Top 5 Stable Neutral Running Shoes
Running shoe expert Josh from Sportitude reveals the top 5 stable neutral running shoes for 2023 - the Hoka One One Bondi 8, Saucony Triumph 20, Brooks Ghost 15, Asics Gel Cumulus 25 and On Cloudmonster, and shares with you his comparative running shoe review.
Voted the best running shoes in their class by the Sportitude Running team, these running shoes meet the criteria of what makes a great running shoe based on staff feedback, referring partner feedback and of course, customer feedback.
The stable neutral category caters to a diverse range of foot types, being neutral runners, mild overpronators and mild supinators. Whether you're seeking a max cushioned ride or a faster, lighter feel as you glide over the miles, you're ideal fit could potentially be among these favourite selections.
Check out the full video with transcript below.
Hey guys, Josh here from Sportitude Running. We're approaching the halfway point of 2023 and we thought it'd be a great time to do a shoe reflection, review and look at the top 5 stable neutral running shoes of the year so far.
In doing so, we take into consideration many data points. We have conversations with our staff downstairs, get customer feedback, talk to our great referring partners being the podiatrists and physiotherapists out there, collate a whole heap of information and look at where the running shoes have come from to where they are today.
What Is A Stable Neutral Running Shoe?
Before we jump into today's review, let's talk about what makes a stable neutral shoe a stable neutral shoe. To give you some context, stable neutral as a category within our business makes up around 60% to 65% of our overall running shoe sales. It obviously speaks to a lot of runners.
When we're looking at stable neutral as a category, it is growing year on year and it's been the case now for the best part of half a decade. Technically speaking, if you happen to be a mild overpronator, neutral runner or a mild supinator, you can fall quite comfortably into this stable neutral category.
There's a number of factors we need to take into consideration like we do at Sportitude Hindmarsh with all of our customers. When you're looking at stable neutral shoes and have that discussion around what is stability shoe?, we know that stability is changing significantly each and every season.
When brands are executing their arch supports, we're finding that they are using different technologies and techniques to be able to achieve the desired outcome. They’re creating their own slightly more stable version of a stable neutral category. You can look at the Asics Gel Kayano Lite for example, and even look at what Asics are doing with the Asics Gel Kayano 30 coming in the next few months, so stay tuned for that.
Criteria For The Top 5 Stable Neutral Running Shoes
Brands are making alterations to their stability shoes and therefore, they’re making that stable neutral category more accessible than ever before. When we're looking at this category and choose these top selection of shoes, we take into consideration a few key factors.
- Staff feedback: Having conversations with our team members who run in these shoes during all their training and wear them at work, as well as what they’ve found to be successful in fitting customers
- Referring partner feedback: Having conversations with our referring partners (podiatrists and physiotherapists) and getting an idea of what's worked for them and their clients
- Customer feedback: Getting feedback from you, the customers
These conversations give us an understanding of what has and hasn't worked, and have been really important for us.
However, we don't just stop there with that information. If something has been successful or hasn't quite worked, we pass this information on to the brands. If it happens to be a consistent message, they will make alterations where they see fit.
They don't just take that on board and give us a thumbs up, they do make changes if there’s a significant amount of data coming in to justify a decision like that.
We’re also taking into consideration where the running shoes have come from, comparing their previous version and where it is today. If it's a new shoe, where does it fit into this entire category?
It's exciting, I always like a top selection shoe review. We take these reviews very seriously and of course, there is a grain of salt. If these running shoes work for you, that’s great. If they don't and you have some other suggestions, we always love to hear from you the running community. Without further ado, let's get stuck into today's shoe review.
Hoka One One Bondi 8 Running Shoes
Let's start off with the most cushioned running shoe in this top 5, the Hoka One One Bondi 8 running shoes. Let’s look at the statistics first. It is on a 4mm offset, with 31mm in the heel and 27mm through the forefoot. That's the same for the men's and women's model.
The weight of the running shoes are pretty light all things considered. It's 306 grams for the men's size 9 and 255 grams for a women’s size 7. As I said, it is extremely plush under the foot and very cushioned from entry right through to your release.
It has been a very popular running shoe for a number of years, mainly due to the fact that it has a rocker feel through the forefoot. When you're rolling through midstance to toe-off, this running shoe has an easy release, an easy exit which makes jogging those easy kilometres extremely comfortable. It's available in widths which is always a win too.
With the Hoka Bondi 8 and where it's come from with the Hoka Bondi 7, it has always been in the top of conversation for that max cushioned rocker shoe category. No surprises, this running shoe is still the king or queen in that category.
