Altra Experience Flow 2 Review: Finding Its Flow

Introduction to the Altra Experience Flow 2

BRADY: As someone who runs almost exclusively in shoes with wide toeboxes, it can be frustrating to look over the fence and see how, in many ways, we’ve lagged behind our pointed-toe counterparts. Nearly every major brand is releasing lightweight trainers with high stacks, PEBA midsoles, carbon plates, and rockered geometries. Meanwhile, wide-toebox shoes have long been tied almost exclusively to the Born to Run crowd, Vibram FiveFingers, or that lone pair of Altra Torins your local running store rep once convinced you to try.

Then, Altra introduced a 4 mm drop in 2023 with the AltraFWD Experience, and it received a… mixed reception. Had Altra lost its way, or was it paving a new path? Fast forward to now, and the brand is continuing its push to win over some crunched-toe skeptics.

Enter the Experience Flow 2, a shoe designed to soften the landing, both literally and figuratively, for runners wary of Altra’s new direction. It was built to address the biggest complaint about version 1 by softening the midsole. So, did Altra finally create a fun, bouncy daily trainer with a slight drop? Or, in the words of user turtlegoatjogs on Reddit, did they just drop a foot-shaped Novablast? Let’s find out.

AUSTIN: Last May, I leveraged the Experience Flow review for a chance to plug “Even Flow” by Pearl Jam. Seriously — to all the Gen Z runners who are part of the Believe in the Run community — check out one of the best albums of the 1990s. Unfortunately, for the Experience Flow, there wasn’t much flow. Stagnant is a more appropriate description. But this is 2025, and Altra has added a new midsole foam and a new look to the Experience Flow 2. Does this update sink or swim?

SAM: It’s wild that we’ve travelled far enough down the “Altra doesn’t only do zero-drop shoes” road that a release like the Altra Experience Flow 2 feels very standardly “Altra.” This isn’t a knock on the shoe. In fact, it’s unfair to this shoe to describe it as standard at all. I mean that in two short (and somehow precipitously long, but I digress) years, we went from “Altra has flayed its soul on the altar of market demands” to “Oh, cool, it’s a new Altra shoe.” I guess we can mark that one up as evidence of the true power, or lack thereof, held by the keyboard warrior. Or, it really doesn’t matter, and the “soul” of a multinational corporation is a malleable, fickle thing — if it exists at all.

Digressions are everywhere for me in this review, apparently. Back to the matter at hand. The Altra Experience Flow 2 is defined by a new midsole foam that bears Altra’s EGO moniker, and by the massive marketing push that accompanied the shoe’s release that emphasized the “high” in “runner’s high.” The last Experience shoe I tested was the AltraFWD Experience, a shoe that looked great but felt lifeless underfoot. It sounds like the first Experience Flow swung firm, so this new EGO P35 foam has a lot to do if it wants to fully deliver on the “For recreational use” slogan scrawled across the box this shoe came in.

What we like about the Altra Experience Flow 2

BRADY: I’m a simple guy. If the shoe is white, I dig it. So my version, with its clean white upper and Bulbasaur-colored midsole, looks great. But aesthetics aside, the two standout features of this shoe are the midsole and the lockdown.

Starting with the midsole, I’ve grown tired of shoes that look like pillows but feel like bricks, especially in the wide toebox space. The Experience Flow 2’s midsole, though, absolutely nailed it. I logged mostly easy mileage in it, with some strides mixed in, and the shoe felt soft yet springy. Altra also did a nice job providing stability despite the softer foam, thanks to a generous sole flare around the heel.

Speaking of pillows, the tongue is soft, forgiving, and semi-gusseted. I have been known to re-tie my running shoes multiple times during a run, but in these, I felt locked in the entire time. There was no lace bite, no slipping, and with the stiff heel counter, the fit was solid all-around.

AUSTIN: Like Brady, I dig shoes with white uppers. I know that inevitable run will arrive in which I catch the edges of caked mud on the sidewalk or dip into freshly mowed grass clippings along a narrow shoulder, but that’s the risk of taking clean kicks into the streets. Along with the clean upper, Altra dropped the logo and left their name on the medial and lateral sides. This adds to the crisp look. Like its predecessor, the Experience Flow 2 uses the Standard FootShape, so it should accommodate a generous number of foot types. My toes felt free up front, and my heel stayed in place without any slip.

I’ve written before about the mismatch between Altra and its prospective fans. For instance, many people, myself included, thought the Via Olympus would be a soft, max-cushioned trainer that would rival the Nimbus. Nope. It’s a firm brick. The only quality I liked about that shoe was the rockered geometry. The Via Olympus 2 embodied everything people desired in the OG.

In short, the Experience Flow 2 encapsulates what I hoped for in the Experience Flow and the AltraFWD Experience (damn it’s hard to keep these models straight). EVA midsoles are fine. Seriously, their decent enough for short runs. But longer runs and harder efforts demand better foams, and thankfully, EGO P35 shines. It’s softer than EVA but still has some bounce for a responsive toe off. The rocker shape geometry is icing on the cake.

