Customer Reviews Hoka Clifton 4

I love HOKA and wanted a pair for my husband. I thought that the Clifton would be a great introduction to HOKA. It is a great looking shoe, but it is too narrow, which is weird because the width is one of the reasons I love the shoe. Will try the wide next!

Had the HOKA's 7 months and both large toes are now poking through the shoes. These are my 7th pair of HOKA's since I am a marathon runner but disappointed with this model. I tell all my friends to go to HOKA's but I may have spoken too soon.

This shoe is not Clifton,not even close.Shoe by himself is not bad but being avid Clifton runner I m little disappointed,hopefully next model will be better.

These should have a different name. I've run in Cliftons for years. Ran 6 miles in these and limped the rest of the day. They have a weird arch that changed my run form. A downhill move for hoka.

This shoe is incredibly far from what has made Hoka the great brand it is. While this Clifton 4 looks similar to the Clifton 3, it feels like a 1970's pair of converse. This is not a knock in any way on converse. The Clifton 4 is incredibly hard and does not roll thru with each stride. Rather, it clunks. Having read some recent reviews of the new bondi 5, it sounds like there are similar issues with this shoe as well. I have been running for over 30 years, both competitively and recreationally. Hoka, please, please, go back to what has made you great!

This is NOT even the Clifton 3, I'll have to stop buying Hoka's soon, no more plush cushy Clifton. Noticeable difference over just the prior edition. I bought a Vanquish before they were gone, plush but still not like prior Clifton's! Please Hoka I want to be a loyal customer the whole reason I bought Hoka's was the original Clifton and plushness! I switched to Vanquish but those are also gone! You've got so many varieties already! Don't change the classics like the Clifton!

Way different than the 3's. Stop changing the shoes so much. I went through three pairs of the 3's and loved them. The 4 is stiff and brutalized my calves and knees. You did the same thing to the Bondi line. The 4 was great and you ruined it with the 5. I'm gonna have to drive an hour away to return these shoes. I'm about to give up on Hoka. We find a version that works for us and you always decide to change it, then stop making that previous version.

Disappointed because the shoe was too narrow and you are unable to replace it with the wider shoe

Your update to the Clifton 4 is horrible. My first run in them was awful. I planned to give the shoes a few weeks to break in, but it took me a month because each time I ran in them it took we almost a week to build up the course to subject myself to this terrible shoe again. Did anyone on your design team actually run in these things before you went to make get with them? They are nothing like the 3's at all. The foot and calf pain these instruments of torture subject me to each time I run in them borders on inhumane.

This shoe immediately gave me hot spot pain on the top of my foot and the arch of my foot. THIS SHOE HAS EXTREMELY HIGH ARCHES. Also I felt like the bottom of the shoe was not as cushioned as I was expecting, felt VERY firm.

Since I have begun using, I have had terrible knee pain. Not 100% it is the shoe, however not sure what else it could be

I trained in these for the Boston Marathon about 7 weeks and found they caused problems with my calve and peroneus muscles. This then changed my stride and also impacted my piriformis muscle. I laid off a week and then used a fresh pair (not realizing the problem). The pain returned until I changed over to another brand with different features. Upon researching the shoe (as I usually and should have done in the first place) I discovered they rated the flexibility as "very stiff", the stability as "more" and energy return as "low" - all features I do not need in a running shoe. This testing is from the runner's world website that I find very reliable. I sucessfully trained and ran two marathons in Clifton 2's, but this is a completely different shoe. The stiffness and unnecessary stability of the shoe basically destroyed my training. I'm completing the few weeks of training I have left in another brand shoe that I found to be more reliable to race in. I'm now regretting buying the C4's. Hoping for the best in my one and only Boston Marathon.

I've been a Hoka fan from the beginning, starting off with the bondi series, and moving to the cliftons c1, c2, and now C3, I have over 15 pairs of HOKAs, now that I've ran out of the C2 and had to try the C4 for the first time. It was such a huge disappointment! I've been averaging about 55 miles per week, and just a 10 mile run in the new C4 has wrecked my feet pretty bad for the first run, i was in so much pain that I had to stop and walk // stretch before i could run again. My legs never felt so horrible and in such pain. There is a slight arch in the C4 that cause a lot of the issues for me, the pain was shooting up into my shin and calves. I literally had to call my wife to pick me up after 10 miles of running, i was so sad and disappointed, because I love running! So the next day i've decided to run in my old cliftons 2 which had over 600 miles to see if i might have the same issue, but NO, the C2 felt awesome and I was back in my runner's high. Why Hoka? Please don't discontinue the C2 or C3, all of my running friends are having the same issues too, we are all training for Boston and it become a huge disappointment. Why change a shoe running profile so drastically. Cliftons use to be the favorites among all my friends, and now we all have to look at other brands to hopefully find a shoe that haves similar characteristic like the C1, C3 or C3. The C4 lost its cushion feeling and introduced a slight arch, even with the wide version my legs never felt so horrible. I've spent so much money on Hokas and it is sad to say that I might have to switch to another brand. I wish that Hoka will find a way to bring back the old Cliftons, also the design and color for the shoe is not that great looking anymore.

