Nike Zoom Vaporfly 4%

Name: Nike Zoom Vaporfly 4%
Brand: Nike
Rating: 4.7 (71 reviews)

Racing · Neutral · Road · 6.9 oz · 10mm drop · 39/29mm stack

Discontinued — we no longer see this shoe in stock. The Nike ZoomX Vaporfly Next% replaced it

How it ranks

The Nike Zoom Vaporfly 4% is one of the strongest racing shoes in our data. Looks and comfort are its strongest sub-ratings. Durability scores well below its other sub-ratings. The rating rests on 73 runner reviews and 4 other rated shoes in the Vaporfly product line.

Exceptional

99/100

Overall

Exceptional 99

Cushioning

Exceptional 99

Comfort

Exceptional 99

Appearance

Exceptional 99

Value

Bottom-tier 59

Durability

Bottom-tier 50

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

100/100

Very high 100

What runners say

“These shoes are fast, and it was hard to dial the goal pace in because they want to go so fast.”

5/5 Full review 75 mpw training for a marathon came from the New Balance Fresh Foam Zante v3

“On my first run in the shoes I immediately noticed some extra pop, more so than anything I had run in before.”

5/5 Full review 60 mpw training for a half marathon came from the New Balance 1500 v4

“The combination of the carbon plate with ZoomX midsole cushioning provides just the right amount of feedback and forward propulsion.”

5/5 Full review 60 mpw training for a half marathon came from the New Balance 1500 v4

“Normally the quads feel like rocks by that point, especially going uphill. But they felt much better in the 4% .”

5/5 Full review 90 mpw training for a marathon came from the Nike LunarTempo 2

“These do what they are advertised to do, help you really roll/pop off your toes with the plate. It was a stressor that my achilles, ankles, and calves just couldn't handle, leaving me extremely sore.”

1/5 Full review training for a marathon

“This is the single best shoe i have ever run in, there is a genuine difference in comfort, road feel and speed.”

5/5 Full review 100 mpw training for a marathon came from the Nike LunaRacer 4

“The cushion technology has my legs feeling great far into long runs and better than ever after runs.”

5/5 Full review 55 mpw training for a marathon came from the Saucony Havok XC2 Flat

“The first mile was downhill, and I could feel a lot of cushioning and springiness for each step.”

5/5 Full review 75 mpw training for a marathon came from the New Balance Fresh Foam Zante v3

“They aren't too durable; after about 5 miles of wear, I can already see how the soles are grinding out on the street.”

5/5 Full review 3 mpw training for a half marathon came from the Nike Zoom Fly SP (Special Project)

“The cushioning can be comparable to a Hoka One One but quite honestly this is more plush.”

4/5 Full review 65 mpw training for a marathon came from the Nike Zoom Pegasus 35 Turbo

Prefer this shoe over another

51% 34/67

Where to buy

No offers available

Affiliate links included. They never affect our ratings.

Prices updated daily. Last checked Sep 14.

Pros

Reviewers repeatedly report legs feeling fresher after races and long runs in it.
At 6.9 oz on a 39mm heel stack, and reviewers call it incredibly cushioned for the weight.
Reviewers report race PRs at distances from the 10k to the marathon.

Cons

Durability is its lowest-rated dimension at 3.3 out of 5, and reviewers report the outsole wearing and the sole peeling, one after about 200 miles.
Value rates 3.7 out of 5 against a $250 list price, and reviewers who like the shoe still call it too expensive.
Reviewers say it feels unstable at slower paces, and eleven of seventy-three find it runs small.

Zoom Vaporfly 4% rates 99. This shoe has very high certainty. See how we rate shoes.

Better Shoes Rating of prior versions of the Nike Vaporfly

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

Rating

40 60 80 100

99 2017 100 2019 99 2021 99 2023 98 2025

Release year

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

Vaporfly 4

2025 · 3 reviews

98 Exceptional

91 Confidence
Vaporfly 3

2023 · 89 reviews

99 Exceptional

100 Confidence
ZoomX Vaporfly Next% 2

2021 · 49 reviews

99 Exceptional

99 Confidence
ZoomX Vaporfly Next%

2019 · 27 reviews

100 Exceptional

100 Confidence
Zoom Vaporfly 4% This shoe

2017 · 73 reviews

99 Exceptional

100 Confidence

Reader Ratings

73 ratings

5/5 55

4/5 16

3/5 0

2/5 0

1/5 2

See written reviews Write a review

Specs & fit

Sizing and ride details at a glance.

