Saucony Endorphin Elite 3 Review: Ready to Hit Race Day PRs

Never have I ever put on a shoe that made running fast feel this smooth and effortless until the Saucony Endorphin Elite 3. The Endorphin lineup from Saucony has pretty much become my bread and butter when it comes to running shoes, which says a lot as someone who tests a ton of gear throughout the year.

They’re consistently the shoes I reach for on easy days, track workouts, and on race day. While I never had the chance to run in the Endorphin Elite 2, I raced quite a bit in the OG Endorphin Elite.

And wow, this shoe feels completely different from that first version. I was honestly shocked the second I took my first few strides in the Endorphin Elite 3.

I’m currently training for a fast mile, so these showed up at the perfect time with all the speed workouts and strides I’ve been doing lately.

Let’s dive into this race day shoe and why I already have a feeling it’s going to become one of my top picks for racing.

This lightweight, race-day shoe is perfect for those looking to hit PRs, from the 5k through the half-marathon. Front of the pack runners will find it holds up for marathon day, but we recommend other shoes for mid to back of the pack marathon runners.

Saucony Endorphin Elite 3 Overview

The first few steps in the Saucony Endorphin Elite 3 are shocking in the best way possible.

The shoe feels super squishy right away, almost like when you are squeezing a marshmallow between your fingers, and it bounces right back.

And once you get past the slightly squeaky new-shoe sound, the underfoot feel of this slotted carbon-plated shoe is incredibly smooth. The best way I can describe it is like that moldable kinetic sand we all played with as kids in the 90s. Soft, bouncy, and really interesting, but of course in this sense interesting in the oh wow I feel fast way.

The IncrediRUN foam definitely has a sink-ink feeling, but the tradeoff is that running fast feels almost effortless.

I didn’t want to fully commit to a track workout in them on my first test run, so I kept things short and ran a few strides.

And holy crap, I was suddenly clipping off low 6-minute paces without feeling like I was working nearly as hard as expected.

Okay, yes, part of that is from all the training I’ve been doing lately. But the shoes absolutely helped make everything feel smoother.

Instead of feeling like I was fighting the shoe, it felt like each step was naturally rolling and propelling me forward

The Endorphin Elite 3 also performed surprisingly well on the track. I was a little nervous about how such a soft, aggressive shoe would handle all the turns, but I actually felt really supported looping around for a few 400s.

Sometimes super soft race shoes can feel unstable, especially if you’re cornering hard, but that wasn’t the case here.

The shoe still felt smooth and controlled, even as I picked up the pace around the curves. The wider base and the fact that I run more on my forefoot, I think, had a lot to do with why I didn’t have any issues.I do a lot of running on light gravel trails here in Colorado, but the Endorphin Elite 3 is one that I will not be exposing to those tiny pebbles.

Not only am I worried about tiny rocks getting stuck in the foam, but it also feels pretty likely they could wedge themselves into the cutout around the plate.

And honestly, with the higher price tag of these shoes, I want to keep them feeling fresh for as long as possible.

So for me, these are staying reserved for the track and roads only.

Saucony Endorphin Elite 3 Fit

The fit is almost too good to be true for a race-day shoe.

Everything just fits really naturally, and my foot feels like part of the shoe rather than like I’m wearing some overly stiff, super specialized racer.

One of the biggest updates is that Saucony finally moved away from unisex sizing used in previous models of the Endorphin Elite.

The Endorphin Elite 3 is now available in both men’s and women’s specific models, which means the fit feels much more dialed in depending on your foot shape and body.

The tongue is attached to the upper and made from a super stretchy material, which makes the shoe easy to pull on while still allowing the tongue to lie flat comfortably once the laces are tied.

The heel is super flexible and has just the right amount of padding to keep things comfortable without creating any hot spots or blisters.

That little bit of extra cushioning also helps keep the back of the shoe from digging into your heel, especially if you tend to wear lower cut socks like I do.

Saucony Endorphin Elite 3 Feel

I’ve already mentioned multiple times how bouncy and smooth the Endorphin Elite 3 feels underfoot.

But why does it feel this way?

First, the shoes use Saucony’s new IncrediRUN foam, which has a super-soft, energetic feel while still providing enough cushioning to stay comfortable during harder efforts and race-day miles.

Saucony also updated the plate design from previous models by introducing a new slotted carbon fiber plate.

The slotted design enhances the feel of the brand’s SpeedRoll technology, which is why every step felt so smooth and effortless during my run. It was very similar to the feeling I got with the Saucony Azura, just even better.

I’m also someone who naturally runs more toward the front of my foot thanks to years of dancing, so the combo of the soft IncrediRUN foam and aggressive plate setup just works really well for my stride.

If you’re someone who tends to heel strike, you may struggle with how soft the foam is here.

These definitely aren’t shoes that I’d reach for on easy or recovery days. I didn’t even wear them for the easy miles before my strides; I swapped into the Endorphin Elite 3 specifically for the faster intervals.

Part of that is because this shoe just feels best when you’re really moving.

But honestly, I also want to keep them feeling as fresh and lively on race day as they did right out of the box.

Similar Shoes to the Saucony Endorphin Elite 3

We’ve tested a few super trainer shoes that feel similar but differ based on the brand’s fit.

What to read next?

• Best Super Trainers Explained: Who Actually Needs One and Which Ones Are Worth the Price
• 10 Best Carbon Plate Running Shoes Right Now
• Is It Ok To Run in Carbon Plated Shoes Every Day?