ASICS Novablast 5 vs Hoka Clifton 10: Which Daily Trainer Is Worth It?

The two neutral daily trainers on this shelf that get set next to each other are the Novablast 5 and the Clifton 10. ASICS Canada's men's page, style 1011B974.100, lists a regular price of CA$190 and a price as low as CA$149.99. The same page names FF BLAST MAX cushioning, an engineered jacquard mesh upper, a tongue wing, a trampoline-inspired outsole, and AHAR LO outsole rubber. Heel drop is 8 mm. Weight is 255 g / 8.9949 oz. Cushion is high. Support is neutral. That page does not print a stack. Fleet Feet's men's Novablast 5 does, on the Black / Carrier Grey in Regular D: 41.5 mm / 33.5 mm, an 8 mm drop, 8.9 oz for men and 7.9 oz for women, neutral, at $129.95 from $150. Hoka's note on the Clifton 10 puts the stack at 42 mm in the heel and 34 mm in the forefoot, the weight at 9.8 oz for men and 8.0 oz for women, and the drop at 8 mm, in CMEVA. Hoka's Australia product page lists the men's White / Black at 277.83 g and an 8.00 mm drop, under everyday run and walking. The compare tool keeps this site's shelf numbers, which are a different set.

Weight first, because the two Novablast labels do not match. This site lists the Novablast 5 at 255 g and the Clifton 10 at 275 g. ASICS Canada lists the men's Novablast 5 at 255 g, and prints that same figure as 8.9949 oz. Fleet Feet prints 8.9 oz for men and 7.9 oz for women. 255 g is the 8.9949 oz on ASICS's line. Fleet Feet's 8.9 oz is a tenth of an ounce under it. Hoka's update note lists the Clifton 10 at 9.8 oz for men and 8.0 oz for women, and the Australia page's 277.83 g is that 9.8 oz. The gap on the men's brand listings is 255 g against 277.83 g. The site's 275 g for the Clifton is 2.83 g under the Australia page. The women's pair is 7.9 oz on Fleet Feet against 8.0 oz on Hoka's note. No ASICS page opened for this piece printed a women's Novablast weight, so the 7.9 oz stays Fleet Feet's number.

Drop is the spec that does not separate them. ASICS Canada, Fleet Feet, and Hoka all print 8 mm. Stack is closer than the names suggest. Fleet Feet puts the Novablast 5 at 41.5 mm in the heel and 33.5 mm in the forefoot. Hoka's update note puts the Clifton 10 at 42 mm and 34 mm. Heel against heel, and forefoot against forefoot, the Clifton has half a millimeter more in both places. That is the stack gap on those two pages. Hoka's comparison is with the Clifton 9: 32 mm at the heel, 27 mm in the forefoot, a 5 mm drop. The 10 adds 10 mm of foam at the heel and raises the drop by 3 mm. That comparison is about the previous Clifton. ASICS Canada's page does not print a stack, so the 41.5 / 33.5 mm is Fleet Feet's figure. This site's compare tool shows 41 mm and 42 mm, and no forefoot row. The 41 mm is Fleet Feet's heel with the half millimeter missing. The 42 mm is Hoka's heel.

The foam is where the shoes actually part. ASICS Canada names FF BLAST MAX. ASICS's note on the foams files FF BLAST MAX as the higher-stack foam and names the Novablast 5 among the shoes that use it. The note describes more cushioning volume with a responsive feel. It is a description of the foam, and it is not a test of this pair. The Canada page's geometry line is the trampoline-inspired outsole, which ASICS says helps provide a more responsive bounce back. Hoka's update note calls the midsole CMEVA, and says the extra foam versus the Clifton 9 is that CMEVA. The upper on that note is a double jacquard knit, in standard, wide, and extra wide, and the rocker is still the geometry. The Australia product page describes a jacquard upper with a double-lace lock. Fleet Feet's Clifton 10 page, opened on November 5, showed Regular D and Wide 2E. Neither the ASICS Canada listing nor the Hoka pages read for this piece mention a plate.

