Saucony Endorphin Azura Review: Fun, fast & cushioned

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.

Take one look at the new Saucony Endorphin Azura and you know it’s going to deliver a good time. With a thick stack of midsole foam, a rocker shape and a beautiful, bright colorway, this shoe looks like it’s meant to be the star of your local run club. You know, the weekly get-together where you wear your best gear in the hopes someone will stop you and say, “Hey, what shoes are those?!”

We put this brand-new Saucony model, available February 1, to the test to see if it feels as good as it looks. Read on to find out.

The Saucony Endorphin Azura is built on a thick stack of Saucony’s proprietary PWRRUN PB midsole foam — a beaded, PEBA-based foam known for its responsive and lightweight properties. It’s used in the snappy Saucony Endorphin Speed 5.

Reviewers noticed that, while the foam feels relatively firm, it provides a nice bounce underfoot.

“The Azura is super fun to run in,” says Kate. “I love the pronounced rocker shape. The foam feels stiff, which is part of what makes it feel fast. It’s quick and poppy, and plenty stable. I did a workout in this shoe, and it helped me get into the groove with my 3-min quick repeats.”

While this shoe doesn’t have a plate, which sets it apart from its counterparts in Saucony’s Endorphin line, it has a very pronounced rocker shape and toe spring — the degree of upward curvature under your toes — to create a propulsive ride.

“This shoe is an absolute blast to run in,” says Mason. “It’s got that signature snappy toe-off that Saucony fans love from the Endorphin line, yet it manages to feel incredibly smooth and balanced across a wide range of paces. During my long run, I eased into the early miles at a steady pace, and the Azura felt stable and composed. Once I started to make the pace a little hotter during the later miles, it was really when the shoe came alive. I found that the miles kept clicking along and getting faster throughout the run. As the fatigue started to creep in a little bit, this shoe kept pushing me forward. Time truly does fly when you are having fun running.”

Mason even trusted the Azura enough to take it on a 17-mile long run right out of the box — something I usually wouldn’t advise with any new shoe, but it worked out perfectly.

However, Tom didn’t have the same smooth experience.

“Holy toe spring, Batman! This shoe has a serious drop off at the toe that really helps create a quick turnover. Combined with the tall stack height, however, it left me feeling a little uneasy over anything that wasn’t flat ground,” he says. “I tried running at slower paces with this shoe but it felt most natural during my faster efforts. The midsole is peppy and lightweight, but I felt like I had zero ground-feel running in these because of its stack height and aggressive geometry. It was difficult to anticipate when my foot would strike the ground and I had to really focus on creating soft landings. As a result, my ankles and knees were a little achey after my runs.”

While the Azura wasn’t the shoe for Tom, that doesn’t mean it won’t be the shoe for you. How your body responds to the features Tom mentioned, like the shoe’s stack height (the difference in height between your feet and the ground) and toe spring, are determined by your individual biomechanics and, of course, personal preferences. If you needed another reason to head into your local Fleet Feet and try on the Endorphin Azura in-person, this is your sign!

The Endorphin Azura boasts a streamlined, race-like fit, meaning it fits a bit more snug than your traditional upper. This is done to minimize any excess movement within the shoes as you run, helping you stay as efficient as possible. While function is the name of the game, you don’t have to sacrifice comfort with this shoe.

“The upper felt dialed-in from the moment I laced up,” Mason says. “It’s supportive where it needs to be, and lightweight in the right places. The heel collar is fairly stiff and supportive, yet padded just enough to stay very comfortable with zero irritation. The tongue design is another win. It’s nice and thin to keep things lightweight, but Saucony added just the right bit of padding beneath the laces to reduce any pressure points. A small detail, but it gets a big thumbs up from me!”

However, Mason found the way the toe box tapers inwards to be a bit too snug, experiencing some slight rubbing at the end of his long runs.

But Tom, who wasn’t sold on the ride of the shoe, experienced a perfect fit in the upper.

“The Azura is not a wide-fitting shoe by any means, but I didn’t have any discomfort during longer runs even though I tend to lean towards more spacious fits,” he says. “I appreciate the overlays along the side of the foot and heel that give the upper a little extra structure for daily training.”

Kate and I both found the Azura to fit true to size as well, but it’s worth noting that the Azura is not available in wide widths (D for women, 2E for men). Whether or not you’ll find your perfect fit in the Endorphin Azura comes down to the shape of your unique 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, helping you find your perfect fit.

The Endorphin Azura is the first of its kind, but I wanted to compare it side-by-side to another bestseller in what Saucony calls their “Fast & Light” collection, the Endorphin Speed 5:

While the Endorphin Azura and Endorphin Speed 5 may look similar in weight, stack height and heel-to-toe drop, they deliver two distinct experiences.

The Speed 5 is built for runners who want a fast, snappy shoe for speedwork and races. A full-length nylon plate embedded in the PEBA-based PWRRUN PB midsole foam creates a highly responsive ride that’s perfect for picking up the pace.

The Azura is built with the same PEBA-based PWRRUN PB midsole foam, but its lack of a plate makes it feel softer. It also has more foam underfoot for a more cushioned ride. I noticed that the Azura has a more distinct rocker shape than the Speed 5, which was interesting since the rest of its features trend more towards comfort and fun as opposed to the performance-oriented features of the Speed 5.

While both options are incredibly versatile (I’ve done long, easy runs in the Endorphin Speed and would certainly feel comfortable doing speedwork in the Azura), if you had to choose between the two I’d recommend the Speed 5 for hitting your target splits, and the Azura for fun miles when you still want to keep things moving but aren’t married to a certain pace.

We took a look at some comparable models to see how the Saucony Endorphin Azura stacks up. Here’s what we found:

The Saucony Endorphin Azura, the ASICS Novablast 5 and the New Balance Rebel v5 all deliver a fun, springy experience for just about any type of run. While they don’t offer nylon or carbon plates embedded in their midsoles, they all use resilient, high-performance foams to return energy with each stride.

When comparing the three, I found the Azura and the Rebel to feel slightly firmer than the Novablast. The Rebel is the clear winner when it comes to lightness, but the Azura has the most pronounced rocker shape of the three shoes, which will definitely come in handy when aiming for quick heel-to-toe transitions.

The Saucony Endorphin Azura sits somewhere in between a classic daily trainer and a plated speedwork shoe, which is what makes it so versatile.

“I’d recommend the Azura to people who love a quick, energetic, high-cushion trainer for races or regular training,” says Kate. “I really liked the thick, peppy cushion, the curved shape, the propulsive feel and the fact that the shoe still feels comfortable to run in at different paces.”

At $150, a shoe this versatile is an amazing value, as our reviewers noted.

“I had to double check the price at first because I didn’t believe it was only $150,” says Tom. “I would recommend the Azura to intermediate to advanced runners who are getting more serious about hitting faster paces and PRs. It’s a great introduction to a “super shoe,” without the super price. It’s durable enough to log your daily training and long miles in, but will look and feel right at home toeing the starting line of a race.”