“Material is thinner, traction seems very good, cushion is responsive, and i loved the aesthetics. They look almost as good as LeBron 20. For 40 $ cheaper than LeBron 20 these are definitely looking better.”
Here is the summary of the Under Armour Curry Flow 10 review. For a detailed review, continue reading!
Curry 10 has maintained the quality and performance of the Curry 9 basketball shoes. It’s very supportive, with amazing traction and cushion. The material is soft and breathable. Fit and lockdown are excellent. In my opinion, it’s one of the best signature shoes of 2023.
Under Armour Curry Flow signature sneakers line has been unmatchable for their supportive setup. Steph Curry has suffered many severe injuries during his basketball career.
Under Armour came up with a perfect design that allows fluid movements in fast direction changes. What completes the package is its rubber-free top-of-line traction pattern. That incredible innovation runs in the Curry sneaker line to maximize grip and minimize weight.
That said, I received mine, Under Armour Curry Flow 10, in a white box. The white under Armour logo on the top changes shade on tilting. Curry wrote on the sides, and that’s it.
Stephen Curry debuted Curry 10 in the “Iron Sharpens Iron” colorway. I ordered one pair, and the Warp upper looks more durable with tightly integrated thread. But is it a great performer on the court? Keep scrolling for the full performance review of Curry 10.
Under Armour Curry, 10 shoes have a Flow foam that serves as midsole and outsole. The outsole is more or less the same computer-generated traction pattern that we had in Curry 9.
The Curry Flow 10’s solid gripping traction is nonetheless the best traction pattern of the year. The spiral and circular traction pattern bites hard on the indoor and outdoor basketball courts.
As they say, the perfection and excellence continued in Curry’s latest sneaker, the debut release of the Curry brand under the UA umbrella. X on the outsole is the roman numeral for 10, as it’s the 10th signature sneaker of Steph Curry.
The white outsole bites well on any surface, but the dust pickup makes it difficult to go longer without wiping the outsole. It slips if you won’t wipe the outsole as the dust sticks in the deep nubs of the outsole.
Overall, it worked great for me, and I got consistent control even on the wet stops. So it’s top-tier traction.
Curry Flow foam makes the cushioning. The lightweight and soft Flow cushion is elastic and very springy. The cushion has a midfoot shank plate embedded that improves the jump height by giving you a solid base.
On your landings, it perfectly protects the foot muscles from crushing on hard surfaces with excellent impact protection. More so, the cushion supports the rebound backs and gives a ton of fun to play in.
It’s a Responsive bouncy spring. With all these superior qualities, it has not cut down on the court feel, making it easy to cut, stop and start faster.
Overall, it’s a decent cushion.
The upper material of Under Armour Curry Flow 10 is the engineered mesh that they call Warp. New Warp 2.0 has replaced the conventional Warp, a multilayered flexible and supportive mesh to enhance containment and comfort.
The forefoot toes area has overlays for durability, and the colored lines on the Iron Sharpen Iron colorway that I have looks more like they have stolen the Adidas 3 lines logo.
But apart from that, the mesh has more reinforcements and thread on high-wear areas where it needs the most.
The tongue has average padding with a pull tab with the Curry logo. The rear foot area has an overlay on the lateral side for stability. The material is lightweight and contains the foot very well.
Under Armour has implemented excellent support features in Curry Flow 10. The wide base of the Curry 10 makes it super stable for hard cuts and lateral moves.
The Warp upper acts as a seat belt with varying thickness on high-wear areas to contain the feet on the footbed and improve the lockdown.
Flow foam wraps on the sides and comes up like a wall with a TPU or a stabilizer on the rear foot lateral sides. On the back, an extra plastic piece cages the shoe and improves lateral stability. It would give you enormous control over the pivoting movements.
The back area is embedded inside with an internal heel counter for better ankle protection. Curry 10 gives abundant support and stability.
The Curry Flow 10 is super snug and tight, but it does not hurt my feet. The snug fit is not a weakness in the shoe.
If you have a problem with the tightness around the feet, you might want to get half a size up. But I felt secure, and lockdown is exactly how I like it.
