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What Plantar Fasciitis Sufferers Are Using in 2026 —
And What Actually Works.

The AFA reviewed every popular treatment people are turning to this year. Most address the wrong end of the problem. Here's what the evidence actually shows.

December 3, 2025 By Dr. Michael Carver, DPM

Every year, the American Foot Association surveys the landscape of plantar fasciitis treatments being used by the tens of millions of Americans living with this condition. And every year, we arrive at the same conclusion: most people are spending their time, money, and energy on the wrong end of the problem.

 

Night splints. Epsom salt soaks. Foam rollers before bed. Compression socks while you sleep. These have become the default plantar fasciitis routine for millions of people — and while some of them offer temporary relief, they all share one fundamental flaw.

 

They focus on what you do at night. Plantar fasciitis is a daytime problem.

 

Your plantar fascia is under load every single time you take a step, stand in your kitchen making coffee, walk through a parking lot, or pace the floor during a phone call. That's where the damage happens — during the hours you're upright and moving. What you do in your waking hours matters exponentially more than any nighttime ritual.

 

This report reviews the most popular plantar fasciitis treatments Americans are turning to in 2026, evaluates what the evidence actually shows, and explains why the AFA's top recommendation comes down to what's happening inside your shoe — not what you're doing after you take it off.

"Plantar fasciitis is a daytime injury sustained in daylight hours. Treating it primarily at night is like trying to put out a fire while actively adding fuel during the day."
— Dr. Carol Hendricks, DPM · AFA Chief Education Officer

50M+

Americans currently living with plantar fasciitis

Title

$4B+

Spent annually on plantar fasciitis treatments in the U.S.

Title

78%

Of sufferers report trying multiple treatments with limited results

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What People Are Using — And What the Evidence Shows

1) Night splints

LIMITED BENEFIT

Night splints hold the foot in a dorsiflexed position while you sleep, keeping the plantar fascia slightly stretched. The idea is to prevent the overnight tightening that causes that first-step-out-of-bed pain. And to their credit, they can reduce morning pain for some users.

 

The problem is that night splints are universally uncomfortable to sleep in, most people abandon them within weeks, and they do absolutely nothing during the 16 hours your foot is actually under load. They treat a symptom — morning stiffness — while leaving the root cause completely unaddressed.

 

In our assessment: night splints may be a useful supplemental tool for severe morning pain, but they should not be anyone's primary treatment strategy.

2) Epsom Salt Foot Soaks

NOT EFFECTIVE

One of the most popular home remedies online. Soak your feet in warm Epsom salt water for 20 minutes before bed. Millions of people do this nightly. The warm water does feel good and can temporarily ease tension in the foot muscles.

 

However, there is no clinical evidence that Epsom salts penetrate the skin in meaningful quantities, and no mechanism by which this soak addresses the micro-tears or inflammation in the plantar fascia. Any relief felt is from the warm water, not the salt — and it evaporates within hours.

 

This is a comfort ritual, not a treatment. It belongs in the same category as a hot bath: pleasant, but not therapeutic for plantar fasciitis specifically.

3) Ice Therapy & Anti-Inflammatories (NSAIDs)

SYMPTOM MANAGEMENT ONLY

Icing the heel and taking ibuprofen or naproxen are the most common "treatments" people default to — and they do reduce inflammation and pain in the short term. For acute flare-ups, they have genuine value.

 

The critical distinction: reducing inflammation is not the same as healing the underlying tissue damage. Anti-inflammatories mask the signal your body is sending about ongoing mechanical stress. They can make you feel well enough to continue the very behaviors that are perpetuating the injury.

 

Long-term NSAID use also carries its own health risks. The AFA views these as appropriate for acute pain management — not as a primary treatment plan.

4) Custom Orthotics

EFFECTIVE - BUT EXPENSIVE

Custom orthotics from a podiatrist are the gold standard for plantar fasciitis treatment. They are precision-fitted to your specific foot structure and provide exactly the arch support and heel cushioning that the plantar fascia needs during weight-bearing activity. They work.

 

The obstacle for most people: $300 to $600 per pair. Multiple appointments. Insurance rarely covers them. Many people are told they need them, get a quote, and simply don't follow through. The result is that the most effective daytime treatment available is out of reach for a significant portion of sufferers.

 

This gap — between what works and what's accessible — is exactly what the AFA's 2026 over-the-counter recommendation is designed to address.

5) CloudSole Insoles

AFA RECOMMENDED

CloudSole insoles occupy the category that has been largely missing in plantar fasciitis treatment: properly engineered daytime arch support at an accessible price point, designed to work with any shoe you already own — from sneakers to dress shoes to work boots.

 

The architecture of CloudSole is built around the same principles that make custom orthotics effective: a structured arch support that cradles the midfoot and reduces strain on the plantar fascia with every step, combined with targeted heel cushioning that absorbs the impact that would otherwise transmit directly to inflamed tissue.

 

The key distinction from drugstore foam insoles — which are marginally better than the factory inserts they replace — is that CloudSole provides structural support, not just cushioning. Cushioning makes stepping feel softer. Structural arch support changes the mechanics of how load is distributed across the foot. That is the difference that matters for plantar fasciitis.

 

No break-in period. No prescription. No appointments. You put them in your shoes, take your first step, and the support is there — doing the job your current insoles are failing to do from the moment you get out of bed to the moment you sit back down.

 

For the 2026 review period, CloudSole is the AFA's top over-the-counter recommendation for adults seeking meaningful daytime plantar fasciitis support without the cost barrier of custom orthotics.

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The Bottom Line from the AFA

 

If you have been managing plantar fasciitis with nighttime routines and haven't seen sustained improvement, this report tells you why. The damage is happening during your waking hours. The treatment needs to meet it there.

 

You don't need to spend $500 on custom orthotics to get real, structural arch support. You don't need appointments or prescriptions. What you need is something engineered to actually support your arch — not just pad it — from the first step you take in the morning.

 

That is precisely what CloudSole was designed to provide. And it is why, for the second consecutive year, CloudSole is the American Foot Association's top over-the-counter recommendation for plantar fasciitis sufferers in 2026.

The AFA will continue to review and update our treatment recommendations as new options emerge. But the fundamental principle will not change: plantar fasciitis is a daytime problem that demands a daytime solution. Prioritize what happens inside your shoe. Everything else is secondary.

 

Dr. Carol Hendricks, DPM

Chief Education Officer, American Foot Association

The Solution the AFA Recognizes: CloudSole Insoles

CloudSole insoles provide properly engineered arch support and heel cushioning at a fraction of the cost of custom orthotics — designed to work with any shoe you already own. No appointments. No break-in period. No prescription required.

 

From the very first step, the structural support is there — absorbing shock, cradling your arch, and taking the cumulative daily stress off the plantar fascia so it can finally begin to heal.

Deep Heel Cushioning

Shock Absorbing

Adaptive Arch Support

Podiatrist Recommended

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P.S. — The most common thing we hear from people who try CloudSole is some version of: "I can't believe I spent two years doing everything else first." The soaks, the stretches, the splints — and then they put a pair of CloudSoles in their shoes and feel the difference within a day. Don't let that be your story. The 30-day guarantee means there is no risk in finding out.

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