The most comfortable basketball shoes on the market will always excel in two key features: materials and, most importantly, cushion. Our choices for the current best basketball shoes out there consist of the most well-rounded shoes, but here, the cushion is the main feature we are looking at. So, no matter if we are talking about a great on-court performer, or just a cool casual shoe, to make it on this list, it will have to have great cushion.
When we are choosing performance shoes that excel in comfort and cushion, what we are looking for are shoes that allow you to play for the most amount of hours with the least amount of impact on your joints. At WearTesters, we spend long hours every day testing our shoes, so we know and appreciate when we have a well-cushioned shoe on our hands. Anything that can keep us on the court for longer, whether it be indoors or outdoors, is always something we look forward to.
As far as retros and casual shoes go, we are looking for great step-in comfort and for shoes that will allow you to rock them for the longest time without soreness.
If you already picked up your hoop shoes for the year and want to boost their cushioning, a great option for that is Move insoles. They can take almost any hoop shoe from flat to bouncy and supportive. You can also check out our list of the best overall basketball shoes for a little more context.
So, with all that being said, let’s get into our picks:
Last updated 03.31.2023
Most Comfortable Basketball Shoes Show
Most Comfortable Basketball Shoes: Performance Basketball
Most Comfortable Basketball Shoe
Nike LeBron 20
The Nike LeBron 20 is one of the most hyped LeBron James basketball shoes. It strays away from previous releases like the Nike LeBron 19. The traction is multidirectional, covering you on all movements. The midsole is full-length Cushlon with a forefoot Zoom Turbo unit and an additional standard heel Zoom Air unit in the heel. Compared to previous LeBrons and max-cushioned shoes, it has a more balanced feel. The upper is lightweight and comfortable as well. Read the full review. Price: $200
adidas Harden Vol 7
The adidas Harden Vol 7 might look weird BUT it is one of those shoes that definitely has that “wow” factor since the first time you lace them up. The plush cushioning setup and the really nice materials just make this shoe feel great on foot.
The Harden Vol 7 Lightstrike in the forefoot and Boost in the heel. The Lightstrike isn’t like your run-of-the-mill Lightstrike, and the boost is the boost we all know and love. Finally! a plush adidas basketball shoe. Read full review. Price: $180
Nike KD 15
The Nike KD 15 is, without question, comfortable. Although we already know that mesh and other textile materials move well with the foot, there’s more to it. The Cushlon foam midsole, in conjunction with the full-length Zoom Air Strobel unit, is where this shoe delivers a huge value. We know it’s the same as last year’s setup, but it works and is comfortable for long hooping sessions. Read the full review. Price: $150
Jordan Zion 2
The Jordan Zion 2 is a massive upgrade from the Jordan Zion 1. The cushioning setup in particular is much better this time around: it perferoms better on court and it is a more comfortable shoe all round.
The traction has also been upgraded and is currently some of the best traction you can find. The materials aren’t anything special but mold well to your foot and require little to no break-in time. Read the full review. Price: $120
Jordan Luka 1
The Jordan Luka 1 was highly rated by our team, and that’s saying a lot. Luka Doncic and the Jordan design team did well on this one. Jordan Brand used the Luka 1 to introduce its newest foam: Formula 23. Right off the bat, you’ll feel how comfortable it is underfoot. And the upper, while not premium, is well-padded an soft all around. Support is an obvious priority with the IsoPlate system acting as torsional support while really beefing up lateral support for extra support on stepbacks and defensive slides. And at $110 ($120 for the special editions), you get a lot of performance for the money. Read the full review. Price: $110
Nike Air Max Impact 4
The Nike Air Max Impact 4 proves that price does not always equal performance. Though this one is a budget model, it provides “signature line” comfort. The foam is presumably Phylon, but it is a very plush and slightly bouncy iteration of it with an Air Max unit in the heel. In addition, the upper is very soft and breathable which is always a plus. Don’t be fooled by the price tags of some sneakers. Great performance and comfort can come at any price point. Read the full review. Price: $90
Nike GT Jump
The Nike GT Jump features the bounciest cushion, perhaps of all time. They have been described as “what the Shox should have been”. The shoe features 2 large volume Zoom Air units in the heel and forefoot, a cushlon midsole, and a full-length zoom air stroble on top of that. That’s just an INSANE amount of cushion. To top it off it features a synthetic upper that requires no break-in time and is very breathable and lightweight. The shoe is probably better suited for bigger players that need a lot of cushion, but without a doubt, they are the most comfortable basketball shoes available. Price: $279
Puma TRC Blaze Court
