Thursday Boot Sizing: Captain, President, Duke and Diplomat Fit

Thursday Boot Company boots are cut roomy enough that most men wear half a size below their sneaker size. For men, the rule is simple: order half a size below your sneaker size, so a 10.5 becomes a 10. For women the rule flips: go half a size above your usual shoe size, so an 8 becomes an 8.5.

That opposite-direction advice trips up a lot of buyers, and the brand's many lasts add a second layer. Below you will find the men's and women's rules side by side, a last-by-last table, what each width offer really covers, and a plain account of where the sources contradict each other.

Two rules, one brand

Men's boots are designed so that you order about half a size below your sneaker or dress-shoe size. Women's boots are designed to fit the same size or a half size larger than your usual shoe. They do not mean the same thing, so check which one applies before you click.

Thursday is a good reminder that boots are not sneakers. A sneaker has a flexible, padded upper that gives with your foot. A Goodyear-welted leather boot starts snug, then stretches and molds, which is why the brand builds it smaller. The aim is a boot that feels snug but not painful at first.

Men's boots are often compared with other Goodyear-welted boots, and women's with other leather boots or shoes. The reasoning is that each group has a different history of what the "usual" size means.

Starting from the Brannock device

The Brannock device is the most precise way to find a starting size, because it measures length, arch length and width together. If you have a Brannock size, men can usually take it as-is or a half size smaller, depending on the last. Most Thursday owners compare against a sneaker size, though, so the half-size-down rule remains the quickest check.

No Brannock device nearby? Trace your foot on a sheet of paper, measure length and width, and add room for thick socks. Measure both feet and size for the larger, ideally in the evening when your feet are slightly swollen. Our guide on how to measure your feet walks you through it. Because sneaker sizes differ by brand, centimeter measurements are more accurate than a label.

The lasts behind the models

Thursday builds on a handful of lasts, and its models have moved between them over the years. That history explains why one buyer's "snug" is another's "roomy". The table collects what the sources list.

The millimeter differences look small, but across a shoe they decide whether your little toe feels cramped. If you have a wider forefoot, the wider-ball lasts are the ones to look for.

The Captain: a model that changed under its owners

The Captain is the boot most people think of, and its history is useful. The original sat on the True Last, a slim fit that some wearers found tight enough to squeeze the pinky toe. A later version used the RT3 (Nirvana) last, which was wider and shorter, and which some owners felt looked stubby from above. The current version uses the Kingmaker last: a wider ball, an instep about 1 mm taller, and the original length restored.

If you read forum posts about the Captain, check their date. A review from several years ago describes a different boot. Match the review to the last, not just the name.

Other models briefly

• Diplomat: the Equilibrium last gives it a rounded toe and instep. Its toe box is described as roomier than many competing moc toes. The thicker leather takes several extra days to soften.
• President: comes in wider options, reportedly EE and EEE, in select styles.
• Duke: sizes run from 6 to 16. The wide sizes are limited to the Honey Suede colorway.
• Explorer: standard D only.
• Legend: described as running narrow, with no wide sizes. A women's width list nevertheless names it among wide styles, a contradiction we could not resolve.
• Logger, Cavalier, Titan: part of the range. The Logger on the 1776 last has a broader toe and instep.

For a Thursday sneaker, sizing is a separate subject, and we will cover it in its own article.

Widths: D, B and the exceptions

Most men's styles use a standard width, roughly a D, and the men's standard is described as roomier than a typical D in some areas. Wide sizes in EE and EEE exist only for select styles such as the Captain and the President, and the Diplomat has an EE. Women's standard is roughly a B, with wide options in select styles.

Two practical notes:

• Availability is inconsistent between sellers. One report says the Captain is listed in EE and EEE on Thursday's own site but only in D on a major marketplace.
• For women, a C-width foot should size up half a size, and an A-width foot should size down half a size.

If you are unsure what width you are, the shoe width chart explains the letters.

Break-in: what to expect

Thursday boots start snug and are meant to. The leather stretches mainly in the toe box and instep, typically over a few wears, and the stretch is subtle. It should not leave the boot loose. If you can fit a finger behind your heel on day one, you have likely ordered too big.

Equilibrium leather on the Diplomat can take several extra days. A boot that feels painful rather than snug is a different story. Burning on the little toe or a hard pressure point in the first week points to a size or width issue, and the return window is the time to act.

The brand does not give a plain "true to size", "runs big" or "runs small" verdict, and neither can we in a single sentence. Men's boots sit a half size under your sneaker, and women's sit at or above it. What counts is applying the right rule to the right person.

How Thursday compares with other makers

A few owner comparisons are worth knowing. One owner who wears an 8.5 in John Lofgren boots also wears an 8.5 in Thursday, which suggests the sizing is consistent between the two. See our John Lofgren guide for the details. Grant Stone also suggests going a half size down from your sneaker size, and we cover that in the Grant Stone guide. Red Wing sizes similarly, which we cover separately.

These are single-owner comparisons, not tested conversions. Your results may differ because lasts differ across models.

Sock thickness and the snug first wear

Because the sizing rule is built around a snug start, the socks you try on with matter more than usual. A thin dress sock can make a correctly sized boot feel loose in the heel, while a cushioned wool sock can make the same boot feel tight across the ball. Decide what you will wear most of the time, and test with those.

A sensible check at home: lace the boots fully, stand with your weight evenly spread, and press your thumb at the front. You should feel a little room, about a thumb's width ahead of your longest toe on a roomier last, and your toes should be able to lift without hitting the leather. Heel slip should be small. If your heel rises noticeably with each step, a half size smaller is usually the fix. If your toes are crushed from the first step, a half size up, or a wider option, is the fix.

If you think you may need to return them, keep the packaging and wear them only on clean indoor floors during the trial. That keeps the exchange simple if the half-size rule turns out to be wrong for your foot.

Conflicting information to keep in mind

The size chart text on Thursday's own pages is partly garbled in some sources, so some centimeter and UK or EU values were unclear, and we have not printed them. Use the chart on the product page. Another conflict is that the Legend is called both narrow with no wide sizes and a wide-width style. If the Legend is your boot, contact the brand before ordering.

If you are converting between men's and women's labels, our men's to women's size guide covers the usual offset, but remember that Thursday's own rules differ from a plain conversion.

Our recommendation

Men: order half a size below your sneaker size, and size down if between sizes. Women: order half a size above your usual size, and size up if between sizes. Check the last behind your model, because a Captain on one last is not a Captain on another. When in doubt on width, get the wide option from the brand's own site. For general principles, read how boots should fit.