The Best Sneakers of 2023

Before we get into the whole business of boldly telling you which are the best sneakers of 2023, let’s talk about how we got here. To start, we listed off around 20 sneakers that we felt were worthy of inclusion—the most exciting, interesting, and in some cases just the biggest. We referenced our mid-year best sneaker rankings to see what needed adjusting, shifting some and removing others that didn’t feel as exciting six months later. We excluded anything that didn’t actually release and couldn’t really be tested by the market. We culled the group down to 10 shoes, arguing to the bitter end about what’s good vs. what’s big, what’s actually wearable, and how much to factor in resale price (by the way, that’s never the sole determiner of ranking here, but we sometimes go to it as a tiebreaker). Then we realized that we were wrong.

No list is going to please everybody. But the early feedback on the first version of our picks for best sneakers—presented, as is tradition, at the Sneaker of the Year Panel at ComplexCon in Long Beach—had us thinking that maybe some of the selections were too cute. Maybe we were erring at times on the side of niche vs. what was really big in sneakers this year. Maybe nobody cares about the Nocta Glide. So we went back to our list, switched things around, let some others in and kicked others off, and came up with a new list.

We’re certain these changes won’t quiet all the critics, and that’s not what we’re here to do, but hopefully they result in a list that’s a little more reflective of our audience’s taste.

Now let’s talk about what’s not on here. There are no Nike Zoom Vomero 5s because, while that was a big shoe this year, it didn’t feel like any singular pair was significant enough to warrant inclusion. There are no Sambas for the same reason, although about half of our group was campaigning hard for the metallic silver Wales Bonner pair. Same goes for all those Y2K-style mesh running shoes—we’d actually included Aimé Leon Dore’s New Balance 860V2 on the version of the list presented at ComplexCon to represent that whole wave, but the feedback in the room was that the shoe wasn’t singularly meaningful enough to warrant the spot. There are no SB Dunks on here; the Jarritos faded pretty fast, and Born and Raised’s poignant release felt just outside of the bubble. The Cactus Plant Flea Market x Nike Air Flea 2 is a super-new shoe that could have landed on this list, but we’re still uncertain if it’s on the right side of ugly or funky.

But enough preamble. Here it is, our slightly revised, this time totally infallible list of the best sneakers of 2023. As always, your feedback is welcome.

What the hell is this shoe doing on the list? Hasn’t Travis Scott released a bunch of Air Jordan 1s that are barely discernible from each other? Doesn’t he have yet another one coming next year that looks like the rest of them? Shouldn’t these slots to some extent prioritize what’s new and exciting in sneakers? Yes, but let us explain. The thing is, whether or not they’re still exciting to you reading this, Travis Scott Air Jordans are some of the biggest, most well-received, most coveted drops in sneakers.

Travis is still the guy setting records on the SNKRS app. He’s still the guy Jordan Brand and Nike go to when they want to heat up a silhouette. This is a massive hype shoe that sold out instantly and that people are willing to pay over retail for on the secondary market—that still means something. It’s certainly a bigger shoe volume wise than some of the other pairs we ranked higher here. It can’t be better because this formula feels rather stale after so many years, but the women’s Travis Scott x Air Jordan 1 Low “Olive” is undoubtedly one of the designs that define the year. If anything, it’s a perfect companion to his 2023 album Utopia: predictable, kinda boring, yet too big to ignore. —Brendan Dunne

It isn’t often that Saucony finds its way onto our sneaker of the year lists. Not to say that the brand hasn’t been making good sneakers. It’s just tough to cut through the noise of all of the hyped-up projects from bigger brands that pepper our social media feeds every single day. But with the help of Bronx-born designer Jae Tips, Saucony did just. Jae Tips’ canvas was the Grid Azura 2000, a largely forgotten runner from the brand’s archive that was never exactly flying off of shelves. But what Jae Tips was able to bring to the model is what captured everyone’s attention. Its wild mix of colors and materials like floral prints, checkerboard, gold mesh, and purple suede probably have no business all being used on the same sneaker. But somehow, it works. And the little touches, like “Remember Who Fronted” stamped on the midsole, are a wink and a nod to all of the people who doubted Jae Tips in the past (or scoff at the idea of a Saucony being given this level of praise). Safe to say, he proved them wrong with this one.