Husband has worn the Clifton for the past 2 years. Was a bit leary to reorder after reading the other reviews, but wanted to try because his foot is a bit on the narrow side. He was very disappointed and they are on their way back. They seemed comfortable, but a seam in the instep caused a blister after 4 mile treadmill run. All improvements aren't for the best. Please return to the qualities that made them so popular in the past.

Loved the Clifton 3 and put many hundreds of miles on several pairs. However, the Clifton 4 is no where near as cushioning as the 3. The 4 feels hard, period. It's immediately noticeable as soon as you put them on and start to run. If you're looking for the feel of the 3 you won't find it in the 4.

This is my seventh pair of Cliftons. It's the first pair that I don't like. The others had more cushion, and felt wider to me. I've recommended the Clifton two's and threes countless times, The Clifton fours I will not recommend.

Feels like a brick strapped to my foot when I run in them. Hoka's used to be known for soft cushioning, not anymore. Are there any Hoka's left that feel soft underfoot?

The fit was good, especially the toe box. I enjoyed the ride and the heel did not slip -- definitely a positive. however, the arches were high and the in-soles had sharp edges at the instep that dug into my feet, causing blisters. I have normal arches, and have never experienced this problem with any other brand of running shoes. I had great expectations for the Hokas and was looking forward to using them in an upcoming marathon. Unfortunately, I had to cut my first run short after 5 miles because of the pain.

Made my knee and the ball of my foot hurt after 2 runs

I put thousands of miles in several pairs of Cliftons from version 2 through version 3 without any discomfort. Versions 4 feels stiffer, less responsive in the toe, and less stable underfoot than previous versions. The platform of the previous versions feels wider, stable, more flexible and responsive. I put approximately 200 miles in the Clifton 4's and had to give them up from blistering and discomfort. Super disappointed to lose my go-to shoe.

Had great comfort running in Clifton 3's and was anxious to get the 4's, unfortunately I should have taken them back. My knees and t band went south the first time running in them. I've since bought 2 more pairs of the 3's before they are all gone. Although my first pair of 3's were made in China and had a better fit than these that were made in Vietnam they are still better than the 4's...

What did they do to the Clifton??? Not the same Hoka brand I fell in love with. If I wanted a firmer ride, then I can go to any other running shoe brand. Hoka was unique and now it just like everyone else. Very sad to see the cushy, mashmellow feel disappear.

I've run in every generation of the Clifton and feel like they just keep going in the wrong direction on design. I had 4 pairs of the Clifton 3 and I'm about to buy another before they are gone. I've run in one pair of the Clifton 4 and won't be going back for seconds. They keep getting bulkier and less cushy.

I am a longtime Clifton runner, having logged thousands of miles on many pairs of Clifton 2 and 3. I love the Clifton 3 (Clifton 2 was a bit narrow in the toes, but I still love wearing a couple of my retired pairs around the farm). The Clifton 4 is very stiff in comparison, and neither my daughter or I could live with it. There's no point in having such a high stack height if the ride is that stiff. The extra weight is not worthwhile. Please, Hoka, as a huge fan and parent company shareholder, please switch back to the previous midsole foam. The new foam is too stiff and heavy. Combatting the durability issue should be handled in the hard rubber outsole, or the shape of the outer heel corner (could be beveled a bit, like Mizuno does with their Wave Rider).

I don't know exactly how to put my finger on it other than the Hoka 1s were the most awesome shoe I ever ran in, the 2s were not so good (2 out of 5), the 3s were/are great, and the 4s are a downgrade equal to the 2s. I returned the 4s and bought 2 more pairs of 3s. Both the 2s and the 4s felt less "stable" (I am a neutral runner); and as others have stated the 4s are too stiff, not as cushy as the 1s and 3s. I hope the next version builds on the success of the 3s.