New Balance Minimus 10 v2

Name: New Balance Minimus 10 v2
Brand: New Balance
Rating: 4.7 (9 reviews)

Trail shoe · Neutral · Trail · 5.6 oz · 15/10mm stack · 4mm drop

Discontinued — we no longer see this shoe in stock. The New Balance Minimus 10v3 replaced it

How it ranks

The New Balance Minimus 10 v2 trails most trail shoes in our data. Looks and value are its strongest sub-ratings. Cushioning scores well below its other sub-ratings. The rating is based on 9 runner reviews and 3 other rated shoes in the Minimus 10 product line.

Below average

Overall

Below average 68

Appearance

Good 82

Value

Good 80

Comfort

Decent 77

Durability

Below average 68

Cushioning

Bottom-tier 54

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 is low when we have few ratings or when runners disagree.

See the product line's history

Confidence

80 Moderate

Moderate 80

Based on

The bars show roughly how much each source contributes to this shoe’s rating. Their influence depends on how many reviews we’ve collected, how many earlier versions are in the product line, and the external ratings available.

Product line track record
Our ratings
External ratings

What runners say

“Cushioning is quite low, allowing the runner to really feel the ground, allowing for maximal contact, and ultimately a very quick toe off”

5/5 Full review 40 mpw training for middle distance

“The ventilation all over the shoe, and the indentations on the bottom allow for quite a lot of water to leak into the shoe”

5/5 Full review 40 mpw training for middle distance

“I particularly like the wide toebox, lowish drop and low stack height”

5/5 Full review 50 mpw came from the Mizuno Wave Musha 4

“I found I loved the feel of the Minimus, and it neither healed nor exacerbated any injury tendencies”

5/5 Full review 50 mpw training for a marathon came from the ASICS GEL-Kayano 18

“The shoe has a very comfortable upper and is specifically designed to be run in sockless”

5/5 Full review 40 mpw training for middle distance

“Well over 1000 miles on them”

5/5 Full review 50 mpw came from the Mizuno Wave Musha 4

“Minimal enough to help strengthen my feet and legs but not cause injuries”

5/5 Full review 80 mpw came from the Saucony Kinvara 5

“Definitely no good for gravel”

4/5 Full review 80 mpw 1,043 miles in this shoe training for a half marathon came from the Mizuno Wave Inspire 10

“Really light and awesome toe box”

5/5 Full review 80 mpw came from the Saucony Kinvara 5

“You can feel the road too much”

4/5 Full review 80 mpw 1,043 miles in this shoe training for a half marathon came from the Mizuno Wave Inspire 10

“The ventilation could be improved for customers in tropical climates”

4/5 Full review 10 mpw

Prefer this shoe over another

50% 4/8

Where to buy

No offers available

Affiliate links included. They never affect our ratings.

Prices updated daily. Last checked Oct 22.

Pros

At 6.2 oz, reviewers find it light with a quick toe-off.
Reviewers repeatedly praise the wide toe box.
Reviewers call the upper comfortable, and one runs in it sockless.

Cons

With a 15mm heel stack, reviewers feel the ground, and one avoids gravel in them.
Three of nine reviewers report an injury while running in it.
One reviewer says the ventilation lets water in, leaving damp feet in rain or winter.

Minimus 10 v2 rates 68. This shoe has moderate confidence. See how we rate shoes.

Better Shoes Rating of prior versions of the New Balance Minimus 10

Each dot is one version of the Minimus 10, placed by its rating and release year. The gold dot is this shoe.

Rating

40 60 80 100

72 2018 68 2013 66 2016 68 2017

Release year

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

Minimus 10v4

2017 · 1 review

68 Below average

47 Confidence
Minimus 10v3

2016 · 1 review

66 Below average

39 Confidence
Minimus 10 v2 This shoe

2013 · 9 reviews

68 Below average

80 Confidence
Minimus 10v1

2018 · 2 reviews

72 Decent

25 Confidence

Runner Ratings

9 ratings

5/5 6

4/5 3

3/5 0

2/5 0

1/5 0

See written reviews Write a review

Specs & fit

Sizing and ride details at a glance.

Weight: 5.6 oz
Men's / women's: Men's 6.2 oz · Women's 4.9 oz
Release: 2013
MSRP: $110
Stack: 15/10mm
Drop: 4mm

Runner reviews

Write a review

5/5

Overall

I particularly like the wide toebox, lowish drop and low stack height. I liked the shoe even more as the cushioning bottomed out. I didn't have any problem with durability. This shoe was mostly used on the road and there's well over 1000 miles on them.

tycruickshank · May 2, 2015

50 mpw came from the Mizuno Wave Musha 4

Comfort: 5/5
Durability: 5/5
Appearance: 5/5
Value: 5/5

4/5

Overall

Felt great on, really comfortable, only problem is not quite enough cushioning, you can feel the road too much, and definitely no good for gravel

[email protected] · Apr 30, 2015

80 mpw 1,043 miles in this shoe training for a half marathon came from the Mizuno Wave Inspire 10

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

5/5

Overall

Can run workouts or just do mileage in it, minimal enough to help strengthen my feet and legs but not cause injuries. Really light and awesome toe box.

Anonymous runner · Apr 3, 2015

80 mpw came from the Saucony Kinvara 5

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

5/5

Overall

I was cautious at first because so much of the literature warned about doing longer runs in a minimal shoe. While I never bought into the whole barefoot running trends, I found I loved the feel of the Minimus, and it neither healed nor exacerbated any injury tendencies. Cushioned shoes ( I wear Asics Gel Kayano for casual wear) feel so heavy and slow now by comparison.

Anonymous runner · Mar 24, 2015

50 mpw training for a marathon came from the ASICS GEL-Kayano 18