How to Wear Compression Socks: A Step-by-Step Guide
Compression socks are built to grip, which is why they fight you at 6am before a shift. Pull them on like regular socks and you end up with a bunched ankle, a twisted heel and a top band that has rolled down by lunch.
Every pair in our compression socks range uses 360° graduated compression at 15-20 mmHg, so the method below works whether you wear bamboo, performance, crew or ankle styles. Set the heel first and the rest of the sock goes on without the wrestle.
Knowing how to wear compression socks properly starts with what you’re aiming for. The sock should feel firmest at the ankle and ease off as it climbs your calf. That’s the graduated design at work, and it only does its job when the fabric sits flat in the right place.
Before You Put Them On
A minute of prep saves you from twisting, overstretching or rubbing for the rest of the day. Before you start:
- Sit down on a chair, the edge of your bed or the staff room bench.
- Take off rings and bracelets that could snag the knit.
- File down any sharp toenail edges.
- Check you’re in the right size for both your shoe size and your calf, using our compression socks sizing chart.
Start With Dry Skin
Damp skin is the most common reason a sock drags instead of sliding. Sweat, a fresh shower or moisturizer that hasn’t soaked in all make the fabric cling halfway up your shin.
If you moisturize in the morning, give it time to absorb before you reach for your socks. On hot days, a light dusting of baby powder on your feet and ankles cuts the friction.
How to Put On Compression Socks, Step by Step
The heel-first method is the best way to put on compression socks. It keeps the foot section in place before any fabric goes up your leg, which is where most fit problems start.
Step 1: Find the Heel Pocket
Reach inside the sock and pinch the heel pocket from the inside. That pocket anchors the whole sock. If it lands in the wrong spot, the compression ends up in the wrong spot too.
Step 2: Turn the Sock Inside Out Down to the Heel
Holding the heel, turn the leg of the sock inside out until you reach it. You’re left with the foot section as a small pouch and the leg folded back over it.
Working this way means you never haul the full tube over your foot. That hauling is what overstretches the knit and leaves the fit uneven.
Step 3: Slide Your Toes In
Ease your toes into the toe end of the pouch. Settle them so nothing twists or pinches. If the fabric catches, pause and straighten it now, because a twist at the toes travels up the foot as you go.
Step 4: Set the Heel
Pull the folded fabric back over your heel until the heel pocket cups your heel. Check it sits squarely on the back of your heel. If it’s riding up onto your foot or drifting under your arch, rotate it back.
Before going any higher, make sure the whole foot section lies flat.
Step 5: Work It Up in Short Sections
Unfold the leg of the sock up your calf an inch or two at a time, using both hands with your thumbs or palms on the fabric. Move evenly around the leg so one side doesn’t get ahead of the other.
Leave the top band alone until the very end.
Step 6: Smooth Out Every Wrinkle
Run your hands over the toes, heel, ankle and the back of your calf. Wrinkles turn into pressure points and rubbing by mid-shift, so smooth each one out now while it takes two seconds.
Step 7: Check the Top Band
On knee-high pairs, the band should sit just below the bend of your knee, low enough that it doesn’t crease when you sit down. It should lie flat with no rolling or folding.
Take the sock off and start again if you notice any of these:
- Numbness or tingling
- Cold, pale or discolored toes
- Sharp or pinching pressure anywhere
- The top band cutting into your skin
How Compression Socks Should Feel Once They’re On
A well-placed sock feels like firm, even support with nothing digging in. You should be able to walk, squat to a low cage or bend over a bed without anything shifting.
Our socks sit at 15-20 mmHg, which is medium compression. It should feel noticeably snug and never painful. Our guide to how tight compression socks should be goes deeper on where that line sits, and our mmHg levels explainer covers what the numbers mean.
A faint knit pattern on your skin after a long shift is normal. A deep groove or a sore line under the band means something is off with the size or with where the band is sitting.
Common Mistakes When Putting On Compression Socks
Pulling From the Top Band
It feels like the fastest way up, but it overstretches the elastic and pulls the heel out of position. Guide the fabric up from the ankle and touch the band only to straighten it at the end.
Rolling or Folding the Band Down
A rolled band doubles up the fabric into a tight ring around your calf. If a sock feels too long, check your size and heel position before you fold anything.
Wearing the Wrong Size
Too small and the sock squeezes, pinches or leaves deep marks. Too big and it slides down and wrinkles. Our bamboo socks come in Regular, Wide and Extra Wide calf fits, and if you land between sizes, size up.
If you haven’t measured before, our step-by-step on how to measure for compression socks walks through your calf and shoe size.
