The Nike Pegasus 42 has been one of the most popular running shoes on the market for over four decades, and you don’t get to 42 models of a running shoe without doing something right, but you also get there by not doing anything too wrong.
Nike tends not to make big changes to the Pegasus because of its popularity, and although the Pegasus 42 has an upgraded midsole design, it certainly felt familiar to me on the run as someone who has tested the last eight models of the shoe.
That familiar feel is a mixed blessing. On one hand, if you love the Nike Pegasus 41, then you’ll probably love the Pegasus 42, which offers value, durability, and a balanced ride that will work well for a variety of runners.
On the other hand, it also means the Pegasus 42 feels a little outdated compared to the best running shoes I’ve tested from Nike and other brands, which offer more comfort, bounce, and fun thanks to having higher stacks with springier foams.
Nike Pegasus 42 review: price and availability
The Nike Pegasus 42 is available now and costs $145 in the U.S. and £130 in the U.K., which puts it at the more affordable end of the running shoe spectrum.
It’s the cheapest of the three Pegasus models in the Nike line-up, sitting below the Nike Pegasus Plus and Nike Pegasus Premium, which use ZoomX foam in their midsoles to create a livelier ride.
Nike Pegasus 42 review: design and fit
The Nike Pegasus 42 is available in a wide variety of colors, and in keeping with past models, there will be lots of special editions of the shoe with designs related to college and professional sports teams.
I found the shoe fit me well in my normal running shoe size, the same size I’ve used on all past Pegasus models I’ve tested and used across the Nike range.
The Pegasus 42 has a drop of 10mm and a stack height of 37mm at the heel and 27mm at the forefoot, which makes it a relatively low-stack shoe these days — the shoes in Nike’s Vomero line are all above 40mm, for example, as are many daily trainers from other brands.
It’s fairly heavy for its stack height, weighing 10.8oz in my US men’s size 10. Other daily trainers with a similar stack height, like the Puma Velocity Nitro 4 or Hoka Mach 7, are below 9oz.
Upper
The Nike Pegasus 42 has an updated upper that’s designed to provide a more secure fit and be more breathable than the one on the Pegasus 41.
It’s made from a lightweight mesh and has a lot of padding on the tongue and collar of the shoe, which can feel a little oppressive in hot conditions, especially the tongue.
Overall, though, I found the fit comfortable, but I didn’t notice a major improvement compared with the Pegasus 41, which also fit me well.
Midsole
The main updates to the Nike Pegasus 42 are in the midsole, which now has a full-length Air Zoom unit as opposed to the smaller pods under the forefoot and heel in the Pegasus 41.
This full-length unit is designed to increase the energy return of the shoe, and Nike has also managed to add 3mm of foam under the forefoot without changing the drop of the Pegasus 42, so there’s a bit more cushioning in that area.
Nike’s ReactX foam encases the Air Zoom unit in the midsole. This is a foam primarily designed for comfort and protection, rather than a high level of responsiveness, and the ride of the shoe isn’t as squishily soft and springy as many rival running shoes.
Outsole
The Pegasus 42 has good rubber coverage on the bottom of the shoe, with the waffle-tread outsole delivering good grip throughout my testing.
As with past Pegasus shoes, it’s also an outsole that I expect will deliver good durability, even if you run on light park trails as well as roads.
Nike Pegasus 42 review: running performance
I used the Pegasus 42 for a variety of training runs during my testing, including a couple of easy-to-steady progression runs, strides, and several easy efforts.
Straight out of the box, I did notice the changes to the midsole design, which make the Pegasus 42 feel smoother and a little livelier at faster paces than the Pegasus 41, thanks to the full-length Air Zoom unit. It makes the heel and forefoot of the shoe feel more connected, so you roll through your footstrike more naturally.
The foam is still not the most energetic, though, with the ReactX being good for cushioning the impact of running but not especially soft and bouncy, and the larger Air Zoom unit has made the Pegasus 42 heavier than its predecessor.
While it feels good at easy paces, I didn’t love the Pegasus 42 for anything faster than that. Even steady paces feel a bit labored in the shoe, and there are much lighter and more versatile options that have a similar stack height to the shoe, like the Hoka Mach 7, New Balance Rebel v5, and Adidas Adizero Evo SL.
The fact that it’s not a max-cushioned shoe means the Pegasus 42 does stand out a bit in a market full of super-stack shoes, but it also means I didn’t find it as comfortable, especially under the forefoot, as more cushioned picks.
It gives a more grounded ride feel that some runners might well prefer, but I’d rather have the extra cushioning myself for daily training, especially as the Pegasus isn’t as light and fast as you might expect for a lower-stack shoe.
Should you buy the Nike Pegasus 42?
If you love the Nike Pegasus 41, and a lot of people do, you can roll on to the Pegasus 42, and I have little doubt you’ll enjoy it as a similar but slightly improved shoe.
It’s a good value shoe in general, too, especially as it has a durable design with a full outsole and often pops up in sales, and the Pegasus 42 will suit new runners as a safe pick that works well for a variety of running styles.
If you have a bigger budget, I would upgrade to the Nike Vomero Plus, which is a much more cushioned and bouncy shoe than the Pegasus 42, and actually even a little lighter despite having so much more foam underfoot.
There are some excellent options available at the same price as the Pegasus 42 from other brands, too.
The Asics Novablast 5 and Hoka Clifton 10 are both more comfortable and enjoyable for daily training, while the Puma Velocity Nitro 4 and Hoka Mach 7 are much lighter and better all-rounders for easy and fast runs.
There’s still nothing particularly wrong with the latest model of the Pegasus, but it lacks some of the verve you can now expect to get even from more affordable running shoes.