Nike Zoom Fly

Name: Nike Zoom Fly
Brand: Nike
Rating: 4.5 (89 reviews)

Racing · Neutral · Road · 8.6 oz · 8mm drop · 40/32mm stack

Discontinued — we no longer see this shoe in stock. The Nike Zoom Fly 3 replaced it

How it ranks

The Nike Zoom Fly ranks among the stronger racing shoes in our data. Looks and cushioning are its strongest sub-ratings. Durability scores well below its other sub-ratings. The rating rests on 90 runner reviews and 5 other rated shoes in the Zoom Fly product line.

Good

86/100

Overall

Good 86

Appearance

Exceptional 99

Cushioning

Excellent 95

Comfort

Good 84

Value

Decent 76

Durability

Bottom-tier 58

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

98/100

Very high 98

Prefer this shoe over another

63% 41/65

Where to buy

No offers available

Affiliate links included. They never affect our ratings.

Prices updated daily. Last checked Sep 14.

Pros

Reviewers find the plate propulsive and favor it for tempo runs, long intervals and races.
It weighs 8.6 oz on a 40mm heel stack, and reviewers find it cushioned enough for marathon-distance runs.
Three reviewers say their legs feel fresher after long, fast efforts in it.

Cons

Six reviewers wear through the outsole or foam between 150 and 350 miles, while three get 400 miles or more.
Five reviewers find it unsteady on turns and uneven ground.
Four reviewers report poor traction in wet or snow and an upper that soaks up water.

Zoom Fly rates 86. This shoe has very high certainty. See how we rate shoes.

Better Shoes Rating of prior versions of the Nike Zoom Fly

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

Rating

40 60 80 100

64 2016 86 2017 67 2019 64 2021 92 2022 81 2024

Release year

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

Zoom Fly 6

2024 · 27 reviews

81 Good

87 Confidence
Zoom Fly 5

2022 · 33 reviews

92 Very good

92 Confidence
Zoom Fly 4

2021 · 9 reviews

64 Below average

76 Confidence
Zoom Fly 3

2019 · 22 reviews

67 Below average

90 Confidence
Zoom Fly This shoe

2017 · 90 reviews

86 Good

98 Confidence
Zoom Fly 2 (2016)

2016 · 2 reviews

64 Below average

47 Confidence

Reader Ratings

90 ratings

5/5 53

4/5 31

3/5 4

2/5 2

1/5 0

See written reviews Write a review

Specs & fit

Sizing and ride details at a glance.

Weight: 8.6 oz
Release: 2017 Q3
MSRP: $190
Stack Height: 40mm heel - 32mm toe
Drop Height: 8mm

Runner reviews

Write a review

Zoom Fly Fkyknit After 100 Miles

4/5

Overall

The Zoom Fly was my go to shoe all of track season. The shoe was light, cushioned, responsive, and waa pretty durable too. The upper felt good, having formed to my foot after a couple runs. The react foam seemed to be soft, but not mushy and unresponsive. When I ran 200 and 400 meter intervals the shoe felt amazing. The carbon fiber plate gave a snappy feeling that was much appreciated, but it did mellow out a little bit as the mileage increased. I found the zoom fly fkyknit fit true to size in my size 10. The toe box was bigger than the average nike shoe. The only problem I have with this shoe is the lack of lockdown you can achieve with the flyknit upper. This caused my foot to slide around when I ran the curves on the track fast. I highly recommend this shoe. It handles long runs and speed work amazingly.

Anonymous runner · May 31, 2019

45 mpw training for a half marathon came from the Skechers GOrun 600 - Nite Owl V.2

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

The Nike Zoom Fly Flyknit is next level.

5/5

Overall

This show is for people looking to go fast, and feel faster. It comes with a premium Flyknit upper that has excellent breathability, and the cushioning is on par. The carbon fiber plate in the midsole helps with maximum energy return, while the soft Nike React cushioning provides a comfortable ride. All in all, this shoe can be great for a daily trainer, up-tempo workouts, or even race-day flats.

adrianstuphan · May 6, 2019

40 mpw training for middle distance came from the New Balance Fresh Foam Vongo v3

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

Carbon plate POP!

5/5

Overall

Best shoes I have run in - ever! First real pair of running shoes were 1978 Nike Waffle Trainers, but it has been may years since I ran in Nike shoes. The Zoom Fly FK carbon plate is magic - it transfers energy into a larger area of the React foam sole than my foot, and thus engages more of the foam for energy return.

Anonymous runner · Apr 22, 2019

20 mpw training for a half marathon came from the ASICS GEL-Nimbus 19

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

Nike Zoomies

4/5

Overall

Very fast. Very comfortable, except for the fact that the heel will dig into your Achilles's tendon if you don't wear long socks. Not too good on terrain, felt like my feet kept 'slipping' off the sole. But on my first run with these I was running 6:30s with an easy effort. Almost to 400 miles on them and they're pretty much already toast tough (I usually get at least 500 out of any pair of shoes). I'd recommend only for runs under 7:00 pace.

3200y5000 · Jan 10, 2019

60 mpw training for a half marathon came from the Nike Air Zoom Pegasus 35

Comfort: 4/5
Cushioning: 5/5
Durability: 2/5
Appearance: 4/5
Value: 3/5

Really Bad Sequel

2/5

Overall

Let me start this review by stating that I am a HUGE fan of the original Zoom Fly (as well as the SP and SP Fast iterations). That being said, the Zoom Fly Flyknit is a massive disappointment for me. The Good: The flyknit upper is nice. It is minimal and unstructured, which makes the most of the technology. It will feel narrow at first, but will stretch to accommodate most feet. It's also quite beautiful, if that appeals to you. Being flyknit, it's not stable at all on turns or strange grades, but this shoe should never be used on trails anyway. The Bad: The price. It's hella expensive, it already has gone on sale, which is fine. It seems like everything sans ZoomX will of course go on sale at Nike, just be patient. The Worst: The midsole and the F'n ride homie. Let me first say that i'm a bigger runner at 6'2, 180, but hot damn I HATE the ride and feel of this shoe and that can only be attributed to the replacement of Lunar with the new React foam. Another quick disclosure statement, I run road 1/2's at around 1:20, and marathons closer to 2:50. While it's easy for me to clip off 6:00/miles. I struggle to find any consistency below 5:45 pace for any extended period of time. More of a distance guy than a speed guy. That being said, the feel of this shoe is just dead and energy dampening for me. I can easily feel the exact point where the shoe dies and its the upper of the midsole. I feel it squishing against the plate, and there is no energy return for me. Its akin to wearing a bad Hoka shoe (there are good ones) that saps the energy out of my stride. It is far too soft and I find it a struggle to run in. There is no synergy between the materials that make up the underfoot. In comparison: As I mentioned above, I LOVE the original Zoom Fly. I feel like the synergy between the materials underfoot were excellent, it's just a big hunk of firm, responsive cushioning. Plenty of energy return and responsiveness to move fast. The lunarlon gives a MUCH better ride and compliments the setup of the shoe with the plate far better than the react does. I have never run in the epic react, but the Lunarracer 3 is probably my all time hall-of-fame shoe (which begs this note: The Skechers GoRun Razor 3 is the closest shoe I've ever found to the Lunarracer, and it might even be better... go buy that) so I guess its clear I prefer the *ancient* technology of lunarlon to the new react foam which is just too soft and not responsive at all for me. In closing: If you really like the Zoo Fly, go buy a bunch at heavily discounted prices now. If it was too firm for you, but you like the idea of the shoe, I guess you should check out the Fly Flyknit.

[email protected] · Dec 27, 2018

50 mpw training for ultramarathons