The tongue and inner side of the shoe are padded to improve the comfort level. It does not feel that there is any pitching, heel slides, or discomfort.
Under Armour Curry Flow 10 looks like Curry 9 for the most part. Having the same Warp upper and Flow outsole.
I like the simplistic yet tech-packed design of Curry 10. Under Armour consistently makes an all-around excellent performance hoop shoe that looks like a lifestyle sneaker with its lightest silhouette.
Under Armour Curry 10 is available in many colorways, and I expect more soon. In addition to its debut colorways Iron Sharpens Iron, there are Sour Then Sweet, Northern Lights, More Magic, Curry-Fornia, and Treasure Island colorways available.
Through Iron Sharpens Iron colorways, Stephen Curry thanks everyone who helped him during his journey.
Under Armour Curry Flow 10 has foam on the outsole. That means that if you wear them longer outdoors, the foam will damage the tough surfaces.
Other than that, traction performance outdoors is as phenomenal as indoors. However, the white outsole gets dusty easily and needs wiping frequently.
So it’s ok if you want to wear it on the outdoor basketball court. But they are not going to last longer on consistent outdoor use.
So overall, the performance remains the same as indoors, but it’s not very durable for outdoor abrasive surfaces.
Under Armour Curry Flow 10 has nice airflow, with the upper being lightweight and mesh. It allows airflow through the toe box.
It’s not heavily padded on the inside. Forefoot has minimal padding to provide comfort and good ventilation through the toe box.
I felt very comfortable and fresh after wearing them for hours on the basketball court.
Under Armour Curry Flow 10 is better in many ways than Curry 9. Its stability, comfort, traction, and lockdown are much better than the previous one.
It received a rating of 4.8/5 from the users.
Tommy Liu
“Overall so far so good. I dont find a reason to not like them. Nice cushioning and comfort, great traction performance on different setups. Nice lockdown and secure fit. When you combine a smooth ride with good stability, only good things happen.”
Hoop and Life
“ Its the more refined version of Curry 9. Hooping in a dusty court, they are pretty inconsistent when it comes to traction. Everything else besie this is flawless.”
Foot Doctor Zach
“Curry 10 is so much better than Curry 9. Flow foam is more tachy and stabilizers on lateral sides add more confidence on lateral moves. If you are looking for the shoe to go with nimble footwork, then Curry 10 is the great choice.”
Snkr Tech Talk
“The Curry 10 is more than an upgrade from Curry 9 with traction, support, cushion and material. These are all superior when I compare them with 9s. I do question where they will go with this design because both were similar.”
He achieved the Rookie of the year award for 2011-2012 and NBA All-Star Game MVP in 2014. Nike and Kyrie came together to bring performance basketball shoes that go with the artsy sense of Kyrie and include Nike’s best-researched material. If you are anyone who has grown a mad obsession with Kyrie shoes, then you would love
Read on because this article will tell you about Kyrie shoe’s history, performance, evolution over time, and the design reincarnation behind every signature sneaker.
Yes, Kyrie’s shoes are excellent basketball sneakers. The low-to-the-ground basketball shoes go perfectly with your speed and agility. Kyrie basketball shoes are the best quality shoes that provide value for money. Designed after the playoff style of Kyrie Irving, you will enjoy every moment while playing in them. Nike and Kyrie collaboration has always been giving innovative designs with a stylish finish in Kyrie shoes.
Kyrie’s sneaker line started with the Dream colorway of Kyrie 1 basketball shoes. Nike design director Loe Chang expressed the incarnation behind the design.
Dream colorways have outsole coming up on the lateral side with spike shapes on the forefoot. This design inception came after Kyrie’s association with Sydney, where he was born.
They named it Dream because it was Kyrie’sKyrie’s dream to play as an NBA star that eventually came true.
Kyrie has always closely contacted the Nike design team for shoe design opinions. Things were going smoothly until Nike launched Kyrie 8.
In one of his Instagram posts, Kyrie Irving stated that he had no collaboration with Nike in the design and said that Kyrie 8 is trash. Afterward, Nike relaunched it with the name of Kyrie Infinity.
