The Adizero Adios Pro 5 Is the Fastest Adidas Racing Shoe You Can Actually Buy

When Sabastian Sawe became the first official runner to break 2 hours in a marathon in an actual race, he was shod with Adidas’s latest $500 race rocket, the Adizero Adios Pro Evo 3. That shoe is incredibly fast, incredibly lightweight, and incredibly hard to get your hands on.Today, Adidas released the next best thing: The Adizero Adios Pro 5. It’s the evolution of the brand’s best racing shoe, with learnings from the pricier Pro Evo 3. This time around, it’s lighter and uses a new carbon rim setup instead of rods. We got to test the shoe ahead of the announcement and have put it through some fast-paced workouts to see how it performs.ProsCarbon rim proves stable and snappyThe midsole feels firmer but is plenty softUpper tweaks may help improve the fit for those who found the Pro 4 ran smallConsArch is still quite narrow and could cause blisters for runners with wide feetKey SpecsWeight6.1 oz (M9), 5.3 oz (W7)Drop4 mmHeel stack height39 mmCan an Already Great Shoe Get Better?Such is the nature of the beast that shoe companies must keep finding ways to change things up every 18 months or so. But, the Adios Pro 4 was an outstanding racer, so it didn’t really need a radical overhaul—just a nip here and tuck there. And it seems that’s mostly what Adidas did. It’s worth noting that we saw much the same situation with the recently announced Nike Alphafly 4. For that shoe, online commenters grumbled that it’s really just the Alphafly 3.1. But it had small tweaks that really improved on the formula. The same goes here.The biggest improvement: weight. The Adios Pro has been on a diet the last few generations. My size 12 weighs just 7.3 oz, which is an ounce lighter than v4—and that shoe was a full ounce lighter than the previous model. The trimming puts the Adios Pro 5 right where it needs to be, on par with shoes like the Puma Fast-R 3, Asics MetaSpeed Sky/Edge, and Nike Vaporfly 4. There’s enough meat to the shoe to ensure long run support and durability, but no fat to slow it down.Winston ZhouThe Adios Pro 5 delivers an excellent balance of cushioning and speed.The foam underfoot is Lightstrike Pro, but it feels ever-so-slightly firmer once you actually get running. I loved the underfoot feeling of the previous model—I could effortlessly jog a 20-miler or crank things up and run a sub-3 marathon. That’s rare versatility. The Pro 5 feels similarly suited; it has plenty of comfort, but has just a little more snap to it.Straight out of the box, I took the shoe for a 9-mile jog and it felt just as cushy as any of my daily trainers. The next morning, I met up with a buddy, hanging on for dear life as he crushed 6 x 2K. I modified my run to 5 x 1 mile at 5:45 pace with a ¼ mile recovery and I still got dropped! But the shoe was a hit. I loved that I could feel the foam compress and load up with each footstrike, yet feel bouncy and responsive at toe off. These shoes wanted more than my legs could give.Jeff DengateThe Adios Pro 5 runs true to size.Part of that comfy-yet-snappy sensation could be because Adidas filled in the gap under the arch and back half of the shoe. Previously, there was a window there that showed off the carbon rods, which also created a little wobble at mid-stance. With that extra foam making contact with the road, combined with the carbon rim (next section), the shoe seems better planted and stable as I work through my stride.Adidas is using a carbon rim, leaving more bouncy foam directly under your foot.Carbon Rods → RimAs I mentioned, gone is the hole under the arch, and so, too, the carbon rods. Here, Adidas opted to leverage the tech it employed in the $500 racer—a ring of carbon runs around the perimeter of the shoe. The stiffening element boosts stability at the edges, so you’re not collapsing that soft foam too much, while still allowing you to smash into nothing but high-powered foam with every landing and take-off. That rim is thicker under the arch, though, to help keep you from toppling.Adidas reports that the 12.5 percent weight savings, plus the efficiencies from the foam and carbon rim gives the shoe 9 percent better energy return compared to the Adios Pro 4.Winston ZhouThe midsole has been filled in under the arch and the carbon rim is thicker there, boosting stability.The only beef I have with the rim is the same with any plate that extends to the medial edge of the shoe: It hurts like hell when you kick your own ankle. I know, I know...I should do strengthening drills and improve my form. But, for now, I’ll just wince and deal with it.Arch Blisters Are Still a PossibilitySorry to report, folks, that the general geometry of the shoe hasn’t changed. The fit is still snug and racy. The length might be just a smidge longer, which some will appreciate. In the Pro 4, I was extremely close to the tip of the shoe in my normal size. It was short enough that I got my second-ever black toenail in 40 years of running, after a spirited 23-miler with buddies where we ratcheted down the pace to finish with a 6-flat mile.The Pro 5, thankfully, feels more true to size. It’s not roomy—not by any stretch of the imagination—but I’m not jammed right to the end.News editor Theo Kahler was a fan of the Pro 4, too, and wore it when he placed 40th at last year’s NYC Marathon. He tested a pair of the Pro 5 during a 20-mile long run with 4 x 2-mile pickups at 5:10 pace(!) and agreed that the shoe feels true to size. “The Pro 5 felt great when I got up to speed, and my legs had more pop toward the later miles than I would have expected,” he said.Theo’s only problem is that he had to change into a pair of Nike Vomero for the last four easy miles because he developed a hot spot on his arch. “The hard part of the workout was over, anyway.” A lot of you are going to experience the same thing. That waist of the shoe is still exceptionally narrow. If you don’t have a narrow foot or a high arch, you’re gonna get bit.Winston ZhouThe shoe fits narrow through the midfoot.The rest of the fit, however, is a winner. The upper material now has little pinholes throughout, which might improve ventilation. The older ripstop-like material didn’t breathe particularly well, but really gave a secure hold. I find the same excellent lockdown from this new upper, and it feels a little softer and more flexible, too.The sockliner is basically identical to the previous version. Some runners noticed slippage from that on the Pro 4; I haven’t personally had any problem in either model because the upper locks me in so well. But, if you experienced any movement before, you’re likely to find the same experience in the v5.Winston ZhouC’mon! That bling is just a fun detail.Get Yours Just In Time for Your Fall MarathonHallelujah! A shoe that’s announced and available on the same day? Unheard of in 2026. It seems like we have to wait a month or more after brands get us all excited. But, the Adios Pro 5 is here and available globally now. It’s slated to be stocked at adidas.com and at select retailers.I’ve packed my pair in my carry-on bag as I head for Germany today. I’m lacing it up at the Berlin Marathon this weekend. This won’t be my A-race, as I plan to use it as a long training run to prep for the Philly Marathon two months from now. If I’m smart, I’ll run about 60 seconds slower than goal marathon pace. Then again, if I get frisky and run too fast…I’m blaming the shoe.Buy Men’s at adidas.com | Buy Women’s at adidas.comJeff is Runner-in-Chief for Runner’s World and the director of product testing. He has tested and reviewed running shoes, GPS watches, headphones, apparel, and more for nearly two decades. He regularly tests more than 100 pairs of shoes each year, and once had a 257-day streak running in different models. Jeff can usually be found on the roads, racing anything from the mile to a marathon, but he also enjoys racing up mountains and on snowshoes. When he’s not running, you’ll probably find him hanging from a ladder making repairs and renovations to his house (he’s also director of product testing for Popular Mechanics).