INSTINCT MEN'S

As a guy with narrow feet (and an extra-narrow heel), these shoes are nearly perfect in fit for me! I have also worn the Chimeras and Drago LV (though maybe a size too large in each) and tried on the new Drago XT. I would place their heel cup volume from large to small in that order, and the Instinct Women's is probably between the Drago LV and XT. Same for the toe box (but not to the same degree).

Outside of shoe volume, the Chimera and Drago LV are hands down better shoes in terms of raw performance. The single PCB tension along the bottom and the high asymmetry provide more pulling than the moderately asymmetric bi-tension system in the Instinct, and the surround rubber of the toe box provides much better toe hooking. The Chimera has the most sensitivity of the three, but the LV and Instinct are equal. The Chimera has better laces that feel more grippy than the Instinct (I actually swapped the laces) and hold better in the eyelets when tightening the shoe. The Instinct is easily the most comfortable and generally more well-fitting for narrow feet (at least the women's). All three have the same heel cup exterior, which is solid at heel hooking if your heel fits it.

HOWEVER, I have not climbed in the Drago XT, but I have tried them on. Based on my initial thoughts, the fit of the XT is even more snug than the Instinct W, especially in the heel if you can believe it. I imagine people with larger heels will have to upsize too much to fit in, which likely defeats the benefit…

Please don't discontinue these, they're fantastic. I have pretty huge/wide feet and these are the only climbing shoes I have found that aren't painful to wear for long periods but also allow me to tackle more technical footwork.

The laces allow me to have better control over the width throughout the shoe and are far more comfortable than the velcro version for me. Glad they're back in stock I thought they were getting sunset.

This shoe has the classic, precise toebox of all Scarpa's Instincts combined with a snug arch fit and narrower heel rand that fits into finicky heel hooks like a dream. I used the Instinct Lace on the crux right heel of Meadowlark Stand when others wouldn't work. The shoe stays stiff throughout the course of its lifetime; I've used it primarily for steep sport climbing and bouldering. I'm a women's street shoe 7 and find the 37s fit perfectly (I like my shoes pretty tight).