Brooks has thrown a lot at the Hyperion Max 4, and unfortunately it’s a shoe that ends up being less than the sum of its parts, partly because all those parts make it way too heavy to be an effective speed shoe.

I enjoyed some of my runs in the Hyperion Max 4, which has a bouncy midsole and does perform well as a long-run cruiser, but if you’re in the market for a fast training shoe, I could name many others that I’d buy ahead of it, and almost all of them would cost less too.

It’s also very similar to its predecessor, so even if you were keen to pick it up, you’d be better off finding the Brooks Hyperion Max 3 on sale.

The Brooks Hyperion Max 4 has some good ingredients, most notably the springy DNA Gold foam, but the line needs a rethink to compete with the best running shoes in its category, like the excellent New Balance SC Rebel v1 or Hoka Mach X3.

The Brooks Hyperion Max 4 launched in summer 2026 and costs $200 in the U.S. and £170 in the U.K., which is the same price as its predecessor.

It’s an expensive shoe, and while the price is around par for a plated super-trainer, the Hyperion Max 4 is undercut by some excellent fast training shoes like the Adidas Adizero Evo SL and Kiprun Kipstorm Tempo.

The Brooks Hyperion Max 4 is currently available in four colors, including the white and yellow design I tested, which fit me well in my normal running shoe size.

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