New Balance Fresh Foam More vs 1080 – Or the More v3 vs 1080v11

Today, I’m going to be comparing the New Balance Fresh Foam More vs 1080. Two daily trainers with thick stack heights and similar silhouettes.

Both of these neutral road shoes feature their Fresh Foam X material which is really soft, cushioned yet responsive, and a lot of fun to run in.

Right before this comparison, I went for a nice and easy recovery run in both shoes so I can compare them head to head.

So, what’s the difference between the New Balance Fresh Foam More v3 and the 1080v11?

Let’s find out…

New Balance Fresh Foam More vs 1080

The change from the 1080v10 to the 1080v11 pushes the shoe more towards the daily trainer category than in the max cushion category.

The 1080v10 used to sit in that max cushion category, but the More is definitely coming in and taking over that space of being the max cushioned shoe in the New Balance lineup.

In a hurry, these are the main differences and similarities between the NEw Balance Fresh Foam More vs 1080…

Quick Comparison

I think the quick answer to the main difference between these two road running shoes is that the Fresh Foam 1080v11 is the little bit of a cushioned daily trainer and the Fresh Foam More v3 is the max cushion.

• Both are neutral shoes and are not for overpronators.
• 1080v11 is better for long runs and to pick up the pace a little bit.
• More v3 is a better shoe for easy days, long runs, and recovery runs when you want to baby those feet.
• Both have a Fresh Foam X midsole.
• More is 4mm drop and the 1080 is 8mm drop.
• More v3 has more stack height and is a lot softer underfoot.
• More v3 is better for larger or tall runners. 
• Both have a rocker sensation.
• Engineered mesh upper on the More has better lockdown than the very stretchy knit on the 1080v11.
• More v3 is warmer because of the tongue and all the padding.
• Both have a moderately structured heel counter.
• More v3 has a more secure heel wrap.
• 1080 is gusseted through the tongue and the More is not.
• 1080 is an ounce lighter than the More.
• Both have about the same blown rubber on the outsole.
• More v3 has a wider landing platform.
• 1080 is narrower through the midfoot section.
• Both run true to size, but the More has a wider toe box.

Related: New Balance 1080 vs 880

If you want more detail on that, let’s get into…

How I use the More v3 and the 1080v11

Before we get into the specs, midsole, upper, and outsole, let’s talk about what’s it like to run in these shoes, how I would use them, and how they fit in the New Balance lineup…

Generally speaking, the way that I would use both of these shoes are on days where I want a little bit more cushion and that’s regardless of which kind of use case I’m looking for. 

1080v11

If I’m looking for something that’s a little bit more everyday run but I want some cushion to it, that’s where I’d reach for the 1080v11.

This is a shoe that you can reach for on a vast majority of your days if you’re choosing this as your daily trainer. You can use the 1080 for your easy runs, long runs, and recovery runs as well although that’s not my favorite way to use this shoe.

Also, because it is relatively light at 9.2 ounces, you can use it to pick up the pace a little bit as well. If you’ve got some sprints or maybe a little bit of a fartlek session early in your marathon training block, I feel like the 1080v11 is going to be a really nice choice for you.

More v3

The More v3 is a shoe for those recovery runs if you had a bunch of miles over the weekend. So, if your legs were a little bit beat up and tired from all those miles and you’re looking for something to give you just a little bit of extra comfort on those recovery days and those easy days, the Fresh Foam More v3 is a fantastic choice.

Also, if you’re looking for something that’s going to be really helpful to you as you’re setting your long-run PR’s, not necessarily your fastest runs, then I think that’s where this Fresh Foam More v3 comes into play.

Everything about this shoe just feels very plush and soft and a little bit more relaxed in my opinion. Not only that, but thanks to the engineered mesh upper, I feel like you’re also locked in a little bit more stable inside the More v3 than the 1080v11. Plus, the upper is a little bit roomier as well.

So, for people that are looking at the knit that’s in the 1080v11 and are concerned that this just isn’t going to be enough to keep their foot locked in, that’s where I would look for the engineered mesh that you’re seeing in the Fresh Foam More v3.

Speedwork

But is the More something that I’m going to want to use on a day that I have strides or some speedwork to put in there? That’s not what I’d reach for this shoe.

Again, when I’m looking for a lot of time on my feet, if I’m looking for something that’s going to be easy on the feet and my other joints as it’s absorbing a lot of that shock and impact from all those road miles, then I’d be reaching for the Fresh Foam More v3.

