Hi people, welcome to The Run Testers and our head to head of the Saucony Endorphin Speed 4 vs the Endorphin Speed 3. The Saucony Endorphin Speed is a pretty hard act to follow. But the next-gen upgrade, Saucony Endorphin Speed 4 is here to attempt exactly that. With tweaked uppers, a re-engineered nylon plate but the same medium stack of PWRRUN PB foam, the updates are minor. So the big question is whether it’s worth paying full price for the new shoe or are you better off hunting deals on the old? We’re here to help you decide. Hit play to get into it in our Saucony Endorphin Speed 4 vs Endorphin Speed 3 review head to head.
JUMP STRAIGHT IN:
0:00 – Intro
0:38 – Details
1:31 – Shoe Comparison
3:09 – Fit
5:04: – The Run Test
13:15: – Verdict
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Hi people welcome to the Run testers and Our head-to-head of the sakon Endorphin Speed 4 versus the Endorphin Speed 3 now The sakon Endorphin Speed 3 set the Benchmark for plated Speedy daily Trainers and it's a pretty hard act to Follow but the next gen upgrade the Sakon Endorphin speed 4 is here to Attempt exactly that s has gone for Minor updates here with tweaked uppers a Re-engineered nylon plate but the same Medium stack of power run PB foam in the Midsole so considering you can find good Deals on the S endorphin Speed 3 right Now the big question is whether it's Worth paying the full price for this new Upgrade so let's get into our sakon and Dorphin speed 4 versus sakon and dorphin Speed 3 [Music] Review details then when it comes to Stack height there's no change here the Speed 3 and the speed 4 pack the same 36 Mil in the heel and 28 Ms in the 4 foot For an 8 mil drop on weight the speed 4 Weighs in marginally heavier than its Predecessor 8.6 o or 245 G in a US 9 a Half UK and a half tessu size the Endorphin Speed 3 tip the scales at 8.4 O or 237 G price-wise there's no change Here to these shoes in the us both shoes Launched at $170 but in the UK the price Of the speed 4 has jumped up from $165 To £80 that's at the top end of what you
Can expect to pay for a daily trainer However you can find cheaper deals Online for the Speed 3 for example it's Currently listed at $135 on the socony Site Let's give you a quick shoe whip round Then starting with the midsole now the Speed for midsole remains largely the Same you've still got the medium stack Of power run PB PBX foam that's working In tandem with a winged nylon plate and Socking his trademark speedroll rocket Shaping the nylon plate has been tweaked With an altered shape that sakon says Should add stability rigidity and 4ft Flexibility it also sits slightly lower In the midsole so there's more foam Directly under the foot now the midsole Heel kick back extends slightly further On the speed 4 and there's a little more Foam on the medial side of the Hill too So if you land further back you might Notice that giving added support and Protection plus there are some aesthetic Changes with some geometric cuts and Small cutouts on the underside for a Larger kind of central channel here on The speed 4 up top the speed 4 now has Zonal mesh uppers with a light and Airy Perforated design that's thicker than The mesh uppers that you had on the Speed 3 but both shoes though offer Plenty of room and flex in the toebox From those uppers there's slightly more
Padding in the heel colors of the speed 4 but you're going to get medium padding On both shoes the tongues of the speed 4 Are also more padded at the top here but They're now knitted and much more flimsy Pliable if we're being kind than the Speed three which had more structure to It and wrapped all the way down the foot Into the shoe now if you flip them both Over the outsole grip has been Overhauled here the Speed 3 had quite a Sparse cut of rub covering in the main Impact zones that had a tendency you can See here to sort of scuff up where there Was no protection in high wear areas the Speed 4 now has much more generous and Thicker covering of rubber with large Sections covering the whole foot and Some more in some of the Troublesome Heel Areas comes to the fit of the two shoes I've got a uk9 US 10 in both versions of The Endorphin speed and I think on Length they are both bang on for me they Do fit me well they've got a right Amount of length and room in the toe box Did have quite a lot of problems with The fit of the Endorphin Speed 3 uh we Talked about it when we reviewing it it Definitely has a wider fit to the Previous models of the shoe and I found A bit too wide for me you see how tight I' had to pull the laces there and I had A bit of heel slippage as well with the
