The Levitate 5 features a flexible yet structured upper, with a detached tongue and extra eyelets that let you lace your shoes for a more personalized fit. Fleet Feet reviewers noted how the extra eyelets made it easier to adjust the fit of the shoe. The new engineered circular knit material provides extra breathability and an adaptable fit. Unlike many other shoes on the market, the Levitate 5 uses the single density midsole throughout. No bells and whistles. The end result is a uniform ride. As was mentioned, the pneumatic feel is evident, and the midsole is on the firmer side. Whilst firm, the DNA AMP surprisingly has a surprising amount of give and vibration dampening which is a pleasant surprise. Overall, the DNA Amp midsole is not flexible (again possibly restricted by the outsole) like you would expect in traditional everyday trainers, nor is it bouncy or responsive, but yet isn’t what I would call dull being a fan of firmer and lower riding shoes. GTS is more about stabilizing the knee earlier in the landing and guiding the gait than under foot pronation control via a firmer post or plates. The idea is that the support should be more on demand than prescriptive. As with the recent Launch and Glycerin, which also get the GTS option, models such as the Ravenna and the Transcend which were essentially support versions of the preceding go away. In the case of the Levitate GTS 5, it replaces the Bedlam. A nice toe bumper is made of more tightly knit material. Similar tighter areas are present around the eyelets (reinforced with a grid of plastic overlays) and at the ball of the foot. A Brooks logo on both sides provide some extra hold and stability. The Levitate will now come in 4 flavors all with the same DNA AMP midsole foam and outsole rubber and in a first for the model in two types of knit uppers, soft circular (right below) and StealthFit (left below).

Sally: TTS W8 in both. As a lighter runner, I prefer the versatile and classic looking (and running) Ghost over the bouncier Levitate. The Ghost is more of a do-it-all-at-all-paces one shoe quiver shoe.MERCER: Brooks is finally getting around to updating their foams in shoes like the Ghost, Glycerin , and the Aurora-BL . But the traditional DNA AMP is here to stay for this iteration. One of the biggest compliments I can give to the Levitate line is the looks. I’ve always admired how sleek they look, especially with this shine on the midsole. It somewhat resembles the same rainbow effect on the New Balance RC Elite 2. If I’m riding up to the local pub run in these, while I may not enjoy the ride, I know damn well that my shoe game will fire. Finally, the runners were impressed with the sleek design of the shoe, especially the StealthFit version. I do agree with Jeremy, this shoe likes to slide on the pavement. The chevron traction works best in dry conditions for sure. Underfoot lies the most polarizing part of the shoe, the DNA Amp midsole. Air and polyurethane make up this foam that has a subtle bounce to it. I, for one, like running in this shoe at easy paces. The ground feel is a great change of pace from the super foams and plates out there and allows our feet to actually do their job. Everyone needs that in their rotation.

The Levitate StealthFit 5 features a one-piece knit upper, similar to the Levitate 4 but lighter and more breathable. The refined Fit Knit upper offers a seamless structure with an integrated tongue.The former stand alone tongue is replaced with an integral to the upper knit affair which while not padded and thin gave me no lace bite. JEREMY : Brooks came out in 2021 and decided to follow other brand’s leads with the long naming conventions as evidenced by the Brooks Levitate Stealthfit GTS 5. While this is nowhere near as tough to decipher as New Balance’s number system, it’s a mouthful that I haven’t found a way to shorten. While the Levitate is classically a neutral shoe, the GTS is the stability version brought in to replace the Bedlam. With the nomenclature out of the way, let’s get on to the review. The Good

Here the uppers are very clearly improved and now differentiated through two types: comfort for the “regular” and more performance oriented and certainly performance looking with the lighter Stealth Fit which now is a super fine “knit” upper that isn’t the painful experience of the Levitate 4’s.

The Good

All of this said, the ride here pales and is dated in comparison to the far lighter, far more energetic DNA Loft v3 supercritical foam and geometry of the “concept” Aurora-BL max cushion trainer ( RTR Review ) and even while camouflaged by the outsole the DNA Loft v2 in the Cascadia 16 which has an energetic and stable dense feel. I think Brooks needs to rapidly move on from DNA AMP.

One big noticeable change is the tongue. Instead of a separate more traditionally constructed tongue, the new upper uses an integrated tongue, sort of like what you had on the Nike Vaporfly 4% Flyknit or Zoom Fly 2, or Epic React v1. You either love it or you hate it. I personally feel that this design of tongue does not afford enough padding in the event that you want to have high lace tension at the knot. You end up with a lot of pressure in a line across the front of the ankle. Of course, this is a non-issue if the knitted upper fits you well and you don't need to do too much with the lacing. In this shoe, however, I felt the need to use quite high tension across all the eyelets to minimize foot movement. I'll explain why below. The midfoot of the non GTS version feels flat and slow to transition in part due to the decoupling but also for me maybe the breadth of the upper and its less than totally secure hold down low. The heel also has a nice pull tab that helps you get into the shoe more easily. All in all, a nice upper with good heel hold, but it probably adds quite a bit to the weight of the shoe. Each upper type will be available in underfoot platforms of “regular/neutral” and GTS (Go-To-Support) light stability.

The Bad

GTS stands for Go-To-Support. Brooks uses Guiderail “Holistic” support that allow the body’s hips, knees, and joints to move more naturally. You can simply get the standard Levitate, or go with the Levitate GTS. I decided to go with that Go-To-Support to see what that would look and feel like. I am a neutral style runner, and the thinking (for me at least), is that I didn’t need the support to help with pronation that some other models offer up. This is really more of an added support for my neutral form. And to be honest, I have noticed a slight change with my feet the last 5 years as they are starting to flatten out with age (and use, I suppose). Sam: Weighing 0.25 oz less the Kayano competes with the GTS versions here. Its support elements include a somewhat extended heel counter in the area of the Levitate’s medial Guide Rail and a slightly firmer midsole sidewall on the medial side. Its support is lower in feel and more pronation control oriented than the Levitate’s higher GTS approach but still adaptive and fine for neutral runners. Its outsole is more effectively matched to its platform and midsole. I prefer the GTS approach but overall the Kayano, if you need some support in the mix or if you are a lighter runner, is a better choice. Sam/Derek: Very consistent feel, pneumatic and measured rebound at all paces that increases in return feel at faster paces. For any kind of faster running, the Stealth Fit has a more secure hold despite being a stretch knit but still as with all knits is a bit on the loose side. And it delivers a weight below 10 oz without GTS and in my GTS version is 0.6 oz less than the circular knit version without GTS’s extra midsole pieces. ADRIENNE: Brooks is somehow making things less and more complicated with their naming system. They nixed their stability Bedlam and there are now FOUR options of the Levitate: the neutral one, the neutral Stealthfit one, the GTS (stability) one, and the GTS Stealthfit one. Are you still reading this? Let’s get to the review. (By the way, GTS now means Go-To-Support, though for years it meant Go-To-Shoe.)