Price: £150
Type: Neutral/Max cushioned
Weight: 245g (M), 205g (W)
What everyone's reading
Drop: 10mm
The shoe
The Cloudsurfer was On's very first running shoe. Seven iterations later, and it feels like an entirely different shoe. The biggest difference comes in the midsole, which has been completely redesigned from the previous version, removing the Speedboard plate and introducing what it calls CloudTec Phase technology: the hollow pods are now inside the Helion foam midsole rather than underneath it, and positioned at varying diagonal to horizontal angles. The idea is that, on the run, these collapse like a line of falling dominoes as you transition from footstrike to toe-off. The effect? A uniquely glorious rolling sensation during transition and sublime softness underfoot, which I have never experienced in any On shoe I've run in before. Actually, in any shoe for that matter...
What does the On Cloudsurfer feel like to run in?
The Cloudsurfer 7 has received universal praise by our RW wear-testers, who have spent months testing the shoe over hundreds of kilometres, and for that reason, it's been awarded Best In Test in our spring/summer shoe guide.
As one of those testers, I've ran around 70km in the shoe so far, during easy runs, long runs and intervals on the road and on the track, and, well, I'm gushing.
Why? Well, for a start, as soon as you step foot into the shoes you get that 'oh that’s nice' pull-on comfort. The dual-layered mesh upper is soft and plush – there's plenty of padding around the heel collar (which my niggly achilles is always thankful for) and the tongue is cushioned, too, giving them a slipper-feel.
Then, you start running in them - and they feel even better. At just 213g in a women's UK 6.5, they feel super light underfoot (and are actually as light as, if not lighter than, may carbon shoes on the market) and feel wonderfully soft but energetic, too – a winning combination. That's thanks to the cushy Helion foam combined with the clever CloudTec Phase midsole technology. As you move through your transition, the hollow pods collapse and compress, which creates a lovely, smooth rolling sensation – accentuated by the shoe's rocker profile. And then, at the end of your stride, you get a snappy forwards propulsion once the pods release.
So, although the cushioning is soft, it doesn’t feel mushy, meaning when you want to get up on your toes and push the pace, it handles it with aplomb. This makes the Cloudsurfer 7 an excellent choice for faster sessions, and I find myself reaching for these every time I head to the track to do speedwork, as their lightness and bounciness, quite simply, makes running fast feel so much easier.
And frankly, this makes them a little bit addictive: because they make running feel so effortless, they're also super enjoyable to wear during slow-paced stuff – especially long runs. I've ran up to 16km in these shoes, and would happily go even further, whether that's at a 'run-all-day' pace or at half marathon race pace.
I can't imagine you'd need to worry about their durability over long miles, either. While the outsole consists of exposed midsole foam, reinforced with a thin layer of outsole rubber at the toe and heel, so far there's no sign of wear and tear and I've had no issues with grip, either.
How is the On Cloudsurfer 7 different to other On shoes?
These feels completely different to any On running shoes I've run in before – and, as mentioned, hardly resemble the much firmer and heavier Cloudsurfer 6s, which have the Cloud elements positioned beneath the outsole and a speedboard sandwiched into the midsole.
But how do they compare to the maximal Cloudmonsters? Well, while the Cloudmonster is undeniably softer and bouncier than all of the On models that came before it, thanks to a lofty wedge of bouncy Heliom midsole foam, the new CloudTech phase midsole technology in the Cloudsurfer 7s is completely different – and that creates a completely different sensation when running. It's much smoother, lighter, softer and springier.
How does it fit?
Like the rest of our wear-testers, I found the Cloudsurfer 7 to fit true to size and enjoyed the wide toe box which allows for plenty of wiggle room. My only one criticism of the shoe is that the heel is quite roomy – I would have liked this to have been a touch narrower to create a more secure heel hold. That said, the midfoot is fairly narrow and fits snuggly, and the lacing system system allows you to achieve a fairly secure lockdown. The laces are threaded through your standard hole eyelets but also through four pieces of rope which have been stitched into the shoe on either side at the top of the midfoot.
RW verdict
The Cloud 7s are now a firm fixture in my shoe rotation – and I have a feeling they will be for quite some time. They are incredibly versatile – you can stick them on for pretty much any session and they feel enjoyable and comfortable to wear – but where you really feel the benefit, in my experience anyway, is when you push the pace a little. While they aren't designed for racing, they really do make running hard, feel easier, so if you're after one do-it-all shoe for everything from easy runs to racing, or even a carbon-plate-less shoe for your tempo work and speed sessions, you'd struggle to find better.
