Aim: The cushioning characteristics of safety shoes are often thought to be the reason for injuries to or strain on the muscular and skeletal system. The optimum amount of cushioning is unclear, as additional biological compensation mechanisms reduce impact forces during movement. It is also unclear whether cushioning of the foot influences muscular activity in a negative way (e.g. enforcement of additional muscular work). The purpose of this study was therefore to investigate the effect of different cushioned safety shoes on plantar pressure distribution and muscular activity in healthy subjects. Method: Thirteen healthy workers were included in the study. All of them were measured in random order barefoot and in 5 different cushioned safety shoes on the treadmill and during a stepdown test from a 40 cm height. In-shoe plantar pressure distribution was measured in addition to surface EMG on the treadmill. The peak pressure and pressure-time integral under the complete foot and in separate areas of the foot were used to determine the pressure distribution. Time-related values from the EMG were used to analyse muscular coordination. EMG amplitudes were used to quantify muscular activity levels. Differences between conditions were analysed by means of univariate, one-way ANOVA (and the post-hoc test of Tukey Kramer). Results: Peak pressure was reduced under the complete foot as well as under the rear foot in all shoes compared to barefoot conditions (p < 0.05). When the external load was increased in the step-down test, the pressure—time integral (as a measure of the total load over complete ground contact) was only reduced in shoe PL (p < 0.05). Shoe PL (cushioned with Plastazote) also produced the lowest pressure values under the fore foot. Analysis of the EMG values did not reveal time or amplitude differences for the various conditions. Conclusions: Different cushioning materials in safety shoes can reduce plantar pressure. Muscular activity levels, however, were not influenced by lower plantar pressure. It is therefore concluded that changes in safety shoe characteristicsmay enhance footwear comfort and may reduce or prevent strain injuries, without provoking increased muscular work.