None of the above. We have wood or tile (easy to clean) floors throughout the downstairs, we take off our shoes before going upstairs.

If your shoes are of a type that would damage my floors then you have to remove them. Otherwise I have no problems with shoes of any kind but I often remove mine inside the house.

I think it's really weird to wear shoes in the house to the point where I ask if I should take them off when I go to someone else's house. Just think of all the crap (literal and figurative) you walk through in your shoes. Gross. I almost always have socks on though. I grew up on a farm so we always had to take our shoes off so we didn't track mud or worse in. Now I live at the beach and I don't need sand coming in on shoes. Take them off! I prefer guests take them off, but I don't require it. If the giant pile of shoes by the door isn't enough to give you the hint to take them off, I assume you are more comfortable not taking them off. It's so much more comfortable not wearing shoes too.

I prefer if my guests would but I don't want them to feel uncomfortable or self conscious. I know for a long time I wouldnt go inside an acquaintances house because she was a germaphobe who required shoes off, but I was afraid my feet were smelly and gross, but now that I'm immunosuppressed I prefer it

None of the above

I have pets so there’s no point in taking shoes off just because of germs. I don’t eat off my carpets so I don’t see the problem. Unless it’s muddy, of course.

I do take my shoes off for comfort, though.

I think it’s rather rude to demand visitors remove their shoes.

i generally don't need to ask. i always take them off myself, though. i did that even BEFORE i lived in japan for a decade.

g

It may be a British thing but it would be thought strange, even rude, to ask a guest to take their shoes off here, which is odd because most people wear socks anyway, and most use slippers in their own home. I think it is great that you at least have some variation, we can be very old fashioned and frankly dirty here, we could do with some mass immigration from Japan.

No, I do not take my shoes off. Doctor's orders. I also do not ask my guests to take off theirs. I have a vacuum cleaner, brooms and mops.

In warm climates/seasons people are often wearing sandals and I will walk around barefoot in the immediate area of the house so the point is moot.
When my son was young he would sometimes have had n adventure that had him under orders to completely hose down outside and enter through the laundry room.

I lived with someone who demanded that people remove their shoes, and once watched a guest try to hide the fact that there was a hole in her sock all evening.

The paper booties like doctors wear would be an option if guests appear uncomfortable.

But I'd really never ask a thing unless their shes were obviously dirty.

Makes a lot easier to clean the house after

I take my shoes off for comfort only and don't require my guests to remove their shoes.

Here's my philosophy on shoes in the house.
Living beings put nasty stuff on the ground. There's poop, pee, spit, puke, dirt, oil, and a multitude of germs and bacteria. All carried in on the soles of one's shoes. You don't wanna take off your shoes in my home? Then don't come over.