Jae Tips set out to break people’s necks with his first official sneaker collab. Not only was he successful—he created one of the best sneakers we’ve seen this year. Sure, there are other pairs, as overdone as they may be, that get placement on this list because they flip for tons of money or show up on every influencer’s feet. There will always be more nostalgia tied to Nikes and Air Jordans and that admittedly makes us a bit biased toward them. But it’s important to reward the new and creative things going on in sneakers. Jae Tips and Saucony just made a sneaker so fly that it was undeniable. And it doesn’t hurt that Tips is just an easy guy to root for, even if some sneakers covered in every color of the rainbow don’t necessarily match your personal style. Don’t be surprised if you keep seeing his name pop up in these conversations for years to come. If he can keep crafting memorable Sauconys (he already has done it again), it’s well deserved. —Mike DeStefano

I can fully admit that this is a sneaker I wanted to win from the start—before I ever knew what it looked like. But can you blame me? Action Bronson is a certified good dude that’s been wearing New Balance sneakers for over 30 years. He’s been in them as long as he’s been an artist too. Bronson is one of the brand’s connoisseurs that hopped on New Balance before the popularity that swept the company over the past handful of years. This year, Bronson finally got a shoe.

And it wasn’t just a remake of a retro, but he got a chance to rework the newly released 990v6, the brand’s flagship sneaker. At first, people thought the shoe looked like something custom from New Balance, with colors thrown together. But Bronson describes it as a painting, something made to elicit emotions. There are layers of pistachio for the baklava and waves from the ocean. There’s also a more wearable pair in shades of blue called the “Lapis Lazuli,” or stone from heaven. Some like those more. Personally, give me the “Baklava” pair any day. To me, this shoe could be much higher. But I get it; it’s not everybody’s cup of espresso. But it’s great to see the good dudes win. —Matt Welty

A piece of early 2000s sneaker lore, Fat Joe’s Terror Squad x Nike Air Force 1s have been long coveted by collectors. As Joe tells it, in those days, he paid someone at Nike to produce small sample runs of Air Force 1 colorways with Terror Squad’s TS logo. The employee was fired shortly thereafter, and the Terror Squad Air Forces have become increasingly more rare and sought after in the decades since. This year, Nike and Joe made things official with the release of two colorways.

The wider release of the two was a black-and-white “Blackout” pair referencing the would-be 2003 Rucker Park basketball game between Fat Joe and Jay-Z’s teams before a blackout hit the city. That moment inspired the sneaker’s early release, which took place in August 2023 at Rucker Park following the NY vs. NY tournament. A second, more limited colorway came in Joe’s favorite colorway, sky blue (officially named “Porpoise”).

Aside from nailing it on a nostalgic note, what makes these shoes so special is how well they were pulled off. Their quality was a major step up from a standard Air Force 1, a detail ComplexCon Sneaker of the Year panelists agreed on. For Joe, turning an unsanctioned run of TS-embroidered pairs into an official project all these years later is a testament to his staying power and how far he’s come. The only thing that could’ve somehow made these better is if Nike had dropped one of Joe’s original pink colorways too. —Riley Jones

Depending on who you ask, the Kobe 6 “Grinch” might be Kobe Bryant’s best sneaker ever. It’s a hard act to follow up. Almost an impossible task. Especially since Bryant’s tragic passing. So what did Nike do? Kept it simple, stupid. And it worked. Nike simply flipped the colorway of the “Grinch” Kobe 6 and came up with the “Reverse Grinch.” At first, the shoe didn’t look great. But that always happens with early samples. The red wasn’t as bright, or maybe people didn’t see the vision. This was fair; everyone was attached to the original—and still is. But the shoes came out. The red was brighter. They looked dang good on feet. I remember seeing them on PGA Tour golfer Tony Finau’s feet during our podcast at ComplexCon and thought, “Wow, those are nice.”