Moreover, Kyrie Irving made antisemitic remarks in one of the movies, which also included holocaust denial. Reports say that Nike has suspended its relationship after antisemitic tropes.
Let’sLet’s take a look at the Kyrie shoes and their release dates. Also, we will rank the top 3 Kyrie shoes down below.
Kyrie 1 basketball shoes’ first colorway was released in December 2014. The dream colorway was the first of its line. It was released with only a 110$ price tag. The traction pattern and very low profile zoom help in sudden stops and go.
Kyrie 2 shoes were released in 2015 with more vibrant colorways and improved traction. The design inspiration had a relation to Kyrie’sKyrie’s life happening.
Moreover, it had more outsole curvature than the previous release. Traction and heel-to-toe transition were improved. The lightweight kyrie shoe with a bit hard surface is the best for any quick guard.
Kyrie 3 was released in 2016, similar to the previous release, with few differences. The shoes had an aggressive traction pattern and low cushion.
The sneaker had the slogan “Just be yourself” on the tongue. It is the best one that excelled in heel containment and lockdown. The lacing system allowed tying off the laces one loop down to give individual fit.
The shoe sole and design have details about his daughter’sdaughter’s birthday and the name of her mother around the sole.
Kyrie 4 was released in 2017. Unlike all the kyrie shoes to date, Nike improved cushioning in the Kyrie 4. Thus it was the better one in comfort and cushioning.
The shoe has a retro touch, as Kyrie liked old designs like Jordans. It has a very aggressive small zig-zag pattern that helps you in smooth piloting moves and stopping at a dime.
Kyrie 4 low is very similar to Kyrie 4. The traction is a beast, but the cushion has been maintained low to the ground to give maximum court feel. The low-cut shoe had all the things the same as Kyrie 4.
Kyrie Irving preferred the retro style of premium silhouette they used in Kyrie 4. But in Kyrie 5, Nike has used mesh upper material to make it more breathable.
Moreover, the Nike Kyrie 5 has un matching support and stability feature. It has the same snug but comfortable feel. The shoe was released in many colorways and came in the famous TV series FRIENDS collaboration.
Kyrie 6 has continued to make amazing rubber outsoles with aggressive stopping power. The silhouette has a mix of synthetic leather and meshes upper.
They tried to improve the cushioning by including a zoom turbo unit on the top of full-length Phylon. The fit and lockdown are improved with the single strap over the laces.
Kyrie 7 has continued the tradition of adding relevant life stories and his affiliations in different colorways. Nike removed the strap on the top in this release. But it did not affect the fit.
The fit, lockdown, and support remain as good as the multidirectional wavy traction pattern. Kyrie 7 has maintained the low weight but improved cushion with the zoom heel unit.
Last up, we have Kyrie 8, a performance sneaker. These are going to be dope!
Kyrie is known for having great control over his moves. He slows down and then picks up the speed rapidly. Traction is more grippy than most kyrie shoes. The aesthetics of Kyrie Infinity are so far the best among all.
Alongside the kyrie main sneaker line, Nike has released 5 Kyrie Flytrap sneakers. The Nike Kyrie Low line has 5 sneakers out to date. Nike has maintained a lightweight and low-profile sneaker line in the form of Kyrie signature shoes.
No matter what, Nike has maintained Kyrie’s best traction over the year in all the signature sneakers. From the multidirectional herringbone traction pattern to racing bike and wavy aggressive traction patterns.
All are reliable and grippy over the court. On the clean court, traction is very consistent. While on the dusty court, it needs a quick wipe after every game.
Kyrie sneakers are low profile. These are very lightweight and have minimal cushioning to follow the speed and agility of a guard like Kyrie himself. Many players love the immense court feel and solid impact protection with subtle responsiveness.
Kyrie basketball shoes are best for shooting guards and point guards. The low-to-the-ground cushioning and minimum shoe weight allow them to move quickly on the basketball court.
On top of all, all kyrie shoes have grippy and solid traction, leaving the defense in shock when you make pivoting moves and dodgy turns.
Fans have loved Nike Kyrie’s signature line since 2014 around the globe. Every colorway in each sneaker tells a little fable about Kyrie Irving’sIrving’s life and the people connected to him.
