Adidas Ultraboost 21: Long Term Follow Up
Price: $180 MSRP [SOLD OUT at Adidas.com; Check eBay]
Why Buy?
The Adidas Ultraboost 21 is an extremely durable option, and the Ultraboost comfort speaks for itself.
Why Avoid?
The Adidas Ultraboost 21 yellows like no sneaker I’ve ever owned, and is getting harder to style in 2022.
Specs:
| Model | Ultraboost 21 “Parley” |
| Height | Low |
| Materials | Knit / Boost / Rubber |
| Size | 13 |
| Weight | 446 g / 15.7 oz |
| Construction | Cemented |
| Country of Origin | Vietnam |
History:
After the questionable design of the Ultraboost 19 and 20, Adidas decided to try and go back to the sporty roots of the original in the Ultraboost 21. Focusing on designing a sporty shoe first, and then hoping it catches on as a cultural phenomenon.
They must have felt that they did a pretty good job. The Ultraboost 22 looks almost exactly like the 21 model. Sure, the plastic side panels are slightly different, but can you really tell? However, despite being effectively identical, when the 22 released the 21s dropped in price to make room.
You might be tempted to pick a pair of 21s at this discount price, but should you? Today, we’re going to look at the Adidas Ultraboost 21 after 100 wears, and 100 miles. This pair has seen everything from runs both outside and on treadmills, casual wear, vacations, and more. How did they hold up? Let’s find out.
By the way, if you’re interested in the initial impressions on this sneaker, you can find that review here.
Looks:
Upper:
Before we get into the upper, we need to lay a few ground rules. The Ultraboost 21 in the Parley colorway are a bright white pair of knit shoes. Knocking them for getting dirty isn’t fair, and isn’t going to happen here. Are they stained? Yes. Will yours be? Yes.
That being said, the knit isn’t just pure white. The cream-colored spots go a long way in keeping this shoe from looking too grimy right off the bat. Overall, the knit has held up about as well as you can expect, with the only wear being from staining. There is no rips, tears, or similar. If you got them in a dark color, you’d never be able to tell between 10 wears, or 100.
While I can’t hold the staining against them, where I can knock the shoe is on the plastic panels. Both the blueish green midfoot cage and the white heel counters have gone yellow. We’ve all had sneakers that yellow over time, but I’ve never seen anything change this fast. In less than one year, these changed as much as most Jordan brand shoes do in 3.
I’d like to give a bit of slack with these being the Parley pair – hoping maybe the lack of dye is the reason – but Mrs. 100wears has a pair in another colorway and is experiencing the same.
On the plus side, the plastic is just as tough as the knit, and other than the discoloration, has no real scratches to speak of.
Mid- and Outsole:
Talk about durable. From a wear perspective, the bottom half of the Ultraboost 21 are among the most durable sneakers I’ve ever owned. Adidas makes a point to say their continental rubber is about grip and not durability, but the rubber is hardly worn at all.
The thick boost midsole is much the same. Other than a small abrasion on the inside, you’d be hard pressed to tell if this midsole was more than a couple days old. Interestingly, the only creasing in the midsole is around the plastic heel cap, where the boost wraps up around your ankle. This part isn’t being compressed at all, so my guess is that the flexing of the heel cap is stretching it out. In any case, it’s nothing to worry about.
Really, the only thing to complain about here is the same as the above. Almost immediately the outsole started to yellow, though it’s more forgivable for something that is constantly dragging on the ground.
Summary:
Ultimately, the Ultraboost 21 is a sneaker that fits in well in casual situations. While the athleisure trend may be in the rearview mirror, if you’re looking for a casual option these do a great job.
Visually, the shoe has held up really well in everything but discoloration. Though, to be fair, it’s discoloring everywhere – and fast. No shoe with icy panels will stay blue-tinted forever, but this shoe in particular seems to be aging worse than most.
Fit & Comfort:
Fit:
When it was new, I said that the Ultraboost 21 fit a bit wider than previous versions, and that is still true after 100 wears. There has not been any noticeable shift in the fit.
While I appreciate the looser toe box, I found that the heel might be a bit too loose for many. The wider heel, combined with thicker heel pads, doesn’t do a great job of locking your foot in place. Instead, it pushes your foot forward and away from the plastic heel cup. If you’ve ever worn Yeezy 350 v2s, it’s a similar feeling. I think this could be resolved by going a half size down, but for casual wear you might find that a bit too snug elsewhere.
If you’re wearing these casually, I’d go with your typical sneaker size (for most people that is brannock +1). If you plan on running in them, I’d go a half size smaller.
For reference, I take these in a size 13, and would do a 12.5 if running. I wear a size 13 in Jordan 1s, and a size 12.5 in Stan Smiths. For a full list of my sizing in every shoe reviewed on this website, click here.
