Altra Experience Flow 2 Review: Find Your Flow

All shoes are reviewed by the Fleet Feet tester team, which represents a wide variety of goals, foot shapes, running locations and terrains. Reviewers pound the pavement, climb the hills, tackle the trails, then come together to compare notes. Debates ensue over the feel of the cushioning, the purpose of the shoe, and how it compares to last year’s model. While each reviewer has their own individual preferences, we hope that capturing our debates will help you make an informed decision.

There’s a moment on the very best runs when the noise fades, your breath syncs with your stride, and everything just clicks. That’s the flow state—a feeling of being completely present, where effort turns into ease and the miles seem to melt away.

It might not happen on every run, but Altra aims to deliver the flow experience right to your feet with the new Experience Flow 2, available June 1. With a focus on both comfort and performance, the latest iteration of the Experience Flow sports a new midsole compound, an updated heel counter and a brand-new upper. Altra loyalists, fear not–the shoe still delivers the same roomy toebox.

Tom and Travis, two diehard Altra fans, tested the Experience Flow 2 to see how it fits, feels and performs. Here’s what they thought.

The heart and sole of Altra’s road running line is their EGO™ midsole material, and the Experience Flow 2 has been upgraded with EGO™ P35 foam. Alex Lind, Altra’s Product Director, told us in an interview that this new compound makes the Flow 2 feel lighter, more responsive and more cushioned than the previous version.

“The moment you step into it, you’re going to notice how soft it is but also how much life there is in the midsole,” he says.

Tom wasn’t present for that interview, but he seemed to echo Alex’s sentiments exactly.

“The first thing I noticed when I stepped into the Experience Flow 2 was how soft and light they felt,” he says. “Altra’s midsole foams have always seemed a bit unremarkable to me in the past, but this new foam seems like a big improvement. The combination of the shoe’s softer cushioning and rolling sensation made them fun to run in at all different paces.”

The shoe’s 4-millimeter heel-to-toe drop (the difference in height between your heel and forefoot) and a gentle rocker shape create that rolling sensation Tom mentioned. In the past, Altra’s running shoes have been strictly zero-drop (a zero-millimeter offset), but they began offering 4-millimeter offset shoes in 2023 as a way to help more consumers enjoy Altra.

“I love that the Flow 2 has the 4-millimeter drop with the rocker, and the rocker is still fairly flexible. I still get that natural feel that I really enjoy in Altra shoes,” Travis says. “I did an 8-mile run on a pretty flat rail trail last week and I was splitting 6:25 miles at the start with 6:10-ish miles towards the end with relative ease. For a daily trainer, it feels very smooth.”

Editor’s note: If you’re a mere mortal (like me) who won’t be running 6-minute miles with ease, you can still enjoy the Flow 2.

While both Tom and Travis agree that the Flow 2 is softer than the previous version, it’s not too soft. After all, no one wants to feel like they’re running with pillows underfoot.

“As I’ve been trying to navigate an IT band/knee injury, I’ve been enjoying shoes that have a little more firmness and guidance to them,” he says. “The Experience Flow 2 is a hit! It has a moderate amount of cushioning with a great blend of comfort and responsiveness. This absorbs the impact of the hard road surface, but isn’t so soft that it irritates my knee.”

The Altra Experience Flow 2 uses Altra’s Standard FootShape™ Fit, providing a generous amount of toe space. Altra running shoes offer one of three different FootShape™ Fits–Original, Standard and Slim. The Original is the roomiest of all three options, while the Slim is the narrowest. The Torin features a Standard FootShape™ Fit, which falls in the middle.

“I’m an Altra fan-boy and love the extra space that Altra shoes give me in the toe box,” says Tom. “The gusseted tongue did a nice job keeping my midfoot secure and locked in—I think even runners with medium or narrow feet will find that they can get a secure fit that doesn’t feel too sloppy or roomy. And once you experience how nice it feels to give your piggies some extra wiggle room, you might never go back to narrow toe-boxes.”

“The fit of the Flow 2 is on the money!” Travis agrees. “The last version felt a tad narrow for what I’d normally expect from an Altra shoe, but this one seems to feel more accommodating in the toe box. With that said, the midfoot still felt pretty locked down.”

The main updates to the Flow 2’s upper are the incorporation of a sandwich-mesh material that adds breathability and an updated heel counter, which Tom and Travis both had small issues with.

“The heel counter seems almost too shallow,” Travis says. “It took a couple of runs for me to get the lacing right so it felt like I wasn’t going to slip out of the heel. But after a couple of runs, it felt perfect.”

“I’m not a fan of flared heel counters. While they look cool and perform fine with running shorts, whenever I want to go for a quick walk or run in colder weather, I find that my pant legs get sucked into the back of the shoe and cause rubbing and blisters,” says Tom, who resides in upstate New York, making cold weather runs part of his normal routine.

Other than that, the Flow 2 fits perfectly and feels true to size. Not sure about the size or shape of your feet? Your best bet will be to head into your local Fleet Feet. Fleet Feet outfitters use 3D fit id® foot scanning technology to gather information about your feet and the support they need by taking precise measurements of your foot length, width and arch height, so you can learn a lot about your feet while you’re there.

The biggest story of the Altra Experience Flow 2 is the new EGO™ P35 foam and the lighter weight that comes with it. It’s about a quarter ounce lighter for both men’s and women’s models, helping it feel more energetic and smooth on the run.

“While the Flow 2 isn’t dramatically different from the original Experience Flow, there are definitely some enhancements,” Travis says. “First, the cushioning is a bit softer and slightly more energetic. There is a tad more outsole rubber coverage in the heel of the Flow 2, but the weight of the shoe has gone down. One thing I didn’t like in the first version was how long the laces were. I had to routinely triple or quadruple knot those laces. The laces in the second version are a much more appropriate length.”

If you enjoyed the first version of the Experience Flow, chances are high you’ll like the second version, too.

We took a look at some comparable shoes to see how they stack up against the Experience Flow 2. Here’s what we found.

The Altra Experience Flow 2, On Cloudsurfer 2 and Karhu Mestari Run 1.5 all fall into the “moderately cushioned” category, with heel stack heights (the distance between the ground and your feet) ranging from 30 to 33 millimeters. All three shoes offer a smooth ride, with soft cushioning and gentle rocker shapes.

The Experience Flow 2 is clearly the lightest of the bunch, which will be important for runners seeking to prioritize weight savings.

Looking for a lightweight, versatile option for training? The Experience Flow 2 might be your perfect fit. It has enough cushioning to go the distance and a midsole blend that feels both soft and responsive. While it may not have any high-tech features to give you a speed advantage (check out the Altra Vanish Carbon 2 if you’re looking for a carbon plate), its lightness certainly helps you feel quick and nimble on your feet.

“The Flow 2 delivers comfort for longer runs and has enough energy to pick up the pace for certain workouts,” Travis says. “If you have wider feet or just enjoy a little bit more room in the toe box, this shoe is a great option. And with that said, it still fits really well for my slightly narrower feet.”