No. 02 — The index

Every racer
on the shelf.

42 current shoes, all measured the same way: weight, stack, drop, plate, and how many kilometres the foam stays fast for. No stars, no sponsored placement, no shoe of the month. The order is whatever the numbers say.

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Max price · £500

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Order

42 of 42 shoes

#	Sole	Shoe	Weight	Drop	Race life	Price	Verdict
01	39.5mm	ASICS Metaspeed Ray	129g	5mm	130km	£250	ASICS answering the Adios Pro Evo directly. At 129g it is the lightest shoe here, and it feels like almost nothing on the foot.
02	39mm	adidas Adizero Adios Pro Evo 2	138g	3mm	120km	£450	The lightest marathon shoe ever sold and, on the evidence, the fastest. At 138g it is closer to a track spike than a road shoe.
03	27mm	Nike Streakfly 2 specs est.	144g	4mm	300km	£165	A proper short-distance racer for people who find full super shoes unwieldy at 5K pace. Lower, firmer, more connected to the ground.
04	39.5mm	ASICS Metaspeed Sky Tokyo	170g	5mm	250km	£240	For stride-length runners — the Sky is built to let your stride open up rather than turn over faster. Arguably the best all-round marathon shoe currently made.
05	39.5mm	ASICS Metaspeed Edge Tokyo	170g	5mm	250km	£240	The cadence runner’s version of the Sky. Higher drop, more aggressive roll, same foam and plate package.
06	40mm	PUMA Fast-R Nitro Elite 3	170g	8mm	240km	£260	The most aggressive shoe on this list. The decoupled heel and exposed plate make it feel like it is actively throwing you forward.
07	39.5mm	ASICS Metaspeed Sky Paris	181g	5mm	250km	£200	The stride-length Metaspeed from the Paris generation, and one of the great racing shoes. Superseded by the Tokyo, which is the only reason it is now cheap.
08	35mm	Nike Vaporfly 4	184g	6mm	240km	£240	The most versatile super shoe on sale. Light enough for a 5K, cushioned enough for a marathon, and the fourth generation fixed the upper problems that made the VF3 divisive.
09	32mm	adidas Adizero Takumi Sen 11 specs est.	184g	7mm	250km	£180	A short-distance specialist with real carbon underneath. Firm, aggressive and brilliant for 5K and 10K where a marathon shoe feels like too much.
10	40mm	Nike Vaporfly 3	184g	8mm	240km	£220	The generation before the Vaporfly 4, and for many runners the better shoe — softer underfoot, and still one of the most efficient racers ever sold.
11	37.5mm	ASICS Magic Speed 5 specs est.	196g	7mm	500km	£150	The best entry point to carbon. Real plate, real super foam, durable enough to train in, and about half the price of the flagships.
12	40mm	Nike Alphafly 3	198g	8mm	250km	£285	Still the reference marathon shoe. The Air pods give a propulsive forefoot that nothing else quite replicates, and the wider platform makes it manageable late in a race when your form has gone.
13	39.5mm	Saucony Endorphin Elite 2	199g	8mm	240km	£280	Superseded by the Elite 3, which means it is now one of the best-value top-end racers you can find if you catch it discounted.
14	39mm	adidas Adizero Adios Pro 4	201g	6mm	260km	£220	The best value at the very top of the market. Within touching distance of the Evo 2 for performance at half the price and twice the life.
15	40mm	Brooks Hyperion Elite 5 specs est.	201g	8mm	280km	£240	Unfashionable and quietly good. Firmer and more controlled than most of the field, which suits heel strikers and heavier runners.
16	39.5mm	Saucony Endorphin Elite 3	204g	8mm	240km	£300	The softest ride at this level by some distance, and the third generation finally made it serious rather than just fun. A genuine top-tier option.
17	35mm	New Balance FuelCell SuperComp Pacer v2	209g	8mm	280km	£170	A rare thing — a short-distance carbon racer with room in the toe box. Excellent for 5K and 10K where a full-stack marathon shoe is more shoe than the distance needs.
18	40mm	PUMA Deviate Nitro Elite 3 specs est.	209g	8mm	300km	£200	The sane sibling to the Fast-R. Light, versatile, considerably cheaper, and easily the most underrated racer here.
19	46mm — over	HOKA Cielo X1 2.0	210g	7mm	350km	£250	Enormous, cushioned and surprisingly stable. For heavier runners and slower marathoners it may genuinely be the most comfortable way to cover 42km fast.
20	40mm	HOKA Rocket X 3 specs est.	210g	7mm	280km	£220	HOKA’s legal racer, and much the better shoe for anyone who actually needs to comply with the rules. Balanced and predictable.
