Nike Zoom Fly 6 Review: Finally, an Alphafly Trainer

What You Need To Know

Introduction to the Nike Zoom Fly 6

MEAGHAN: “Do you even remember what you said about the original Zoom Fly?” Robbe asked me a couple of days ago. I don’t recall liking it, but I couldn’t remember what I said. And to be fair, the original shoe came out 7 years ago.

I’ll save you the pain of reading that review, but here’s a direct excerpt: “I put exactly 26 miles on these shoes, and I’m not sure I will ever wear them again. I was expecting to love this shoe, but it totally missed the mark for me.”

After re-reading that review, I do remember taking them out of the box for a 20-miler (oh, to be young and naive) and my feet feeling like absolute garbage afterward. The second through fifth iterations of the shoe didn’t do much for me, either. In fact, despite receiving the shoe, I opted out of those reviews entirely. I mean, the last version came with a recycled ZoomX core, as if we needed another Nike shoe made from trash (looking at you, Alphafly Nature and Pegasus Turbo Nature).

But that’s all in the past, and here we are with the sixth iteration of the shoe that finally — finally — doesn’t hurt my feet. It honestly feels like a brand-new shoe and in the best way possible. The Nike Zoom Fly 6 is now designed with two foams, a top layer of ZoomX and a bottom layer of SR-02, with a carbon fiber plate sandwiched between the two. It’s got a big ol’ stack of foam (42mm / 34mm) — more than any other shoe in the Nike racing lineup — and comes with a two-layer woven mesh upper. It’s 10% lighter than its predecessor, and it seems to check all the boxes of a true super trainer. But let’s get into how it performed on the roads.

THOMAS: The Nike Zoom Fly has been 0-for-5 with me. It always looks great, but I always thought it felt like a brick. Yes, even the v2 with the Flyknit upper. It was designed as one of the first super trainers, intended as a training partner to the Vaporfly or, at minimum, a budget alternative. It may have been a trainer, but it was never super. The foams just never worked, and the name Zoom Fly became synonymous with a rigid and blocky shoe. When I saw the Zoom Fly 6 and the promises it promised, I thought, “Here we go again.” However, I did like the design and the intention behind the trainer. So, with fingers crossed, I went out for a 12-mile tempo run, hoping that this would be the trainer it always aspired to be.

As a side note, we usually get shoes given to us in return for a review, but Nike only had women’s samples at the time; in this case, I purchased the Zoom Fly 6 for full retail on Nike.com. This is worth noting because 99.9% of the shoes we review are sent from the brands. If a brand doesn’t send us a shoe, we assume they don’t believe in the product. So, let’s find out if that is the case with the Zoom Fly 6.

What we like about the Nike Zoom Fly 6

MEAGHAN: The Zoom Fly 6 wasn’t love at first run, but I should mention that the first time I laced them up was only a few days after running the New York City Marathon. The shoes have grown on me, though, and I’ve been eager to lace them up day after day.

Aesthetically, the shoes look a lot like the Alphafly — add an air bubble to the forefoot and some ZoomX under the plate, and it’s pretty close. Out on the roads, however, it feels pretty different.

The ZoomX provides a softer feel underfoot but the SR02 foam adds a more supportive and stable feeling. I’m not sure if they needed a break-in period, but as I alluded to earlier, I’ve enjoyed them more over time. The SR02 foam is still pretty firm, but it feels like it has a little more give as I’ve put more miles on it. I also found myself running a bit faster than anticipated (20-30 seconds per mile) for all of my easy runs. Maybe it’s the shoes, maybe it’s my legs coming back to life. Either way, the shoes are fun, and the rocker geometry and carbon plate provide a nice propulsive feeling.

While the stack height (42 mm) may have you worried that you’ll be feeling like a baby Bambi out there, I thought the shoes felt quite stable. I never felt uneasy and wasn’t worried about taking corners quickly. The rubber outsole also helped with this; the waffle grip provided some good traction on wet pavement and the wooden docks of Baltimore.

