian American, but I also claim being American as well.

[Anonymous]

I am white and American and we have a no shoes household and I think it’s absolutely crazy how many people, especially boomers, wear shoes in the house! I’m with you, OP!

[Anonymous]

I would never ask guests to my home to remove their shoes. I realize in Asian cultures this is much more engrained than here. But if you do this, I’d offer to buy them shoes they would normally wear that are kept only inside your house. No slippers, which are a tripling hazard for some people.

I wear shoes inside. I prefer to take them off bc yes it’s cleaner. But I am not worried about germs being in my floor. It’s a floor. I’m not eating off it. We clean the regularly. It’s just not a big deal for me, even though I know it’s cleaner to not wear them.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Blue blood easterners in the business and professional classes would think it exceptionally gauche to remove shoes and walk around a house in barefeet or in sweaty socks.

There is something to this...

[Anonymous]

I don't get the no shoes fetish. Don't you clean your house? Do you eat off your floor? Do you have a dog? What harm are you imagining?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Blue blood easterners in the business and professional classes would think it exceptionally gauche to remove shoes and walk around a house in barefeet or in sweaty socks.

This is it exactly. I’d never thought of it like this, but my Dad would be so confused and a bit offended if you asked him to remove his shoes. And the whole “barefoot is a class below me” side had never really occurred to me but….it tracks. A bit of the WASP culture.

[Anonymous]

1. Not all Americans are the same.
2. Some Americans change their (shoe) practices throughout their lives. As an example: me! I grew up in a household where if you took off your shoes, my dad would yell, "If you're so tired you need to take off your shoes, then go upstairs and go to bed!" So we only ever took off our shoes if we'd been outside in the rain or snow and the shoes needed to dry out. Then at 23 I moved to an apartment where the landlords had installed nearly white brand new carpeting, so I took off my shoes right when I came in the front door, to protect the carpeting. It was only as I had friends over that people commented on it and I learned about how unhygienic it is to wear shoes in the house.

[Anonymous]

I grew up on the West Coast and my family and friends never took shoes off inside the house. It seems more common now, though.

[Anonymous]

Yeah, it’s gross. Same situation with my mixed race family. His side is shoes on, but are otherwise immaculate. We try to take our shoes off by the door, but sometimes have to go back in get something or go from front door to back. I try not to think about what’s on the floors because it disgusts me. I’ll admit that my least favorite chore is mopping. I do like vacuuming. We don’t have a cleaning service. House is very neat— but those floors!

[Anonymous]

I grew up in SW Michigan and had family in Dallas TX. No one ever took their shoes off upon entering the house. Including my grandfather who was in the oil business and occasionally went out into the fields in his cowboy boots. It just wasn't done. When we visited houses where you had to take your shoes off it felt weird. Especially if someone wasn't wearing socks and their feet were bare and showing. Weird and awkward. Almost obscene lol.

I now take my shoes off when I get home, but more for reasons of comfort. If I am going out again within an hour or so I don't take them off and would never ask guests to do so. I really don't worry about dirt on the floors. I never suffered any ramifications of dirt on the floors, even with having shoes on in house my whole life, so -- I don't get some people's obsession with this.

[Anonymous]

Debated ad nauseum in recent threads

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Yeah, it’s gross. Same situation with my mixed race family. His side is shoes on, but are otherwise immaculate. We try to take our shoes off by the door, but sometimes have to go back in get something or go from front door to back. I try not to think about what’s on the floors because it disgusts me. I’ll admit that my least favorite chore is mopping. I do like vacuuming. We don’t have a cleaning service. House is very neat— but those floors!

So you don't think sweaty socks or nasty bare feet are not gross too?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I am Asian American and grew up without shoes inside the house and assumed this was the norm. My husband is American and is used to a no shoes household, but he’s not as fastidious as I am about it - if he needs to pop back into the house to get something he will leave shoes on. I don’t make a big deal about it.

His parents however, wear shoes inside all the time, unless it’s something like rain boots or snow boots. Otherwise they’ll put on sneakers or dress shoes, go about their business outside, and keep them on when they return. This includes wearing outside shoes in their bedroom and bathroom, not taking them off until bedtime.

I find this very puzzling as they are very neat and hygiene minded people. They live in a beautiful, expensive house, they pay for weekly cleaning and specifically ask the cleaners to mop all the floors, and they are generally pretty paranoid about things like germs. So how come they don’t mind all the gunk that’s on the bottom of their shoes? They live in a very urban part of DC so it’s not like they only go out to drive , and use public transportation, too.

Is this common among Americans ? If it’s relevant they are in their early 60s. Every time they visit and wear shoes inside our house I am so uncomfortable but I don’t want to be rude and repeatedly ask/remind them.

Because it’s MY house and I do WTF I want inside it, and I don’t have to explain or justify sh!t to you.

That’s why.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I grew up in SW Michigan and had family in Dallas TX. No one ever took their shoes off upon entering the house. Including my grandfather who was in the oil business and occasionally went out into the fields in his cowboy boots. It just wasn't done. When we visited houses where you had to take your shoes off it felt weird. Especially if someone wasn't wearing socks and their feet were bare and showing. Weird and awkward. Almost obscene lol.

I now take my shoes off when I get home, but more for reasons of comfort. If I am going out again within an hour or so I don't take them off and would never ask guests to do so. I really don't worry about dirt on the floors. I never suffered any ramifications of dirt on the floors, even with having shoes on in house my whole life, so -- I don't get some people's obsession with this.

Yes to the bold! It is really uncomfortable and a bit embarrassing. DH doesn't leave the bedroom with out his shoes on, lol.