Best Trail Running Shoes With A Rock Plate in 2023

1. Brooks Catamount

The Brooks Catamount is a sleek-looking trail shoe.

Featuring a breathable mesh upper to keep your feet cool on the trails, it has light reinforcements around the toe and midfoot for protection. A subtly padded tongue and ankle collar provide a better fit.

Its minimalist upper makes it nice and lightweight, at 10 ounces for the men’s and 9 ounces for the women’s.

For shock absorption on rough terrain, Brooks’ DNA Flash midsole offers balanced cushioning with a heel-to-toe drop of 6mm. This suits both midfoot and heel strikers, reducing vibration and protecting the joints.

The midsole is also nitrogen-infused and offers excellent energy return, for a bit of bounce on the trails.

This shoe features a Ballistic Rock Shield. It’s a segmented thermoplastic EVA layer between the midsole and the outsole, delivering effective protection against sharp rocks and stones.

Underfoot, TrailTak rubber sticks to the terrain and keeps you safe on loose ground. Multidirectional lugs deliver nice grip on a variety of surfaces.

2. Saucony Peregrine 13

With the Saucony Peregrine 13, you’ll get a lot of bang for your buck.

It’s a decent weight for a trail shoe with a rock plate, at 11 ounces for the men’s and 10 ounces for the women’s.

An air mesh bootie-style upper is streamlined and sleek, protecting the foot from snagging on anything as you run. It’s tightly woven and fairly stiff, which provides stability but may compromise slightly on breathability.

It also features Saucony’s traditional wide toe box, which offers space for the toes to splay comfortably. A 4mm heel-to-toe drop makes the shoe feel pretty stable, although it may take some getting used to if you aren’t used to it.

PWRRUN cushioning offers protection against shock on every step of the trail. It’s also surprisingly responsive, providing a nice spring.

Underneath the PWRRUN layer, a rock plate provides an extra layer of protection against foot pain and damage, while remaining flexible enough to feel natural.

The PWRTRAC outsole features sticky rubber laid out in chunky, multi-directional 5mm lugs for excellent grip on rough terrain.

3. Salomon Sense Ride 4

Salomon is a well-known name in the trail shoe world, and for good reason. They feature excellent traction on a wide range of surfaces, but this pair especially does well on rocks.

The Sense Ride 4 has a comfortable and flexible mesh upper, which provides light breathability as well as stability. It’s on the narrower side, so those with wide feet may struggle to find a good fit. There’s also a TPU overlay to protect the toes from bumps on rocks.

The traditional Salomon QuickLace system features on this shoe too, which is convenient and easy to use. You’re also almost guaranteed to never have a shoelace come untied while you’re on the trail.

With 27mm of foam in the heel, it’s an excellent choice for heel strikers. The midsole is made up of double-layered Optivibe EVA foam, blended to offer the ideal mix of cushioning and responsiveness.

Instead of a full rock plate, this shoe features Salomon’s ProFeel Film, which serves the same purpose. It’s a thin TPU layer, designed to provide protection from bumps and foot bruising.

As well as the light protection against damage from rocks, this shoe offers excellent grip on rocks and slippery surfaces. Sporting 4mm deep, diamond-shaped lugs on its underside, the Sense Ride 4 can easily handle maud, gravel, or rocky ground.

Contagrip rubber provides exceptional grip on smooth surfaces, making it easy to run over rock surfaces.

4. Topo Ultraventure Pro

The Topo Ultraventure Pro is an ideal choice for trail runners who struggle to find shoes that fit their wide feet.

It has a wonderfully spacious toe box, offering plenty of space for the toes to spread out comfortably.

The engineered mesh uppers are nice and breathable, as well as being abrasion-resistant, which is an excellent property for a trail running shoe. There are also built-in “gills” or small holes that allow for quick drainage if you happen to run through a puddle.

To stabilize the foot on rocky terrain, there’s a TPU heel counter. Despite this, some users report heel slippage in this shoe. But the cushioned ankle collar and tongue should help keep the foot stable when laced up firmly.

Three-piece ZipFoam midsoles provide shock-absorbing padding and comfort. But counteracting that is the built-in ESS rock plate, which is designed to stop rocks, thorns, and other trail hazards from injuring your feet.

The rock plate is an excellent addition for protection, but it does make the shoe unusually stiff. Running on the road or for more than 50k will be a chore in these shoes.