Its performance is better than most basketball sneakers. Just like KD, or LeBron’s signature line, Kyrie sneakers are the best of Nike so far.
ROBBE: “Everybody Loves ZoomX” was a failed sitcom that nobody watched or even noticed. Released in 2019, the show only lasted for a single pilot on local access television, which we’re not even sure exists anymore. Critics said the show was judged by its title alone; audiences simply assumed it was a pitch for an already-existent Elon Musk pet project. In reality, it was just a documentary about shoe nerds talking about a midsole foam. This explains its failure to resonate with the general public.
But only one shoe fully encapsulated ZoomX in all its bouncy, gooey goodness– the Nike Invincible. Full transparency, we weren’t huge fans of the original Invincible. It was more of a personal preference on our end, but we get why a lot of people absolutely loved it. The upper was extremely comfortable, the midsole was thick and bouncy, the stack height provided protection for long miles on the road. For whatever reason, we just didn’t get along with it. If you did– well, that’s awesome.
We never ended up reviewing the second version either, which was mostly just an upper update. But we wanted to give the shoe another chance with the Invincible 3. Now with an extra 3 mm of stack height, a reworked upper, and a tweaked outsole design, would our feelings remain the same? Or would we fall in love with a daily trainer full of ZoomX the way we always wanted?
MEAGHAN: It’s been two years since I slipped on a pair of Nike Invincible and this version was just as surprising as the original for me. I honestly just forgot about this shoe and how much I enjoyed it. Race day foam in a daily trainer seems like it used to be a rarity, but now nearly every brand has an option. For the recovery properties alone, I am a big fan. Robbe covered the details and updates, so let’s get right to our thoughts.
THOMAS: I have always wanted to like the Nike Zoom Fly. With every new edition, I get excited to try it, only to have my heart sink with disappointment. In short, the Zoom Fly is a beautiful shoe that never feels good on foot (and the last version with recycled ZoomX did nothing to change that).
Similarly, I get overly excited to try the Invincible when it lands for review. First, I love ZoomX foam, and no shoe around has more than the Invincible. Secondly, The shoe is fun to look at– “she’s a beaut, Clark.” While I liked the first version of the Invincible, it could’ve used more stability. I found my knees fatigued as my foot rolled around on the bulbous midsole. When I saw the updated design of the Invincible 3, it appeared the Nike team addressed the issue with a broader base and a less convex midsole. I was anxious to try it out.
ROBBE: I know it’s a popular shoe, even for casual wear, but I never really loved the design of the Invincible. I guess it was just the blocky geometry of it, or the boxiness.. I don’t know. It just never hit right with me. While this version retains some of the aesthetics of the previous versions, I do like the slightly more streamlined look here, especially the channeled-out midsole.
The upper isn’t as plush, so it also looks more like a normal shoe. While I wasn’t in love with the Denim Dan/Canadian Tuxedo/President and CEO of Levi Strauss edition of the men’s launch colorway, I thought the strawberry cream women’s version was a tall glass of Arnie Palmer on a hot summer day.
I think the ride of this shoe is going to be a disappointment to people who loved v1 and v2, but I actually enjoyed it more. It’s slightly firmer than the first two (which is weird, because the midsole stack is higher), so you don’t feel like you’re wobbling all over the place.
The platform is also a bit wider in the midfoot which makes for a more stable ride, which solves the biggest problem we had with the first version. Overall, I enjoyed the ride of the shoe. It does give that nice and responsive bounce that we’ve come to love from ZoomX, though, as I said, it is a touch more firm than the last version(s).
MEAGHAN: I’ll start with the aesthetics, which I feel are a vast improvement from the first iteration. According to the Nike website, I received the pink foam/racer blue/baltic blue/bright crimson colorway, but pink foam would probably suffice as the description. The original version looked and felt a bit more “clunky.”
The upper has been streamlined, with a little less padding around the collar and heel, but still leaves you with a plush step-in feel. I found the shoes fit true to size, with a really nice, wide forefoot – somewhat atypical for a Nike. I did notice some heel slippage walking around (more on that later) but it didn’t really affect me out on the run.