Tips That Make Them Easier on a Busy Morning
Put Them On Before Your Legs Swell
Swelling builds through the day, so a sock slides on far more easily first thing. That’s also why we recommend measuring for size in the morning.
Use Gloves for Grip
Rubber dishwashing gloves or purpose-made donning gloves give you grip on the fabric without pinching it. They let you move the knit in small sections, and the fabric lasts longer for it.
Try a Donning Aid If Bending Is Hard
A donning aid holds the sock open so you can step your foot in. It helps if you have limited mobility, reduced hand strength or a sore back after a run of shifts. If your doctor has prescribed compression stockings, follow their fitting advice on top of the steps here.
Pick a Fabric That Suits Your Day
A soft, smooth knit is easier to ease up your leg. Our Black Bamboo Compression Socks use a rayon-from-bamboo blend with no seams, a quick-dry, sweat-wicking knit and extra thickness at the heel and toe for blister protection.
The same bamboo build comes in plenty of colors and prints, including Baby Pink, across our bamboo compression socks. If you train in yours, our performance compression socks go on the same way, and our performance vs regular comparison covers how they differ.
Fixing Fit Problems
They Feel Too Tight
Check the usual suspects: a size too small, fabric bunched at the ankle, a twisted leg or a band pulled too high. Take the sock off, reapply it using the steps above and recheck your size. If it still hurts, stop wearing that pair.
They Slide Down
Sliding usually points to a size that’s too big, a heel that isn’t seated, lotion on your skin or a pair that has lost its stretch. An older pair that slides after every wash is due for replacing.
They Bunch at the Ankle
The heel almost always went on unevenly. Take the sock off, set the heel pocket properly and smooth the foot flat before you work the leg up again.
The Heel Won’t Line Up
The sock is probably twisted, or your foot isn’t fully into the foot section. Rotate the fabric until the heel pocket sits on your heel before you pull any higher.
They’re Hard to Take Off
Removing them is the same method in reverse:
- Sit down.
- Peel the top band down, turning the sock inside out as it goes.
- Work it down your calf in short sections.
- Ease it over your heel.
- Slide it off your toes.
How to Use Compression Socks Day to Day
Most people put their socks on in the morning or before activity and take them off at night. If you’re new to compression, start with a few hours and build up over a week or two as your legs get used to it.
The usual times are long shifts on your feet, flights and long drives, long stretches of sitting and workouts. Our guides on when to wear compression socks and how long to wear them each day cover timing in detail, and our compression socks benefits guide covers what they do for your legs.
If you’re on the clinic floor, our guide to compression socks for healthcare workers looks at shift wear specifically. Flying soon? See compression socks for flying.
Keeping Them Supportive: Care and Replacement
Wash them after each wear with a mild detergent. Our bamboo socks go in the machine under 30°C with like colors, then air dry without wringing them out. Skip bleach, ironing, the tumble dryer and fabric softener, which can wear down the elastic fibers.
Our full compression sock washing guide covers the details. Even with good care, a pair needs replacing once it shows these signs:
- It slides down or wrinkles during wear
- The top band has stretched out
- The fabric feels loose or uneven
- It no longer springs back to shape after washing
- You can see thinning or holes at the heel or toe
If you wear compression every shift, you’ll go through pairs faster than someone who wears them for the odd flight. Rotating a few pairs gives each one a rest between washes, and storing clean pairs flat or loosely rolled helps the knit keep its shape.
Compression Socks FAQs
Can you sleep in compression socks?
For most people there’s no need. Lying flat already takes the weight of standing off your legs, so compression is most useful while you’re upright. Wear them overnight only if your doctor has told you to.
Why are my compression socks so hard to put on?
The usual causes are damp skin, a size that’s too small, putting them on after your legs have started to swell, or pulling the whole sock up at once. Dry skin, a morning start and the heel-first method solve most of it.
Should compression socks hurt?
No. Firm and snug is right. If you get any of the warning signs from Step 7, take them off and recheck your size and fit.
How do you put on compression stockings?
The same heel-first way you put on socks. Longer or firmer medical stockings can be harder to get on, so a donning aid helps, and our post on TED stockings vs compression socks explains how the two differ.
Can anyone wear compression socks?
If you have a circulation condition, a skin condition on your legs or a compression prescription from your doctor, follow their advice on fit and wear time before using any off-the-shelf pair.
What to Remember at 6am
Dry legs, sock inside out to the heel, toes in, heel pocket on your heel, then up in short sections with the band flat below your knee. That order fixes most twisting, bunching and rolling before it starts.
If a pair still fights you after that, check your calf and shoe size against our sizing chart before blaming your technique. When it’s time for a new pair, everything in our compression socks range goes on with this same method.
