Brooks Levitate

Name: Brooks Levitate
Brand: Brooks
Rating: 4.3 (20 reviews)

Daily trainer · Neutral · Road · 11.3 oz · 8mm drop

Discontinued — we no longer see this shoe in stock. The Brooks Levitate 2 replaced it

How it ranks

The Brooks Levitate trails most daily trainers in our data. Durability and cushioning are its strongest sub-ratings. Value scores well below its other sub-ratings. The rating rests on 20 runner reviews and 3 other rated shoes in the Levitate product line.

Bottom-tier

59/100

Overall

Bottom-tier 59

Durability

Excellent 94

Cushioning

Very good 91

Comfort

Decent 79

Appearance

Decent 73

Value

Bottom-tier 50

Confidence

How settled the rating is against every other rated shoe. A shoe can rate high on confidence with relatively few reviews of its own when its product line has a long record and external ratings from retailer sites agree. Confidence will score low when we have few ratings or when runners disagree.

See the product line's history

Confidence

92/100

High 92

What runners say

“Cushioning lasts and feels good throughout; over 350 miles with barely any wear”

5/5 Full review 65 mpw training for a half marathon came from the Nike Air Zoom Vomero 12

“Top-notch comfort, no itching or rubbing, foot slips in like a glove”

5/5 Full review 35 mpw training for a half marathon came from the Saucony Freedom ISO

“Cushioned enough for easy runs; phenomenal response when pounding pavement”

4/5 Full review training for a half marathon came from the adidas Supernova

“Heavier shoe (11 oz) but doesn't feel heavy when running”

5/5 Full review 30 mpw training for a half marathon came from the Brooks Launch 2

“Don't have to exert as much energy to hit target times”

5/5 Full review 35 mpw training for a half marathon came from the Saucony Freedom ISO

“Got over 700k miles—a lot of mileage”

4/5 Full review 35 mpw training for a half marathon came from the ASICS GEL-Cumulus 18

“Runs small—wore 11 vs. 11.5 in Nike”

5/5 Full review 65 mpw training for a half marathon came from the Nike Air Zoom Vomero 12

“Much more durable than Ghosts, which kept ripping”

4/5 Full review 40 mpw training for a half marathon came from the Brooks Ghost 10

“Had to go up a half size vs. Ghosts”

4/5 Full review 35 mpw training for a half marathon came from the Brooks Ghost 9

“Responsive—the more you pick up pace, the more responsive it is”

5/5 Full review 30 mpw training for a half marathon came from the Brooks Launch 2

Prefer this shoe over another

42% 10/24

Where to buy

No offers available

Affiliate links included. They never affect our ratings.

Prices updated daily. Last checked Sep 14.

Pros

Cushioning averages 4.6 out of 5 across the eighteen reviewers who rated it, and durability 4.5 across all twenty.
Several reviewers describe a springy ride with noticeable energy return that rewards picking up the pace.
Three reviewers report the cushioning still feeling good past 350 to 400 miles.

Cons

Averaging 10.5 oz across the men's and women's builds, it is heavier than the 8.9 oz median for daily trainers on sale, and many reviewers call it heavy, several of them finding it awkward for speed work or very long runs.
Three reviewers find the outsole slippery on wet surfaces.
Value averages 3.8 out of 5, the lowest of its dimensions, and several reviewers call it pricey at $150.

Levitate rates 59. This shoe has high certainty. See how we rate shoes.

Better Shoes Rating of prior versions of the Brooks Levitate

Each dot is one version of the Levitate, placed by its rating and release year. The gold dot is this shoe.

Rating

40 60 80 100

59 2017 96 2018 81 2019 82 2022

Release year

We use the reviews of past versions to inform this shoe’s rating. See why.

Levitate 6

2022 · 5 reviews

82 Good

40 Confidence
Levitate 3

2019 · 1 review

81 Good

32 Confidence
Levitate 2

2018 · 23 reviews

96 Excellent

93 Confidence
Levitate This shoe

2017 · 20 reviews

59 Bottom-tier

92 Confidence

Reader Ratings

20 ratings

5/5 8

4/5 10

3/5 2

2/5 0

1/5 0

See written reviews Write a review

Specs & fit

Sizing and ride details at a glance.

Weight: 11.3 oz
Release: 2017 Q3
MSRP: $150
Drop Height: 8mm

Runner reviews

Write a review

Good for any distance run regardless

4/5

Overall

I've done countless runs from over a half marathon long run to short tempos and even intervals on the tracks, so believe me when I say this shoe is legit. It is cushioned enough for the easy recovery runs but when you really start to pound the pavement I've noticed phenomenal response in the shoe that has really helped me in those tempo run and as for the intervals they work just as well I've never felt clunky or as if they were interfering with me when I want to go fast in them in fact with the added bounce they gave me more confidence. As for durability I've always been really proactive about retiring them after 300 but I've got enough confidence to let them go past 400 which is something I've never done

Insert name here · May 23, 2018

training for a half marathon came from the adidas Supernova

Comfort: 4/5
Cushioning: 5/5
Durability: 5/5
Appearance: 3/5
Value: 3/5

Not Too Shabby

4/5

Overall

I’ve been buying Brooks for a while now. In the past I’ve bought the Ghosts and glycerine, but decided to give the levitates a try. So far they are much more durable than the Ghosts (which the upper kept ripping on for me). However, they are pretty rigid, which I haven’t had too many problems with, but sometimes my plantar fascia has bothered my while running in them which I haven’t experienced with a training shoe. Overall, they are probably something I would buy again, although they are a little pricey!

Anonymous runner · Feb 24, 2018

40 mpw training for a half marathon came from the Brooks Ghost 10

Comfort: 4/5
Cushioning: 3/5
Durability: 5/5
Appearance: 5/5
Value: 3/5

Pricey but a good shoe

5/5

Overall

I like the Levitate better than the Glycern. I also wear Hoka Claytons since I can get them on markdown when a new model comes out. The Leviate is a really good shoe and comfortable. I like cushion and this has it. I like the fact that there and "no seams." i only knocked the appearance because I'm not a big fan of the current blue color but I still bought since I like my other Brooks so much.

kathyrink · Feb 8, 2018

30 mpw training for a half marathon came from the Brooks Glycerin 14

Comfort: 5/5
Cushioning: 5/5
Durability: 5/5
Appearance: 4/5
Value: 4/5

Brooks Levitate Review

5/5

Overall

This shoe has been absolutely incredible so far. On the first day I got it, I went out for an eight mile training run and actually ended up extending it to 13.1 miles and took 15 minutes off the fastest time I've ever run for that distance. Granted, this could be due to a variety of factors, especially that new shoe adrenaline rush, but I do think the science of the shoe played a big part. The comfort is top notch, no itching or rubbing, foot slips in like a glove, The energy return also seems noticeable. I find myself feeling like I don't have to exert as much energy as I do in other shoes to hit the times I want.

Anonymous runner · Feb 7, 2018

35 mpw training for a half marathon came from the Saucony Freedom ISO