The 13 Best Socks for All Your Favorite Shoes

Here's an unofficial style adage that's served me well as a shopping editor: Every element of your outfit has the potential to make you feel more comfortable, confident, and powerful, all the way down to your socks. Balled up in your dresser or mismatched after a load of laundry, the best socks might seem like pure utility—just a comfortable, breathable strip of fabric between you and the real footwear worth noting. But as runways from Miu Miu to Simone Rocha have shown us, carefully selected socks give everything from the best ballet flats to sky-high heels a more considered look. Sometimes it's romantic with a lace hem, sometimes it's academic with a varsity stripe. But every time an outfit includes a hemline that shows off your full shoe, the look is altogether more complete with the best socks.

April Koza, vice president at luxury retailer FWRD, favors one sock-and-shoe pairing above all the rest. "I love to pair loafers back to a luxe pair of socks— the look is both smart and modern," she tells BAZAAR. At this time of year, they're essential to her daily outfit formula: "A straight-leg jean, my favorite loafer, and a perfect brown ribbed sock are the base of so many of my winter looks!"

Key word: base. No matter how you dress, socks go on first—so the absolute best pairs are worth wearing. Whether you're searching for a tailored crew sock to complement lug-sole loafers, an over-the-top embellished sock to match your highest platforms' main character energy, or an active sock for added support under your walking shoes, we have the 13 best socks for every kind of footwear moment ahead.