Asics Novablast 4 vs 5 vs 6: What Changed
Looking at a Novablast 4 and wondering what you’d be missing? It’s now two versions old. The Novablast 6 is the one in Asics’s current BLAST Series line-up, with the Novablast 5 in between. Asics pitches all three at runners who want “extra bounce”, so the real question is what changed underneath.
A quick note before the numbers: ATHLO+ doesn’t sell running shoes. Every figure here comes from Asics’s own product pages, which we list at the bottom, not from our own testing.
On Asics’s own numbers, not much has moved. The Novablast 6 is 7 g lighter than the 4, and all three have the same 8 mm heel drop. What Asics talks about instead is the foam and, on the 6, the forefoot.
Side by side
| Shoe | Weight | Heel-to-toe drop | Midsole foam (Asics’s name) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Asics Novablast 4 | 260 g (9.2 oz) | 8 mm | FF BLAST™ PLUS |
| Asics Novablast 5 | 255 g (9 oz) | 8 mm | FF BLAST™ MAX |
| Asics Novablast 6 (current) | 253 g (8.9 oz) | 8 mm | FF BLAST™ MAX, with an FF TURBO™ SQUARED pod in the forefoot |
You won’t find a stack height here. Asics doesn’t publish one on these product pages, and we’d rather leave it out than borrow a number from somewhere else. Brands weigh a single sample size, so your pair will come out a little different.
Novablast 4 to Novablast 5
The big switch was the foam. The Novablast 4 runs on FF BLAST™ PLUS, and the 5 moved to FF BLAST™ MAX. Asics lists the 5 at 255 g against the 4’s 260 g, so 5 g lighter. The 8 mm drop stayed put, and so did the “trampoline-inspired outsole” Asics describes on both.
Novablast 5 to Novablast 6
The 6 keeps FF BLAST™ MAX but adds an FF TURBO™ SQUARED “trampoline pod” in the forefoot. Asics has also put ASICSGRIP™ rubber under the forefoot, which it says is there for “better traction underfoot”. On paper it’s 2 g lighter than the 5 (253 g against 255 g), and the drop is still 8 mm.
Where to buy in Singapore
We don’t sell shoes, and we haven’t checked anyone’s stock for this page. Asics runs its own Singapore online store at asics.com/sg. iRUN Singapore, who supply the data behind the ATHLO+ Shoe Lab, also carry Asics: search iRUN for the Novablast.
Still not sure which suits your stride? FORGED by ReFormd’s 3D running gait analysis, which you can book on ATHLO+, comes with a shoe recommendation.
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Where these figures come from
We read these from Asics’s own product pages on 17 Oct 2026. A few links go to copies saved by the Internet Archive’s Wayback Machine, so you can still check them after a brand takes a page down. This is a spec comparison, not a review: we haven’t tested these shoes and we’re not ranking them. If the ATHLO+ Shoe Lab shows a different figure, this page is the one taken straight from the brand.
The Shoe Lab is built with iRUN Singapore, whose specialists fit runners day in, day out. The specs here are compiled with them — and the shoes are in their stores if you want to put a pair on before you decide.
Find a storeKeep
comparing.
Every brand and category in the ATHLO+ Shoe Lab, on the same axes.