A vapor-permeable element to be used in a composition of soles for shoes, including: a supporting frame, which delimits substantially at least one through hole; a membrane impermeable to water and permeable to water vapor and arranged above the supporting frame so as to cover at least the through hole; at least one vapor-permeable or perforated protective layer for the membrane, arranged between the supporting frame and the membrane, so as to cover at least the through hole. The membrane and the protective layer are joined, at least at their perimetric edges, to each other and to the supporting frame. The protective layer, in cooperation with a tread of the sole with which it is associated, is available for contact with the ground during use of the sole.