Running Shoes: As the Price Goes Up, Satisfaction Goes Down

Buying premium-priced running shows doesn’t necessarily bring a premium in satisfaction. In fact, the more people spend, the less happy they are, according to a new study of consumers.

The study, by show comparison site RunRepeat.com, looked at 134,867 reviews of 391 different running shoes from 24 brands.

One key takeaway: The higher the list price of the shoes, the lower ratings the running shoes get.

In fact, the 10 most expensive running shoes (avg. list price: $181) are rated 8.1% worse than the 10 cheapest running shoes (avg. list price: $61), RunRepeat.com said.

People who bought shoes from brands that specialize in running rate their shoes 2.8% higher than those who bought from general sports brands did.

Among brands, the three most affordable are #1 Skechers, #2 Vivobarefoot and #3 Puma, while the three most expensive brands are #22 On, #23 Newton and #24 Hoka One One.

Some of this could be explained by people having higher expectations when they spend more. But some of it is surely do to the higher mark-ups some brands get away with.

When it comes to athletic shoes in general, you don’t always get what you pay for – unless you’re content to pay more for a specific logo.