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Although they are one of the newer brands in the running space, Hoka has been influential in steering the market towards maximally-cushioned shoes with lower drops and rockers. The best Hoka running shoes all tend to have these qualities, with its range including some of the standout options for road and trail running available from any brand.
Check out our round-up of the best running shoes of 2025
Between us we have tested pretty much every Hoka shoe available and reviewed them on the channel. Below you’ll find short reviews of all the Hoka running shoes we’ve tested, plus links to our videos for more comprehensive multi-tester reviews.
Check out the YouTube channel for many more running shoe vids, including comparisons of Hoka shoes plus race tests.
The Best Hoka Running Shoes 2025
Hoka Mach 6
Price: £140/$140 | Weight: 233g/8.2oz (UK 9) | Drop: 5mm
The Hoka Mach 6 is a versatile and lightweight daily trainer, and one of our favourite shoes from any brand. It’s well cushioned and comfortable enough for easy runs, but the lightweight design and responsive supercritical EVA midsole foam means you can use it for faster efforts as well.
Some will prefer more cushioned options like the Skyflow or Skyward X for easy runs, and the Hoka Mach X2 is a more versatile plated option that in particular has a faster ride than the Mach, but the Mach 6 is a more affordable shoe that can do a bit of everything.
Hoka Mach X3
Price: £170/$190 | Weight: 274g/9.7oz (UK 9) | Drop: 5mm
The Hoka Mach X3 is the plated super-trainer in Hoka’s range, with a dual-density midsole that has a top layer made from the bouncy PEBA foam used in Hoka’s racers and a Pebax plate for added propulsion. It’s a step-up on the Mach 6 for fast training sessions and can be used as an alternative to the Rocket X3 and Cielo X1 2.0 as a racing shoe for those who find the full carbon shoes too expensive or unstable.
We loved the Hoka Mach X2 thanks to its versatility, with the only real problem with the shoe being its upper, which was very racy and a little uncomfortable, especially around the heel. Hoka has fixed this with the Mach X3, which has more padding on the tongue and collar, making it more comfortable for daily runs. While this does come at the cost of extra weight, the Mach X3 is still a fast shoe, and the best all-rounder in the Hoka range.
Hoka Cielo X1 2.0
Price: $275 | Weight: 196g/6.9oz (UK 8) | Drop: 7mm
The Hoka Cielo X1 2.0 is one of our most anticipated shoes of 2025, with the team loving the springy ride of the original Cielo X1 but finding it a tad heavy for a top racing shoe. Hoka has trimmed the weight considerably with the Cielo X1 2.0, and while it has a silly name, it looks set to be a top racing option.
You lose a bit of the stability of the original shoe, and the Cielo X1 2.0 has a more dialled-in fit and aggressive ride. That should all add up to an improved racing experience, though the new shoe might not have as much utility as a fast training shoe as the original Cielo X1, which Nick has racked up over 350km in during his marathon training. Mike has been out for a first run in the Cielo X1 2.0, and our full multi-tester review will follow in time.
Hoka Rocket X3
Price: £220/$250 | Weight: 208g/7.3oz (UK 9) | Drop: 7mm
The Hoka Rocket X3 is the lightest racing shoe in the brand’s line-up, but actually has a less aggressive ride than the Cielo X1 2.0, owing to the fact it doesn’t have such a sharp forefoot rocker.
It’s built to be more stable than you typically find with the best carbon plate running shoes, which are built for speed over support, but the Rocket X3 does offer a nice balance of both. It’s not the fastest racing shoe we’ve tested, but still very quick for both training sessions and races, and it’s a bit more comfortable and supportive around the heel than most super-shoes.
If you find the unstable design of the Cielo X1 2.0 too much for you, then the Rocket X3 is an excellent alternative, and it might be a better marathon shoe for most runners because of its added support.
Hoka Bondi 9
Price: £160/$170 | Weight: 313g/11oz (UK 9) | Drop: 5mm
The Hoka Bondi 9 is a big update on the Bondi 8, with a higher midsole stack that’s made from the supercritical EVA foam used in shoes like the Mach 6 and Skyflow. It is an upgrade on the Bondi 8, a shoe we were not big fans of, but Nick and Mike still found that the Bondi lacks the spark you get from Hoka’s other cushioned shoes and is only really good for easy and recovery runs.
While it’s not the heaviest shoe and rolls smoothly from the heel to the midfoot, Nick found that the transition from there was a bit stunted, and the Bondi 9 doesn’t roll off the toes as well as most Hoka shoes do thanks to their rockered designs. So far in testing we prefer the Skyflow and the new Clifton 10 to the Bondi 9 for our runs, but the Bondi is the most cushioned and protective shoe in the Hoka range, and will be a good option for walking as well as easy runs.
Hoka Skyflow
Price: £150/$160 | Weight: 285g/10oz (UK 9) | Drop: 5mm
The Hoka Skyflow is a cushioned daily trainer that uses a supercritical EVA foam in its midsole to deliver a comfortable and fairly versatile ride. It’s not as responsive and quick as the Mach 6, but the Skyflow is a bit more comfortable and might be a better option for daily trainer for heavier runners, or those who want a but more cushioning underfoot in general.
We found the Skyflow to be an improved version of the Hoka Clifton, with a similar rockered and cushioned design, but a better foam in the midsole, which makes the Skyflow more versatile and fun to run in. It’s a great option for new runners who want a protective shoe to do all their runs in, and works well as a comfortable mileage shoe for more experienced runners with a rotation.