Beneath the foot is what makes this shoe so fun: a full slab of ZoomX that’s light and bouncy. Since the Invincible also comes with a structured upper and full rubber coverage, you don’t get that “race day” feeling, but it’s still a nice and bouncy ride. The extra 3 mm of foam is also a welcomed update. More stack, especially when we’re talking about ZoomX, is always a good thing.
THOMAS: ZoomX is bouncy. The sensation of landing on that big fluffy midsole puts a smile on my face. This shoe is a cruiser that goes easy on the legs. I took it out for an 18-mile run and my legs felt fresh the next day, and ready for an easy recovery run. Despite a small amount of heel lift when walking in the Invincible 3, while running the shoe fit well and I didn’t have any hot spots.
Strawberry shortcake
ROBBE: I’m not sure what’s happening, but the opening in the upper is crazy long. As in, I could not get my foot locked into the shoe. I tried heel-lock-acing. I tried retightening the laces multiple times over multiple runs. I tried wearing thicker socks. Nothing worked. I was getting constant heel lift, my foot was sliding all around, I basically had to nix these for a long run because I just couldn’t do it. And the shoe was true to size– length-wise it fit the same as every other Nike I’ve ever tested.
I’m also not the first person to point this out, I’ve seen plenty of Instagram comments confirming the same thing. Granted, that may not be your experience, but just saying what happened to me. And for me, I don’t think I can wear it anymore.
The upper is not nearly as plush as the first couple versions. While I don’t think it’s bad, it’s just a bit stiff and kind of just… there. I don’t think it’s a dealbreaker, but if you’re used to that ultra-plush feeling of the Invincible 1 or 2, you’re not going to find it here.
Again, the midsole is a touch firmer upon landing. For me– not bad. But I know some Invincible superfans are not going to be pleased.
Also, it gained like a half-ounce of weight.
MEAGHAN: As noted above, I did have some heel slippage in this shoe. It wasn’t enough to prevent me from running in it, but it’s definitely noticeable, and we’ve heard from several other people this was an issue.
Also, despite being described as a neutral trainer, this shoe feels more in line with a stability shoe. Between the structured upper, wide platform and full rubber coverage on the outsole, there’s just a lot going on. Even though this version was trimmed down a bit from the original, I think Nike could take it down one more notch.
THOMAS: Unlike Meaghan, I did experience some heel lift in the Invincible 3. It wasn’t a problem, but for many runners it will be. The biggest issue for me was a general clunky feeling. In trying to describe it to Meaghan, I said that the shoe felt like an Alphafly with a flat tire. The ZoomX midsole does have rebound, but it doesn’t feel like it’s helping you move faster through your stride, cushion without that forward pop.
This weight doesn’t hep: my size US 10.5 weighs 11.4 oz./326 g. That makes the Invincible 3 one of the heaviest in the max cushion division.
Here is the summary of the Nike LeBron Nxxt Gen Review. For a detailed review, continue reading!
Nike LeBon Nxxt Gen is an excellent supportive shoe. In addition to good support and lockdown, its cushion is responsive, and traction is reliable. So what more do I want if I can get a LeBron at a lower price? I liked the shoe performance. It’s a balanced basketball shoe. It is one of the best basketball shoes for kids.
Nike LeBron Nxxt Gen comes in a white box with only two alphabets in black on the top, N and T; the rest I found by tilting the box as they are in white too. XX from the Nxxt reveals the time that LeBron completed with Swoosh company, that’s 20 years.
The sides of the box have a lion face, while the simplistic white box is slightly larger than the usual ones. The sneaker is Low-top, with a simple Mesh upper that you will notice right out of the box.
The double swoosh sign on the medial, where the bigger one has a geometric pattern, and the other is just a simple plastic piece. The lateral sides have another swoosh sign. The shoe silhouette completes with the tongue containing LBJ and Nike.
The translucent outsole pattern is the map of Akron, Ohio, where LeBron lived.
Nike paves the way for the new generation into the sneaker world by introducing the latest LeBron sneaker line on the 20th anniversary of the contract with King LeBron.
