Why is it that the vast majority of size 8 shoes are labelled 8/42

[Saltire]

Yet New Look ones are labelled 8/41 and are therefore too bloody tight for my feet.

have spent ages trying to find a pair of shoes to wear to SIls wedding, finally found a pair, ordered size 8, they came today and are too tight and too small.They say they are size 8, yet have 8/41 on them.
My friend wears size 7 shoes and all hers are sized with 7/41.
how does that work then?

I think 7 is 40, 8 is 41.

42 is a 9.

For women's shoes 8 is normally 41, whereas for men, 8 is 42.

Is it? Hmm, does that mean that I am in fact a size 9 then?

In Clarks an 8 is a 42. I think it just depends on the shop.

just found this.

As a 41, I prefer to believe that I'm a 7. If you believe you're an 8, that is your right. Next will confirm your belief, as they consider 42 to be an 8. Just ignore New Look.

and then found another website which said an 8 was a 38. Seems like shoes sizing is as irregular as dress sizes

But apparently the translation isn't exact so some companies translate 41 as 7.5 and some as an 8.

And the Brazilians? The 'size 8/9 42/43' Havaiana Fits I ordered were teeny.

I'm beginning to think they should supply length and widths in mm, esp. for online ordering.

I have got some of my shoes out.
My walking shoes say 8/42 (from outdoor shop)
my trainers say 8/42
sandals (dorothy perkins) say 8/42

i buy 41 and i think it is 7.5.

i don't have any shoes that have 42 or 8 on them, how odd.

Have just checked 5 pairs of shoes, and they all say 8/42.

I am a big 8 though, probably an 8.5 really, as I do sometimes have to buy size 9.

42 is size 8 uk

I had this very row in Office a couple of weeks ago. I am a 42 an 8...
they tried to persuade me a 41 was an 8...
so checking a couple of pairs now.

ok
the blowfish sandals from office say 41 / 8
my birkies say 41
and my skechers say 40 / 7 and they're big
mmmm.

I have this problem too- it does depend on the shop, I have shoes from 40-42 and they all fit. I used to think of myself as a 7, now usually look at the 8, but get the wrong size lots.
The EU size is in between, which is where the problems arise I think

I am an 8.5 or can manage with a "large" 8 or a "small" 9.

I don't have any shoes with 41 on, all 42. I should think a 41 is a small 8, is always too small for me.

I feel your pain too, I'm an 8/42 and it's the bane of my life finding nice shoes then trying them on to find that they're obviously a 41 and too small.

Have the same problem I am a size 8 but need a 42 (apart from birkenstocks) New Look/ Primark etc too small as they are 41. Think it also depends on the shoe as sometimes Next come up too big!

Oh don't get me started on large size shoes -I am a 9 or a 10 depending on style, so always go for a 43 or 44 in a sandal.