Shoes-table

Category	Shoe	Full Review	Favorite	Weight	Performance Penalty	Drop	Sole thickness	Subjective cushioning	Forefoot	Use	Notes
Minimax	Hoka Clifton	Hoka Clifton	Top Pick	7.8oz (8.5oz)	9.9 sec/mile, 6.2 sec/Km	6mm	23/29mm	8	7		Also considered an optimal shoe
	Altra Olympus	Altra Olympus	Top Pick	10oz (11.8oz)	15.1 sec/mile, 9.4 sec/Km	Zero	36mm	6	4.5	Road/Rocky Trail
	Altra Paradigm	Altra Paradigm		10.2oz (10.2oz)	12.6 sec/mile, 7.8 sec/Km	Zero	25mm	8	4	Road
	Hoka Bondi	Hoka Bondi		11.1oz (13oz)	16.9 sec/mile, 10.5 sec/Km	5mm	30/35mm	8	4	Road/Rocky Trail
	Hoka Mafate	Hoka Mafate		15.1oz (13.6oz)	17.9 sec/mile, 11.1 sec/Km	6mm	35/41mm	9	1	Muddy Trail	The most cushioned shoe
	Hoka Stinson	Hoka Stinson		11.8oz (13.2oz)	17.3 sec/mile, 10.7 sec/Km	6mm	32/38mm	9	2	Road/Rocky Trail
	Skechers GOrun Ultra	Skechers GOrun Ultra		9.5oz (9.8oz)	12 sec/mile, 7.4 sec/Km	14 mm (10mm)	26/40mm (24/34mm)	8 (heel)	7	Road	A nice attempt, but too much drop and wears too quickly.
	Adidas Energy Boost	Adidas Energy Boost		9.3oz	11.2 sec/mile, 6.9 sec/Km	9mm	17/26mm	~5-7	6	Road	A remarkable shoe with new midsole technology
Optimal	Altra One2	Altra One2	Top Pick	6.6oz (7.3oz)	8.1 sec/mile, 5 sec/Km	Zero	19mm	3	8.5	Road	A wonderful balance of weight and cushioning
	Mizuno Cursoris	Mizuno Cursoris	Top Pick	6.8oz	7.3 sec/mile, 4.5 sec/Km	Zero	18mm	3	8	Road	Soft, light and comfortable. Still available, but discontinued
	Saucony Virrata	Saucony Virrata	Top Pick	6.7oz (7.3oz)	8.1 sec/mile, 5 sec/Km	Zero	17mm	2	8	Road	Similar to the Altra One2
	Skechers GO Bionic			6.5oz (6.2oz)	6.4 sec/mile, 3.9 sec/Km	Zero	10mm	1.5			Good value
	Adidas Adizero Takumi Sen 2			6.3oz (6.9oz)	7.4 sec/mile, 4.6 sec/Km	5mm	17/22mm	1			An unusual Japanese racing shoe
	Nike Free 3.0 Flyknit	Nike Free		7.1oz	7.8 sec/mile, 4.8 sec/Km	4mm	17/21mm	2	8	Road	Highly flexible
	Modified Nike Free	Modified Nike Free		5oz (5oz)	4.5 sec/mile, 2.8 sec/Km	Zero	17mm	1		Road
	Saucony Kinvara			7.6oz (7.9oz)	9 sec/mile, 5.6 sec/Km	4mm	18/22mm	2		Road	Seems heavier than the scales would sugest
	Altra Torin	Altra Torin		9oz	10.7 sec/mile, 6.7 sec/Km	Zero	20mm	1	7	Road
	Brooks PureCadence			8.4oz (9.4oz)	11.3 sec/mile, 7 sec/Km	5mm	17/22mm	2			A little heavy for the cushioning
	Saucony Hattori			4.4oz	11.8 sec/mile, 7.3 sec/Km	Zero	15mm	0.5		Road	Not quite enough cushioning. No laces
Minimal	Mizuno Wave Universe			2.8oz (3.2oz)	18.2 sec/mile, 11.3 sec/Km	2mm	11/13mm	0		Road	Ultralight weight!
	NB Trail Minimus			6.5oz (6.5oz)	23.3 sec/mile, 14.5 sec/Km	5mm	10/15mm	0		Road/Trail
	NB Road Minimus			6.4oz (6.2oz)	22.8 sec/mile, 14.2 sec/Km	Zero	11mm	0		Road
	Merrell Trail Glove			7oz	24.1 sec/mile, 15 sec/Km	Zero	10mm	0		Road/Trail
	Merrell Road Glove			6.9oz	23.9 sec/mile, 14.9 sec/Km	Zero	11mm	0		Road
	Vibram FiveFingers			4oz	19.4 sec/mile, 12.1 sec/Km	Zero	5mm	0		Road/Trail
	Vivobarefoot One			7oz	24.1 sec/mile, 15 sec/Km	Zero	3mm	0		Road
Not recommended	Hoka Rapa Nui 2 Tarmac			10.7oz	13.4 sec/mile, 8.3 sec/Km	4mm	26/30mm	2		Road	Thick, but too firm
	Hoka Conquest	Hoka Conquest		11.9oz	15.2 sec/mile, 9.5 sec/Km	4mm	28/34mm	2	3	Road/Rocky Trail	Thick, but too firm
	Hoka Huaka	Hoka Huaka		9.2oz (9.9oz)	12.1 sec/mile, 7.5 sec/Km	5mm	21/26mm	4	6		Thick, but too firm
	New Balance Fresh Foam 980			9.1oz	10.9 sec/mile, 6.8 sec/Km	4mm	21/25mm	2		Road	Thick, but too firm
	Brooks Transcend			11.8oz	15.1 sec/mile, 9.4 sec/Km	8mm	22/30mm			Road	Thick, but too firm
	Patagonia EverLONG			9oz (9.2oz)	11 sec/mile, 6.8 sec/Km	4mm	20/24mm	2		Road	Too much drop
	Asics GT 2000			10.9oz	13.7 sec/mile, 8.5 sec/Km	9mm	20/29mm			Road	A shoe that almost defines 'traditional', including for comparison

• Cushioning. Shoes vary in the mount of cushioning they provide. There is reasonable scientific evidence that higher levels of cushioning increase stresses on joints and have higher rates of injury. However, cushioning is also one way shoes provide protection from stones (the other is inflexibility). Cushioning can also reduce foot soreness on longer ultramarathons.
• Weight. The weight of a shoe makes a big difference in the energy cost of running. Even small changes in weight can make a big difference in how fast we run. The weight in parenthesis is my measurement, which is size 9.5-11.0 depending on the shoe. This helps compensate for shoes that claim to be lighter by making their shoes small for any given size.
• Performance Penalty. Most studies show that for each 3.5oz/100g of shoe weight performance drops by 1%. However, there is also good evidence that cushioning can improve performance, so some allowance is made for the padding. The figures here are based on 4 hour marathon pace, which is 9:09 min/mile or 5:41 min/Km pace.
• Drop & Sole thickness. The drop is difference in sole thickness between the forefoot and heel. Larger drops can interfere with natural running form, and may increase the probability of heel strike. Numbers in parenthesis are without the insole.