Women's New Balance Trainers

Women's New Balance trainers, from a company that started out in Boston in 1906 making arch supports. We lean towards the retro end. The 9060, 1906R and 2002R all draw on New Balance's old running shoes and sit on chunky soles, while the 574, the 327 and the slim 204L and 204V stay lower. There's proper trail kit too, including Hierro shoes with GORE-TEX. For other brands, see our women's trainers, and our 1906R fit guide covers sizing.

Which New Balance Trainers? The 9060, 1906R and 2002R

These three are the chunky ones, and they aren't interchangeable. The 9060 has the biggest, most sculpted sole here; New Balance says it draws on its 99X series and the 860, a running shoe from the early 2000s. It wants a wide-leg trouser to carry the bulk. The 1906R is slimmer and looks closer to the running shoe it started out as in 2009. We find it comes up slightly small and narrow.

The 2002R has the best story. It launched in 2010 as an expensive, US-made shoe and didn't catch on. Ten years later New Balance brought it back on the sole of the 860v2, and that's the version that took off. We stock the 860v2 too, if you want to see where the sole came from.

Lower New Balance Trainers: the 574, 327, 204L and 204V

If chunky isn't you, start here. The 574 began as a budget road-and-trail runner developed from New Balance's 500 series, and it's still one of the plainest shoes the brand makes, which is the point of it. The 327 is louder, with an oversized N and a lugged sole borrowed from an old New Balance trail shoe, the 355. The 204L and 204V are the slimmest of the lot, and their thin soles work with straight jeans and skirts better than anything else on this page. Our 204V write-up has more on it.

New Balance Running and Trail Trainers

The retro models are sold as everyday shoes now. For running, look at the Fresh Foam pairs and the Hierro trail shoes, which put a Fresh Foam X midsole on a grippy Vibram Megagrip outsole. The Hierro versions with GORE-TEX are waterproof. Most of the retro pairs are mesh and suede, so they're not the ones for a wet November.

How Women's and Unisex New Balance Trainers Fit

New Balance has cared about fit for a long time. Its 1960 Trackster was the first running shoe sold in different widths. That's worth knowing here, because several of these, the 9060 among them, are unisex and made on men's sizing. In UK sizes the number means the same length for men and women, so start with your usual size. The difference is width. New Balance's standard men's fitting is the same as its women's wide, so a unisex pair gives you more room across the foot. For the 1906R, our fit guide goes into detail.

For more from other brands, see our Puma trainers, or browse everything in women's trainers and all footwear.

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