Skechers GOrun Razor Excess review

Skechers Go Run Razor Excess review and lab test

I’ve been in love with Skechers for the past few years. Their Hyper Burst midsole is one of the best in the business and their performance lineup delivers. 

Long gone are the days of the ShapeUp!

As for the Razor Excess, these shoes should get more praise than they do. 

I loved the Razor 3, although it was a bit stiff in the upper and had an obnoxious SPEED logo on the side. The Razor+ killed the logo and arrived on the scene under the radar with little fan fair, again, a great product that is still in my normal rotation and one of my favourite shoes. 

All together I think Skechers is on to something, and I was really excited to get my hands on the Razor Excess which is in theory just the Razor+ with more cush thanks to more of that amazing Hyper Burst midsole that makes these products great. I’ll let you in on what’s to come, it’s way more than just more foam!

The question was, would this perform more like the Razor, or more like the MaxRoad?

Read on to find out.

Who should buy the Skechers Go Run Razor Excess

I recommend buying the Razor Excess if you want a fun, peppy, fast shoe that’s extremely lightweight. I found it ideal for tempo days and can be used come race day too. 

This shoe is a solid all-around daily trainer as well for someone that is a bit quicker. It has enough cushion to do longer efforts but is more at home in quicker, shorter pushes. 

If you’ve liked the Razor series to date, I can attest that you’ll love the Excess.

Who should not buy it 

Don’t buy the Razor Excess if: 

• Your goal is long-distance comfort. Although it can do longer pushes this is not a Hoka Clifton 9, or Saucony Triumph 19. 
• If you need pronation support. This shoe is flat and neutral. Check out the Asics GT 2000 12.

That’s about it. This shoe can do so much there are not a lot of reasons not to buy it. Technically I’d call it a tempo day shoe, but you can line up at your next race in them and be confident they are fast enough, and you can do your daily runs in them too. 

It’s honestly a bit of a unicorn… 

Nice fitting shoe for wider feet 

The Skechers Go Run Razor Excess fits true to size and has plenty of room in the toe box for my wide feet. 

The lockdown is great thanks to the typical Razor upper which is more race-oriented than comfort, meaning it’s stiff and not super flexible or stretchy. I like that, it allows you to get the shoe tight for faster efforts which you’ll want to go for once you lace these up.

Of course, a gusseted tongue would be preferred to help even more with mid-foot lockdown, but Skechers opted out on that feature here. I hope they add it in the future. 

One note of caution, if you have narrow feet, these may be a bit sloppy for you. 

Surprisingly comfortable for an ultralight

These shoes are comfortable, which is a surprise because in hand the upper feels stiff and plasticky, and the goal here was an ultralight shoe (comfort is usually sacrificed for weight). 

But there is enough padding in the ankle collar and heel to add a sense of comfort even though the rest of the shoe feels more like a race shoe. If this was a race shoe specifically, the way I would describe it is the most comfortable race shoe on the market. As a daily trainer though there are obviously more plush rides to be found. 

The midsole is immediately felt and it’s Hyper Great! There’s a glued-in insole/sock liner that’s thin at just 2.8mm (average insoles are 4.2mm thick) but it’s enough extra padding to make the underfoot feel real nice, even without socks on. 

It also has a thin, race-like tongue that’s just one to two millimetres thick. I like thin tongues, but what’s nice here is Skechers added a small foam strip in the centre of the tongue (5.1mm thick), to provide just enough protection from lace bite. More tongues should follow this method. 

Surprised at the comfort actually, well done Skechers!

The do-it-all shoe with an amazing ride 

Ok, onto the real discussion for the Razor Excess, its ride. 

It’s fast, the midsole is extremely lively, even though it’s more excessive than the Razor+, it wants you on your toes pushing the pace if you have the legs to do it. 

I dig that in a world of 40mm stack shoes, the Razor “Excess” is low to the ground. At 27.4mm in the heel and 21mm in the forefoot this is well below the average shoe (32.7/24.6mm).

Our measurements read a 6.4mm drop but Skechers claims this is a 4mm drop shoe. It doesn’t feel as aggressive as the claimed 4mm, but either way, I like how it feels and is on the lower end of the drop spectrum. To me shoes 8mm and above are not ideal for my running style, so I appreciate these coming in a touch under that. 

The flex of the shoes is softer than the average shoe at 32.3N (Average is 38.9N), but it doesn’t feel mushy or overly flexible at all. 

The shoe flexes but it’ has a very consistent flex that incorporates the whole length of the shoe. Shoes normally have a flex breakpoint under the toe joint, and even very stiff shoes tend to flex under the toe with little to no flex under the midfoot. But the Razor Excess doesn’t break under the toe, giving it added propulsion as you get to the end of your stride, something I really like about this model. 

It has the pop of a lightly plated shoe without the plate. I like that, it’s very peppy for a shoe without a plate and labelled as having “excessive” foam in the midsole. Skechers should google “Hoka” to really understand what excess means. 

Takes a few runs to get used to

The Razor Excess is rockered and peppy, so it may take a little time to get used to this shoe. 

Be sure to break it in on a few runs before any real efforts or taking it out on race day. Did I just say race day again? Is this a race shoe? It’s getting confusing in my mind what this shoe is for since it seems it can possibly do it all!

Wowzers the weight is amazing 

Lightweight! 

At just 7.1 ounces (202g) this is an extremely light shoe especially with its “excess” foam underfoot.

Well done! 

Durability is questionable but grip is great

Will this shoe last a long time? Doubtful. It feels really thin in the upper, and I am still unsure about the longevity of the Hyper Burst midsole. 

One thing for sure though, it has great outsoles from Goodyear. They are grippy and durable, so far I have not been disappointed in the last 4-5 shoes I’ve tested with this compound on the bottom side. 

What’s the Razor Excess’s purpose

I added this section about what the Razor Excess really is for because I think it needs a little clarification. 

To me, this shoe can work for longer runs, tempo workouts, race days, and even at a slower pace if needed. It takes that excitement I feel in the Razor+ and allows me to do more with it, which I love!  

If we’re looking at this shoe as a daily trainer, which I kinda am, at its weight, it may be the lightest, capable, daily trainer out there. Awesome!

If we look at it as a race shoe, it’s also light in that category, fast, and padded with extra comfort that other race shoes cut out. 

Tempo shoe? This is really its sweet spot, but it’s hard to pigeonhole it into just this category since it can do so much more. 

Lastly, as a slow shoe, it’s not great, but it can work thanks to its rockered, rolling transitions, and extra foam compared to the Razor+ (which is not a slow, long day shoe…). 

Again, vote two on the unicorn status.

Breathability

The upper is super thin and breathable. The whole of the upper is basically mesh, and there’s not a tonne of foam padding getting in the way of escaping heat. 

Double knot the Razor Excess

The laces slip. 

At 13.7N on our lace slip test, they are well below average (average is 22.9N) and really need to be double knotted. 

No night running

There are no reflective elements. What looks to be reflective dots on the toe didn’t really light up for us in our reflective tests. 

Conclusion 

At £150 I think you actually think you are getting a good value here with other shoes in this category ranging more between £170-180.

It can do a lot of things and does most of them really well. 

I also love the looks!