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When it comes to midsole plates, carbon fiber is your lightest and stiffest option. That’s why shoe designers use the material in their fastest super shoes for race day. But you don’t really need that extra sizzle for every mile and workout the rest of the week. For those runs, we’ll reach for a shoe like the New Balance FuelCell Propel v4 with a TPU (thermoplastic elastomer polyurethane) midsole plate.
This adds a little extra pep and gets you accustomed to the experience of running in a plated shoe, but feels less aggressive. It fits the bill if you want to trade some rigidity for more softness and flex underfoot.
Pros
- Stable, cushioned ride with some pep
- Wide toebox and forefoot
- Generous outsole rubber coverage
- Excellent value
Cons
- Upper feels a bit sloppy
- Heavier than the Propel v3
Key Specs
| Weight | 9.9 oz (M), 8.4 oz (W) |
|---|---|
| Drop | 6 mm |
| Heel Stack | 31 mm |
| Forefoot Stack | 25 mm |
| Type | Road Neutral |
More From Runner's World
- Who It’s For: Runners who want to add a plated trainer into their shoe rotation for daily miles and faster workouts—without breaking the bank
- Preceded by: New Balance FuelCell Propel v1, v2, v3
- For Runners Who Like: Asics GlideRide 3, Puma Velocity Nitro 2, Saucony Axon 3
- Key Features: Full-length TPU plate, NDurance rubber outsole
- Midsole Foam: Dual-layer FuelCell (nitrogen-injected TPU and EVA blend)
New Balance FuelCell Propel v4 Overview
Shoes with full-length plates—even those made of the comparatively cheaper TPU material—still aren’t especially budget-friendly. (Generally, the more plate, the more you’ll spend, though other elements can drive up a shoe’s price as well.) For example, Saucony’s Endorphin Speed 3 and Asics’s GlideRide 3, two shoes we love that have full-length TPU plates, each cost $150 or more. New Balance serves up the same feature in the fourth Propel at 40 bucks cheaper. While it doesn’t quite perform on the level of those models, it’s a solid daily training companion for the price.
Ride and Cushioning
New Balance designed the Propel v4 to handle more than just easy runs. Still, at 9.9 ounces for a men’s size 9, the shoe is on the heavier side for a speed trainer these days. After running in the Propel v4 for more than a month, two testers told us which types of workouts they most liked using the shoe for.
+ Trevor’s Take: Easy Days Only
Tester Trevor Conde liked it best for long runs and easy miles, its stockier build making it feel a bit slow to respond when turning the shoe over. (I’ll note that Trevor is an Olympic Trials hopeful, who logs around 80 miles per week and runs with a quick and nimble neutral gait and an efficient midfoot strike.)
“The system of plastic plate and cushioning just didn’t come together well enough for me to handle hot paces. The roll-through of the shoe from heel strike to toe-off had a stiffness that felt limiting to my stride, rather than returning energy,” said Trevor of his runs at 6:30 pace per mile. “Instead, I’d use these shoes for warmups, cooldowns, and easy-day mileage.”
+ Matthew’s Take: Pleasingly Versatile
Tester Matthew Aberant agreed that the Propel is no speed demon, but found the shoe more versatile for his 35-mile training weeks at an average 7:00/mile pace. Matthew has a neutral gait, heel strike, and an average foot width and arch height.
“I could wear this shoe on any run, regardless of how far or fast I was planning on going. It ran equally well on the treadmill for short and fast morning runs as it did for my Sunday long runs. It is a very versatile, comfortable trainer that allowed me to focus on my running and forget about my shoes until it was time to untie them,” Matthew said.
“I found that the midsole’s slight rocker helped me roll forward through my stride without overly impacting my natural gait. This let me keep a smooth, even cadence with less effort.
“The cushioning was more than adequate for long runs, especially in the heel. The forefoot felt a bit thin after 12 miles or more, but I never had any major discomfort from a lack of protection,” he added. “Overall, the cushioning doesn’t feel too soft or slow. These shoes wouldn’t be my first choice for speedwork, but the cushioning didn’t slow me down and I was still able to crank out some fast miles.”
Stability
This is the first version of the Propel with a midsole plate, so maybe New Balance will work out those kinks for v5. However, the surrounding FuelCell cushioning itself—though not quite as bouncy as the foam of the same name used in the Rebel—felt better to one tester who prefers shoes with a firmer ride.
“The heel cushioning is not as squishy as other FuelCell shoes I’ve run in, which made the ride feel more stable and made my ankles feel less vulnerable to rolling outward,” she said.
We also think that’s partially due to the location of the plate, which extends more onto the lateral side of the shoe. (A sliver is visible from the outside of the midsole.) This makes the Propel a uniquely supportive shoe for supinators, those who spend more time on the outsides of their feet through their gait cycles.
More Affordable...But Can You Tell?
At a glance, it’s hard to believe the Propel is a budget shoe. We liked the stout build, and there’s a generous slab of rubber on the outsole. The one-piece pearly white mesh upper of our test pairs is a bit scratchy on the inside, but looks sleek. New Balance didn’t cut corners in any of those areas. Instead, what’s slashed from the price shows up on the scale, as the shoe is a bit heavier than most daily trainers these days. We also noted some sliding of the non-gusseted tongue and insole.
“The one thing that bothered me was that the tongue of the shoe slipped over to the side and didn’t stay in place on top of my foot,” one tester said said. “This occasionally made the shoe feel like it was not as secure on my foot as I would have liked.”
Upper Fit
Testers told us the spacious forefoot fit was exceptionally comfortable, with many praising the wider last that let their toes spread and splay. But the upper needs a snugger inner gusset for you to truly enjoy the extra space. Such is a fairly common trade-off that brands need to make to help keep the price down on their more affordable models. Given that this helps make the Propel a more accessible fully plated shoe—and lets runners experiment with new shoe tech in their rotations before committing to the high-end, carbon-plated models—we don’t mind it too much.