Comfort:
To start off, the Ultraboost 21 is an Ultraboost. These are a very comfortable sneaker. Among the best in the world. Most of this is nitpicking.
Acknowledging that these are comfortable, there are two items I wish that Adidas would address when they make the move to the 23. Especially since neither were changed in the 22 model.
First, the plastic midfoot cage is stiff and does more harm than good. In the older model this panel was made of a softer plastic that took the shape of your foot over time. On the Ultraboost 21, this has remained as rigid as it was on the first day it came out of the box, digging into your feet with every step.
Second, the boost isn’t plush enough. Not to say it is hard, it isn’t, but Adidas has the ability to make their boost softer or harder depending on the purpose of the shoe. They opted for a denser, harder boost on the Ultraboost 21, but after a few wears it hasn’t proven and more supportive or resistant to bottoming out than any other formula of boost I’ve used.
Speaking of bottoming out… These are not done yet, but they are noticeably flatter feeling than they were new. This is typical of boost, just something to be aware of.
Materials & Construction:
Materials:
Adidas focused on sustainability on the Ultraboost 21, and I think that is a good thing. The shoe is only 17% recycled material – and none of the yellowing panels are – but that’s better than nothing.
Up top, the knit is Adidas’ PrimeBlue. This variation on Primeknit is made up of Parley’s recycled ocean plastic. It’s proven to be plenty durable, so no complaints here after wear. Elsewhere, the midfoot cage and heel caps are fresh plastic. I wish these had been recycled too – they are stiff anyway, why not make them more environmentally friendly?
Under foot, the midsole of the shoe is made of boost. Boost, also known as thermoplastic polyurethane or eTPU, is actually a bunch of TPU pellets expanded into the shape of a frame. Most EVA-foam sneakers need to choose between a soft foam or a bouncy foam, boost manages to be both.
On the bottom of the sneaker, the Ultraboost 21 uses continental rubber. With wear, you can see that the various colors of rubber are made up of substantially different compounds. The blue tinted rubber is the hardest by far, showing almost no wear and helping create a bit of snap as you walk. The translucent rubber is somewhat in the middle, and the chalk-colored bit just under the ball of your foot is the softest. These different rubber compounds work really well to create a durable and comfortable ride.
Overall, I’m impressed by most of the materials used in this sneaker.
Construction:
For the Ultraboost 21, Adidas used a cemented construction.
If you want a more in-depth dive on that type of construction, click here. For a cliff notes version, cemented construction is basically gluing the upper to the midsole using contact cement.
Cemented construction is the most common type of construction for sneakers today. While it is among the least durable ways to make a shoe, it is by far the lightest and most flexible. For sneakers that use softer materials that will naturally wear out, cemented construction makes a lot of sense.
Ease of Care:
If you want shoes that look new, you shouldn’t pick white knit sneakers. They will never look completely clean.
That being said, I’ve found the Ultraboost 21 does a good job taking a wash. After accidentally stepping in some mud, I washed these with a fairly stiff bristled brush and there was basically no extra wear on the knit upper itself.
As for the yellowing, there are a number of different options out there. Going from baking soda, which is less likely to work but won’t really impact the life of the shoe, to bleach, which is much more likely to work, but will impact the life of the shoe.
I typically suggest shoe trees in leather sneakers, but there is no real point on a knit pair.
Pricing & Value:
Pricing:
The Adidas Ultraboost 21 comes in at an MSRP of $180, $10 less than the Ultraboost 22. Of course, with the 22 model out, you’re able to find the 21 for less. Often a lot less.
The Adidas eBay store has the Ultraboost 21 for $126, but the eBay store has nearly constant sales off their listed price. At time of writing, it is buy one, get one 50% off, but 30% off anything is pretty common. Finding a pair of these for well under $100 should be pretty easy.
You can also try digging around the various foot stores, but their sales never seem to be quite as good as Adidas themselves.
Value:
The Adidas Ultraboost 21 offers a really appealing value proposition – at least on sale. The sneaker has proven to be incredibly durable. The outsole is so durable that you probably won’t be forced to get rid of them. Instead, deciding you’ve had enough – either with a dirty upper or flattened boost. If you don’t mind your shoe being a bit dirty, wearing these for years isn’t out of the question. At least if you give them a proper rest in between wears.
To get a pair of sneakers you can wear for years with proper rest for $100 is hard to beat.
Wrap Up:
The Adidas Ultraboost 21, especially in this Parley colorway, is a modern take on a classic design. It’s a durable, comfortable shoe that offers a great value.
Their real drawback is in the style department. Not only has the sock-shoe look and athleisure style dropped in popularity, making these hard the style, the nearly instant yellowing means they won’t look fresh after a few wears. For me, this has pushed these shoes into exercise shoe territory.
Still, if you’re looking for a shoe that focuses on comfort, and are OK with getting a darker colorway to hide the aging, the Ultraboost 21 could be a great choice.