Hoka was founded in 2009, when it was known as Hoka One One, so it’s hardly a new face on the running shoe scene. But it’s a brand that’s known for bringing innovative approaches to the market.
It was Hoka that pioneered the maximalist running shoe movement, with huge stacks of lightweight foam on rockered shoes like the Bondi and Clifton. Pretty much all brands have now jumped on this bandwagon and released highly cushioned shoes, and in truth Hoka fell behind on some fronts for road running, particularly carbon plate racing shoes. But 2023 has been a strong year that has seen the brand catch up in most areas, and road runners can choose from a variety of great Hoka shoes to suit their needs.
Off-road, Hoka makes some of the best trail-running shoes on the market, and has long been popular with ultramarathon runners owing to the comfort of its cushioned designs. Even if you have no intention of hitting ultra-distances in your runs, Hoka’s trail range has you covered.
How I Tested These Shoes
I am a keen runner with a marathon PR of 2hr 28min and usually run around 50-70 miles a week on a mix of road and trails, during which time I test all kinds of running gear. I’ve tested and reviewed a variety of Hoka running shoes including most of its current range of road and trail shoes. I’ve picked the outstanding Hoka shoes for a variety of uses below. My personal favorite is the Hoka Mach 5 for its versatility.
The Best Hoka Running Shoes
The Clifton 9 showcases all the best qualities of Hoka shoes. It’s comfortable and well cushioned without being too heavy. The smooth, rockered ride works well for a variety of daily training runs, from easy plods to tempo sessions. It’s also stable for a neutral shoe, and grips well in wet and dry conditions on the road.
While I prefer the lighter Mach 5 for the same kind of runs, the Clifton is a more protective and beginner-friendly option, and it’s also more durable as it has a rubber outsole. If you’d prefer an even more cushioned option for your start in the sport, the Bondi 8 is a good option.
Read more in our Hoka Clifton 9 review
The Hoka Mach 5 is one of the best all-round shoes available from any brand—its lightweight but cushioned design feels great for a wide variety of runs. The rocker on the shoe means it feels smooth at both fast and slow paces, and while it doesn’t deliver the efficiency benefits of a plated trainer, it’s still speedy and a good option for longer races.
One downside of the Mach 5 is that it doesn’t have a rubber outsole. Instead, the bottom layer of foam in the midsole is molded to deliver grip. This does reduce durability, especially if you stray onto light trails in the shoe, but I’ve always found that the Mach 5 grips well in all conditions, and the lack of rubber on the outsole contributes to the soft feel of its ride.
Read more in our Hoka Mach 5 review
Hoka was one of the first brands to respond to the Nike Vaporfly by launching its own carbon shoe, but the Carbon X didn’t come close to delivering the bouncy, propulsive feel of the best super-shoes. It took a while for a proper rival to the best on the market to arrive from Hoka, but in 2023 it launched the Rocket X2, which is an excellent racing shoe.
The Rocket X2 has a PEBA-based midsole foam and a high stack, plus a full-length carbon plate, which all add up to create a springy, efficient ride that will help you deliver PBs over any distance. I’ve also found the Rocket X2 a bit more stable than other super-shoes when cornering in short races, perhaps because it has a lower drop than most rivals, and its outsole grips very well in the wet.
Read more in our Hoka Rocket X2 review
The Mach X looks like a supercharged Mach 5 on paper, with a PEBAX plate in the midsole adding extra pop, and a much higher midsole stack that contains a PEBA-based foam for its top layer. It also has a rocker to create a smooth ride, and some rubber on the outsole to make it more durable than the Mach 5, though I didn’t find the Mach X had better grip.
All that extra tech comes at a higher price, and I didn’t notice enough of a boost in performance from the Mach X to necessarily make it worth the extra outlay over the Mach 5 for daily training. The Mach X is a bit more comfortable over long distances, and the plate does add some pop at speed, but the Mach 5 is a lot lighter and still performs well for longer and speedier runs. The Mach X is a good option for people who want a plated shoe but have found others too squishy and wobbly, because it is stable despite its high stack.
Read more in our Hoka Mach X review
Even though Hoka established itself on the market because of cushioned shoes like the Bondi, I’d say it’s actually now one of the weakest areas of its range, because the Bondi 8 falls well short of the best cushioned shoes from other brands. A shoe like the Asics Gel-Nimbus 25, for example, is softer, smoother and lighter, despite having a much higher stack height than the Bondi 8.
If you’re sticking with Hoka, however, the Bondi 8 is still a solid shoe for cruising around in. It feels a bit blocky on the foot and doesn’t work well for anything beyond easy pace, but it will protect the legs well and durability is certainly not a concern.
Read more in our Hoka Bondi 8 review
The Hoka Speedgoat 5 is built for ultramarathons, but even if you have no plans to log mighty distances in it, it’s still worth considering as one of the best all-round trail shoes available from any brand. It’s comfortable, I’ve found it grips well on any terrain bar very thick mud, and it’s light enough to pick up the pace in when required.
Unless you want a light and nimble racing shoe for the trails, or prefer more ground feel that you get from the relatively high-stack Speedgoat, it’s the best trail pick in Hoka’s range for pretty much any runner.
Read more in our Hoka Speedgoat 5 review
The twin carbon plates that run the length of the Tecton X2’s midsole add extra propulsion to its ride, making it one of the most accomplished trail-racers available on a range of terrains, though it does come unstuck in deep mud.
With a firmer and lower midsole than the Rocket X2 road racer, the Tecton X2 doesn’t have quite the same wow factor, but it is much more stable and flexible, which is important when heading off-road. It’s expensive, and there is a case for bagging the older Tecton X in a sale if you can since the shoes have the same midsole design, but if you’re on the hunt for a top-tier trail racer, the Tecton X2 matches anything on the market.
Read more in our Hoka Tecton X2 review
The Speedgoat 5 is pretty comfortable on the road as well as the trail, but if your mix of running skews more towards the asphalt with a sprinkling of trails, then the Challenger 7 might be the better pick from Hoka’s range.
It’s comfortable both in terms of cushioning and grip while on the road and light trails, and is the perfect option for those who run on canal towpaths or light park trails when possible during otherwise mostly road-based runs. I’ve also found the Challenger 7 pretty good at gripping in the snow, and it’s quite a light shoe that can handle a range of speeds well, although it’s not the most nimble on uneven ground.
Read more in our Hoka Challenger 7 review