Right shoe in particular I do think They've narrowed a fit very slightly With the Endorphin speed 4 I think it Still has quite a accommodating fit for Wide feet but I've not had so much Troubles with it in terms of it moving Around I've not had to heal lock the Endorphin speed 4 I think the Hill Designs a bit better and I haven't Really noticed my foot swimming around In it quite as much so yeah overall I Prefer the fit of the Endorphin speed 4 Slightly as I do have a narrow foot but I think they're both pretty Accommodating in terms of width and yeah I would stick to your normal running Shoe size so the for me in the speed Three and the speed 4 uh I'm in size Eight in the ukuk these are both size Eights um what I would say is I would Stick to my size in both these shoes I Found them both to be very comfortable But the big difference between them is That the upper in the speed three is a Little bit more roomy so if you got a Narrow foot you might notice that it Wasn't a problem for me I got very Average wise wide wi feet um and but I Did have to um tie in the laces a little Bit tighter than I would on the uh speed Four that's the biggest difference for Me um I found both be very comfortable Shoes had no issues at all so I'd stick To my sight in both of them now when it
Comes to fit I ran in my regular socony Size at uk8 and a half in both of these Shoes and I'd say the speed 4 is Marginally more snug than the speed 3 at The back of the toebox across the top of The midfoot in that area just behind the Big toe knuckle now the thicker uppers On the speed 4 also I think feel Slightly less flexible it's not a Problem but the speed three overall Feels marginally more roomy because of That beyond that the fit here is pretty Much identical and I'd recommend going True to sizing these Shoes now in testing I've covered more Than 12200 miles in two or three pairs Of the socon Endorphin Speed 3 this was The shoe that I used to run 67 marathons In 67 days across Europe so I have a Pretty special relationship with this Shoe for the speed 4 so far I've done More than 60 miles but I really want to Run more and that's always a good sign Now in both shoes I've covered Everything from slow and easy miles with 90 minutes or more time on feet right up To allout 5K Pace interval marathon Training sessions and that's also taking In roads and Light off-roads which is Always a good test for the durability And the stability I also did a side By-side Mile with one shoe on each foot To really tease out the differences now The most notable difference when you run
In both is that the extra foam in the Heel it puts a little more cushioning Into the rear of the shoe for a subtle Change to the ride and a mild sensation Of there being more shoe on the foot in The S and Dophin speed 4 it may also Afford more protection for heel Strikers Now speaking of protection the speed 4 Feels very very marginally softer and Less Direct than the speed 3 Runners who Wanted a bit more cushioning deeper into Long miles than the speed 3 offered Might find there's some minor Improvements here too but as a fan of More direct shoes I don't find that that Extra cushioning detracts from the ride Of the speed 4 either now I was a huge Fan of the Endorphin Speed 3 what I Loved about them so much was that they Felt balanced enough to run at almost Any Pace they had a disappearing Snappy Lightweight P ease to them a happy Balance of speed and protection and Comfort the Endorphin speed th I would Say delivers the same with the same Instant Comfort the moment you lace them Up and you're going to get that same Lively energetic ride that copes well I Think at almost any Pace like the speed Three the speed 4 offers Snappy Lightweight cushioned ease with a Midsole setup that responds the more you Put into it but also supports you if you Have to rock back and run a bit slow and
Take things a little bit easier when it Comes to comfort on the foot I'd say They're even and if we're spting hairs There's perhaps a little more room in The Speed 3 but if you wanted things More dialed in the speed 4 offers that Marginally kind of racier fit when it Comes to durability apart from a bit of Cutting up in the heels of the Speed 3 I Had no issues with durability overall on This the two shoes that I ran in across Europe both lasted but the changes to The outsoles here on the speed 4 look to Have beefed up that staying power in the Speed 4 I also think they offer better Grip than the speed 3 when things get Wet one change I'm less convinced about The new knitted tongues on the speed 4 Which feel much more kind of flimsy and Unstructured I'm concerned they might Not hold their shape longer into kind of Long miles in these shoes when you've Been running in them for two 300 400 Miles the speed three was a bit more No Nonsense same goes for the lacing strut Setup actually they've swapped in some Of these little kind of stitch style Loop tabs here lace eyelets that feel Less robust than these ones that you had On the Speed 3 I've been a fan of the Endorphin speed since the first Generation love the first two versions I Still like the Endorphin Speed 3 a lot In terms of its ride feel but the way it