21	39.5mm	On Cloudboom Strike specs est.	210g	4mm	250km	£260	A genuinely competitive marathon racer and the first On shoe that belongs in this conversation on merit.
22	40mm	New Balance FuelCell SC Elite v5	213g	8mm	250km	£250	The best super shoe for wide feet, and one of the most stable at full stack. A broad platform makes it unusually forgiving late in a marathon.
23	38mm	HOKA Cielo X1 3.0	213g	7mm	300km	£250	HOKA brought the Cielo back inside the road limit. Where the 2.0 was an enormous, illegal-for-racing slab, this is a proper 38mm racer with the same protective feel underfoot.
24	40mm	Saucony Endorphin Pro 4	218g	8mm	350km	£230	The stable, sane super shoe. Lower stack, wider base, far less demanding than the flagships and much longer lasting.
25	39.5mm	Mizuno Wave Rebellion Pro 3	218g	4mm	260km	£235	The most extreme geometry on sale. The cut-away heel and aggressive rocker are built to roll you forward, and the cushioning underfoot is among the most protective measured anywhere.
26	39.5mm	adidas Adizero Adios Pro 3	223g	7mm	260km	£200	The shoe that carried a great many marathon PBs, and still excellent. Energy rods instead of a plate give it unusual stability for a full-stack racer.
27	38.5mm	adidas Adizero Evo SL	224g	7mm	550km	£140	Super shoe foam without the plate or the price. Fast enough to race, cheap enough to train in every day, and the reason a lot of people stopped buying tempo trainers.
28	35mm	New Balance FuelCell Rebel v5	225g	6mm	550km	£130	The cheapest genuinely fast shoe here. No plate, but a light PEBA blend that makes easy runs and tempo work feel the same amount of effort.
29	40mm	New Balance FuelCell SuperComp Elite v4	230g	4mm	250km	£230	The previous generation Elite, and still widely sold. World-class energy return on a broad, forgiving platform — the shoe that made New Balance a serious racing brand.
30	39.5mm	Under Armour Velociti Elite 2	232g	2mm	260km	£220	Under Armour’s serious racing shoe, and a genuinely good one — the most breathable upper on this list, on a full carbon plate.
31	36mm	Saucony Endorphin Speed 5	238g	8mm	500km	£165	The most useful shoe on this list for most people. A nylon plate and PEBA foam at half the price of a super shoe, and it will train as well as race.
32	40mm	Nike Zoom Fly 6	244g	8mm	600km	£145	The sensible answer for a first marathon. Carbon plate, durable foam, a third of the cost per race of an Alphafly because it lasts more than twice as long.
33	37.5mm	Mizuno Wave Rebellion Flash 3	244g	3mm	500km	£165	The affordable Rebellion. Same rolling geometry as the Pro without the carbon or the price, and a genuinely versatile shoe for faster training.
34	45mm — over	ASICS Superblast 3	249g	8mm	700km	£200	The best plateless shoe in the world and a cult favourite for good reason. Enormous stack, superb foam, and it will train and race happily for 700km.
35	45mm — over	ASICS Superblast 2	250g	8mm	700km	£180	The generation that made the Superblast a cult shoe. Does everything from easy miles to a half marathon, with no plate and no obvious weakness.
36	42mm — over	Saucony Kinvara Pro	269g	8mm	600km	£190	A plated long-run trainer rather than a racer. Comfortable, durable, and very good at what it is actually for.
37	41mm — over	New Balance FuelCell SuperComp Trainer v3	278g	6mm	650km	£190	A plated super trainer that takes the Elite’s ideas and makes them durable enough to train in every week. Firmer and faster than the versions before it.
38	44mm — over	HOKA Skyward X 2	281g	5mm	700km	£225	A plated trainer built for protection on easy miles rather than speed. Lighter and lower than the first Skyward X, which makes it a good deal more usable.
39	46mm — over	Brooks Hyperion Max 3	281g	6mm	650km	£180	A tall, well-cushioned trainer with a nylon plate — Brooks’ answer to the super trainer, built for long steady miles rather than race pace.
40	50mm — over	adidas Prime X 3 Strung	285g	7mm	500km	£250	Deliberately built past the rules. Enormous stack, huge cushioning, and superb for long training runs or any race that does not apply World Athletics regulations.
41	40mm	On Cloudboom Max	296g	8mm	650km	£220	On’s long-run trainer, and the first of theirs with energy return worth the name. A big, protective shoe for time on feet.
42	49mm — over	HOKA Skyward X	306g	5mm	700km	£225	A cushioned plated trainer built for comfort over long, slow miles rather than speed.

Manufacturer-stated specs, men's US 9 / UK 8 unless noted. Gauge: heel stack against the 40mm road limit — red exceeds it. Index last reviewed 2026-09-04.