2025 Running Shoe Retrospective
Here we take a look back at 2025 and all the running shoe releases from January through December. The year started off hot with the release of shoes like the Mizuno Neo Zen and the Nike Pegasus Premium. In the Spring things kicked up another notch with the Adidas Evo SL, Puma Fast-R 3 and Salomon Aero Glide 3 dropping. During the summer months, Skechers dropped a winner in the Aero Burst and ASICS gave us the Metaspeed Sky and Edge Tokyo. And then we ended the year with some surprises like the R.A.D UFO, ASICS Megablast, and Nike Vomero Premium.
2025 dropped some serious heat month after month. From January’s early bangers to December’s year-end surprises, we saw everything from max-stack debuts to long-awaited updates finally landing on shelves. Each month kept the rotation fresh with new tech, new looks, and plenty of shoes that lived up to the hype. Looking back, it might’ve been one of the most fun years yet for chasing miles and testing shoes.
January
The year kicked off with a trifecta of comfortable high stack bangers, including the Hoka Bondi 9, ASICS Gel Nimbus 27, and Mizuno Neo Zen. All three went on to become Hobby Jogger max cushion favorites. Also released in January were the Adidas Adios 9, Saucony Ride 18, and ASICS Dynablast 5.
Mizuno Neo Zen
Asics Gel-Nimbus 27
Hoka Bondi 9
February
February was a month of highs and lows. The Pegasus Premium was a fun, floaty max cushion cruiser, and two solid workmanlike daily options released in the Nike Vomero 18 and New Balance 880v15. The Brooks Glycerin 22 and On Cloudsurfer 2, however, were highly disappointing.
Nike Pegasus Premium
Nike Vomero 18
New Balance Fresh Foam X 880 v15
March
Following a limited drop in late 2024, the highly-anticipated Adidas Evo SL released to critical acclaim in March. Salomon then surprised the running shoe world by dropping the Aero Glide 3,a frontunner for daily trainer of the year. On the race shoe side, it was a month of marshmallow-soft foams. The Endorphin Elite 2, Diadora Gara Carbon 2, and Tracksmith Eliot Racer all launched with squishy midsoles that lacked some of the snap we look for in a race day shoe.
Adidas Evo SL
Salomon Aero Glide 3
.png)
Saucony Endorphin Elite 2
April
In April, two of the fastest shoes of the year—the Puma Fast-R 3 and Nike Streakfly 2—released in quick succession. On the daily trainer side, we saw worthy updates to classic shoes in the Hoka Clifton 10 and Brooks Ghost 17. The Salomon Aero Glide 3 GRVL was also a nice addition to the Salomon line-up and the S4+ Yogiri was a nice surprise to ASICS' race shoe line-up with a more approachable race day option.
Puma Fast-R Nitro Elite 3
Nike Streakfly 2
.png)
Salomon Aero Glide 3 GRVL
May
May was the calm before the Summer release storm. The $500 Adidas Pro Evo 2 took over the headlines, and Skechers dropped a trio of criminally underrated shoes with the max stack Aero Burst, a lower-stack training shoe in the Aero Spark, and their speed training shoe in the Aero Tempo. Adidas also updated the beloved Boston series with the release of the Boston 13 and its more comfortable upper.
Adidas Boston 13
Skechers Aero Burst
June
On one hand, June delivered some of 2025's best in class shoes: the Mizuno Neo Vista 2 is a top contender for long run shoe of the year, and the Puma Magnify Nitro 3 stands out as a near-perfect daily trainer. On the other hand, longtime favorite nameplates such as the New Balance Rebel v5 and the Saucony Triump 23 stumbled with disappointing updates.
Mizuno Neo Vista 2
Puma Magnify Nitro 3
July
Virtually every day in July, brands were releasing new hyped-up shoes. From new marathon racers like the ASICS Metaspeed Sky Tokyo and Edge Tokyo and the Brooks Hyperion Elite 5, to candidates for daily trainer of the year in the Puma Velocity NItro 4, July wreaked havoc on shoe sicko bank accounts across the globe.
ASICS Metaspeed Sky Tokyo
Brooks Hyperion Elite 5
Puma Velocity Nitro 4
August
In August, two of the best race shoes of the year released with the New Balance SC Elite v5 and the Mizuno Wave Rebellion Pro 3 Lo, but Nike's max cushion daily trainer, the Vomero Plus, dominated running shoe discourse. We can just forget that the On Cloudboom Max exists.
New Balance SC Elite v5
Mizuno Wave Rebellion Pro 3 Lo
Nike Vomero Plus
September
In September, ASICS forever altered the course of shoe sicko history by dropping the Megablast—the greatest running shoe of all time. The Megablast changed the game by delivering race caliber speed assistance and max stack protection in a lightweight package. Other highlights were the featherlight Metaspeed Ray, and the EVO SL competitor, TYR's Maverick-V1 Runner. Less notable drops were the Hoka Mach X 3 and the ASICS Sonicblast, which couldn't compete with the hype generated by the Megablast.
ASICS Megablast
ASICS Metaspeed Ray
TYR Maverick-V1 Runner
%207.png)
October
October was about quality over quantity. The Vomero Premium, Nike's ultimate recovery shoe, garnered the most hype of any release this year,and R.A.D, a new player in the running space, came out of left field and dropped one of the best elevated daily trainers of 2025 with the UFO.
Nike Vomero Premium
R.A.D UFO
%202.png)
November
Diadora and Under Armour dropped a new daily trainer with the Cellula 2 and race shoe with the Velociti Elite 3 respectively, but November was largely a month of hibernation for shoe sickos.
Diadora Cellula 2
Under Armour Velociti Elite 3
December
Thus far, December has delivered a flurry of releases coinciding with The Running Events (TRE). Mizuno dropped a new family of racers—the Hyperwarp Pure, Hyperwarp Elite, and Hyperwarp Pro—designed to go toe-to-toe with the fastest shoes on the market, and several updates to iconic max cushion shoes from 20204 launched. Questions remain over whether the Puma MagMax 2, ASICS Glideride Max 2, and Brooks Glycerin Max 2 can reach the heights of their predecessors.
Mizuno Hyperwarp Elite
.png)
ASICS GlideRide Max 2
Brooks Glycerin Max 2
For a weekly dose of MILEAGE, shoe reviews, and inspiration, sign up for Mileage Mantra, the Supwell weekly newsletter.
Find your next running shoe
Answer a few questions to find the best shoe based on your preferences and goals