The upper of Nike shoes is usually my least favorite part, but the Zoom Fly 6 does not fall into that category. The shoes fit snug and true to size (a little more on that later) with a comfortable step-in feel. While the fit resembles more of a race day shoe, the upper has enough structure and support to feel like a daily trainer. The double woven mesh upper is light and breathable, featuring a lightly padded tongue that’s semi-gusseted. There’s nothing fancy about the laces, but they work to keep your foot locked down and I never had any issue with rubbing or hot spots.

Finally, the weight. With all that stack and a thick slab of EVA, one might expect this to be pretty heavy, but it’s not. My US W7.5 came in 7.5 oz, which is right on par (if not lighter) than similar super trainers.

THOMAS: I headed out for my first run in the Zoom Fly 6, and as I got past the first mile, I was already thinking, “All right, this is working.” I was experiencing Alphafly vibes. It doesn’t have the pop that the Alphafly has, but it feels like a companion to the shoe. There is a familiarity to the ride.

Two miles in, and the Zoom Fly 6 had me feeling smooth. Is the drought over for the Zoom Fly? The rest of the 12-mile run was a progression. I felt confident upping the effort, and the shoe responded well. The weird thing is that the cushioning felt the closest to the Asics Superblast 2, a shoe that doesn’t have a plate. However, the firmness and resilience of the two shoes’ midsoles feel similar. I’d also use them the same way.

I continued to get miles in the Zoom Fly 6 on roads and the treadmill. The shoe is versatile, handling easy runs in comfort, and was more than capable of knocking out 800-meter repeats. If you didn’t want to spend the big bucks for a race day shoe, the Zoom Fly 6 has you covered.

I happen to love the Kipchoge edition. The shoe has little Easter eggs, including Kipchoge’s signature “No human is limited” on one toe and “It’s just the start” on the other shoe. Oh, and the rusty bottom color is an homage to the red dirt that covers Kenya.

Meg covered lots of the details in her section, so I’ll wrap up with the weight and fit. My pair of US M10.5 weighs 9.5 oz/269 g and fits true to size.

What we don’t like about the Nike Zoom Fly 6

MEAGHAN: I mentioned these shoes fit true to size, but I also found the toebox to be a little short and shallow. With that said, I wouldn’t suggest sizing up because I think that would cause some slippage in the heel. If you prefer a race-like fit, I think you’ll be happy with these, but anyone looking for a roomy toe box is going to be disappointed.

The other thing I’ll note is that the shoes are not quiet. Much like the Alphafly, there’s no sneaking around in these trainers.

THOMAS: My only complaint with the Zoom Fly 6 is the small amount of heel lift I experienced. It wasn’t bad enough for me to employ the runner’s loop, but it was persistent.

Final thoughts on the Nike Zoom Fly 6

MEAGHAN: If there was an award for the “Most Improved” running shoe in 2024, I think the Nike Zoom Fly 6 would win. It’s such a departure from the previous versions that it almost feels like an entirely new shoe. For the first time since this shoe’s debut, it truly feels like a super trainer. If you love racing in the Alphafly or Vaporfly, the Zoom Fly 6 is the perfect counterpart for training. Or, if you’re looking for a similar ride to those race day shoes without the price tag (coming in at $170), the Zoom Fly 6 would be a solid option. Often, after I’ve written a review, I’ll put the shoe up on the shelf and move on. This isn’t one of those shoes. I’ll continue to enjoy the Zoom Fly 6 for everyday training as I plan my spring racing season.

THOMAS: I agree with Meg — this is the best Zoom Fly ever. For those holding your breath for the Nike Tempo Next% to return, this is about as close as you will get to the current Nike offerings. I will use the “f word” here and say the Zoom Fly 6 is fun — that elusive description of a shoe that means I smile when wearing it, and gets my blood pumping when I lace it up.

Like Meg, I will be lacing this one up even after this review. For many of you, this will sound like blasphemy, but I would put the Zoom Fly 6 in the same space as the Asics Superblast. I had someone ask me to compare the Zoom Fly 6 and Adidas EVO SL, but it’s not that easy. The ride and experience are so different that I have trouble comparing them, yet the EVO SL is another shoe I would use the F-word to describe. You’ll just have to try them both to understand.

You can pick up the Nike Zoom Fly 6 for $170 from Nike by using the buttons below.