Can the More v3 and the 1080v11 both exist in the same running shoe lineup?

For a lot of people, I think both of these shoes can exist in the same closet in the same rotation at the same time.

If you’re a larger runner or a taller runner, I feel like having a little bit more cushion in your daily trainer and a lot of cushion in your recovery shoe is how these shoes can exist together in your rotation.

Related: Brooks Glycerin vs New Balance 1080

Weight, Stack, Drop, Fit

Midsole

Both shoes feature their Fresh Foam X material. Fresh Foam X is an injection molded EVA which is nice and bouncy and a lightweight material that I’ve really been enjoying for the past years.

The 1080v11 has 34 millimeters of stack height in the heel and 26 millimeters in the forefoot for that 8-millimeter offset. The More v3 has just a lot more of that Fresh Foam X. The shoe has 38 millimeters of stack height in the heel and 34 millimeters in the forefoot giving you that 4-millimeter heel-to-toe drop.

The More v3 has got the same midsole foam but there’s more of that Fresh Foam X. So, you have 38 millimeters of stack height in the heel and it is quite a bit of stack height.

So right off the bat, the More v3 is more cushioned underfoot and lower to the ground, which makes it feel even more cushioned and almost cloud-like in the forefoot. With all that Fresh Foam X, the More v3 provides a lot of bounce and it’s just super comfortable to run in.

Both shoes have a nice heel bevel to help make you feel smooth or natural as you move through your gait cycle. Both shoes are nice options if you’re a heel striker especially because they give you some nice cushion to land on.

Related: New Balance 1080 vs Saucony Triumph

Rocker

Both the 1080 and the More have about the same amount of rocker in terms of the geometry of that midsole. This rocker is a must-have feature to help you kind of get through all of that midsole foam.

So when your foot hits the ground, you’re not going to get stuck in all that mush and the shoe doesn’t feel like a clog or a big block. Instead, you’re getting a little bit of rolling motion through the geometry of the shoe, which helps pick up the back heel as you’re going through that foot strike and get going through that gait cycle.

So, in terms of the midsole, I prefer the Fresh Foam More v3.

Upper

The 1080v 11 uses a really stretchy and really comfortable knit material in the toe box. It’s very flexible and very breathable. As we get into this animal print section, that knit material does lose that stretch, which gives you a little bit more structure and a little bit more lockdown in this midfoot cage.

I also feel like the 1080v11 fits a bit more narrow through the midfoot because the midsole is narrower through the midfoot section as well.

Instead of the knit material in the 1080v11, the More v3 has an engineered mesh that has lots of perforations in the toe box. Much like the 1080v11, the midsection has a bit of a plastic overlay so that you can get a nice secure lockdown feeling across the midfoot.

Heel

The 1080v11 has this neoprene style of material with virtually no padding around the heel collar and the tab. So, you’ve got this Ultra Heel which is what they call a 360 wrap-around heel structure that ends in a very pronounced Achilles flare.

Although it is comfortable to run in, the only issue is that I need to make sure that I’m wearing socks that come up at least as high as the collar of the shoe. If not, I do get a little bit of irritation or rubbing on my ankles and that can be a bit bothersome.

The entire heel design on the More v3 is way different because you don’t have quite the structure and shape of the Ultra Heel that’s on the 1080v11.

It’s a real classic heel counter, but they did add some extra material around that starts on the medial side and runs through to the lateral side to give you a little extra stability to help hold your heel in place.

So, the heel counter is probably about the same in terms of structure, but the big difference is that the Fresh Foam X midsole comes up pretty high on that heel counter area on the More v3.

But why does that make such a big difference?

It’s because your heel is just nestled down inside that foam and it just wraps your heel and gives you a really stable feeling when you’re out running.

So, in terms of the heel area, I do prefer the heel on the More v3 over that Ultra Heel design that they have in the 1080v11. The More has got tons of padding around that heel collar as well as on the tab and there’s a nice little notch there for your Achilles to rest in.

Also, I do feel like I can get locked in or feel a little bit more secure in that heel cup in the More v3 than I do in the 1080v11. I think the biggest reason for that is that the More has a more well-defined heel cup for your heel to rest in.

Related: New Balance 1080 vs Hoka One One Clifton

Tongue

The tongue on the 1080v11 has got a bootie construction all the way up to about the third eyelet but then it moves into a semi-gusset towards the top.

