OutdoorGearLab tests 17 hiking shoes

Hiking shoes are in a weird moment right now. They keep getting lighter, faster, and more trail-runner-like, but people still buy them for the old reasons — grip on loose dirt, support under a pack, and enough durability to survive more than one season. That is why OutdoorGearLab’s latest men’s hiking shoe update matters. The site refreshed the guide this week and kept the Salomon X Ultra 5 Gore-Tex in the top spot, after comparing 17 men’s shoes on trail performance, comfort, support, traction, and weight. ### What actually got updated? The key change is timing. GearLab’s broader “Best Hiking Shoes of 2026” guide was updated on May 6, 2026, and its hiking-gear hub says that refresh folded in the latest picks for men’s hiking shoes. The men’s-specific page is still live, and search snippets show it centers on day hikes and multi-day adventures, with side-by-side scoring built from real trail use rather than a quick first impression. ### Which shoe won? Salomon’s X Ultra 5 Gore-Tex is the standout in GearLab’s current catalog view, where it carries one of the highest men’s hiking-shoe ratings and sits at the top of the men’s field. That fits the wider 2026 pattern, too — other gear outlets are also putting the X Ultra 5 GTX near or at the top because it balances low weight with real stability on rough terrain. Basically, it is landing in the sweet spot between a nimble shoe and a cut-down boot. ### Why does that balance matter so much? Because most hikers are not choosing between a perfect shoe and a bad shoe. They are choosing between tradeoffs. A very light shoe feels great for the first few miles, but it can get twitchy on talus, roots, or sidehills. A burlier shoe protects your feet better, but it can feel clunky and hot. The winners in 2026 are the pairs that thread that needle — light enough until the trail gets ugly. ### How big was the test? This is where the context matters. The men’s-specific roundup references 17 shoes, but GearLab’s bigger 2026 hiking-shoe guide says the team tested 37 pairs across men’s and women’s models. Its shoe catalog now lists more than 100 hiking-shoe reviews overall. So the men’s ranking is not a one-off listicle — it sits inside a much larger testing pipeline with a lot of back-to-back comparisons. ### What are they really scoring? Not just comfort. GearLab breaks the category into traction, support, comfort, weight, and sometimes water resistance or underfoot protection depending on the model. That matters because “comfortable in the store” and “comfortable after 12 miles on mixed terrain” are not the same thing. A hiking shoe is basically a bundle of compromises, and the scoring tries to expose which compromise each model is making. ### Is this part of a bigger trend? Yes — hiking footwear keeps moving away from heavy boots. Switchback, GearJunkie, and Treeline all frame 2026 hiking shoes around lighter builds, faster feel, and hybrid designs that borrow from trail runners. But none of them are saying support is dead. The real shift is that brands are trying to deliver boot-like confidence without boot-like bulk. ### So what should a buyer take from it? If you hike on rough trails, the takeaway is not “buy the lightest shoe.” It is “buy the lightest shoe that still feels planted.” GearLab’s latest update reinforces that point. The market keeps chasing speed, but the shoes that rise to the top are still the ones that let you finish a long day with your feet — and ankles — feeling intact.