Bryant’s widow, Vanessa Bryant, confirmed that there would be even more of the shoes made—which is quite the opposite of the Grinch mantra they possess, or it’s fitting if you take into account him going back and re-delivering the presents to Whoville at the end of that story. Either way, this is a sneaker we’re going to see everywhere this upcoming year. On the NBA court, in the streets, on Instagram, and in the hearts and minds of Kobe collectors and fans (they’re two different things by the way). And will only get better with time. —Matt Welty

On what is easily J Balvin’s best collaborative sneaker with Jordan Brand yet, the Colombian megastar steered away from the wilder designs featured on his past projects and kept it clean and simple with the Air Jordan 3. Inspired by the Medellin sunset, the midsole on the sneaker’s heel boasts an eye-catching gradient phasing from a deep purple to a vibrant yellow and complemented by Balvin’s signature smiley face sitting opposite of a Nike Air stamp on its heels. 

For what it’s worth, this sneaker was one of the few shoes that was met with almost no criticism during the 2023 ComplexConversations Sneaker of the Year panel. All the panelists were in favor of its placement and the audience had very little to complain about, which felt like a rarity in the room. Balvin’s Jordan 3 had a noteworthy rollout as well, making its first appearance at this year’s Formula 1 Grand Prix in Miami. Of course, that also led to a hilarious interaction with DJ Khaled where he got the only pair that existed at the time straight off of Balvin’s feet. 

In an interview with Complex, Balvin noted that he wants to make his way through the entire Jordan Brand catalog with collaborations. Does 2024 have a J Balvin x Air Jordan 4 in store then? It’s too early to say, but we can confidently call his AJ3 one of the best sneakers of 2023. —Ben Felderstein

The Tiffany & Co. x Nike Air Force 1 was met with a divisive reception when it arrived early in the year—it’s a shoe that’s been debated ad nauseam over the course of 2023 by the Complex Sneakers team. But the fact that it still draws big attention whenever a person of note is spotted in a pair, and that debate gets rehashed once again, serves as proof of its importance in sneaker culture this year.

The primary source of criticism seems to be the simplicity of the design, a stark contrast to the Tiffany-themed, more-is-more aesthetic of the beloved Diamond Supply Co. x Nike SB Dunk Low from 2005. There’s more than one way to approach a design though. This actual Tiffany collab doesn’t look like a piece of mid-2000s streetwear, but the modern take on the colorway is simply more wearable in 2023. It even was an increasingly rare win for resellers, with prices on the secondary market holding strong in the $1,000 range. —Zac Dubasik

Corteiz has had a rapid ascent. Founded by British-Nigerian designer Clint 419, the London-based brand started in 2018 and earned early co-signs from the late Virgil Abloh, as well as artists like Drake and Central Cee. But in 2023, Corteiz had its biggest moment yet when it collaborated with Nike on three Air Max 95s. The shoes, which feature changes like toggle lacing, a wide mesh material, and camouflage liners, were released regionally. 

The Sequoia was released first in Clint 419’s hometown of London, a drop that included a soccer challenge for a chance at the sneakers. In NYC, a Pink Beam colorway had the streets in a frenzy as coordinates flashed on a digital billboard just minutes after noon, leading to a flock of people making way to a bodega-themed pop-up for the shoes. And in Paris, crowds for the Aegean Storm pair may have been the wildest out of the three. That sort of hysteria alone doesn’t always mean it’s a great product, but in this case, it was, and it all felt like a nostalgic nod to the days of less structured sneaker releases. 