Got a bit wider didn't suit me so well With a narrow foot I think the Endor Speed 4 it's you know you're getting a Lot of the very similar characteristics To endorphin Speed 3 here and that's a Good thing all around I think the ride Is terrific I think it's very versatile I think sakon has maybe widened the shoe A little bit compared to the Endorphin Speed 3 in terms of the base if not the Fit so you're getting a slightly larger Landing Zone around the hill and it Maybe feels a little bit softer there as A result but overall I found them very Comparable in the way they roll through And snap through when doing faster runs And I do find them very equally Comfortable when it comes to easy runs As well like running in Bow shoes at the Same time I maybe noticed a little bit Of soft extra softness at the back of The Endorphin speed 4 but in general I Thought they were very similar all Around and they are fantastic shoes They're very versatile shoes they're the Kind of shoes I love using in my Rotation when I'm doing marathon Training in particular because a lot of Daily training I will do will not just Be flat out easy I'll often pick up the Pace slightly at the end of runs lots of Little mini progression runs lots of Steady runs at a decent pace for an hour Quite long runs and the Endorphin speed
4 is basically the perfect shoe for that Cuz it is comfortable it's very relaxed At easy run pace could do even recovery Runs in the shoes in these shoes and Then when you do start to pick up the Pace you get a little bit of punch from The plate it's quite a light and Nimble Shoe still I find and the foam in the Mid isn't the bounciest but it certainly Gives you enough pop to carry you Through those hard training runs and Yeah I found the performance very Similar between the two which to say I Really rate the performance of both of Them but on the run test the Endorphin Speed force fit has worked a little bit Better for me so probably slightly Enjoyed that one a little bit more cuz I Wasn't messing around with really Tightening the laces or heel locking one Of the shoes and that kind of thing but Overall you're getting a very versatile Shoe with these whichever one you opt For it's probably the most first stle Shoe on the market great for easy stuff Good for faster stuff can even look at Racing in it especially over longer Distances although you will get a step Up in performance if you look at a full Carbon racer and yeah I really enjoyed Using both the only other thing I think There's a little thing in the Endorphin Speed 4's favor I do think the grip is Slightly improved with this lce outside
I've been doing a lot of very wet Running in the Endorphin speed 4 and I Haven't really noticed any slippage Which the Endorphin Speed 3 occasionally Especially things like greasy tracks or Pavements or just a little Sheen of Water on them you get a little bit of Slippage uh with the outsole on the Three slightly Improvement there on the Dophin speed 4 but I wouldn't say it's a Gamechanging update still pretty minimal Outside so Speed 3 is a shoe that I used Quite a lot for um a lot of my training Especially during uh my last marathon in Berlin um and it's a fantastic shoe uh Really good uh allrounder um still very Good at picking up the pace and doing Faster reps in very comfortable at doing Easy easyish miles in not the comfy Issue for easy miles but still could do Them um just it's still one of the best All around daily trainings that you Could get up there with like the Haw and Mac 5 I've not tested the Mac 6 yet um Only thing I really noticed about this Shoe was that it was quite roomy um Wasn't an issue for me but I did feel Like it was a little bit less stable in The upper um than previous version of The shoe uh other than that I always Found it to be a solid comfortable shoe Uh that just continued the Fantastic Speed Line the uh sing dfin speed 4 much Of the same really um the major
Difference for me is that the upper is a Little bit more restrictive which will Be a big bonus to a lot of people who Didn't really like the slightly bigger Upper on the S DF Speed 3 the other Thing in it as well uh it does have a Redesigned upper that's meant to be I Think a bit more breathable or something I didn't really notice that at all I Think it's pretty much on a par with What we got from the Speed 3 absolutely Fine um and the I think the biggest Difference is probably slightly Redesigned plate in here um and I think I have noticed that on the Run not Massively I still think these shoes are Delivering pretty much exactly the same Thing when I'm out on the run I'm not Really noticing any major differences Apart from the fact that I think the soc Dorphin speed three just feels a little Bit softer and a little bit um more Natural when I running it not massively I i' pick either of these shoes I I Don't think I'd really notice a have a Major issue with wearing either of them For the sort of runs that I would pick These up for but I did notice that so I Do think there's a little bit of a Different feel from the design of the Plate in here um but not massively uh Other than that they it's very similar Shoe to this to the uh Speed 3 the Performance feels of the shoe are almost