Hoka Skyward X
Price: £185/$225 | Weight: 320g/11.3oz (UK 9) | Drop: 5mm
The Hoka Skyward X is a max-stacked super-trainer with a carbon plate in the dual-density midsole, which contains a top layer made from bouncy PEBA foam and a bottom layer made from supercritical EVA. It’s an expensive shoe, but one that brings a lot of joy to your everyday training thanks to the springy but still surprisingly stable ride.
While it doesn’t compare to rival super-trainers like the Asics Superblast 2 with regards to versatility, the Skyward X is an excellent option for racking up a lot of miles, especially when marathon training. It’s a pricy shoe to pick up for this purpose, but if the cost doesn’t put you off it’s the best cushioned shoe in Hoka’s range.
Hoka Clifton 10
Price: £140/$150 | Weight: 285g/10oz (UK 9) | Drop: 8mm
The Clifton might be the quintessential Hoka shoe, and it’s probably the most popular in its range as an affordable and comfortable daily trainer to rival shoes like the Nike Pegasus or Asics Novablast.
With the Clifton 10 Hoka has tweaked the design to increase the drop of the shoe to 8mm, up from Hoka’s traditional 5mm, adding more cushioning under the heel to do so. It still feels very much like a Hoka shoe though, with a naturally stable design and a smooth rocker.
The EVA midsole foam is not the liveliest in Hoka’s range, and we prefer the Mach 6 as a lighter, more dynamic daily trainer, but if you need more cushioning than the Mach provides then the Clifton 10 is a great option, and we like it more than the heavier Bondi 9.
Hoka Arahi 8
Price: £140/$150 | Weight: 270g/9.5oz (UK 9) | Drop: 8mm
The Hoka Arahi 8 is the stable counterpart to the Hoka Clifton 10, and right now it’s our top pick for stability-seekers from any brand. The Arahi 8 was a surprise hit with the entire Run Tester team thanks to its smooth and supportive ride, which works well for a wide range of paces and is comfortable over any distance.
Stability is provided through the H-frame in the midsole, and it’s done in a subtle but supportive way to keep your foot in a neutral position. The easy-going ride of the shoe makes it suitable for neutral runners as well, and it’s good value. The compression-moulded EVA foam in the midsole isn’t the most exciting stuff, but the rockered ride means the Arahi 8 is a joy to run in anyway.
Read our full Hoka Arahi 8 review
Hoka Speedgoat 6
Price: £140/$155 | Weight: 280g/9.9oz (UK 9) | Drop: 5mm
The Hoka Speedgoat 6 is one of our favourite all-rounder trail-running shoes from any brand. It has a versatile ride that’s good for everything from ultramarathons to relaxed 5K runs around your local park, and an outsole that grips well on pretty much any terrain bar deep mud. It’s stable too, and a reliable option for trail runners who might not be sure what terrain they’re likely to encounter on their off-road runs.
While Hoka did make some small improvements to the Speedgoat 6, it certainly felt similar to the Speedgoat 5 during our testing so if you see a deal on the older shoe don’t be afraid to snap it up. While some runners will now be keen to use a carbon plate trail shoe for their races, such as the Hoka Tecton X3, the Speedgoat is more stable and a lot more affordable.
Hoka Tecton X3
Price: £220/$275 | Weight: 274g/9.7oz (UK 9) | Drop: 5mm
While the Tecton X3 is the third carbon plate trail shoe Hoka has released, it’s the first to truly recreate the feel of a road super-shoe on the trails. That’s thanks to the new PEBA midsole, which in tandem with the parallel carbon plates running the length of the shoe, delivers a bouncy and propulsive ride.
It’s also great at protecting the legs on long runs with lots of quad-wrecking downhills, in our experience, and while the soft midsole foam can feel a bit wobbly at times, the Tecton X3 is just about stable enough for runs of any length on the trails if you’re careful. The built-in gaiter stops debris from getting inside the shoe, and the Vibram outsole gripped reliably on every terrain we tested it on, and isn’t too skittish on the road either.
Hoka Challenger 8
Price: £130/$155 | Weight: 277g/9.7oz (UK 9) | Drop: 8mm
The Hoka Challenger 8 is an all-terrain running shoe that can handle trails as well as the road. It has 4mm lugs on the outsole that bite well enough into most off-road tracks, though its high, soft midsole stack mean it’s not the most suitable for technical mountain trails and it doesn’t have quite enough traction for deep mud.
On any other terrain, however, it’s great, with a smooth, rockered ride that’s very comfortable for long efforts. It’s also fairly lightweight for a trail shoe, and we found we could pick up the pace in the Challenger 8 happily. It’s essentially a daily trainer for those who mix up their terrains between the road and light trails, and does a great job in that role.
Hoka Cielo Road
Price: £150/$160 | Weight: 185g/6.5oz (UK 9) | Drop: 3mm
The Hoka Cielo Road is a lightweight, lower-stack racing alternative to the Rocket X2 and Cielo X1. It’s designed with 5K and 10K events in mind and has a midsole made from PEBA foam, but no plate, giving it a similar design to low-stack rivals from other brands like the Adidas Takumi Sen 10 and Nike Streakfly.
Mike tested out the Cielo Road and you can see his full verdict in the video review, including info on a 5K race test. It’s a fun shoe and pretty good value compared to full super-shoes, but lacks the propulsive ride you get from a shoe like the Rocket X2 and we’d still prefer to be in a plated, higher-stack shoe for races of any distance ourselves.