Online, Clint 419 took a strong stance against resellers. Following the release of all three pairs, Corteiz restocked over 1,000 pairs of canceled bot orders in London. Even better, the shoes were tagged at £110 each, a reference to the Air Max 95’s original London retail price. It didn’t do much to drive down overall resale, though, as each colorway regularly goes for over $500, with some asking prices more than double that.

The reception to the Corteiz x Nike Air Max 95 speaks to both the cult-like following the brand has created and it being a well-executed project. The Air Max 95 is a true Nike classic and has been popular through the decades since its debut, but it’s not always an instant sellout, and just slapping a hot brand’s logo on it isn’t necessarily going to make it coveted. Clint’s authentic ties to the model made for a unique design that switches things up without getting too far off plot, and it also ended up being one of the best rollouts of the year. It will be interesting to see if Corteiz can keep the momentum going with its next Nike project, an Air Trainer Huarache set expected in 2024. —Riley Jones

The “White/Cement” Air Jordan 3 has seen no shortage of re-releases over the years, yet it still felt special when it returned in early 2023. It ranked high on our mid-year list, and maintained that position throughout the year. That’s partially because a “White/Cement” 3 is a “White/Cement” 3—the shoe is simply one of the most important in sneaker history thanks to its résumé, which includes the introduction of the Jumpman logo, being worn by Michael Jordan in the 1988 Slam Dunk Contest, and its credit as the shoe that kept Michael Jordan with Nike in the late ‘80s. But this was also a particularly good rendition, arguably the best since the original retro in 1994, thanks to its true-to-original shape and tasteful faux aging.

The only thing not to love came in the form of spotty quality control. Social media users posted images of inconsistent elephant print, which was nothing new to Air Jordan 3 retros, but it did detract a bit from a subset of pairs. That blemish to its rollout wasn’t enough to detract from the shoe’s popularity though. Despite its widespread availability, it still even resells for a modest profit in an era where general releases routinely go on sale (notwithstanding some odd sizes at Ross). —Zac Dubasik

Do too much to a retro sneaker and you run the risk of bastardizing it—the whole idea of Air Jordan fusions is probably the best (and by best we mean worst) example of this. Do too little to a retro sneaker and you run the risk of releasing a boring product—yes, sneaker collectors want the old shoes to come back, but they don’t want them to come back too much, and they don’t necessarily always want them to come back exactly the way they used to look. It’s a tough balance to strike for designers. How can you honor an original product, a pillar of the hobby of sneaker collecting, while twisting in new details that have a legitimate reason to exist?

This Air Jordan 4, a retro created in collaboration with Nike SB, is the perfect answer. Jordan Brand has worked with Nike’s skateboarding division for years now, mostly focusing on the Air Jordan 1’s history as a skate shoe in the 1980s. This time, the intra-brand collab squad fast-forwarded a couple models and landed on the Jordan 4, a shoe that has less iconic moments in skateboarding but is still justified as a skate shoe.

The chunky Air Jordan 4 is bulky enough to withstand the rigors of skating. This version even more so—as Jordan Brand was working on the collab, it sent Jordan 4s out to Nike-affiliated skaters like Elissa Steamer to have them wear-test the sneakers and give feedback. The SB Air Jordan 4 is built to look like a true-to-the-original retro (ticking the nostalgia box) but has changes in the construction to make it more of a skate shoe (satisfying the need for new). It has nerdy technical details—a deconstructed upper for more flex, a Poron forefoot sockliner—for the shoe dogs while still just being an impeccably clean retro with original colorblocking and “Nike Air” on the back.

Did we mention it has a gum bottom? Crispy. Did we mention “SB” serves as a double entendre, standing not only for “skateboarding” but also for “Sandy Bodecker,” the late Nike legend who worked as a developer on the original Jordan 4 before going on to start up Nike SB in the early 2000s? Perfect. No notes. —Brendan Dunne