We've seen a lot of other brands compete in this space, the New Balance Fresh Foam More and the Asics Glide Ride just to name a couple. However, what we found with the Hoka Bondi 8 and why it's taken a big leap forward in it's overall success is probably more about where it's come from with the Hoka Bondi 6 and Hoka Bondi 7. That running shoe was popular. It was great, served a purpose, but probably wasn't as plush and as comfortable for your running miles.
It was great for walkers, and I'm not saying the Hoka Bondi 8 isn't. However, for the true runners who are looking for a max cushioned, really stable ride, the Hoka Bondi 8 has been very successful.
Looking at a couple of key factors, the real estate under the running shoe has increased ever so slightly. We have a little bit more surface area, which is exactly why this running shoe is successful. It has a big footprint, a nice high stack and you're going to get a lot of stability right underneath the foot.
It's a highly referred running shoe from our podiatry partners and we've seen this be successful with orthotics. Depending on the orthotic, we like to make sure they get fitted into the running shoe correctly. 90% of the time the orthotic has no issues whatsoever fitting into the Hoka Bondi 8. If anything, it's a little bit lower in the heel counter but that's OK. We just adjust the laces and away we go.
The running shoe as I touched on is a very cushioned, stable neutral shoe. It’s very popular and we are really looking forward to seeing what Hoka do in this space because they've set the bar very high with the Hoka One One Bondi 8.
Saucony Triumph 20 Running Shoes
The second shoe in the selection is the Saucony Triumph 20 running shoes. We wouldn't have a top neutral shoes conversation if this running shoe wasn't in it. The feedback from the community has been overwhelmingly positive regarding the Saucony Triumph 20.
It's a relatively versatile shoe for a cushioned stable neutral offering with 275 grams in a men's size 9 and 249 grams for a women’s size 7. This running shoe is coming in pretty light in comparison to other shoes in the same conversation.
It features a 10mm offset, 35mm in the heel and 25mm in the forefoot. With your PWRRUN+ midsole, this running shoe has been very fun to run in.
It's great for your easy days pounding the pavement out on the road and it's also nice and snappy for those that want a running shoe that can probably do everything. You can pick up the pace very easily and the Saucony Triumph 20 has been very popular.
How did this running shoe make it into our top selection? When this shoe comes up in conversation with our team members downstairs, there is always a smile on the faces of nearly every one that uses it.
When we're talking about the Saucony Triumph 20 and when it first came to the market and where it changed from the Saucony Triumph 19, there was a few question marks.
They were now going to a 10mm offset after having an 8mm drop for the best part of 10 years. When on paper they presented the Saucony Triumph 20 with a 10mm heel-to-toe drop, a few of us started asking questions about what are they trying to achieve.
That's a big change for those real pure Saucony Triumph runners. We thought it may be a statistic that veers them away from this running shoe, but it hasn't at all.
Saucony had to go to a 10mm offset with this running shoe because the PWRRUN PB changed regarding the overall density and the stack height. If it was an 8mm drop, this running shoe would bottom out too quickly. Instead, it's been extremely versatile.
I'm yet to see someone come back who doesn't have more than 700km in this running shoe. We've even had people come back and hit 1000km, and this running shoe still looks pretty good. It has a great upper, really conformed fit and is available in widths. We've had great success fitting a variety of orthotics inside this running shoe as well.
It has started to be referred more from a lot of podiatrists. Maybe this running shoe wasn't as well-known out in the market previously, but we're seeing a lot more podiatrists have great success putting their clients inside the Saucony Triumph 20.
As I touched on, it's extremely versatile and no doubt we're going to see this running shoe become more and more successful in the years to come.
Brooks Ghost 15 Running Shoes
The third shoe that comes into our top selection for stable neutral as a category is the Brooks Ghost 15 running shoes.
The Brooks Ghost 15 is a very honest, very reliable running shoe and it's been that way for a number of years. The shoe itself is very accessible and comes in 4 widths, both in the men's and women's model, covering narrow right through to extra wide. It’s slightly heavier than some of the other competitors in this space on this stack height, but it's not too bad. It’s 285 grams for a men’s size 9 and 255 grams for a women’s size 7.
It’s on a 12mm heel-to-toe drop, with 24mm in the heel and 12mm in the forefoot. The shoe itself as I touched on, being so honest means you know what you're going to get with the Brooks Ghost year in, year out.