Identical to me and I think it does Exactly the same job which is good Because it speed is the speed line has Consistently made some of the best um Daily training shoes since it launched Um and it shouldn't really change that Much there there a big risk to change This line um so little tweaks here and There I think are a good thing uh and That's all that has really been done for Me in this shoe um so I definitely yeah I think it's still a solid Improvement On the shoe and very much enjoying it The outsole uh has changed slightly Because um you have this new sort of let Ltis design on the outsole U as opposed To this covering that's um a little bit More vertical on the uh Speed 3 um both Been absolutely fine for me I've never Had never had any issues of grip on Either three shoes I run in on wet roads In Brighton quite a lot and both have Been absolutely fine but the new um Latis uh design is no issues at all Feels perfect to [Music] Me okay my verdict on these two shoes um They are much of a muchness in um many Respects I think they both deliver Pretty much the same thing um I would be Happy to wear both of these shoes for Any of the runs that I would use these For which would be anything from daily Miles I don't really go for these shoes
When it comes to proper easy miles I Want more cushioning I want more Softness but most daily runs both of These shoes are absolutely fine um I Think they've got the same level of Performance when you pick up the pace I Don't really think there's a massive Difference in the performance benefits Of these shoes um but for me the only Slight difference is um the Speed 3 just Feels a little bit more natural and Maybe slightly softer because of that um And maybe that the redesign plate has Ed That in the S dfin speed 4 um but Overall I would say that I because of The width of my feet I think that's Going to be an issue an issue that for Some people so if you do have narrow Feet you're probably going to want to Pick up the speed four over the speed Three um but I would say if you if That's not an issue just go for the Speed three if you can get it Considerably cheaper because there's not Any major differences for me in both of These shoes more than happy to wear Either of them um for the runs that I Would use them for overall I would say The nor Speed 3 and four are pretty Comparable in terms of the performance They deliver Under Foot soy hasn't Really done a massive update to the shoe With the change between these versions Which probably a good thing it's a very
Popular shoe very accommodating shoe Suits a wide range of Runners works well For a wide range of paces and the IND Dophin speed 4 does all of that as well As the indorfin speed three with I think A slightly improved fit and a slightly Improved grip from the outsole but I Don't think those improvements would add Up to me necessarily buying the new shoe At full whack when you could find the Endorphin Speed 3 for a lot less in s so So if that's your situation and you're Seeing the Endorphin Speed 3 pop up in Sales for a lot less than the new shoe I Would not hesitate to grab the older Shoe for sure I think they're very Similar all around in terms of Performance level but if you're looking At them at the same price or you can't Find the Endorphin Speed 3 anymore I Would say you can certainly go and grab The Endorphin speed 4 knowing you're Going to get more of the same in terms Of the high level of performance and Versatility that you expect from the Endorphin Speed Line verdict then and I Would say the sakon Endorphin speed 4 is Another great shoe it's got everything The Speed 3 offered but is it a better Shoe well maybe very marginally Depending on what your priorities are There is a subtle extra softness to it The fit is ever so slightly more Compact And racy the out soole durability and
Grip I think is a step on now in my Tests I found the ride energy and the Pace range of the speed 4 a good match For the Speed 3 these are both among the Best versatile do all daily trainers you Can buy right now in my opinion they'll Both cope with easy right up to race Pace for a really wide range of Runners The sub 245 Marathon gang might want Something lighter and punchier but for Most of us I think these shoes are going To do what you need them to do so should You buy the so and dorphin speed 4 or The Speed 3 well I'd say you can buy Either and not be disappointed but this Comes down to price rather than Performance right now if you can find a Good deal on the speed three I think You're going to get much the same ride Overall which makes it better value Today you have it that's been our head Today the soc endorphin speed 4 and the Speed 3 we hope you found it helpful if You have any questions hit us up in the Comments below if you've had the chance To run in one or both of these shoes let Us know your thoughts how did you find Them don't forget to like subscribe and Ring the bell to find out when more Great run testers videos land on the Channel if you want a full review of Both of these shoes I'm going to pop Those videos up on the channel now Otherwise it's been a real pleasure
Talking to you about the shoes and we Hope to see you again soon on the Run Testers happy running people