SAM: Look, love it or hate it, Altra has produced plenty of great-looking shoes over the past couple of years. The Altra Experience Flow 2 follows in that line, as Brady and Austin’s comments above suggest. The white upper and two-tone midsole colorway we were sent are clean and crisp. Just from looking at it, you want to throw it on and get out there.

This is an inherently simple shoe. While that can sometimes buck up and bite a runner, here the comfortable engineered mesh upper does precisely what it’s supposed to: hold the midsole onto your foot, breathe, and essentially disappear. While the weave and, therefore, the design of the mesh are slightly different from the previous two versions, they are the same in all the ways that count. The only differences are small and should be welcomed by Altra fans.

First, while the Experience Flow 2 fits true to size, it sports Altra’s Standard FootShape, and is wider through the toebox and midfoot than the FWD Experience, which fell pretty in line with Altra’s original geometry. Second, the heel counter flares up and back in a way that echoes the Hoka Clifton. Third, the lacing chain sits slightly offset, with the lateral side sitting slightly lower than the medial side. All of these changes help to make the Experience Flow 2 a more accommodating fit for a wider variety of feet.

Even for Altra skeptics, the brand’s EGO foam — in all of its iterations — garners the respect it’s due. So, the Experience line getting a new version of this foam pulls the Experience Flow 2 out of the substandard rut its predecessors had languished in. EGO P35 is soft, slightly responsive, and feels quick underfoot. Its market analogue is probably Topo Athletic’s Zipfoam, but a bit softer and less responsive. Really, this new midsole ties the whole package of the Experience Flow 2 together, and if you pick up one of the two-tone colorways, it’s the focal point of the shoe as well.

What we don’t like about the Altra Experience Flow 2

BRADY: As a daily trainer, this is an easy pick for mid-week easy runs or even the weekend long run. It really can do it all. If I had to pick one gripe, though, it would be the breathability of the upper. To be fair, I pushed it by taking the shoe out during a major heat warning that swept through Baltimore and much of the East Coast, but the plush upper ran a bit warm. It’s nothing that would keep me from pulling it out of the rotation — just a tradeoff for the comfort Altra was going for. Honestly, it probably won’t be an issue most of the time.

AUSTIN: I loved the forefoot and rearfoot fit, but I had to fiddle with the laces mid-run once or twice to secure the midfoot. Otherwise, I have no complaints.

SAM: Now, I know I mentioned above that the width of the shoe and the new spoiler on the heel serve to make the Altra Experience Flow 2 a fit for an even wider group of people, but what I didn’t mention was that they go just a little bit too wide at times. I love wide shoes and struggle with slimmer fits that brands like Hoka and Nike feature, but the width through the toebox and midfoot is expansive even for me. I experienced (no pun intended) lateral sliding in the ball of my foot, and the midfoot felt like it had too much fabric. The heel spoilers shoot up like dorsal fins, and I found them a little aggressive. I don’t have looseness in my heel, but I never felt fully locked in.

On the opposite side of the foot from the heel, the tongue is made of a lot of material and it tends to bunch up some and push up and push out of the shoe.

It didn’t hurt the shoe, but with my midfoot strike pattern, I didn’t get a sense of the advertised rocker. This ran more like Altra’s Torin series: comfortable, with plenty of room for toe splay and a movement that feels like a natural running experience. Again, the main goal of the Experience Flow 2 is to please Altra’s wide toebox lovers, but I didn’t exactly feel the “Forward” Altra said I would.

Final thoughts on the Altra Experience Flow 2

BRADY: All in all, this shoe, along with the Altra Vanish Tempo, is probably my favorite road option from Altra. This would be an easy choice if someone asked me to recommend a daily trainer with a wide toe box. It’s comfortable, fits well, and delivers a smooth ride. It’s also not heavy, coming in at 8.15 oz for a US M9. Kudos, Altra.

AUSTIN: I recently picked up the Novablast 5, so I’m in the process of comparing it to the Experience Flow 2. Based on the price point, weight, and comparable bouncy midsoles, the Experience Flow 2 should give the Novablast 5 some competition. Between global tariffs and the new EGO P35 midsole, I’m surprised that Altra didn’t hike the price to $160 (the Novablast 5 is now $150).

I think FF BLAST MAX has more bounce than P35, but that’s my subjective experience. Still, the Experience Flow 2 is a superb daily trainer with enough pep for strides and shorter tempo runs. This time around, go with the flow.

SAM: Altra seems to have finally landed on a formulation that can stand up against the daily trainers it created the Experience line to compete against. Between crisp visuals and a comfortable and fun underfoot sensation, the Altra Experience Flow 2 is a great option for daily miles and workouts for runners whose feet might need a little more space than they might find in the Hoka Clifton or the Asics Novablast.

You can pick up the Altra Experience Flow 2 for $140 from Running Warehouse (featuring free shipping and 90-day returns) by using the buttons below.