Rating All the New Running Shoes We Tested in January 2026
In the month of January 2026, we tested 7 different road running shoes. Here we are ranking each one and letting you know whether you should add it to your rotation. See below where the Brooks Glycerin Flex, New Balance 1080 v15, Puma Deviate Nitro Elite 4, ASICS Magic Speed 5, Saucony Ride 19, Puma Deviate Nitro 4, and ASICS Gel-Nimbus 28 landed on our list.
From bangers to nothing burgers we ranked every new shoe we tested this January. The Puma Deviate Nitro Elite 4 tops the list as an early shoe of the year candidate while a shoe we aren’t sure why exists closes out the list.
1. Puma Deviate Nitro 4
Puma started the year off strong by releasing one of the best uptempo daily trainers we’ve ever tested: it’s comfortable, easy to run in, bouncy, and genuinely fun. Excelling at quicker daily miles while still offering the requisite speed for workouts, this is the perfect option for runners seeking a do-it-all shoe mileage companion.
Puma Deviate Nitro 4
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2. ASICS Gel-Nimbus 28
ASICS has done it again with the Nimbus 28, delivering a safe, but excellent update to their iconic max cushion franchise. Optimized for daily comfort and versatile bounce, this is one of the most pleasant shoes we’ve tested in quite some time.
ASICS Gel-Nimbus 28
3. Puma Deviate Nitro Elite 4
This is an early candidate for race shoe of the year, keeping Deviate Nitro Elite 3's bouncy & fast (yet approachable) ride intact while making small quality of life improvements. Don’t sleep on this one when it releases in February.
Puma Deviate Nitro Elite 4
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4. Brooks Glycerin Flex
With its unique de-coupled articulating midsole, the Glycerin Flex blends the comfort and protection of a max cushion shoe with the direct, flexible ride of a low stack trainer. While this sounds contradictory on paper, the ride is surprisingly well-realized.
Brooks Glycerin Flex
5. New Balance 1080 v15
New Balance’s latest flagship daily trainer sports a new TPE/EVA blend foam (Infinion) that significantly improves the ride experience compared to previous generation 1080s. This one’s not an exciting banger like the Vomero Plus or R.A.D. UFO, but it excels at daily comfort.
New Balance 1080 v15
6. ASICS Magic Speed 5
The Magic Speed 5 is a rare miss from ASICS. They took one of the most exciting, bouncy foams on the market in FF Leap and combined it with a lifeless bottom layer of EVA, ruining what might otherwise have been a very fun ride. If you want a low stack shoe for top end paces, just grab the Streakfly 2.
ASICS Magic Speed 5
7. Saucony Ride 19
Saucony claimed the Ride 19 would be “softer” and “lighter” than the Ride 18, but no amount of marketing speak can mask how forgettable this shoe is. Delivering no unique ride experience, clear purpose, or reasons to choose it above the competition, this is an easy pass.
Saucony Ride 19
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