It’s a perfect time to launch a signature line for a generation that loves speed and agility. So this sneaker is made to deliver the best shock absorption, durability, and control over the speed.
Well, I can’t state just one exciting thing for me. There are many good features. It’s a brand new line, which feels so much lighter.
As they said, it’s for the next Gen, so a Newbie can’t comfortably hoop in for so long and switch to another line. Because those are made explicitly for His style, His move, keep reading to know the answers.
Nike LeBron Nxxt Gen’s traction pattern is a unique map pattern reminiscent of the area where LeBron lived. Traction is very consistent for hard stops.
It grips the clean indoor basketball courts well, and the grooves stick perfectly on the hardwood floor. It’s a pattern engineered to pick up traction from any foot movement.
On the lateral moves, the traction is phenomenal for stopping at a dime and pivots. It goes well with the speed and agility of the present-day or next generation. For which it is made. So it caters to the purpose perfectly.
The translucent outsole instead of the rubber is used here. That picks up dust and is easy to clean. But still, you have to ensure its outsole is clean for continuous solid traction.
The Nike LeBron Nxxt Gen uses Zoom units in the forefoot and heel. The Zoom Air is under the heel, and the Zoom turbo unit is in the forefoot.
So Zoom Air never ceases to amaze me regarding its ability to give impact protection and heel comfort. It gives a nice bounce and responsiveness. So you are perfectly safe if you make a couple of heel dominant strikes in the game.
Zoom turbo in the forefoot completes the cutting-edge cushioning technology setup in LeBron shoes.
Both units are top loaded, and the underneath foam is thicker that’s not so high up the ground to compromise the court feel but gives decent impact protection.
The overall cushion is good and lightweight.
Nike LeBron Nxxt Gen used Combined mesh material to cover the top shoe area, reducing weight and improving breathability.
It’s a vast square and crisscross mesh different from the usual mesh materials used in sneakers. The toe box has a slight synthetic leather patch for added durability on more complex surfaces for toe draggers.
The ankle collar and tongue have minimum padding. But there are no ankle pillows to secure ankle areas. Even then, the Nxxt Gen Material feels very soft and comfortable.
Nike LeBron Nxxt Gen bends in half; that’s the only thing worrying me about the shoe support. Even though the TPU Plastic plate is a part of the midsole, torsional support is not above average.
But it has a prominent outrigger that is great for the containment of your feet on the footbed. The mid-top basketball shoe has a simple lacing system with two extra eyelets on the ankle part.
It hugs the ankle part when you tie the laces, and the heel part has a TPU heel counter for a perfect and secure lockdown. There is no heel slippage. All these features make the lateral stability and containment excellent.
Nike LeBron Nxxt Gen is a snug-fit shoe. So a narrow footer should buy true-to-size fit while the medium and wide footer should at least buy half size up. Very wide feet players should buy a full size up than their actual size. It’s a narrow-fit shoe, so I bought half size up for me, and it’s good so far.
Faze Clan X, I Promise, and Wolf Grey are the colorways that are officially released from the Nike brand so far. I Promise being the coolest colorway that I got. Both shoe are in different colors and cross matching shoe laces.
I loved the aesthetics and minimal design and features of LeBron Nxxt Gen
The LeBron nxxt Gen does not look so promising for the outdoors as its rubber grooves are on the softer side. So it will melt down soon on the heat and rough outdoor surfaces.
As far as you keep them for indoors, they are really good. Also the outdoor dust pickup will be higher thats not good for the traction.
The 160$ LeBron sneakers are best for indoor use. The only way to increase their life and longevity is to limit their use to indoors.
The Nike LeBron Nxxt Gen has upper mesh materials which is light weight minimal and breathable.
The combined mesh will allow the maximum airflow around the towbox. You wont feel sweatty on feet. Moreover its a great way to maintain foot hygeine and avoid bad smell.
LeBron Nxxt Gen is fresh air in the old lines of basketball sneakers. Nike did the best job stirring up some features and bringing up a suitable signature model in the mid-range for everybody to use. So for its best qualities, it’s getting a rating of solid 5 out of 5 from satisfied users.