Weight: 6.9 oz
Release: 2017 Q3
MSRP: $250
Stack Height: 39mm heel - 29mm toe
Drop Height: 10mm

Runner reviews

Write a review

I don't see what all the hype is about

4/5

Overall

I'll be honest--I went into this purchase with high expectations. Talk about PR this, super fast training paces that, world records left and right on the home page in Vaporflys. I used it for training, long runs, then two half marathons. I did not notice anything significantly different in my paces, fatigue or performance. It's a great looking shoe and walking around, is very comfortable. It has a very unique feel to it--like walking on a squishy surface, almost bounce house type feel. Very strange. It's loud when running, but basically feels like a normal shoe. I didn't feel the carbon plate as people were saying I would. And, after about 25 miles, the foam in the heel literally started to chip away and fall off. Overall it's ok.. a good shoe, but I don't see what the hype is about. For $250.. yeah, not worth it. Maybe half the price.

Anonymous runner · Jan 24, 2019

55 mpw training for a marathon came from the Nike LunaRacer 4

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

4%

5/5

Overall

Great choice for a racing shoe at any distance, even 5k. There are lighter shoes out there, but nothing will match the responsiveness and the cushioning. The flyknit is very comfortable but makes it hard to tie the shoe and really lock it down.

Anonymous runner · Dec 9, 2018

2 mpw training for a half marathon came from the HOKA Tracer 2

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

Loving these Vaporflys!

5/5

Overall

Just wore these for the first time for a 7 mile marathon pace run, averaging 6:10 pace. Had high expectations for these shoes, based on friends who have already worn theirs. I was not disappointed. Within the first 10 yards of my run, these shoes felt exceptional. The first mile was downhill, and I could feel a lot of cushioning and springiness for each step. These shoes are fast, and it was hard to dial the goal pace in because they want to go so fast. I was very impressed with how each footstrike was cushioned, yet also provided a nice push off from my toe-off. I could see how these shoes could save your quads during a long downhill race like Boston. And perhaps also allow for faster recovery after tough tempo runs. Although the shoes don't look or feel stable when walking in them, they are very stable for me when running at race pace. When your foot plants, it seems to sink in a bit into the cushioning, where it finds a stable position. Then the cushioning does spring your foot back at the right time at toe-off. I had trouble wiping the smile off my face for the first two miles of this run. I was that impressed -- more so than I've ever been for a running shoe. After my run, I took the shoes off and put on my Zantes for a cooldown. The Zantes are my former favorite shoe, but the contrast was huge. I took a few steps and it was like I was suddenly running barefoot on concrete. Not at all comfortable compared to the shoes I just had on. These shoes make me want to buy a second pair so I can do my faster workouts in one and then race in the other. Although I've only run 8.5 miles total in them, they already are showing some wear towards the outside and back of the soles. Mostly cosmetic at this point, like some paint rubbing off, but I'd be surprised if I can get 200 miles out of these before they lose their new shoe magic. But if you can afford them and need a little help getting that PR, these are totally worth it. I normally wear 10s, but ordered a pair of 10s that were a bit too tight on my pinky toes. These are a little on the narrow side. So I sized up to 10.5 with another order and these fit just fine now. My feet are probably a tiny bit wider at the toes than average.

Anonymous runner · Nov 11, 2018

75 mpw training for a marathon came from the New Balance Fresh Foam Zante v3

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

Best Running shoe ever made commercially available

5/5

Overall

Ive tried this shoe out and it is the baseline for what I am writing my reviews on. This shoe IS THE 10 and the only shoe I will give a 10 star review. This is the best shoe you can buy.

dbsquirtNXC21 · Oct 2, 2018

40 mpw training for a half marathon came from the Nike Air Zoom Pegasus 33

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

The best racing shoe

5/5

Overall

Despite the high price these are worth the money. The only downside is that, like a lot of recent Nike shoes, there are seams inside the heel which can give problems when wearing them without socks. The upside is that they definitely make a performance difference and the legs feel fresher than after a race or workout in any other racing shoes.

Anonymous runner · Oct 1, 2018

60 mpw training for a marathon came from the Nike Air Zoom Streak 5

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

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Nike Zoom Vaporfly 4%

Exceptional