REASONS TO BUY
Natural foot roll
Stable feel
Breathable upper
REASONS TO AVOID
Slippery on wet surfaces
No toe cap protection
Brooks Ghost Max 3 Review
Max-cushioned shoes with desirable comfort and stability for all-day use, but questionable grip on wet surfaces and loose terrain
Credit: Arthur McMahon
By Arthur McMahon ⋅ Review Editor ⋅ November 10, 2025
RELATED: The Best Walking Shoes for Men
Our Verdict
A neutral max-cushioned shoe designed for daily training and wear, the Brooks Ghost Max 3 provides all-day comfort. The DNA Loft v3 foam midsole offers fairly firm impact absorption and a modest amount of rebound to help propel you forward with each step. Welcome improvements from version 2 include better ventilating uppers and more forefoot foam. And for walkers, they're quite stable, thanks in part to a well-designed heel cup that locks your foot into place, a flat, stable base, and GlideRoll Rocker heel-to-toe assist technology that keeps foot motion fluid. We did find the outsole grip lacking on wet pavement and loose terrain, though it proved more than capable on dry, flat surfaces.
Our Analysis and Test Results
The Brooks Ghost Max 3 are responsive shoes that were designed to prioritize comfort and stability while helping your foot roll feel effortless. This is accomplished via a modestly soft and springy DNA Loft v3 foam midsole coupled with a movement-assisting GlideRoll Rocker and a rubber-covered outsole.
An unassuming shoe without many bells and whistles, the Brooks Ghost Max 3 shows that when the basics are done well, you don't need many extras.
Credit: Arthur McMahon
Comfort
As a max-cushion shoe, comfort is expected, and Brooks delivered. The Ghost Max 3 is a comfortably secure shoe with a great fit. The heel pocket is especially well-designed, with light padding at the base of the heel that gradually increases higher up to snugly contain and support the Achilles tendon. The midfoot feels almost a little too snug in the regular-width pair we tested, but then the forefoot opens nicely, with a touch more room than the previous Brooks Ghost Max 2 had.
There's some give in each step, but your feet don't sink into the foam midsole. It's more like sleeping on a firm mattress rather than a super-soft one.
Credit: Arthur McMahon
These shoes feel as if they're all about balance. There is a fair amount of cushion and a reasonably thick heel stack, but the foam itself is a touch on the firm side. This provides a nice squish but not so much as to sacrifice the stability of the shoe. The GlideRoll Rocker design helps encourage your feet to roll naturally from heel to toe, and the flat outsole is a reassuring foundation. The toe box outsole has a slight upward angle to finish off that foot roll gracefully.
Shoe Exterior Shoe Interior
This shoe was cut in half in our lab to inspect the interior components.
While not necessarily plush, the Brooks Ghost Max 3s feel like shoes you could wear all day long without succumbing to soreness or hot spots. What's more, they're available in three different width sizes, so you can choose the size that best fits your feet.
We put over 10,000 steps in these shoes, and they remained cozy and comfortable throughout.
Credit: Arthur McMahon
Support
Crafted with a fairly wide and firm base, the Ghost Max 3 provides reliable support. The guidance of the GlideRoll Rocker helps maintain your step, but its effect is minimal. There isn't much actual guidance or purposeful support built into these shoes. Rather, its flat, wide foundation makes it inherently stable, and the not-too-soft foam acts as much a cradle as a cushion. Plus, the modest heel drop (6mm according to Brooks, but we measured 7mm) is enough to encourage forward momentum without making you feel off-balance.
When push comes to shove, the Brooks Ghost Max 3 sole holds firm.
Credit: Arthur McMahon
Those who supinate (turn their foot so the sole angles inward and upward) may be more susceptible to ankle rolls in these shoes, given that there are no truly supportive rails or other materials to help prevent this. But it shouldn't be a concern for most.
These shoes “rock and roll” with your natural footstep. The sole of the toe box is angled and acts a bit like a springboard to assist your next step.
