The Clifton is Hoka’s most notable shoe. It was one of the first super light, and extremely cushioned shoes to go main stream. Throughout the years, the Hoka Clifton has had its ups and downs, but now it’s back to being a crowd favorite and is even expanding its lineup.
I made a more detailed video a couple of years ago about the evolution of the Clifton, but let's do a quick recap and include the newest Cliftons
With the Clifton 1-3 these midsoles were super soft, and the shoes were very light for how much cushioning they had. Though they did gain weight and more substantial upper as the evolved, and had a squished toe-box, most people really enjoyed the first 3 Cliftons, but especially the first.
The Clifton 1 was ground breaking with a simple upper, thick squishy midsole, and at such a light weight. People used this as both an everyday trainer and a marathon racer.
With the Clifton 2, Hoka added more durability and padding to the upper, some say the midsole was a tad firmer, but it definitely still a narrow toe box. It also gained a lot of weight from the first iteration.
The Clifton 3 added even more weight thanks to a very stiff and padded upper. The midsole was still soft, but a not quite the same as the first generation. They widened the forefoot by a few millimetres, but the volume of the shoe still wasn’t very spacious. This shoe marked the end of the plush era of Clifton.
The Hoka Napali was a spin off of the Clifton 3 which kept the same midsole and outsole, but simplified the upper.
With the Clifton 4 and 5, Hoka wanted to turn the Clifton into an even more durable daily trainer. By doing this they made the midsole very stiff and firm, nothing like the first three, and they added a lot of weight. Let's just say hardcore Clifton fans were not happy.
The soft Cliftons of the past were forgotten. In their place were firm, stiff shoes that barely resembled what made the Clifton so popular.
The fourth Clifton was a complete remake. It was changed to be oriented as a more durable everyday trainer. By doing this they added a lot more weight, and they made the midsole a lot firmer. The volume of the shoe increased and the toe box was more foot shaped which helped improve the fit.
The Clifton 5 was the same as the 4 but with a more simplified upper. This reduced the number of overlays, but the shoe was still stiff and heavy.
Luckily the Clifton 6 and 7 have brought the Clifton back to its marshmallowy glory. They shed some weight from the Clifton 5, and they're a lot softer and spongier. The Clifton 6 honestly may be my favorite Clifton. The toe-box has enough room, the upper is comfortable, the cushion is amazing, and it has a good amount of rubber on the outsole. I'm glad they didn't change too much with the Clifton 7, and just tweaked the upper.
The Clifton Edge on the other hand, is quite the shakeup for the Clifton line. This is a brand new model the kinda looks like a mix between the Elevon and the Clifton and brings a new take to the Clifton.
The upper is similar the Clifton 7, but a little more stripped back, and has a thin tongue instead of a padded one. The padding around the Achilles fin is also different making shedding some bulk.
The midsole uses two different foams. The main foam is a compression molded EVA which gives the shoe a bit of spring, and the outsole is rubberized foam like what you'll find on the Mach. These combinations of foams are supposed to help make the shoe a bit livelier and easier to go faster than it is in the Clifton 7, where you kinda sink in a little. The firmer ride mixed with the more aggresive rocker makes this shoe snappier than the Rincon even.
The Clifton 6 returned to being spongy, like a fresh marshmallow, not stale a stiff marshmallow like the 4 and 5. The Clifton 6 also lost some weight. The upper is even more simplified but still locks you in and gives your forefoot some room. The midsole had the bounce that was missing from the last two Cliftons, and the coverage of rubber on the outsole helped add durability and grip.
The midsole and outsole of the Clifton 7 are the exact same as the 6, but the upper is where you’ll see the changes. It is simplified by loosing the embroidered mid-foot cage and it gets the addition of a “vertical pull tab” aka an Achilles fin that can found on many Nike and New Balance shoes.
Like I mentioned above, the Clifton Edge has a simplier and less padded upper, but is very similar to the Clifton 7. The midsole uses a compresed EVA to add some softness, but has the rubberized EVA on the bottom to add some extra firmness and responsiveness.
The Rincon is essentially the Clifton Lite. It has the same stack height as the Clifton, but is a bit firmer overall and is a lot lighter (7.7oz).
Today Hoka essentially has 3 Clifton Models. I’m considering the Rincon a Clifton because it’s so closely related and shares a lot of the DNA.
So I use the Rincon 2 for uptempo training runs and long tempo days, the Clifton 7 for everyday training, recovery, and long runs, and now the Clifton Edge can be used for both; enough cushion for recovery days, but responsive enough for workouts.
We'll see what happens to the Clifton family in 2021, but for this year, I'm pretty happy with the outcome. To see my video talking about this click here.