Best Adidas Shoe Rotation So Far in 2025
These are the best Adidas shoes to create a well-rounded shoe rotation. With the SL2 as a daily trainer, the Boston 13 or EVO SL for speed sessions, and the Prime X Strung 2.0 for long runs, and the Takumi Sen 10 for racing, we think you will be well-prepared to hit all of your mileage and race day goals.
From Max Cushion Gang cruisers to Carbon County racers, here’s how we would build a Supwell Certified Adidas shoe rotation right now.
Adizero SL2: Daily mileage
The Adidas SL2 was one of our favorite shoes that we tested last summer. At $130 MSRP, the SL2 delivers an extremely fun, versatile, reliable, and durable ride. It is an entirely different shoe than its big brother, the Boston 13. While both shoes come with a Lightstrike 2.0 EVA foam carrier and some of Adidas’ race foam (Lightstrike Pro) baked in, the SL2 is MUCH softer—and maybe takes the top spot for softest shoe in this category.
It doesn’t require a prolonged break-in period or necessitate driving power into the forefoot for the shoe to come alive, like some of Adidas’ other models (e.g., Adios Pro 3 and Boston 12). The SL2 offers an awesome, squishy, and squirrely ride—and while exciting, this also makes it pretty unstable, especially when landing toward the back of the platform.
Adidas Adizero SL2
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Boston 13 or EVO SL: Speed training
The Boston is Adidas’ long-standing marathon training shoe, and while we really enjoyed running in the 12th version, many runners simply couldn’t get past the 30–50 mile break-in period required to get the best out of the shoe—or struggled to get a solid fit with the upper. The Boston 13 seems to have fixed those complaints, featuring a more padded ankle collar and tongue, and a slightly softer underfoot feel.
Like the SL2, this softer quality comes from a different formulation of the Lightstrike 2.0 carrier foam and makes the shoe more “dailyable” than its predecessor. The Boston 13 doesn’t necessarily provide an incredible amount of speed assistance, but it also doesn’t hold you back—which is honestly refreshing. The Boston 13 honors the purity and simplicity of running.
The EVO SL is the new guy on the block. It comes with a full, beautiful off-white and lustrous bed of classic Lightstrike Pro foam in the midsole. While the upper seems to have been an afterthought—especially in comparison to the Boston 13—we can’t be too nitpicky given the $150 price tag on a shoe of this caliber. And while not quite as explosive as a carbon-fiber race shoe, the EVO SL is what we call a Zone 3 Champion: perfect for getting out the door and cruising.
Adidas Boston 13
Adidas Evo SL
Prime X Strung 2.0: Long runs
Adidas’ primary goal with the update of the Prime X Strung OG was to improve the shoe’s stability, making it more approachable to a larger swath of runners. And while yes, Adidas was successful in this pursuit, they did so by increasing the weight and widening the base.
While this was mildly upsetting to the Supwell team, we know that our community on the Supwell App has loved the Strung 2—precisely for some of the reasons we disliked it. The Strung 2, like the OG, allows you to run marathon or threshold paces at a lower perceived effort than other shoes in the same category —like the Puma MagMax and Hoka Skyward X.
It’s bouncy, fun, and offers supreme long-run protection—and at $225 at Running Warehouse (using our App-exclusive discount code), it becomes even easier to recommend, especially to our heavier friends.
Adidas Prime X Strung 2
Takumi Sen 10: Fast races
Did you expect the Takumi Sen to be our race day pick from the Adidas lineup? Maybe if you watch the YouTube channel, you’d know that we didn’t get along with the squishy, distractingly soft character of the newly released Adios Pro 4—which features Adidas’ new-gen Lightstrike Pro foam.
The Takumi Sen 10, while we wouldn’t recommend it for the full marathon distance, offers quite the polar experience from that of the Adios Pro 4. With 33 mm of classic Lightstrike Pro racing foam, the Takumi Sen delivers a low-to-the-ground, light, streamlined, and direct package.
For a racing shoe like the Takumi Sen, but more capable of covering the marathon distance—unless you can afford to drop a mortgage payment’s worth of money on the new Pro Evo 2—we’d need to look outside of Adidas. In this case, we’d point you toward either the ASICS Metaspeed Sky Paris or potentially the Vaporfly 3 or 4.
Adidas Takumi Sen 10
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