Daily trainer · Neutral · Road · 8.6 oz · 25/21mm stack · 4mm drop
Discontinued — we no longer see this shoe in stock.
How it ranks
The New Balance Fresh Foam 980 trails most daily trainers in our data. Looks and value are its strongest sub-ratings. Durability scores well below its other sub-ratings. The rating is based on 30 runner reviews.
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.
Confidence
95 Very high
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.
“Rubber is way too soft and wears out very quickly—no rubber left in toe area by around 100 miles.”
“Two rubbed forefoot near the toe line, causing deep cuts and heavy bleeding during runs.”
“Feels nearly as responsive as the Kinvaras and much more comfortable for longer runs.”
“Lacks traction—running on well-maintained gravel or trails feels much more slippery than traditional shoes.”
“Much firmer than marketed—translates to a snappy, up-tempo shoe good for daily runs and speed work.”
“Outsole is thin and starting to wear into midsole on outer edge by around 175-200 miles.”
“Moderate to firm ride, needs a little breaking in—once done, fantastic shoe handling pavement, trails and tempos.”
“First shoe I genuinely looked forward to putting on and running in.”
“Like a minimalist shoe thanks to the 4mm drop and lighter weight, but with some nice cushion underneath.”
“Low drop and low weight for a trainer, not as soft as advertised, but has a great ride.”
“Because it was so firm, runs over about 75 minutes were a little more exhausting than they should have been.”
“Shoes wear quickly, particularly towards the toes.”
“Very comfortable shoe for everything from tempo runs to long runs.”
“Soft with a squishy sole, good for frequent pavement running.”
“Fits narrow—wide width needed to accommodate.”
“Super versatile, light, with plush cushion.”
“Sole heats up at faster speeds.”
45% 9/20
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Prices updated daily. Last checked Oct 22.
Rating & Confidence vs. other shoes for sale
Each dot is one rated shoe for sale, placed by its rating and by how much evidence sits behind it. Shoes toward the top right are both well rated and well established.
Better Shoes Rating
Sizing and ride details at a glance.
4/5
Overall
Gmcxrunner · Sep 20, 2014
training for a half marathon
5/5
Overall
bugdoc · Sep 20, 2014
training for a marathon
5/5
Overall
beaconheel · Sep 19, 2014
35 mpw training for a marathon
4/5
Overall
Anonymous runner · Sep 19, 2014
80 mpw training for a half marathon
4/5
Overall
skinnystiks · Sep 12, 2014
25 mpw training for a half marathon
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