The tongue is moderately padded, but it does feel really comfortable. I didn’t have any issues with it migrating around and I didn’t feel the laces digging on the top of my midfoot at all.

The tongue on the More v3 is much more padded and really more comfortable than you’ll find in the 1080v11. While it’s not gusseted at all, the tongue does have some nice wings that lay flat across your midfoot. Like the 1080, I didn’t feel the laces cutting or creating any pain on the top of my foot at all.

Between these two, I would say that the upper on the 1080v11 does run a bit cooler. I think a part of the reason is because the padded tongue on the More doesn’t allow quite as much airflow to keep you cool and comfortable when you’re out running.

So, the More is a little bit warmer of a shoe. And if that’s a big concern for you in the summer months, I might look more towards the 1080v11.

Eyelet Chain

The eyelet chain on both shoes is classic and there’s no big wow factor.

On the 1080v11, New Balance did include a lot of plastic overlays both on the outside as well as on the inside cage area to give it both some durability but also to stiffen up that material so that you can achieve a nice secure lockdown feeling.

The More v3 has a similar standard eyelet chain. The only difference is the third and fourth eyelets are loops.

Overall, the More v3 has better upper materials, a more comfortable tongue, and a more secure midfoot and heel lockdown.

Outsole

1080v11

The outsole has plenty of blown rubber all the way from heel to toe, which adds that much more to the durability and traction of the shoe. It also features these flex grooves cut into it so that way it keeps the shoe nice and flexible and not stiff as you flow through your gait cycle.

The rubber is a pretty thin layer, but I think it’s more than adequate to give you a little bit of traction and some added durability.

The 1080v11 does have a pretty decent-sized landing platform in the forefoot. The biggest difference is the midsection is much more narrow than it is in the More v3.

This also translates to how the upper fits and feels across your midfoot section because with that more narrow landing platform, the upper is going to feel a little bit more snug in that section.

More v3

Similarly, the More v3 has plenty of blown rubber in all of those high-abrasion areas. Then, there’s a little bit more of a percentage of exposed foam. This is New Balance’s ground contact formulation of Fresh Foam X similar to the type of foam you see in the Beacon which has almost no outsole rubber.

I’d say there’s a little bit more rubber on the More v3 than there is on the 1080v11, but I think in both cases there’s plenty of rubber there again to give you some traction and add some durability to the shoes.

It too features those flex grooves to help you feel a bit more natural.

The More v3 has got a much wider landing platform, which adds to a little bit more of a stable landing. It still feels really comfortable and it doesn’t feel quite as snug or narrow across the midfoot section as it does in the 1080v11.

But all this more that’s on this shoe adds also to the weight and the shoe comes in at a much heavier weight of 10.8 ounces.

As with all my comparisons, I like to pick a better shoe or which one I like more…

New Balance Fresh Foam More vs 1080 – Winner?

For me, the one I like more is the New Balance Fresh Foam More v3 just because I feel like this is a spectacular example of what a max cushion shoe should be right now.

The Fresh Foam 1080v11 is a good shoe, but in this category or even the sub-category of cushion daily trainers, it’s not my favorite.

It’s very good and I know a lot of you really love the 1080 series, but I prefer the 1080v10 when the 1080 wanted to be in that max cushion category. So, I think I prefer the 1080v10 more to the slight changes they made to the 1080v11.

Again, while the 1080 is good, among the two, I’m picking the Fresh Foam More v3.

For you, if you’re looking for a shoe that’s a little less expensive, that’s lighter, more nimble, and faster on foot, then the 1080v11 is going to be the right choice between these two.

But if you’re looking for the most plush run experience that you can get and comfort is king for you and you just want to log a lot of miles but not necessarily worry about picking up the pace so much, then definitely go with the More v3.

Where to buy the More v3 & 1080v11

Amazon

New Balance Fresh Foam More v3

New Balance Fresh Foam 1080v11

Runningwarehouse

New Balance Fresh Foam More v3

New Balance Fresh Foam 1080v11

So, those are my thoughts on the New Balance Fresh Foam More vs 1080.

If you have any other questions about these two shoes or the other shoes that exist in the New Balance lineup like the Beacon or the 880v11, feel free to put them in the comments down.

Thanks so much for making it all the way to the end of this comparison. Hopefully, you guys are staying safe out there on your runs and I’ll see you in the next one.