The Adidas Ultraboost 5 and the Adidas Adizero EVO SL wear the same logo but don’t live in the same world. The Ultraboost is the Adidas icon, straddling running and lifestyle, built for everyday comfort. The EVO SL comes from the Adizero range, the racing-shoe line, and is clearly geared toward performance.
The gap shows up first on the scale: the EVO SL is more than 60 g / 2.1 oz lighter. It also rides on a more modern geometry, with a 6.5 mm drop versus 10 mm for the Ultraboost 5, which is more conventional and heel-strike oriented.
The foams don’t play in the same league, and it needs saying plainly: the Ultraboost’s Light BOOST is a sturdy, comfortable TPU foam, but its energy return is a long way off modern foams. It’s an aging technology that struggles to keep up with the EVO SL’s Lightstrike Pro. And for good reason: it’s the Adidas racing foam, the one in the Adios Pro, lighter and noticeably more responsive. For speed and a responsive ride, the technological edge is clear.
The Ultraboost 5 keeps its strengths: a very comfortable “second skin” Primeknit upper, a Continental outsole with formidable grip, and very good durability. It’s a perfect shoe for easy endurance training, but its responsiveness falls short and it’s less at home as soon as the pace picks up. The EVO SL can do it all and shows up at fast paces, even if most runners cap it at the half marathon.
The budget drives the point home: the Ultraboost 5 costs about $40 more, yet it’s the EVO SL that delivers the better ride feel.
Ultraboost 5 or EVO SL: which should you choose?
In our view, the choice is easy: the EVO SL (9.3/10) is lighter, more responsive, and cheaper. It’s the one we recommend to all runners, to handle everything in training and even shorter races up to the half.
The Ultraboost 5 (9.2/10) remains a safe bet, but it leans more and more toward lifestyle and less and less toward pure running. It’s a good-looking shoe, but if running is the main use, there are plenty of more compelling alternatives, this EVO SL among them.
