The Salomon S/Lab Genesis 2 is a versatile, moderately cushioned shoe that excels on technical terrain.

Every runner’s trail quiver needs a shoe like the Salomon S/Lab Genesis 2 in it—a shoe built for the days when the trail gets sketchy and you need to feel every inch of it.

Salomon didn’t blow up the original Genesis formula for this update, but instead went about upgrading the Genesis 2, and that’s the right call. The original S/Lab Genesis built a loyal following as a go-to option for technical, mixed terrain—light, secure, and durable without getting in the way of the feel for the trail that serious technical running demands.

The second version keeps that DNA intact and refines and sharpens it. The new model has an improved midsole with a bouncier foam, the new outsole is grippier across a wider range of terrain than before, and the fit has been enhanced with a more form-fitting Matryx woven textile upper that feels like it disappears on your foot the moment you secure the one-pull lacing system.

The result is an improved shoe that’s nimble, precise, and genuinely fun to push hard on technical terrain—the kind of shoe that makes you want to find the gnarliest section of trail just to see how it handles. It’s light, secure, and dialed in where it counts. If that’s the kind of running you do, this is one of the best options on the market right now.

Salomon S/Lab Genesis 2 Specs

Price: $200 (unisex sizing)
Weight: 7.6 oz. (women’s size 8.0), 9.3 oz. (men’s size 9.0)
Drop: 8mm; 33.5mm (heel), 25.5mm (forefoot)
Lug Depth: 4.5mm

What’s New: Salomon reworked the contaGRIP compound and geometry of its 4.5mm lugs so the shoe grips more confidently across a broader range of surfaces—dry rock, wet rock, loose scree, hardpack—rather than excelling in one condition and struggling in another. The Genesis 2 also has an updated structural chassis and a revised dual-density midsole with optiFOAM™² midsole, both of which help improve precise on-trail control, energy return, smooth impact absorption, and resilient bounce to handle technical long-distance trail running.

The cushion stack height went up slightly ever so slightly—from 30/22 to 33.5/25.5, so it’s a touch more cushioned this year. The upper got a rework too, with a more pliable but sturdy woven textile upper that better conforms to the shape and size of a runner’s foot while still providing sufficient toe box and sidewall protection.

Fit/Feel/Ride: The S/Lab Genesis 2 fits true to size, but it has a very narrow interior volume through the heel and arch/saddle with just a small amount of extra space in the forefoot for toes to wiggle and splay. (If you have wide feet, this shoe might be too narrow for you!)

Salomon’s one-pull system does a great job of cinching down the fit of the bootie enclosure and integrated (and softly padded) tongue and heel collar. Combine that with the updated Matryx upper’s ability to adapt to individual foot shape, and the result is a soft and connected step-in feel and genuinely custom-feeling lockdown that most trail shoes never quite achieve.

The ride feels lower to the ground and more agile than most trail shoes, but it has enough midsole cushioning to offer protection and long-haul comfort for a nimble runner. The midsole feels juicy, bouncy and responsive, but only to a limited degree. It’s not a high-stack maximally cushioned shoe and doesn’t run like one, but instead it’s more of a sufficiently cushioned shoe that allows for nimble, quick-cadence running no matter what kind of terrain you’re on.

Why It’s Great: The ride of the Genesis 2 starts and ends with the proprioceptive feel—the ability of your feet to actually sense the ground through the shoe and communicate back to your brain—is outstanding. You know exactly what you’re stepping on, whether that foot placement is stable and that awareness is what lets you move quickly and confidently through technical sections instead of stutter-stepping through them. Put it all together and you get a shoe that’s very nimble and allows you to run with as much agility as your fitness and experience will allow. The kind of shoe built for runners who want to attack technical terrain rather than survive it.

Why You’ll Love It: The combination of moderate cushioning, the improved outsole, the adaptive Matryx upper, and the excellent ground feel adds up to a shoe that moves the way a confident, technical runner wants to move on rocky, technical, and mixed terrain—quick, precise, and connected to what’s underfoot. If you typically run foot loose and fancy free on trails with a mix of smooth dirt, rocky, rooty terrain, and/or hard jagged rocks, the Genesis 2 is a good tool for the job. It’s lower-slung design allows you to run aggressively with plenty of agility, sufficient stability and a wide range of versatility.

But if your priority is technical trail days, shorter-to-moderate technical races, or any terrain where precision matters more than plushness, the Genesis 2 is one of the more capable options out there right now.

Why You Might Not Like It: Because there is no plate embedded in the low-stack midsole, there are moments on technical terrain where I could feel pointy rocks poking through the bottom of the shoe. Not often and nothing excessive and not a deal-breaker, but that’s what you get with a slightly lower-stack midsole with a soft, pliable foam and thin rubber coverage around the outsole lugs.

Pros: The one-pull lacing system does exactly what it promises: one motion, and the midfoot locks down snug without any fiddling. I appreciated the improved outsole traction on loose scree, wet rock and hardpack dirt without ever feeling like the shoe was out of its depth.

Cons: If you’re chasing maximum cushion for long, grinding ultra-distance miles, you might want to look elsewhere in Salomon’s lineup. No rock plate means sharp rocks can occasionally make themselves felt underfoot. The midsole foam itself is very good, just not stacked deep enough for runners who want maximum padding.

Check it out on Running Warehouse (women / men)