“ Traction is amazing. But fit and lockdown are the best part. I liked how it feels on feet, and i felt its lockdown is better than LeBron 20. But 200$ are a lot to spend on them.”
Markches
“ if you can’t buy the LeBron 20s and ok with how the upper material is not premium. The cushion has good impact protection. The support of the upper is very nice. traction is excellent. Also, these are very lightweight sneakers. It’s the lightest LeBron from Nike.”
“Traction is good but picks up dust. Fit and support are nice too but once you flip, you flip entirely. Fit is narrow. By the time you use them, you loose a bit of comfort and get better lockdown.”
The Sole Drops
“Material is thinner, traction seems very good, cushion is responsive, and i loved the aesthetics. They look almost as good as LeBron 20. For 40 $ cheaper than LeBron 20 these are definitely looking better.”
The Clifton line is a long-time favorite among running shoe enthusiasts and the Hoka Clifton 9 is the best Clifton yet. What did Hoka do to improve this long-time favorite of runners worldwide? Let’s find out.
Price: $145
Men’s Weight: 9.1 oz
Women’s Weight: 7.3 oz
Drop: 5mm (27mm forefoot, 32mm heel)
Sizing: True to Size
The Hoka Clifton was basically the shoe that kicked off the high-stack running shoe craze. Back in the day, the original Clifton was something runners hadn’t ever seen before. Nowadays, the Hoka Clifton 9 doesn’t even qualify as a high-stack shoe. It’s still got a solid stack of foam but midsole stacks can be much much larger (see the New Balance SC Trainer and the Asics Superblast).
But despite not packing a big stack, the Hoka Clifton 9 is still soft and great for easy or recovery days. But Hoka tweaked the typical foam compound and now it’s more elastic and bouncy – a welcomed change.
We didn’t love previous Cliftons for long runs because they’d flatten out or feel dead by the end of 15+ miles and their overall life expectancy seemed to max out around the 120-mile mark (give or take). But the new foam seems livelier and feels like you’re still getting bounce even as you near 20 miles. The Clifton 9 works extremely well as a long run shoe. I imagine we’ll even see some pairs out on marathon courses due to the forgiving fit and all-around comfort.
Another improvement is the outsole rubber. The durability in particular. A common complaint about previous Clifton models (and Hokas in general) was the tendency of the outsole to wear out early. But I think this new outsole will answer that critique. The rubber still grips well but didn’t take as much of a beating in our testing. It’s handling the miles better than previous iterations. The pattern is slightly different, not by much, but the real improvement seems to be the rubber compound itself. It’s going to stand up to plenty of wear.
The upper is still very comfortable but feels a little lighter and more breathable than the upper of the Clifton 8. This year the tongue is only gusseted on one side but that’s enough to prevent tongue slip and keep it in place for the long haul.
Considering it comes in a wide version, yes! But the fit in this model is much better than last year and is not plagued by what many (us included) felt was an extreme narrowing in the toebox.
Absolutely. The Hoka Clifton 9 aligns quite nicely in terms of performance and attributes with other high performing shoes in the $140-$160 price range like the Asics Novablast 3, Brooks Glycerin 20, Asics Glideride 3, Air Jordna 1 Mid, New Balance Fresh Foam X More v4, and Saucony Triumph 20.
There’s not much in the way of negative aspects of the Hoka Clifton 9. If you use the shoe as intended…for jogging, easy running, recovery runs, and long runs then you shouldn’t run into any issues. The arch support feels a bit more exaggerated vs. older models, but it actually complements the ride and rocker sensation, so while some may find it too aggressive, we feel like it works.
The Hoka Clifton 9 is 100% the best Clifton ever. It’s not particularly close either. The signature Clifton squish and plush upper are both still included making it extremely comfortable for running or just walking around. But the slightly more elastic and bouncy midsole takes the Clifton 9 to a new level. Because of that tweak, the Hoka Clifton 9 is a more versatile and pleasant ride than its predecessors.
The Clifton has long been a staple for many runners and one of the better beginner-friendly running shoes. That’s still the case…and then some.