Credit: Arthur McMahon
Traction
We walked for miles with the Brooks Ghost Max 3 shoes strapped to our feet, and found them to be grippy in some settings, but not in others. The outsoles are essentially covered in rubber anywhere that will come into contact with the pavement, and the multi-directional tread performed like Velcro on clean, dry, and flat surfaces such as pavement, concrete, and tile.
The outsole does have some texture to it, but it's not very deep. So the grip on gravel and dirt can be unpredictable.
Credit: Arthur McMahon
However, we also walked several miles in the rain and were disappointed in the wet traction. On slick asphalt, we almost had a foot completely slip out from under us. So we inspected this further and found that the rubber just couldn't grip the wet asphalt on a brisk day — we could easily make our feet slide by pushing them across the ground. Also, since the outsole is flat and entirely lacking lugs like you would see on a trail runner, the traction also wasn't great on gravel or uneven dirt trails.
While the traction was fine on dry pavement, the Brooks Ghost Max 3s were slippery on wet surfaces.
Credit: Arthur McMahon
Weight
Weighing in at 11.50 ounces per men's 10.5 regular-width shoe, the Brooks Ghost Max 3 aren't particularly light or heavy. It all comes back to balance — they're appropriately weighted given the design choices made to attain their targeted comfort, stability, and price.
At 11.50 ounces per shoe, these are midrange in terms of weight.
Credit: Matt Lighthart
After walking over 10,000 steps in the Ghost Max 3s, we didn't experience any notable fatigue from their weight. Comfort and stability elements, such as the rocker and foam spring, certainly help to prevent that fatigue as well. If you also intend to run in your walking shoes, you may want to consider a lighter pair, but for walking, the couple of extra ounces won't be a bother.
Even after putting several miles on these shoes, they were hardly noticeable on our feet — a sign that the weight didn't impact our walk.
Credit: Arthur McMahon
Durability
The Ghost Max 3s will likely last you a long time. The rubber-laden outsoles suffered no noticeable damage or wear during our testing. In fact, the rubber compound feels hard and tough, which is a sure sign of durability, but may also be why wet traction isn't ideal.
This shoe feels sturdy. The hard rubber outsole and various reinforcements across the uppers inspire confidence that the Brooks Ghost Max 3 was made to last.
Credit: Arthur McMahon
Elsewhere, the thoughtfully placed logo acts as a side guard to protect the upper and your foot from accidentally being sideswiped by sticks and rocks. And the reinforced upper lacing eyelets help make lacing tightly more comfortable while also less damaging to the upper mesh. The toe box is reinforced as well, though it is lacking a true rubber panel. All in all, these shoes will hold up well for many, many miles.
The reinforced panels and logo will help prevent tears and scuffs.
Credit: Arthur McMahon
Should You Buy the Brooks Ghost Max 3?
The Brooks Ghost Max 3 is a well-balanced shoe that can provide needed comfort and support for hours of walking and standing. Traction isn't this shoe's strong suit. If you plan to use the Ghost Max 3 primarily indoors and on dry pavement and concrete, it may be a good choice, but if you live in a frequently rainy part of the world, look for a pair with better wet traction.
Trekking across smooth paths and dry pavement is the modus operandi of the Brooks Ghost Max 3.
Credit: Arthur McMahon
What Other Men's Walking Shoes Should You Consider?
If supple comfort and baseline stability are the top features you're looking for, but you're also interested in better traction than what the Ghost Max 3 offers, gift your feet the bliss of the Altra Experience Flow 2 shoes, which take all of these aspects to the next level. Alternatively, the Under Armour Charged Assert 10 is a well-rounded option at a much lower price point — and we didn't experience any wet traction issues while wearing them.
Going off the beaten path isn't impossible in these Brooks shoes, but other shoes more specialized for varying terrain will perform better.
Credit: Arthur McMahon
Side-by-Side Comparison
Compare Brooks Ghost Max 3 versus top competing products:
—Arthur McMahon
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