The Best General Release Sneakers Of 2024
From the 'Legend Blue' Air Jordan 11 to the Adidas AE1, we're taking a look back at the best general release sneakers of the year.
One of the things about sneaker of the year lists is that a lot of the shoes you see on them are impossible to get. There’s nothing wrong with that, one of the core reasons we collect and obsess over sneakers is to have footwear that differentiates us. Wearing something that nobody else has, eliciting that “Where’d you get those?” from your peers, is a foundational experience for sneakerheads. But not everything has to be special. Not everything needs to be limited. If you can’t go to your local big box store and grab something right off the middle rack to get fresh with, it’s possible you don’t really understand this sneaker stuff. With that in mind, we’re devoting some of our year-end space to celebrating the best general release sneakers. This list excludes collaborations and is meant to focus on the stuff you can find at regular retailers. It’s meant to focus on the shoes you see a lot of and that still look good despite that, not the shoes that sell for the most on StockX. These are the best general release sneakers of 2024.
10. New Balance 1906R ‘Licorice’
Release Date: 3/1/24
Price: $155
Not sure what I’ve seen more this year, the New Balance 1906 “Licorice” or the Licorice.com commercial on YouTube prerolls. These shoes were just too good. They were just a general release, nothing that special about the story, but they looked like a collab. And they were available all year long. Either New Balance made a trillion of them or they were constantly restocked throughout the year. Either way, it’s a good shoe. Go buy a pair and wear them.
9. Air Jordan 4 ‘Military Blue’
Release Date: 5/4/24
Price: $215
Whenever an original colorway of the Air Jordan 4 releases, it’s going to be a big deal. This is an S-tier Air Jordan model, revered by multiple generations of sneaker fans, in a rendition that’s faithful to the source material. It’s a simple formula, and its reputation has been earned over the past 35 years—no shortcuts here. But when the most notable element of its release was the feigned outrage over the SNKRS nickname calling it “Industrial Blue” rather than “Military Blue,” we can only rank it so high. At the end of the day, this is the least popular version of Michael Jordan’s fourth signature model. That’s still quite an accomplishment, and a shoe worthy of inclusion on this list, but it didn’t exactly produce the level of excitement of even more beloved retros like the “Black Cement” 3, and can be picked up on the resale market for not much more than retail. —Zac Dubasik
8. Asics Kayano 14 ‘Dark Pewter’
Release Date: 1/1/24
Price: $150
I remember when I got a pair of Kayano 14s three years ago. Grey and white. I didn’t know what to make of them at the time. I’ve always been into running shoes. Especially New Balance. But thought the shoe was a step too far into the suburban dad direction. I even got made fun of by friends for wearing them a few times. Then I laced them a little looser and they started to grow on me. I stepped in dog poop outside of the office and left the shoes on the sidewalk and walked into the office in socks. People thought that was weird, too, but they probably would have been more angry if I tracked feces into the work place. Either way, the Kayano is super popular right now—the top tier of ASICS’ sportstyle shoes from an original performance perspective. I used to sell a bunch of them. The first one was the Kayano 5. They look so different now. But they’ve kind of become a classic, oddly enough.
