Basketball shoes vs running shoes: what’s the difference?

If you are into sports and fitness, you have probably wondered “basketball shoes vs running shoes”, what are the differences?

Crucially, as discussed in our guide to whether basketball shoes are good for running, choosing the right shoes for your particular sport is key to avoiding injury and for comfort.

That being said, we’ve put together this guide to walk you through some of the similarities and differences between each one and give our take on which one is the best.

Let’s start …

Basketball shoes vs running shoes price

First of all, it should be noted that the price of basketball shoes and running sneakers varies from brand to brand depending on the built-in technology and the materials used.

That being said, you can buy a pair of mid-level running shoes suitable for beginners like these. Brooks revel 5is featured in our best running shoes list, cheaper than you can a pair of midrange basketball shoes like the adidas Dame 7‘s.

However, in either case if you look at some of the newer and more advanced models like these adidas 4DFWD‘s, you may end up spending a bit more money depending on your size.

Generally speaking, however, you will likely find that most running shoes are slightly cheaper than basketball sneakers, which is probably not surprising given that basketball shoes tend to use more. of materials.

Basketball shoes vs running shoes – Lightweight

Either way, the best manufacturers in each sport generally try to design their shoes as light as possible to maximize athletic performance.

A 2018 study in basketball shoes found wearing lighter sneakers had a 2.1% and 1.6% positive effect on jumping and sprinting, which is one of the reasons you will find a lot of sports shoes. basketball, like the Jordan XXXVIis featured in our best basketball shoes listing, are made from woven fabric.

However, we believe that you are more likely to find running shoes that are lighter in weight than basketball sneakers, for example, a pair of Nike Air Zoom Alphafly Next%‘s weighs only 210g, while adidas Harden Vol. 5‘s, designed primarily for agile leaders, weighs more than double at 460g.

Basketball shoes vs running shoes – Comfort

In terms of comfort, it’s mostly about getting the right fit that we already talked about in our article “How Should Basketball Shoes Fit?” ” to guide.

We mention, to maximize comfort, Clarks recommend leaving a space of about a finger between your longest toe and the end of your shoe, which can also be applied to running shoes.

Running shoes also usually have a lot of cushioning in the soles, which arguably makes them more comfortable as they absorb as much shock as possible with each stride.

Nonetheless, basketball shoes will also include a lot of cushioning like Zoom Air technology to distribute force when landing from a jump, however, they also tend to be quite stiff in order to protect your ankles.

Basketball shoes vs running shoes: what’s the difference?

Overall, we believe that you are likely to get the best athletic performance from shoes designed for the sport in question.

For example, a Morgan Stanley Report 2017 estimates that Nike has invested around $ 2.5 billion in the overall research and development of its basketball shoes over a 5 year period, therefore, it can be assumed that its sneakers will be as finely tuned as possible to be the best possible to play.

In terms of everyday use, as mentioned in our guide “Are basketball shoes comfortable”, we believe that running shoes may be more suitable as they are generally lighter and designed for movement towards the back. before which is more akin to the typical movements of everyday life.

However, if you check out our guide “Are basketball shoes good for the gym?” We note that while they may not be the best for running, basketball sneakers may be suitable for weight lifting.