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I’ve owned a lot of Adidas Boost sneakers, and here I outline my favorite 8 pairs. Boost is more than just an extremely comfy midsole technology; for some, it’s a way of life! I took a look back at the various models I’ve had the pleasure to have in the collection, and put them down here.
Top 8 Adidas Boost Sneakers
The top 8 Adidas Boost sneakers are the Yeezy Boost 350, Ultraboost, Yeezy Boost 700, ZX-500 RM, I-5923, Pure Boost 2.0, NMD R1 and EQT Support 93-17. At least, these are the top 8 I’ve ever owned!
Adidas ZX500 RM
An updated version of the classic ZX500 model
with boost in the midsole.
Shop Boost: adidas – eBay
As far as Adidas Boost sneakers go, these were my go-to beaters for over a year! While it seems like a lot of people slept on these, the ZX500 RM is probably my favorite Boost sneaker I’ve ever owned.
Most Boost sneakers eschew quality materials in favor of something more functional. However, here we get some decent suede that’s actually quite soft. At least, the pair I had provided a surprising level of material quality. I’m not sure if all the releases that would come out had the same thing going on, but I assume they did, as they didn’t make that many colorways.
As far as the comfort goes, these are on the higher end for me as far as the feel of the Boost underfoot. I also really like the refined shape vs the original ZX500. I dig the pointy toe look on these quite a bit. Of all the pairs on this list, this is one of the ones I wish I still had.
Adidas Yeezy Boost 350V2
Probably my favorite 350V2 colorway.
There’s a couple of Yeezys on this list, and for me this pair is the most comfortable. Right off the bat, the 350V2 has a level of Boost in the midsole that you can really feel. For a mesh-like composition, the sneaker doesn’t quite stretch as much as some other Boost models, so the shoe holds its shape well.
The Zebras are my favorite colorway of the model to this day. While many pairs kind of keep that same tan or grey monotone look, these are a bit more flashy and show off the sneaker in a louder way.
The Yeezy line is a Kanye West signature sneaker, and for a long time this model brought a lot of hype along with it. If you have the budget, a pair of 350V2s is a great buy, although new models might be a bit tricky to come by thanks to the fallout between Adidas and Kanye.
Adidas Ultraboost
The Ultraboost 1.0 is the best look UB in my
opinion, and many others as well.
So we get to the main event: the most well known Boost model is probably the Ultraboost. I’ve owned several pairs of this sneaker in various versions. The sneaker is the flagship of Boost comfort, and they live up to that on nearly every release in the line.
The quasi-casual look of the Ultraboost got the UB in front of fans of streetwear and not just those that use them for running. I came to the game a bit late on the line, and my first pairs were 4.0s. However I think the 1.0 has the best look to it; it is after all the model that got the Ultraboost popping in the first place!
Many fans of the shoe agree, and Adidas knows this. Thus, they continuously release older models like the 1.0 in addition to newer iterations. If I were to go back and get a pair now, it would probably be a pair of the core black 1.0s, preferably on sale. They would make the perfect Adidas beater for the collection: simple, comfy and great-looking. A near-perfect sneaker.
Adidas I-5923 (aka Iniki)
A comfy, if not sloppy fitting sneaker.
One of the best budget sneakers ever, the I-5923 was initially known as the Adidas Iniki. For a low-cost, you could still get Boost comfort and some of the pairs even have decent materials! My favorite colorway on the 5923 are the Base Green. Something about that gum outsole combined with the white and green upper appeals greatly to me.
The Iniki is a comfortable shoe although some complain it lacks a bit of structure and fits a tad roomy. To me, they fit more like street slippers than a stiff casual sneaker. I probably wouldn’t run in these, but for just walking around these are great!
I went through a spree of buying colorways on this shoe. It was so easy to find pairs on sale, I couldn’t help but pick up a black, white and navy colorway. Total binge cops, but today if I were to go back I’d probably choose either the white, black or the Base Green pair. This is a shoe that you really only need one of to experience the comfort and those colorways also had nice soft suede on them.
