Becoming a necessity in most runners’ rotation, are Hoka shoes good for flat feet?
Hoka divides their family into two categories, the Glide series and the Fly series. The Fly category is more of the faster, more responsive, and more performance shoes, whereas the Glide are more everyday comfort shoes like the Bondi.
Originally, when the Bondi started out, it was one of the cushiest most stack-height shoes.
So, with so many Hoka shoes out there, are Hokas good for flat-footed people?
Let’s find out…
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Are Hoka Shoes Good For Flat Feet?
If you’re looking for a quick answer, then yes. Some Hoka shoes are really good and they provide the support needed for flat feet.
But the best Hoka that I think is really great for flat feet is the Bondi.
So, what makes the Hoka Bondi a great shoe for flat-footed runners?
- They provide very good support, great stability, and great cushioning for flat feet and overpronation.
- They give unparalleled all-day comfort for flat-footed people standing all day even on concrete.
- They’re great for big guys working long shifts.
- They fit great, have a roomy toe box for toes to splay, which is great for wide flat feet.
- They’re recommended by most foot doctors for Plantar Fasciitis, bad knees, Achilles Tendonitis, Morton’s Neuroma, bad backs…
- They’re great for walking, jogging, running.
Related:
Hoka Bondi 7 Review
A lot of other shoe companies have caught up to kind of that max cushion. So, what makes the Bondi stand out?
One of the best things about the Bondi is the comfort.
Comfort
The Bondi is all about comfort. You feel it in your mattress, you feel it in your pillow, and now it’s in your shoes.
They’ve updated the upper and they’ve put this memory foam which actually molds to your foot really well when you’re out on the run.
Even though the upper is a little bit thicker than most of the other daily trainers we’ve been using, it’s breathable enough.
The Bondi is padded and everything is cush, which goes back to that person, heavier or lighter, that’s really wanting comfort when they run or walk, and it goes right down to that molded EVA midsole foam.
The Bondi has a 4mm drop and a giant slab of foam to run on with 36mm of stack height in the heel and 32mm in the forefoot. And good news for those who want to know, the Hoka Bondi is true to size.
Who is the Bondi for?
So, runners reach for the Bondi on days that they want to take it easy on their legs. The Bondi will absorb shock like no other shoe that I’ve ever tried. It’s really built to go easy and it helps you do that.
It’s a great shoe that you want to put on when you’re just waking up and you’re tired, you don’t know what shoe to put but you have to get out and run.
It’s also a lifesaver for your legs and knees if you’re ramping up the mileage and you don’t want any injury.
It’s not the lightest shoe so you’re not going to be super inclined to do speed days in it, but you can do it if you’re a bit strong and you really want to.
While the Bondi is super plush, surprisingly, it does have a little bit of response and bounce-back. It’s slight but it’s enough to make the ride enjoyable and you’re not going to feel like you’re in quicksand.
It’s not the kind of response that you’re going to get from the Saucony Endorphin Speed or even the Saucony Triumph, but the Bondi has a little something going on.
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Midsole
Hoka is using full-length EVA with a ton of midsole material under your foot. There’s no shortage of plushness or comfort, it is all here for you.
No only that but you also have this early stage meta rocker design which you’re definitely going to feel.
Basically, it’s a rocker technology that rolls you forward into your stride. When you have so much material underfoot, I think you really need this kind of rocker technology.
You don’t want to be lost in there and you don’t want it to be difficult to transition to your next stride.
Also, Hoka did bevel the heel a little bit meaning they curved it upward so your heel is not going to be dragging on the floor.
The Bondi feels so good and so enjoyable that people almost don’t care how tall it is and they want to wear it all the time.
The foam does feel a little bit denser than some other max cushion shoes, but you got a nice rebound when you’re out there running even when you pick up the pace a little bit.
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Ride
If you’re comparing the Bondi’s ride to the Clifton’s, I would say that the Bondi is certainly less flexible and stiffer because of all the midsole material underfoot.
While the Clifton does feel soft, the Bondi is a whole different ballgame. In the Clifton 7, you feel lower to the ground, but in the Bondi, you feel like your foot is in a plush tank.
There’s absolutely no ground feel in the Bondi, and if you’re looking for that, you’re not going to find it here.
Upper
The upper of the Bondi just screams comfort. Despite being thick, the engineered mesh is somewhat breathable.
You have some TPU overlays in the midfoot to give you extra structure and stability and an internal heel counter that provides a supportive and locked-in fit.
It’s definitely stiffer than the Clifton’s heel counter and I think that’s good because you need a little extra stability when you have this high of a platform.
While maybe not as soft and thin as the Clifton, the upper is just so comfortable.
Another thing that adds to this comfort that I have never experienced in another Hoka before is there’s memory foam around the ankle collar.
It’s sort of like a Tempurpedic pillow back there. If you don’t want that on your recovery day, what do you want?
The laces are thin, a little stretchy, and they stay tied with no issues there. The tongue is padded and very comfortable. It’s not gusseted but you won’t have any problems with it.
With this comfortable upper, you’ll have no issues with blisters, hot spots, or irritation. It feels good no matter the day and no matter what sock you are wearing.
Is it the most breathable upper in the world?
No. But that does not mean Hoka does not know how to make a breathable upper. They understand that the people who are wearing the Bondi want comfort, they want plush, and they want easy and that’s exactly what this upper delivers.
And that’s also what the midsole delivers….
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Outsole
Hoka is using some high-abrasion rubber. There’s rubber in the forefoot, a little bit on the lateral side of the midfoot with some exposed EVA material, and we have more rubber in the heel.
This rubber does great on rainy days, dry days, grass, dirt, pavement. You’re going to feel just as confident on the weather days as you’re going to do on the drier days, which is great.
Hoka know that this is going to be a daily trainer or just a running shoe that people are going to take on longer recovery runs.
So, they didn’t go overboard with the rubber, but it’s just enough to give you that traction and the durability that you’re going to need to have this shoe go for hundreds of miles.
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Wide Platform
Another thing that’s great about this outsole and platform, in general, is that it’s wide. When you have a shoe with this high of a stack height and you feel like you’re really on a platform basically, you need a lot of surface area coverage to feel stable.
This really gets the job done. So, when you are on uneven ground, you don’t feel like you’re going to roll your ankle.
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With the Rincon, the Clifton, the Clifton edge…, where does the Bondi just fit into this whole family?
Hoka Bondi vs Hoka Clifton vs Hoka Rincon
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In terms of speed, from slower to faster:
In terms of weight:
- The Bondi is the heaviest, the Clifton is lighter, and the Rincon is the lightest.
Generally, the Bondi is your Clydesdale of running shoes.
Weight
The Hoka Bondi checks in at 9.7oz or 275g.
I will say, though, that the Bondi is a bit heavy. And on those days when you are tired and maybe you’re doing a longer recovery run, you might start to feel a little bog down by it. But other than that, this midsole is one of my favorites that I’ve tried.
Even though it’s heavy in bigger sizes, but with the geometry and the way the Bondi is set up, it does roll through your stride and you can get it moving.
Overall, I would recommend the Bondi to anybody who’s looking to add an easy-day shoe to their rotation whether you’re an elite runner or a beginner runner.
That’s it for today’s post. If someone else ever asks you “are Hoka shoes good for flat feet?” You tell them absolutely.
