How much are donated kids' shoes worth?
Children's footwear splits into three published lines that look identical in a donation bag, and the difference between them is bigger than the difference between two condition tiers.
- Typical value, good condition
- $6
- Published range, good condition
- $5 to $7
What a donated pair of children's shoes is generally worth
Fair market value is a range, so these are ranges. The suggested figure sits inside the band the source guide published for that condition.
| Item | Like new | Good | Fair | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Shoes | $7 to $9 | $5 to $7 | $3 to $5 | Source 1 for Shoes |
| Sneakers | $4.75 to $6 | $3.50 to $4.75 | $2 to $3.50 | Source 3 for Sneakers |
| Boots | $8 to $10 | $5 to $8 | $3 to $5 | Source 1 for Boots |
| ShoesBoys' Clothing | $7 to $9 | $5 to $7 | $3 to $5 | Source 1 for Shoes |
| SneakersBoys' Clothing | $4.75 to $6 | $3.50 to $4.75 | $2 to $3.50 | Source 3 for Sneakers |
| ShoesToddlers' Clothing | $7 to $9 | $5 to $7 | $3 to $5 | Source 1 for Shoes |
Values are per item, in 2026 dollars, from the DeductiBee valuation dataset, edition 2026.1. A range is what the source guide published; the suggested figure is the point inside it we prefill, not a price.
How this range was derived
Salvation Army children's Shoes $3-9; Goodwill NNE children's Shoes $3-10. Lower-median consolidation $3-9, split 35/70 per CITATIONS.md 3.3-3.6. The registered guides price children's clothing without a gender split, so the same published children's range backs the girls' and boys' leaves.
- Like new
- Unworn or barely used, with tags or as good as. The top of the published range.
- Good
- Used, complete, clean, and working, with no notable damage. The middle of the range.
- Fair
- Visible wear but still usable and saleable. The bottom of the range, and generally the lowest condition that can be claimed at all.
What drives the value of a donated pair of children's shoes
The tier you pick is the biggest lever on this page. Here is what actually decides it.
Everyday shoes, sneakers, and boots are three separate rows in the children's tables, and they do not share a band. Sneakers sit lowest, boots highest, everyday shoes between them, and that holds across the girls', boys', and toddlers' lines. Since most kids' shoe donations are a mixed pile, sorting the pile into those three groups before counting is the single most useful thing a donor can do here.
Condition on a child's shoe is read from the outsole and the heel counter. Children walk unevenly and wear a tread down in one visible spot, usually the outer heel, and once that spot is smooth the shoe is at the bottom of its range. Press the back of the shoe with a thumb: if the heel counter folds instead of springing back, the shoe has been stepped on as a slip-on and will not sell. Inside, a deep footprint pressed into the insole tells the same story.
Two specifics worth knowing. Light-up shoes with dead batteries generally cannot be repaired and read as broken rather than worn. And infant booties, the softest and most-donated baby shoe, carry no published range in this dataset at all, so they ask for your own figure rather than borrowing the toddler shoe row.
What evidence supports the condition you claimed
A number you can trace and defend is worth more in an audit than a generous one you cannot.
Photograph each type as a group, tops in one frame and soles in another, and keep the count from the photograph. Sole photographs matter more for children's shoes than for adult ones, because uneven wear is the whole condition story and it is invisible from above. Shoes still in the box, which happens often with gifts and growth spurts, should be photographed in the box.
Items people log as a pair of children's shoes by mistake
Filing an item under the wrong line is the quietest way to end up with a number you cannot support.
Sneakers and trainers
Athletic shoes are the lowest of the three children's footwear rows, and they are also the most common. Counting a mixed pile at the everyday-shoe rate overstates most of it.
Boots
Children's boots are published above the plain shoe line. Rain boots, snow boots, and fashion boots all belong on that row rather than in the general pile.
Baby booties and crib shoes
Soft-soled infant shoes have no published range here, so they are a custom-valued item rather than a small pair of toddler shoes. Enter your own figure and note what it was based on.
Up, sideways, and out
Every value on this page comes out of the children's clothing section of the donation value guide, which shows the rest of the category with the same sourcing.
Also in Shoes
- Dress Shoes$6, good
- Sandals$4, good
- Slippers$4, good
- Other$6, good
Full ranges, all three tiers, and the sources for each are in the children's clothing valuation guide.
- ValuesChildren's clothing donation valuesThe whole category, item by item, with the published range and the source behind every line.
- ValuesHow much are donated kids' jeans worth?What donated children's jeans are generally worth across the girls', boys', toddlers', and infants' lines, and why so many pairs honestly qualify as like new.
- ValuesWhat is a donated child's winter coat worth?Fair market value for a donated children's coat, why the published sources put a kids' jacket above a kids' coat, and what to check before you pick a tier.
- ValuesWhat are donated baby clothes worth for taxes?What donated infant clothing is generally worth by garment type, why a plain onesie has no published range, and how to count a bin of baby clothes honestly.
- ValuesHow much is a donated pair of jeans worth?What a donated pair of jeans is generally worth, why denim is priced above other pants, and how to tell like new from good on a pair you actually wore.
- LookupLook up any other itemSearch the whole catalog, pick a condition, and read the range with its citation.
- CalculatorWhat the deduction is worth to youTurn a documented total into a range of tax effect, with the marginal-rate assumption stated on screen.
Questions about donating a pair of children's shoes
Are worn-out kids' shoes deductible?
How do I handle a big bag of mixed kids' shoes?
Do outgrown but barely worn shoes count as like new?
Where these values come from
Every range on this page traces to one of these. Values are derived from the published ranges, never copied from another product’s valuation database, and never invented where no source covers an item.
- Donation Value Guide (The Salvation Army Thrift Stores | Donation Valuation Guide)
The Salvation Army (Thrift Stores / Adult Rehabilitation Centers)
Primary value source. A published range from this guide can set the low or high end of an item's band. Fetched and read .
- Donation Value Guide - What is my Donation Worth?
Goodwill Northern New England
Primary value source. A published range from this guide can set the low or high end of an item's band. Fetched and read .
- Valuation Guide for Goodwill Donors
Goodwill Industries International (compiled list, republished by member affiliates)
Primary value source. A published range from this guide can set the low or high end of an item's band. Fetched and read .
The rules behind the thresholds
- Publication 561, Determining the Value of Donated PropertyIRS, IRS publication
- Publication 526, Charitable ContributionsIRS, IRS publication
- Instructions for Form 8283IRS, IRS form
A value is evidence, not a ruling. Deductibility depends on your own facts, including whether the organization is qualified and what records you kept. This is record-keeping software, not tax advice.
A pair of children's shoes is rarely the only thing in the car.
DeductiBee carries this same dataset on your iPhone, so the rest of the load gets valued and photographed at the drop-off instead of reconstructed in April.
Same numbers, offline
Edition 2026.1 ships inside the app, so a value never depends on a server being up in January.
Condition on the record
The tier you picked and the photo that supports it stay attached to the item, on your device.
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