New Balance Fresh Foam Beacon

Name: New Balance Fresh Foam Beacon
Brand: New Balance
Rating: 4.7 (32 reviews)

Daily trainer · Neutral · Road · 7.5 oz · 6mm drop · 29/23mm stack

Discontinued — we no longer see this shoe in stock. The New Balance Fresh Foam Beacon v2 replaced it

How it ranks

The New Balance Fresh Foam Beacon is one of the strongest daily trainers in our data. Comfort and cushioning are its strongest sub-ratings. Durability scores well below its other sub-ratings. The rating rests on 32 runner reviews and 2 other rated shoes in the Fresh Foam Beacon product line.

Exceptional

98/100

Overall

Exceptional 98

Comfort

Exceptional 99

Cushioning

Exceptional 98

Value

Exceptional 98

Appearance

Excellent 94

Durability

Decent 71

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

“This shoe is extremely durable. I've put over 50 miles between dirt, roads, and trail in this shoe, and the only true wear on it is the dirt it has accumulated.”

5/5 Full review 45 mpw training for a half marathon

“My legs are surprisingly not destroyed, as they have been in my other trainers (NB 880 v9, Brooks Ghost 11, Saucony Kinvara 9) after slightly shorter runs.”

5/5 Full review 40 mpw training for a marathon came from the New Balance 880 v9

“Light enough for speed work and repeats, durable enough to last a reasonable workload of daily wear, and comfortable enough to wear during long runs.”

5/5 Full review 40 mpw training for middle distance came from the New Balance 890 v7

“It is responsive when you need it, but cushioned when you want it.”

5/5 Full review 45 mpw training for a half marathon

“I love that it's a super light weight shoe and provides plenty of cushion without having to go for a clunky heavy shoe.”

5/5 Full review 60 mpw came from the Altra Torin 3.0

“The cushioning is ample but not intense/overwhelming. It's also not as soft as I expected but that's not a bad thing, it means the shoe feels a bit more responsive.”

5/5 Full review 60 mpw training for a half marathon came from the Saucony Freedom ISO 2

“Beacon is cushioned, but somehow still has good road feel and feels responsive.”

5/5 Full review 35 mpw training for a half marathon came from the New Balance 1080 v8

“Excellent blend of cushioning (particularly in the forefoot), flexibility, and bounce.”

5/5 Full review 35 mpw training for a half marathon came from the Skechers GOrun Ride 6

“I've tried for years to find a shoe that I can put on, go for a run, and not think about my feet. These accomplish that.”

4/5 Full review 38 mpw training for a half marathon

“They are super comfortable at slower paces and have amazing energy return, making them good at faster paces/harder efforts.”

5/5 Full review 25 mpw came from the Saucony Kinvara 9

Prefer this shoe over another

53% 20/38

Where to buy

No offers available

Affiliate links included. They never affect our ratings.

Prices updated daily. Last checked Sep 14.

Pros

At 7.5 oz, reviewers still get enough cushioning for long runs.
Runners use it for easy days, tempos and marathons alike.
Many find the roomy toe box comfortable, and it comes in a wide.

Cons

The outsole carries little rubber, and several reviewers replace the shoe by about 300 miles.
Three reviewers report the thin insole sliding back and bunching under the heel.
One reviewer finds the upper sloppy on downhills, and another finds it hot and slow to dry.

Fresh Foam Beacon rates 98. This shoe has very high certainty. See how we rate shoes.

Better Shoes Rating of prior versions of the New Balance Fresh Foam Beacon

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

Rating

40 60 80 100

98 2018 99 2019 93 2020

Release year

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

Fresh Foam Beacon v3

2020 · 2 reviews

93 Excellent

62 Confidence
Fresh Foam Beacon v2

2019 · 14 reviews

99 Exceptional

97 Confidence
Fresh Foam Beacon This shoe

2018 · 32 reviews

98 Exceptional

97 Confidence

Reader Ratings

32 ratings

5/5 23

4/5 9

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: 7.5 oz
Release: 2018 Q2
MSRP: $120
Stack Height: 29mm heel - 23mm toe
Drop Height: 6mm

Runner reviews

Write a review

Solid Trainer

4/5

Overall

Pros: Upper feel, Heel/tongue and entry into the shoe, low weight with high stack height cushioning Cons: Lack of rubber on outsole, cushioning is ample but not especially soft, laces are a bit short for me I liked these enough to buy a second pair. These have spoiled me for running in anything heavy. The heaviest I can go now is an Adidas Boston, and even that's heavier than I'd like. I do still want a softer option for long runs, but Beacons work great for marathon pace and easy pace runs.

EPMD · Feb 15, 2020

40 mpw training for a half marathon came from the adidas adiZero adios 3 Boost (2018)

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

Ran marathon PR

5/5

Overall

Wore for trading, track and race and great for all, but treads wire after 3 runs. Super comfy!

Anonymous runner · Jan 20, 2020

40 mpw training for a marathon

Comfort: 5/5
Cushioning: 5/5
Durability: 2/5
Appearance: 2/5
Value: 4/5

Great Every Day Trainer

5/5

Overall

The Beacon is a versatile every day training shoe. Light enough for speed work and repeats, durable enough to last a reasonable workload of daily wear, and comfortable enough to wear during long runs. The shoe is not ideal in cold weather, but it doesn't claim to be. I ended up with a hole in the top of the big toe area, which usually happens with my shoes, but it would be nice if more models had a little extra fabric there to prevent that. However, this is not an issue that should influence your decision on these shoes. Overall, this is a great trainer, and can be found for relatively cheap online.

Anonymous runner · Jan 6, 2020

40 mpw training for middle distance came from the New Balance 890 v7

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

New balance beacon volume 1

5/5

Overall

I have wide feet so I am always looking for new light weight neutral shoes with a wide option. New balance always has something to offer in this category and I believe that the beacon is one of the best options available. I have used this shoe from 5k races, recovery days and for steady long runs. Initially the beacon has quite a bit of pop for the first two hundred miles and would be a good option for faster efforts and races from 5k to marathon. IMO after 200 miles the shoe loses some responsiveness but the cushioning remains premium. The upper secures your foot but is not too constricting. The tread is a combination of exposed foam and dense rubber tread on the big toe side of the forefoot and on the back outer heel. For me it was perfect placement for my foot strike. My only complaint is that the heel collar will run in your Achilles the first few times you run in it. I spent some time stretching the heel collar back and this fixed the problem. If you are looking for a neutral do-it-all trainer that is light weight give the beacon a shot!!

HarrierStu · Jan 4, 2020

45 mpw training for a half marathon came from the Altra Escalante 1.5

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

Best Shoe Ever

5/5

Overall

I love the NB Beacon V1, I've been through more pairs than I can count and as much as I want to try the V2, it's hard to pass up grabbing the old version for $60-80 as I rotate 2-3 pairs and need new ones every 2-3 months at around 300-350 miles. I'll eventually have to try the V2 but my experience with V1 has been amazing. I guess I'm considered a heavier runner at 5'6" 180lbs but I think I'm above average speed, running 3:05-3:30 marathons. I love that it's a super light weight shoe and provides plenty of cushion without having to go for a clunky heavy shoe. As stated above I only get 300-350 miles out of them which could be because I'm a little heaver or possibly because of the exposed Fresh Foam that keeps them light weight. Lighter runners may be able to get more mileage. Only problems I've had is the on humid, wet days, the insole can slide and bunch up.

Anonymous runner · Jan 2, 2020

60 mpw came from the Altra Torin 3.0

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

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New Balance Fresh Foam Beacon

Exceptional