There’s subtle iterations from one season to the next but Brooks don’t go back to the drawing board and re-engineer this shoe because they take a lot of knowledge from one to the next. They want to keep it consistent and they want to keep the runners using this running shoe to keep using it. That's why they keep everything pretty similar.
I always have this conversation with our new team members if someone starts in this industry with us. It is such a great shoe if someone is looking for their first jogging shoe, either getting into their jogging or they're just starting their running journey.
The Brooks Ghost 15 ticks the boxes from a stability category perspective, being so versatile and being that it's available in so many widths. It's a running shoe that we can comfortably put someone in and we know we're going to get a pretty good outcome, if not a great outcome.
How have the Brooks Ghost 15 made it into our top selection? No surprises here, this one is a podiatrists' favourite. A couple of factors; it is accessible. As we've touched on, it’s available in lots of widths but we often use this shoe as a baseline for a lot of runners who are getting an orthotic for the first time or are starting their running or training journey.
We'll use this running shoe as a benchmark to see how it feels and performs at Sportitude Running. With that in mind, it's one that we see a lot from our podiatrists. However, if we need to alter anything regarding the fit, feel and function, we will throw in some suggestions from other brands.
The reason it's very popular with the referring partners is because there's not a lot of change from one season to the next and if you're a podiatrist, continuity is a really big part of your referral program.
Therefore, Brooks have absolutely nailed it a number of years ago, and keeping that consistency from one season to the next makes life a lot easier for referring partners.
It is a 12mm offset, being on the higher end of what we see now in the running community, and it does have a mild rocker. Every performance shoe has some form of a rocker through the forefoot, but it's nowhere near as pronounced as your Saucony Triumph or your Hoka One One Bondi, just to name a couple.
Therefore, what we see with that offset is that it goes a little bit higher in the heel-to-toe drop. It takes some load off of the overall foot from entry midstance to your release out of your gait cycle, and towards the back half being your calcaneus, Achilles insertion and your calf muscle.
I'm pretty keen to see what Brooks do in this space. Will they use their DNA Loft v3 which is that nitrogen-infused midsole, or will they continue using DNA Loft v2 which we have here on the Brooks Ghost 15? Only time will tell.
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Brooks Ghost 15 - Mens Running Shoes -
Brooks Ghost 15 - Mens Running Shoes
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Brooks Ghost 15 - Womens Running Shoes
Asics Gel Cumulus 25 Running Shoes
The next shoe in our top selection is the Asics Gel Cumulus 25 running shoes. It’s probably my favourite Asics Gel Cumulus that I have ever seen fitted in my entire shoe fitting career which almost spans 17 years.
The Asics Gel Cumulus in the 25th edition is very light on the foot. It comes in at 275 grams in a men's size 9 and around 229 grams for a women’s size 7. It’s a generous stack height, with 37mm in the heel and 29mm in the forefoot for that offset of 8mm.
Why I really like the Asics Gel Cumulus 25 is because it has a very snug, plush and responsive feel. Not a lot of Asics Gel Cumulus have in the past used those three words in the same sentence, because we've had the Asics Gel Nimbus from the Asics family which covers off that soft high mileage running shoe category.
The Asics Gel Nimbus 25 is a huge change in what that shoe was previously to where it is now, being extremely soft on the foot. Not a lot of Nimbus wearers have gravitated towards that feel. We've actually put them into the Asics Gel Cumulus 25 with a huge amount of success.
It’s a fantastic shoe for someone who's potentially looking to get into their running journey and fall into that stable neutral category, a bit like the Brooks Ghost. However, they may not like the 12mm offset which the Brooks Ghost offers and they may want something a little bit lower with a higher stack height. The Asics Gel Cumulus 25 would be a great choice for us to bring out and put on that person's foot.
It's early days yet, and the Asics Gel Cumulus 25 has only been on the market now for a couple of months. In terms of our conversations with podiatrists, we have seen a number of referrers opt for this running shoe for their clients.
However, it's still slowly growing regarding its popularity with other podiatrists. Time will tell if that's going to be the case, but we have not had any issues whatsoever fitting orthotics inside this running shoe.
It’s available in two widths, B standard and D wide width in the women’s model and a D standard and 2E extra wide in the men’s model. Again, it’s very accessible.
Asics are slightly improving their midsole geometries from one season to the next. FlyteFoam Blast Plus is executed in the shoe with that Gel cushioning at the heel, which is obviously making it nice and plush for your first point of entry for heel strikers. It’s very popular, light and versatile.
The Asics Gel Cumulus 25 will remain to be very popular for the rest of 2023, there's no doubt about that.
