Converse does not certify any shoe as vegan. The classic canvas Chuck Taylor is made from cotton, rubber and synthetic glue with no animal materials, but leather and suede models exist, materials vary by colourway and factory, so check the specific pair before you buy.

Are Converse Vegan? What to Check Before Buying

Converse does not certify any of its shoes as vegan. Most classic Chuck Taylor canvas styles are made from cotton, rubber and synthetic materials with no animal ingredients, and the company has told customers its adhesives are non-animal. Leather and suede lines obviously are not vegan, and materials shift between models and production runs, so check the listed upper before you buy.

“No animal materials listed” and “certified vegan” are two different things, and the gap between them is where this question lives. Converse is a mainstream footwear brand owned by Nike, not a vegan label. What you get is a materials list on the product page and a customer service team that has answered questions about glue. For plenty of people that is enough. For others it is not.

Are Converse vegan?

The classic Converse silhouette is cotton canvas, a rubber sole, a rubber toe cap and metal eyelets. None of those are animal materials. On that basis, the standard canvas Chuck Taylor All Star is generally accepted as suitable for vegans, and it has been for decades.

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The complications sit around the edges of the shoe. Some models use leather or suede for the whole upper. Others use a leather ankle patch, heel tab or trimmed tongue on an otherwise canvas shoe. Seasonal releases and collaborations sometimes swap in materials that are not on the standard spec sheet at all, including wool blends and shearling linings on winter versions. A shoe can carry the same name as a vegan-friendly one and still not be vegan.

Does Converse use animal glue?

Adhesive is the question people worry about most, because it is invisible. Converse has said in customer service correspondence that it went back to its adhesive suppliers to check:

We decided to investigate and were delighted to discover that all our chemicals (ink, rubber, adhesives, etc.), are non-animal. Our chemicals (rubber, ink, adhesives, etc.) are non-animal. This means that although there have been no changes in the manufacturing process of synthetic shoes, we can rest assured that they are not based on animals.

Take that for what it is. It is a statement from the brand rather than an audited certification, and it dates from a specific point in time. Converse manufactures through contract factories and has not published an ongoing adhesive standard you can check. If glue is a dealbreaker, contact Converse about the specific model you want.

Is Converse a vegan brand?

No. Converse sells leather and suede shoes alongside the canvas ones, so the brand as a whole is not vegan and does not describe itself that way. What is accurate to say is that many individual Converse styles contain no animal materials. Buying a canvas pair still supports a company that sells leather, and vegans differ on whether that matters.

Which Converse styles usually have no animal materials?

These are the styles most often made entirely from canvas, rubber and synthetics. Treat this as a starting point for your own check rather than a guarantee, because Converse revises materials without renaming the shoe.

Unisex canvas styles

All Star Low Top Canvas
All Star High Top Canvas
All Star Low Top Canvas Slip
Chuck 70 Low Top Canvas
Renew Collection, made with recycled cotton
Disrupt CX, made with stretched canvas
Jack Purcell Canvas

Women’s canvas styles

Platform Canvas Low Top
Platform Canvas High Top
Canvas espadrilles
Canvas Mule Slips
Shoreline Slip

How do you check a specific pair?

Four things, and it takes about a minute.

Read the materials line on the product page first. It will usually say canvas, textile, leather or suede outright, and if the word leather appears anywhere, including on a small patch or trim, that pair is out. Then zoom in on the ankle patch and heel tab in the photos, since some heritage releases use leather there even when the body is canvas. Check the lining on anything sold as a winter, sherpa or fleece version, because shearling is animal and synthetic fleece is not.

If the listing is vague, ask. Converse customer service will answer a question about a specific style code, and a retailer can read you the materials label off the box. Quote the style code rather than the name, because names get reused.

Converse vegan shoes: frequently asked questions

Is Converse cruelty-free?

Converse is not a cruelty-free brand. It sells leather and suede footwear, so animal materials are part of its range. Individual canvas styles contain no animal materials, which is a different claim. Converse also has not published a policy on animal testing of materials or chemicals, so there is nothing to point to on that front either way.

Does Converse use vegan shoe glue?

The company has stated to customers that its adhesives, inks and rubber compounds are non-animal. That statement is not backed by third-party certification and Converse works through contract manufacturers, so treat it as a good sign rather than a guarantee. Ask about your specific model if it matters to you.

Is the Chuck Taylor All Star vegan?

The standard canvas Chuck Taylor All Star, in both low and high top, contains no animal materials. The same shoe also exists in leather and suede versions under the same All Star name. The material is what decides it, not the model.

Is the Chuck 70 vegan?

The Chuck 70 canvas versions are generally free of animal materials, but the ankle patch and trims on some Chuck 70 releases have used leather. This varies by release and region, so check the materials list for the exact colourway rather than assuming the whole Chuck 70 line goes one way.

What are Converse shoes made from?

Canvas styles are cotton canvas uppers, vulcanised rubber soles and toe caps, textile laces and metal eyelets. Other styles in the range use leather, suede, synthetic leather, mesh or wool blends. Linings, patches and trims are where animal materials most often hide on an otherwise plant-based shoe.

Are the materials the same in Australia?

Not necessarily. Converse sells slightly different assortments in different markets, and the same model name can carry different materials depending on where and when it was made. Read the materials line on the Australian listing or the label inside the box rather than relying on an overseas review.

Converse history facts

Converse was founded by Marquis Mills Converse in 1908. The Converse Rubber Shoe Company started in Malden, Massachusetts, near Boston, making rubber-soled winter footwear. It soon moved into sports shoes and developed the high top that became the basketball line.

Converse supplied footwear to the US military during the Second World War and had a long run of success through the 1960s and 1970s, then lost ground to newer athletic brands, posted years of losses and was bought by Nike in 2003. The canvas Chuck Taylor survived all of it more or less unchanged, which is part of why the vegan question has such a settled answer for that shoe.

The bottom line

The classic canvas All Star or a canvas Chuck 70 low top is the safest bet. If you want certainty rather than a strong likelihood, a brand carrying formal vegan certification will give you that and Converse will not. Either way, read the materials line first, because with Converse the model name tells you the shape of the shoe and very little about what it is made of.

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