HOKA Clifton 5

Name: HOKA Clifton 5
Brand: HOKA
Rating: 4.5 (48 reviews)

Daily trainer · Neutral · Road · 9.4 oz · 5mm drop · 30/25mm stack

Discontinued — we no longer see this shoe in stock. The HOKA Clifton 6 replaced it

How it ranks

The HOKA Clifton 5 ranks among the stronger daily trainers in our data. Cushioning and comfort are its strongest sub-ratings. Looks scores well below its other sub-ratings. Most runners who came to it from another shoe preferred it. The rating rests on 48 runner reviews and 10 other rated shoes in the Clifton product line.

Good

88/100

Overall

Good 88

Cushioning

Exceptional 99

Comfort

Exceptional 97

Durability

Very good 91

Value

Good 82

Appearance

Decent 72

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

97/100

Very high 97

What runners say

“The wide version is a godsend—most comfortable and versatile mileage shoes; no more blisters.”

5/5 Full review 70 mpw training for a half marathon came from the Saucony Ride ISO 2

“A small bead of plastic runs around the shoe and I felt it constantly in the midfoot and big toe area.”

3/5 Full review 20 mpw training for a half marathon came from the ASICS GEL-Kayano 25

“Forgiving cushioning helped overcome IT band syndrome and retrain gait.”

5/5 Full review 7 mpw training for a half marathon

“The fabric above the toe box folds and presses down like a guillotine on the top of the foot.”

3/5 Full review 20 mpw training for a half marathon came from the ASICS GEL-Kayano 25

“Toebox awfully narrow, causing blisters on both sides of the ball of the foot.”

4/5 Full review 35 mpw training for a marathon came from the Mizuno Wave Inspire 14

“Pinky toe squeezed and blistered badly—requires toe socks on runs over 1 hour.”

4/5 Full review 45 mpw training for a half marathon came from the Brooks Pureflow 5

“Injuries practically nonexistent in four years of 50+ mpw training.”

5/5 Full review 50 mpw training for a half marathon came from the Nike Air Zoom Pegasus 33

“Super wide—rubs arches and leaves blisters on narrow feet.”

4/5 Full review 25 mpw training for a half marathon came from the Nike Air Zoom Pegasus 35

“The upper is light and breathable, and the midsole has a much softer ride than the 4s.”

5/5 Full review 85 mpw training for a marathon came from the HOKA Clifton 4

“Plush but responsive, with breathable and snug (but not too snug) upper.”

5/5 Full review 75 mpw training for a marathon

Prefer this shoe over another

44% 34/77

Where to buy

No offers available

Affiliate links included. They never affect our ratings.

Prices updated daily. Last checked Sep 14.

Pros

Reviewers describe soft, forgiving cushioning that suits long, easy mileage.
Many runners find it light for the amount of cushioning.
It rates well above the Clifton 4 it replaced, which scores 64 on fifty-one reviews.

Cons

Several reviewers report the thin outsole rubber wearing through quickly.
Toe box fit divides reviewers, with blisters a common complaint.
Appearance is its lowest-rated dimension, and reviewers call the look meh or clownish.

Clifton 5 rates 88. This shoe has very high certainty. See how we rate shoes.

Better Shoes Rating of prior versions of the HOKA Clifton

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

Rating

40 60 80 100

99 2014 97 2015 98 2016 64 2017 88 2018 87 2019 81 2020 95 2021 99 2023 95 2025 86 2026

Release year

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

Clifton 11

2026 · 3 reviews

86 Good

70 Confidence
Clifton 10

2025 · 11 reviews

95 Excellent

87 Confidence
Clifton 9

2023 · 130 reviews

99 Exceptional

100 Confidence
Clifton 8

2021 · 57 reviews

95 Excellent

97 Confidence
Clifton 7

2020 · 8 reviews

81 Good

83 Confidence
Clifton 6

2019 · 68 reviews

87 Good

97 Confidence
Clifton 5 This shoe

2018 · 48 reviews

88 Good

97 Confidence
Clifton 4

2017 · 51 reviews

64 Below average

98 Confidence
Clifton 3

2016 · 37 reviews

98 Exceptional

98 Confidence
Clifton 2

2015 · 5 reviews

97 Exceptional

90 Confidence
Clifton 1

2014 · 16 reviews

99 Exceptional

97 Confidence

Reader Ratings

48 ratings

5/5 26

4/5 20

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: 9.4 oz
Release: 2018 Q2
MSRP: $130
Stack Height: 30mm heel - 25mm toe
Drop Height: 5mm

Runner reviews

Write a review

Smooth Ride

5/5

Overall

Lightweight Smooth Ride Breathability

Anonymous runner · Aug 11, 2019

20 mpw training for a half marathon came from the HOKA Clifton 4

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

Starts out strong; fades too quickly

4/5

Overall

The first couple of weeks of wearing this shoe are awesome. I only run about 20 mpw these days so in theory my shoes shouldn't need replacing too quickly. What I've found with the Clifton (multiple versions) is that they lose that Hoka cloud-like cushioning too fast. I realize that I'm not a 6% body fat guy anymore and I won't get the kind of life expectancy like I once did but after about 200 miles these shoes feel a bit dead.

Anonymous runner · Aug 10, 2019

20 mpw training for a half marathon came from the Brooks Levitate

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

Great shoe thats always pleasant to run on!

5/5

Overall

The shoe has helped me overcome my IT band syndrome due to its forgiving cushioning, which allowed me to retrain my gait without worrying about injury as much as my other shoes. Though the shoe and the cushioning is big, its still super light for what it is!

Anonymous runner · Aug 10, 2019

7 mpw training for a half marathon

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

Beautiful Sole, Topped by Vicious Upper

4/5

Overall

47 y/o male, 168-180#, depending on season. Up to 50-60 mpw at best. I wear D width in Asics and Mizuno, but developed the usual calf/achilles issues a few years ago. Tried out the Clifton 5. I love the rocker sole and cushion. Durability is decent, (got well over 350 miles in first pair). But the toebox is awfully narrow, causing blisters on both sides of the ball of my foot. I tried sizing up a half (almost lost a toenail from fore/aft banging) and tried the EE width, which is only barely wider. If the shoe was 5mm wider, I'd buy a dozen pairs today. The Tracer2 is the proper width for me, but they don't have nearly as much cushion and I feel beat up after runs longer than 15M in them.

Anonymous runner · Jul 27, 2019

35 mpw training for a marathon came from the Mizuno Wave Inspire 14