2. Solve shoes first, because shoes are the biggest volume
Shoes take the most floor area, arrive dirty, and are the first thing dropped. Get them right and half the visual chaos disappears.
Split them by frequency. Only the shoes worn this week belong by the door — typically one or two pairs per person. Everything else goes to a bedroom, under a bed, or on a high shelf. A rack holding sixteen pairs for four people is a rack you will never see the floor of.
For a narrow hallway, a wall-mounted tilting shoe cabinet is the best value in this whole category. It is about 6 inches deep, holds six to nine pairs, keeps the floor clear for vacuuming and hides the mess behind a door. They cost around $70 to $120, CA$100 to CA$170 or £45 to £90 and mount on two brackets.
For a wider space, an open two-tier rack works and costs a third as much, with the trade-off that it always looks like what it is. A bench with shoe storage underneath is the best option if anyone in the house struggles to put shoes on standing up.
Add a boot tray by the door for wet or muddy footwear, with a lip to hold water. In snow country make it a deep one with a gravel or pebble layer so boots drain and dry rather than sitting in a puddle.
One rule makes the rest work: shoes come off at the door and go straight onto the rack, not beside it. A rack at 80 percent capacity gets used; a full one does not.