Who each one suits is a reading of those pages, and not a run we timed. ASICS Canada describes a midsole and outsole geometry that helps produce an energized ride, with FF BLAST MAX for softer landings and a more energized toe-off. Hoka files the Clifton 10 under everyday run and walking. The update note says the move from a 5 mm drop to 8 mm is there for a more pronounced forward roll, and that the rocker is still doing the work. That sentence is about the Clifton 9. If you want the lighter men's listing and FF BLAST MAX, the Novablast is the shoe those pages describe. If you want CMEVA, the 42/34 mm stack, and the rocker Hoka is still claiming, the Clifton is the one. Half a millimeter of stack is the least interesting difference here.

Both of these are the previous version. ASICS's US Novablast page leads with the Novablast 6 at $155. The men's Black/Black listing shows $155 with no sale price, an 8 mm drop, 253 g / 8.9 oz, high cushion, and neutral support. The midsole there is FF BLAST MAX with an FF TURBO SQUARED trampoline pod in the forefoot. The forefoot outsole rubber is ASICSGRIP. The page does not print a stack. ASICS's note on the line, dated September 1, 2026, says the 6 is lighter than the previous iteration, with improved traction and a redesigned woven upper, and puts 253 g on a men's US 9. It does not publish the previous weight. The two weights in hand are Canada's 255 g for the 5 and that 253 g for the 6. Fleet Feet already prints the 5 at 8.9 oz, the same ounce figure ASICS prints for the 6. The US men's Novablast 5 product URLs fetched for this piece did not return a product page, so no US brand price for the 5 is taken from them. Hoka's Australia Clifton 11 lists the men's White / Black at AU$279.99, 283.00 g, an 8.00 mm drop, compression-molded EVA, a smooth MetaRocker, an engineered mesh upper, and a double-lace lock. That page does not print a stack. Fleet Feet's Clifton 10 page puts a men's Clifton 11 beside the 10 at $155. No Clifton 11 stack turned up on the pages opened for this piece, so none is invented here.

Price, checked on November 5. This site lists both shoes at $145. Neither figure is on a brand or retailer page opened for this piece. Fleet Feet lists the men's Novablast 5 at $129.95, from $150. Zappos's men's Clifton 10 in Black/Black lists $108.50, from $155. Fleet Feet lists the Clifton 10 at $116.25 to $124. Hoka's store listing prints a US MSRP of $155, and that page shows no sale price. Hoka's own US sale page did not load for this check, so a discount on hoka.com is not claimed here. On the US pages that did load, the lowest Clifton is $108.50 and the Novablast is $129.95, a gap of $21.45. At Fleet Feet's bottom Clifton price the gap is $13.70. On the regular prices those pages print, $150 against $155, the Clifton costs $5 more. ASICS Canada's CA$190 and CA$149.99, and Hoka Australia's AU$159.99 from AU$269.99, are other currencies. Black Friday 2026 is November 27, and Cyber Monday is November 30. The when to buy calendar treats that weekend as the one when current-season shoes usually see 20 to 30 percent off. The page is plain that the windows are typical dates from past years, and that retailers confirm them closer to the day. Twenty percent off $155 is $124. Twenty-five percent off $155 is $116.25. Thirty percent off $155 is $108.50. The Clifton cuts already listed sit inside that range. Twenty percent off $150 is $120. Fleet Feet's $129.95 is $20.05 off $150, which is 13.4 percent, under the bottom of that window. No page read for this piece is advertising a separate November 27 price.

Our verdict: buy the Novablast 5 when you want FF BLAST MAX, the lighter men's listing, and the trampoline-outsole line, and $129.95 is an acceptable bill. Buy the Clifton 10 when you want CMEVA, the 42/34 mm stack and the rocker, and $108.50 to $124 is the bill. Buy the Novablast 6, at ASICS's $155, when you want the current Novablast and you have read that the drop stayed at 8 mm, the listed weight is 253 g, and the forefoot adds an FF TURBO SQUARED pod. Buy the Clifton 11 when you want the current Clifton, at Fleet Feet's $155, and you have read Hoka Australia's 283 g and 8 mm drop. Leave both the 5 and the 10 if what you wanted was a plated workout shoe. This site files the Novablast 5 as a staff pick, at 8.5, and lists the Clifton 10 at 7.9. Those are editor scores on this shelf. The rest of the shelf is under daily trainers.