I'm gonna also recommend Clark's and Aerosole, and I've had great luck with Naturalizer shoes for comfort, too. Besides Naturalizer mall stores, they sell them on their own site and on Zappos. They are generally in the $50-$90 range, and very comfortable for me.

Happy to help! I'm all about foot health :)

I swear to you that these are the only "office appropriate" shoes I will ever wear for the rest of my life:

get your shoes. Then get a thick pair of men's cotton athletic socks. Put on the shoes and the socks. Get your hair dryer. Blow dry the shoes while wearing them. Hold the dryer about 4 inches from the shoe. Use warm or hot. Then walk around in them for 10 minutes until they cool down. This works on just about every…

Cole Haan with Nike Air! Since it sounds like you've got time, find the nearest Nordstrom Rack and check it every few weeks. You'll find a pair eventually at a good price.

drugstores sell an "anti-blister" stick, but it doesn't work any better than anti-perspirant, and costs twice as much. Also useful if you've got thunder thigh issues. lol

Yeah, I've never owned a pair of dress shoes in my life that cost more than $100, but I've somehow been remarkably successful in job interviews. Honestly, if you're interviewing with a man, I would bet good money that he never even looks at your shoes. So I'll stick to my $40 Payless dress shoes. I honestly have no…

Payless has a comfort brand (evident on the box) that is guaranteed. Short of trying on a mall's worth of shoes, go with these for formal events. It's very difficult to find shoes in actual stores for wider or troubled feet, aside from these ones.

Sometimes even expensive shoes can hurt, it really depends on your foot.
Look into lining for the shoe like half sock that hides under the shoe part or moleskin padding. Figure out where exactly is the problem area that ends up hurting and look up tricks like toe caps for corns or gel pads for calluses.
I know how you…

My best luck has been with Cole Han's Air Nike line. I think they were discontinued, but if you're a lucky size you are sometimes able to snatch up a pair on deep discount from Amazon or 6pm.com. I got my pair from Amazon for ~$40 from an original price of ~$300. Sold! You might set up a camelcamelcamel alert to watch…

Can I ask what line of work you're in where people are so hung up on each other's shoes? Because I'm pretty sure it's not just science slobs and tech slobs who are wearing perfectly good shoes that cost less than $100.

May I introduce you to yet another member of the Clarks family?

I am thirding Clarks. If you shop in the sales you can get some absolute bargains. I have a pair of 2" ankle boots (and ankle boots in general are a great alternative to regular heels if you mostly wear trousers to work- the extra ankle support makes all the difference) that have lasted me 4 years without complaint.

Aravon(made by New Balance) and Sofft for more fancy shoes. Aravon has removable soles so you can put in better insoles if you need, and Sofft is cushioned with memory foam and has pretty decent arch support. And both shoes come in wide. Sofft still needs a little breaking in, but after they're as comfy as heels get.

Add foot petals to the inside-back of your shoes, whatever kind you get.

Dr Scholl's makes ballet flats that somehow are super comfy, and come in professional but not ugly styles. I may pickup a pair for this summer. I live in Vermont now, so my keene's match almost any event.

I'm a shoe-phile and I've owned shoes that cost hundreds of dollars, but the favorite pair of shoes I've ever owned were from Fergie's shoe line (Fergilicious?). They were black flats and were $20 at Famous Footwear. They looked nice, fit my feet like a glove, and I wore them until the I could feel the ground coming…

I'm seconding the Clark's recommendation. I used to live near an outlet (they're too pricey for me otherwise) and as a result own several pairs. I'm a foot baby who is constantly late, and I have successfully run for innumerable trains in my Clarks heels without injury.

I am a diabetic so I am all about the comfort. Search for shoes marked "diabetic", true story. You won't regret it.

These are heels but have been amazing..... I tried them on and was like' "whhhuuutttttt!!!". Also, aerosoles are alright, usually looks good and can be found at most TJ Maxxs for like $30 and under....