The Puma TRC Blaze Court continues Puma’s resurgence into the basketball performance sneaker scene. The outsole looks awesome and performed excellently. It’s mainly made of multi-directional lines with herringbone in critical places. Trinomic is now foam-based, as Puma shows when you turn the shoe over. The rest of the midsole is ProFoam+ which is comfortable. If you haven’t tried Puma basketball, this is a perfect shoe to start for comfort and performance. See the full review. Price: $120
Curry 10
The Curry 10 looks familiar but looks different enough to be its own unique shoe. Although it and the Curry 9 both feature Under Amour’s Flow cushioning, the latest model updates the upper with Warp 2.0. The transition is smooth and having all that exposed foam without an outsole makes this one of the most comfortable basketball shoes on the market. Read the full review. Price: $160
Nike LeBron Witness 7
The Nike LeBron Witness 7 may be considered a budget model, but the near full-length Air Max unit begs to differ. It’s just crazy that you can get all this cushion at such a low price. The Phylon midsole isn’t too bad and it does give comfort underfoot. The Air unit’s shape can be more accurately described as dog-bone. But, even though it isn’t full-length, it’s still one of the most comfortable basketball shoes you will find on a budget. Read the full review. Price: $115
Air Jordan 36
The Air Jordan 36 is Jordan Brand‘s flagship performance shoe and thus receives the best tech. That makes it the most comfortable option from the brand. Although the midsole is basic Phylon, there is a full-length Zoom Air Strobel unit that you can feel right away plus an additional Zoom Air unit in the forefoot. It’s the same setup as the Nike KD 13. We’re not complaining as far as comfort goes. Plus, the upper is breathable and soft. Read the full review. Price: $185
Air Jordan 36 Low
The Air Jordan 36 Low is much like the regular Air Jordan 36, just with a slightly lower collar height. We still get the full-length Zoom Air Strobel that’s comfortable and bouncy and an additional Zoom Air unit in the forefoot for more impact protection. The Lenoweave upper may look like dental floss, but it is surprisingly supportive and extremely lightweight. The traction bites well on all surfaces. Read full review. Price: $165
Nike KD 14
The Nike KD 14 feels like a springy marshmallow underfoot. There’s absolutely no question as to the comfort of this sneaker. A full-length, plush Cushlon midsole would be enough for most, but combine that with the spring-like feel of the full-length Zoom Air Strobel unit and you got yourself one heck of a comfortable sneaker. The upper is basic and getting your fit right is key in order to get the most comfort out of it. Read the full review. Price: $150
Nike LeBron 19
The Nike LeBron 19 is one of the most cushioned shoes available right now. That’s pretty obvious the moment you lay eyes on them. There’s a full-length Cushlon foam midsole coupled with Max Air in the rear and Max Zoom Air in the forefoot. That’s a lot of cushion and makes it one of the most comfortable basketball shoes, even if you are not 6’9” and 280 pounds like The King himself. The worst that could happen here is that you have too much cushion. Read the full review. Price: $200
Most Comfortable Basketball Shoes: Retro/Casual
Air Jordan 11 Low I.E. OG Bred 2021
The Air Jordan 11 Low I.E. OG Bred 2021 is proof that retros can still be comfortable and that Jordan Brand was ahead of its time. The tech specs of any AJ 11 are well-known: Phylon midsole with full-length Air-Sole. That still beats most modern basketball shoes. The upper is a nice black leather with mesh sections so your feet don’t feel like they’re in an oven all the time. Playing in these wouldn’t be a terrible idea either. Read the full review. Price: $170
Air Jordan 1 Zoom CMFT
The Air Jordan 1 Zoom CMFT really stays true to its name. The CMFT is to be read as “comfort.” It features a canvas upper that is more forgiving than leather. For the midsole, it was basically injected with foam, presumably Phylon, and they decided not to cover it on the outsole. That makes the foam more able to compress and expand under the weight of the wearer. There’s also a heel Zoom Air unit for that extra pep in your step. Read the full review. Price: $150
Air Jordan 1 Zoom
The Air Jordan 1 Zoom doesn’t make it hard for us to find out what the update is with arguably the greatest sneaker of all time. But this isn’t just any regular Zoom unit. They actually used the same Zoom Strobel unit that was first seen in the Nike KD 12. With that, you’ll be able to feel how springy and comfortable these are right away. The materials are all reflective but there are other colorways if that’s not your thing. Also, you’ll probably want to go up half a size when you purchase a pair. Read the full review. Price: $175
Most Comfortable Budget Basketball Shoes
Nike Air Max Impact 4
Easy choice here. The Nike Air Max Impact 4 is a budget model with a ton of Air Max cushioning housed within a plush phylon foam carrier.not much more to say. Read the full review. Price: $90
Most Comfortable Outdoor Basketball Shoes
Wade Shadow 4
The Wade Shadow 4 makes an appearance in our Wade All City 11 review. The midsole is composed of two technologies. The main foam you’re going to feel is Cloud, an EVA-based foam. The forefoot features a BOOM puck which is Pebax-based. Don’t worry if they feel stiff to start. We promise the break-in will be worth it. That’s when the comfort will really reach its full potential. Price: $119 $99