On Cloudmonster Running Shoes
Rounding up our top 5 today is the On Running Cloudmonster. We could have had probably two or three other shoes to make it into our top 5, but we take all of our feedback from our staff members and from customers that we fitted at Sportitude Running which have found this shoe to be extremely successful.
Statistics wise, it’s on a 6mm offset. We have a 30mm heel and a 24mm forefoot. It’s pretty light for a top end mileage shoe. It weighs in very similar to the Saucony Triumph 20 at 275 grams in a men's size 9 and 230 grams for a women’s size 7.
Looking at this running shoe, it's very unique. If you're not familiar with On Running, they’ve been a brand that's been around for about 10 years now and have been an extremely progressive brand. So much so, they are one of the fastest growing brands in North America as we speak. They're doing a lot of things right.
Traditionally, On Running shoes have been a little bit firm under the foot. Therefore, if you have tried them in the last few years and you think, I'll never put them on my foot because they're too firm, I would like you to reconsider that. The On Cloudmonster is a soft and plush running shoe. It features a Helion midsole, CloudTec foam and larger pods so you get more compression through this midsole.
Being on a higher stack than what On Running have previously done, they've really conformed to how the industry is trending. They offer that max cushioned or more cushioned variety in their category.
With all that being said, it's not the softest shoe on the market which is a good thing. It's not competing with your Hoka Bondi or your New Balance Fresh Foam More. I would throw this in the same conversation as the Hoka Clifton, your Saucony Triumph 20 and maybe even your Asics NovaBlast. It crosses over a couple different categories and that's why it has made it into this top 5.
It's versatile, it's good for easy days and you can pick up the pace with the Speedboard and get a nice, snappy feel through the forefoot.
The running shoe only comes in one width, but it's very accessible. It's strange I know, it doesn't make sense. We have staff members downstairs including Lochie who has a narrow and shallow foot using this shoe from time to time and it fits quite well, right up to myself. I'm a 2E width and I absolutely love the shoe, it feels right. There’s also Oli who's one of our podiatrists who works here and he is easily a 2E, and he finds this shoe quite comfortable.
It’s a very versatile shoe regarding how many foot shapes can fit inside it, but I'd probably say it's been a bit hit and miss with some of our referring partners regarding to orthotic success inside this shoe.
I think that’s mainly due to the fact it has a relatively minimalistic lacing structure that's anatomical and slightly tilted towards the medial side. It is hard to get a really true lockdown with an orthotic.
I’m not saying that's the case for all orthotic users. I know a number of people, myself included, who can comfortably put their orthotics in this and have great success.
However, just keep it in mind it would be something I would certainly recommend trying on. I wouldn't buy it off the shelf and then put my orthotic in there. You need to get it on your foot with that orthotic to see how it fits and feels.
The other great thing about the On Cloudmonster is that it is a shoe that has changed how On Running has presented itself to the market. A lot of runners are gravitating towards this running shoe and this brand purely and simply off the success of the On Cloudmonster.
I’m really looking forward to seeing what On Running do in the coming 6 months. I know they have three super exciting shoes they're going to land in the back half of 2023. With regards to what they're going to do with the On Cloudmonster, who knows.
It's going to be hard to beat this running shoe, but I have full faith in the engineering department that they're going to improve version 2.
The Wrap Up
That's a wrap of our top 5 stable neutral running shoes for the front half of 2023.
Looking at this category for the back end of 2023 and in the front half of 2024, we've seen some exciting samples. This category is growing and it's improving. It's progressing, so there’s some exciting stuff coming.
If you have any questions about what we've presented or if you think we've missed any running shoes that should have made it into the top 5, please contact our Sportitude shoe experts. Let us know why you like those running shoes, we love hearing from you the running community.
If you want a deeper dive in every one of these running shoes, we have individual links to those reviews below.
If you haven't subscribed to the Sportitude YouTube channel, please do so to stay notified. We'll keep knocking out shoe reviews like this or individual shoe reviews to keep you well informed to make all the right choices with your running shoe selection.
Until next time, stay safe, be kind to one another, happy running and we'll see you on the road. Take care.
Hoka One One Bondi 8
Saucony Triumph 20
Brooks Ghost 15
Asics Gel Cumulus 25
On Running Cloudmonster
For a more in-depth shoe fitting experience, you can book a free 15 minute video chat in a Live Fit session or make an appointment to discover your RunDNA at Sportitude Running@Hindmarsh.
Happy running!
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