Adidas Yeezy Boost 700
The Waverunner colorway shown here is my
favorite Yeezy sneaker ever made
I put this a bit further down because while the Waverunner is my favorite Yeezy ever made, the Boost is a bit less perceptible in these than in any of the models listed above. These definitely have more of a solid feel underfoot. The sneaker initially seemed to be a Yeezy version of a “dad shoe”; released right around the time the trend started taking off.
Not only is this hands-down the best Yeezy 700; in my opinion it’s the best colorway in the whole Yeezy line. I had to have them on the list based on looks alone; I love how these appear on feet and as of the writing of this article, it’s the only Yeezy I still own.
Adidas agrees, as they’ve retro’d this pair a few times in addition to dropping multiple other great looking 700 colorways. You can feel the Boost tech a lot more in other Yeezys like the 350V2; however it still has a presence here. In my opinion, the looks of the sneaker are a bit better and more forward-thinking than the 350, otherwise I probably would have kept my Zebras over these. Still, if you want *ONE* iconic Yeezy shoe with Boost in it for the collection, I think this is a definite contender..
Adidas Pure Boost 2.0
The first Boost sneaker I ever reviewed on this
website (as far as I can tell, anyway)
In the earlier days of this site, I had a bit less money to work with for the collection. Thus I was late to the Boost hype and bargain-shopped the Core Black colorway of the Pure Boost 2.0 as my first entry into the tech. These felt like they would be a budget version of the Ultraboost, but turned out to be a very comfortable sneaker with plenty of noticeable Boost underfoot. It kicked off several years of grabbing different Boost models, so Adidas clearly did something right here!
The sneaker basically takes over where the original Pure Boost left off by improving the overall comfort of the shoe. While some feel the shape of these is not as good as the original, I feel like the slightly thicker tongue greatly aids the comfort on the 2.0.
These days I’d probably look for some Ultraboost 1.0 on sale before buying some Pure Boosts, however for its time the PB made for a great entry level Boost sneaker.
Adidas EQT Support 93-17
This shoe was recommended to me as something
different to try in the Boost line. I liked this
Off White colorway in particular.
After so many pointy-toed pairs of Boost, I was at one point looking for something just as comfy, but different. These definitely fit the bill as an exciting “odd choice” for the collection. Therefore, they hold a special place for me on this list.
As a fan of the EQT line overall, the 93/17 seemed like a good bet to me as far as something different. The offwhite colorway is my favorite on this model as it lends well to being paired with other monochromatic type colors in an outfit. That was also something I was looking for at the time I bought these.
The 93/17 has a snug fit with an odd “burrito tongue” that wraps around the top of the foot. It gives these a feel on foot that some sneakerheads do not like, but I found interesting. I still think these days a pair of UB would be a better pick up, but this shoe definitely can add some variety to a collection that already contains some of the “typical” Adidas Boost models.
Adidas NMD R1
I was way late to the NMD craze, but still managed
to grab this dope Bred-like colorway at one point
The NMD craze was something serious when the sneaker first came out back in the day. I arrived late to the party when I finally grabbed a pair, and while I like the NMD enough to be on this list, it’s probably towards the bottom as far as how I would rank the sneaker comparatively.
The shape on the sneaker is good, and the shoe has a great look to it overall. You can definitely feel the Boost in the midsole, although for me it’s not as pronounced as some of the others on this list. It has a slightly more solid feel underfoot.
That said, I get why the sneaker had a burst of popularity. It is slightly less expensive than an Ultraboost at full retail, but had a few highly sought after and less available colorways when the model first dropped. If the shoes are selling out, there’s a compounding effect in the sneakerhead world where the popularity goes up. Adidas then flooded the market with releases which brought the perceived value back down and got them into the hands of collectors like me. While the NMD is nowhere near as hype as it was on initial release, it still occupies a key spot in the history of the Boost line and is still comfy and good looking enough to get on this list!
Sock Shoe Trend
For a while, the “sock-shoe” look was all the rage, and sneakers like the Ultraboost flourished. While these lines still have their dedicated fanbases, the overall popularity of Boost models has decreased in a time where Dunks, Jordans and New Balances seem to get all the attention. That said, one could hardly go wrong with grabbing a pair of Adidas Boost for comfort, and I can still recommend sneakers like the 350V2 and Ultraboost to this day. If you usually just rock retros, you owe it to your feet to experience Boost at least once!