Three myths about steel-toe boots that won't die. Worth addressing because they actually affect how guys make buying decisions.
The amputation story. "I heard a guy dropped a beam on his foot and the steel toe sliced his toes off." This was popularized by a 1990s urban legend that Mythbusters tested in 2005. They couldn't reproduce it. The steel cap is rated to deflect impact, not crush downward into the foot. The cap is designed to spread the force across the boot's structure, transferring it to the sole and to your shin via the boot upper, not into your toes.
The exception — there are stress levels where the steel toe will fail. Above the rating (typically 75 foot-pounds for a 50/75 rated boot), the cap can deform. But "deform" doesn't mean "slice." The cap usually crushes inward against the foot, which is bad — bruising, possible fracture — but no worse than if there'd been no cap at all, and usually better. The "toe amputation" scenario requires a downward shear that real-world job-site impacts almost never produce.
The airport story. "Steel toes set off the metal detectors and I have to take them off every flight." Sometimes true, sometimes not. Walk-through metal detectors at airports are calibrated to flag things larger than a wedding ring or watch. Steel toe boots have enough metal to trigger them, sometimes. TSA's response is usually a shoe-removal request, same as any shoes that look bulky. If you fly often and the hassle bothers you, composite or alloy toes are non-metallic — alloy still triggers some detectors, composite does not. That's a real reason to choose composite.
The magnetism story. "Steel toes pick up metal shavings and screws." Steel does become slightly magnetized over time — it's normal magnetic induction from being near magnets, motors, and the earth's field. The amount is small. You're not going to walk past a pile of nails and have them stick to your boot. You might find a screw that you accidentally stepped on is harder to flick off than expected. Negligible. Not a buying factor.
Bonus myth — "steel toes get cold in the winter and burn your feet in the summer." This one is partially true. Steel conducts temperature better than the leather around it, so in extreme weather you can feel a temperature difference at the toe. Not enough to be a safety issue in normal conditions. If you work in extreme cold or hot environments, composite or alloy is more comfortable. For a normal Northeast winter, the difference is marginal — your sock and the boot lining handle most of it.
The honest summary. Steel toes are fine for most trades, do exactly what they claim to do, and the urban legends about them are mostly false or exaggerated. Composite toes have legitimate advantages in airports, cold weather, and weight. Pick on use case, not on rumor.