7. New Balance 1000 ‘Black/Silver’
Release Date: 2/24/24
Price: $150
This is one of Joe La Puma’s favorite sneakers of the year. What more do we need to say? If a man with that kind of unlimited access to the most hype, most grail-level footwear out there is willing to stoop down and scoop up a shoe so unheralded as this New Balance 1000, it has to mean something. New Balance has done an impressive job of diversifying its retro catalog in the past five years, breaking away from the handful of models—574, 99X, 1300—that it relied on for so long and reintroducing customers to forgotten gems like the 550 and now the 1000. There are collabs of course—Joe Freshgoods did his thing on these. You don’t always have to reach that high up though when the great general releases are right there on the shelf, just ask Joe La Puma. —Brendan Dunne
6. Air Jordan 11 ‘Legend Blue’
Release Date: 12/14/24
Price: $230
This shoe is always good, no matter how many times we’ve seen it. As long as Jordan Brand doesn’t mangle the model, which it didn’t for this version, you can’t really be mad at a retro of an original Air Jordan 11 colorway. (If you are, please close this tab expeditiously.) We know not everyone is keen on the Air Jordan 11, but everyone should have the chance to own a pair, and that’s partly what this list is about. The sneakers even feel more accessible than they have in years past now that Jordan 11 hysteria has calmed down and snagging a pair doesn’t require spending several hours in line outside of your local mall. —Brendan Dunne
5. Nike Air Max Sunder ‘Canyon Gold’
Release Date: 7/11/24
Price: $180
A common strategy in the sneaker world is a brand utilizing collaborators to bring heat to a newly returning silhouette before the wider push of general release colorways drop. It’s one of the most standard moves in the product marketing playbook. Nike tapped Comme des Garçons in 2022 to do just that with the returning Air Max Sunder, a zip-up training shoe from 1999. But thanks to a combination of its exclusivity, $350 retail price, and mundane colorways, the CDG pairs failed to make much of a splash. They sold, but were missing what made the original so special in the first place. The shrouded upper lends itself to vibrant colors and gradient treatments, and the original look of “Canyon Gold” colorway delivered just that. It felt special, despite being a general release, and helped remind fans of the formula that made the shoe noteworthy to begin with. —Zac Dubasik
4. Adidas AE1 ‘All-Star’
Release Date: 2/16/24
Price: $120
Yes, we’re putting the Adidas AE 1 on pretty much every year-end list we have this year. The sneaker is that good. That being said, we’ve done a little bit of reflecting on whether the sneaker is really salient enough to be celebrated this much—as much as industry people agree on it being a huge shoe, it’s not a model that you see that much out and about. It’s definitely less visible than many of the shoes on this list. And it’s kind of difficult to pick one standout colorway. But it’s still great. It’s an accessible, affordable shoe with a spokesperson who you just want to see win. And it’s a win for the industry whenever people are getting hyped about performance sneakers. —Brendan Dunne
3. Air Jordan 4 ‘Bred Reimagined’
Release Date: 2/17/24
Price: $215
You’ll hear a lot of people moan and groan about this sneaker, telling you how much better the original pair is and that the reimagined series is a waste. But if you separate this version of the Air Jordan 4 “Bred” from its numerous predecessors, it’d be hard to argue against this being a very good sneaker. It’s made of a premium smooth leather instead of the original nubuck, which in this writer's opinion is only getting flack because it’s not what people are used to. To make it even better, this reimagined Jordan 4 was available to the masses and one of the biggest releases during 2024’s NBA All-Star Weekend. —Ben Felderstein
2. Air Jordan 3 ‘Black Cement’
Release Date: 11/23/24
Price: $220
There are a lot of people out there that will tell you that this is the greatest sneaker of all time. It’s a shoe that is going to find its way onto just about every one of Complex’s end of year lists and it will likely be on every other outlet’s list as well. The great thing about this year’s version is that if you wanted a pair, you were able to get a pair. Far too often, a sneaker’s rarity and exclusivity is used to give brownie points, but that shouldn’t always be the case. The fact that “Black Cement” 3s didn’t sell out in two seconds like a Travis Scott shoe has nothing to do with the shoe itself. 2024 marks the seventh time that this colorway has dropped, and each and every time it does, you’ll find it in the discussion for one end of year list or another. —Ben Felderstein
1. Asics 1130 ‘White/Silver’
Release Date: 2/15/24
Price: $95
There’s a case to be made for this as sneaker of the year. The ASICS Gel-1130 was everywhere. It became the go-to sneaker for everyone this past year. Especially the white and black colorway. It was cheap, only $95. Which makes sense. The shoe was only around $80 when it came out in 2008. It was the budget version of the ASICS Gel-Kayano, which was also popular this year. The Gel-1130 was even a take down from the ASICS 2130, a predecessor of the Gel-2160, another popular shoe this year. But the mesh shoe was the biggest trend this year. And this shoe was the meshiest of the mesh runners. They flooded resell shops, which is pretty crazy. I remember these shoes being a Black Friday doorbuster for $49.99 when I worked at Dick’s Sporting Goods. Strictly worn by suburban dads. But now you’re more likely to see them on the feet of kids in the city. Funny how styles change like that over the years. —Matt Welty
