Lems Switchback Knit Sandal Review [vs. original Lems Switchback]

I bought and tested the Lems Switchback back in Spring 2025, resulting in a near-4,000 word review about the sandals. If you're interested in the Knit, go ahead and open (and read) that full review here.

(Or dump it into your preferred LLM and ask questions! Please note, however, that this review is hand-made by yours truly.)

My original Lems Switchback review is relevant to the Switchback Knit because, for the most part, the Knit is the same as the original, meaning that everything I wrote about 15+ months ago holds true with the Knit. Thus, this review will evaluate the Knit's knitted harness and updated style. I'll do a comparison between the two too.

What the Lems Switchback Knit is

According to the Lems website, the Switchback Knit is:

The Switchback Sandal Knit takes the go-anywhere functionality of the original Switchback and updates it with a breathable knit upper that delivers a softer feel and adaptive fit. Designed to move with your foot, the knit construction provides comfort and flexibility while maintaining the secure support you need for all-day wear.

That "go-anywhere functionality," as readers know, is a byproduct of the heel-wrapping, thong strapping design of the sandals, a design inspired by huaraches. This way of lacing sandals offers a durable connection point between the biggest toes while anchoring the straps on either side of the ankle and wrapping around the Achilles tendon of the foot. Huaraches offer a locked-on sandal design that you can run in, and the Switchback brings that functionality as you'd expect.

As for the breathability of the Knit, I can't say I noticed any difference to the originals insofar as breathability goes. Because sandals are necessarily open-air, they are breathable by default. I'll speak more to the Knit below.

The Knits are slightly more expensive than the original, retailing for $125 (before tax and shipping) from lemsshoes.com 👈 This is a direct link to the purchase page for the sandals. I will switch to sharing affiliate links, as needed, in this review going forward. Use them if you want to support this site ... or don't. I'll never know.

The knitted upper of the Switchback Knit: No nits to pick

I'll say it directly: The Switchback Knit caught my eye because of the look of the knitted harness. I liked how it ditched the loops used in the Original, opting for a cleaner, simpler design. Then I got the sandals, and I quickly noticed that the Knit Switchback uses the same (or similar) knitted fabric of the thong-harness with the ankle harnesses too. The Knit's knitted fabric simplifies the build of the sandal. Take a look at this side-by-side of the Knit on the left and the original Switchback on the right to see what I mean:

You can tell how the original combines much more material to build the ankle harness (and this is true for the thong too).

As for function, the knit fabric improves the Switchback's feel on the foot. The texture of the knit fabric feels nice, and while sturdy, not grating. Also there's this nit I had with the originals, mentioned in the original review:

As for the neoprene lining used on the static parts of the system ... It feels good against the skin and affords the Switchback structure, directing the straps where they should go. On one occasion early in my testing, I had an issue with the outside structure bumping my ankle bone. I can't say why this was happening and thankfully it hasn't happened again.

The knit fabric and simpler design don't save much in weight though. The Knit is a mere 3g lighter than the same-size original Switchback (246g vs 249g in my size 11, weighing the right sandal).

The Switchback Knit look

I do prefer the look of the Switchback Knit to the original. The simplicity of the knit fabric preserves clean lines and dramatically reduces the number of stitches used on the Switchback, as compared to the original.

However, I wish the Knit came in a colorway with less contrast, as I got with the "Twig" colorway's browns and yellows. By comparison, one thing I like about my original pair is that while they are multi-toned with brown and green colors, they metal buckles play nicely with the browns. The Knit in Twig combines yellow ochre fabric loops and soles alongside the very bright yellow metal buckle and Switchback Slydr hardware runs up against the nice brown of the knit fabric.

The result looks good enough, but is a little louder than I want, for whatever reason:

There are other colorway options for the Knit though, and you might like one of them just fine.

The "Ivy" colorway uses the traditional metal buckle, with complimenting shades of green, save for the blue-green of the ankle strap and loops, which while adding contrast, is quiet enough.

For max contrast, the Prism colorway goes hard with a playful mix of colors and even comes with an alternative choice of strap that you can swap in (Note you cannot swap straps with the Twig colorway, and presumably not with the Ivy colorway either.)

What do you think about the looks of the Knit Switchback or the Switchback in general?

Function and form

I wrote so much about the original Switchback that I'm going to save my breath here. The long and short of the Lems Switchback Knit:

• The Knit offers an easy on/easy-enough off sandal design
• The sole pattern is nice enough, only a little squishy, and the molded shape is mild in terms of arch support and toe spring.
• But the Switchback is not a dead-flat, contour-free minimalist sandal!
• The Knit's "Slydr" adjustment system, while taking some breaking in, works well if you want to lock the sandals well on to your foot

Worn on long walks or hikes in the woods, the Knits perform the same as the Switchback. Like every sandal, they expose your feet to dust and detritus (as on a hike).

If you want to run in the Knit for a short clip or even a couple miles, you'll be able do that just fine too.

Is the Knit for me? What about vs. the original?

I continue to try lots of minimalist sandals. The Switchback, being on the chunkier side, isn't that minimalist. It does fall into the huaraches-inspired category, and I'm evaluating it along contenders from Shamma Sandals, Luna Sandals, and Bedrock Sandals. If you want a "which one would you pick" post, let me know and I can think about putting one together.

As for Switchback vs. Switchback, looking at the two sandals today, I find it hard to pick between the original and the Knit. I like the simplicity of the Knit over the original a lot. The feel and function of the knitted fabric wins over the original's multi-layered system. The surprise for me is that I just might like the harness of the original better, purely from an aesthetic standpoint. The center loop of the original, while having no obvious utility, has a purpose: it gives the harness a look that breaks up the "Y" shape of the thong.

Conclusion and gallery

I'll wrap this review by sharing that the Knit is available at the Lems website for $125 (here).

And if you have the Switchback Knit or original, I'd welcome your thoughts in the comments below.

Finally, check out the full gallery of Lems Switchback Knit photos below, and here's that link to the original Switchback sandal review here.