They will keep you perfectly safe on wet, slippery, or rough surfaces thanks to the Vibram Megagrip outsoles. They’re extremely grippy and feature aggressive lugs in a variety of shapes, for the best traction on any terrain.

5. Nike Wildhorse 7

There’s no denying that Nike makes top-notch running shoes, for both road and trail. The Wildhorse 7 is the newest version of their rugged trail shoe, and it’s a favorite.

Not much has changed since the 6, with the exception of a few minor tweaks to the upper. Large-perforation mesh paired with strategically-placed synthetic uppers and a protective toe bumper manages to be both breathable and structurally supportive.

It has a pleasingly roomy toe box, which will surprise those who know Nike as being a shoe for narrow footers.

In the midsole, Nike’s firm favorite, React foam, is present. It’s a bouncy and fun ride, but still comfortable and decently soft underfoot.

The rock plate is less apparent than in the 6, but it’s there. Unfortunately, the Wildhorse is already a heavy shoe, hitting 11 ounces for a men’s and a 9.4 ounces for a women’s, so the thin rock plate prevents more weight from being added.

The outsole loses the air pod that came in previous versions. This isn’t really an issue, as the React foam provides a nice spring.

High-abrasion rubber and multi-directional lugs offer incredible grip, and there’s a lateral saddle that offers light lateral stability.

6. Altra Lone Peak 7

Altra is known for two things: their comfortable, foot-shaped toe box, and their zero-drop platform.

This shoe features both, so it’s ideal for those who need extra toe space and want a balanced, flat ride. This combination of features offers a stable platform that feels safe on rough terrain.

Take note that they may not be the best choice for runners who have narrow feet. The fit may be sloppy, causing discomfort and chafing.

Altra calls their zero-drop platform “balanced cushioning”. The midsole features 25mm of Altra EGO foam, offering enough padding to adequately absorb shock as you pound through the trails.

A rock plate is inserted just below this layer of foam to provide the best protection against whatever may jump out at your feet while you’re running. It’s thin and flexible enough to allow you to still get a good ground feel.

A tight mesh upper provides excellent protection against the elements and hazards on the trail, and strong synthetic overlays stabilize much of the rearfoot, helping to provide a great heel lockdown. It also features a decent toe bumper.

On the upper, you’ll also find attachment points for a gaiter if you want to use one to provide extra protection from debris.

The Trailclaw design on the outsole is designed to match the position of the metatarsals, to provide both support and traction where you need it and can use it most.

MaxTrac rubber does well on gravel, loose ground, and when running through mud. It may be a little slippery on smooth surfaces, so be careful.

7. Salomon S-Lab Ultra 3

Running an ultra is no small feat. If that’s one of your goals, you need the best of the best shoes on your feet, and you’ve got to be sure they can handle anything you throw at them.

The Salomon S-Lab Ultra 3 is made for the challenge of an ultra, as you can tell by its name. It’s made to run more than 100 miles in one go, and it’s designed to provide comfort and effectiveness.

The TPU mesh upper is both durable and breathable, the perfect combination. The sock-like upper covers the tongue and the ankle collar is thin and clings to the foot, so there’s very little chance of debris entering the shoe.

Kevlar laces are thin and can get a really great lockdown using the QuickLace system. They’re kept out of the way in a lace pouch once they’ve been tied, with little chance of coming undone.

In the midsole, you’ll find Energy Cell+ foam, PU foam with high rebound properties. Underneath that, a thin TPU rock plate, called ProFeel film, provides effective shielding from rocks and other sharp or dangerous debris on the trail.

A Contagrip rubber outsole allows the wearer to run with confidence over rocky, mixed, or technical terrain.

8. Brooks Cascadia 16

The Brooks Cascadia 16 is a great choice if you want to run a variety of different trail surfaces.

One of the biggest reasons they’re so versatile is that they feature shallow lugs. TrailTack rubber offers great traction on both rocky terrain and dirt.

No matter what surface you’re running on, the nylon rock plate offers protection for the underside of the feet. Unlike most rock plates, this one features vertical flex grooves, allowing it to flex naturally with the foot so it doesn’t feel so rigid.

A wide toe box makes it comfortable for those with wide feet or who need extra toe space.

You’ll find DNA LOFT foam in the midsole, which is lusciously soft and lightweight. It has 2mm more cushion than the previous version, increasing the plushness and comfort.

Other features we like are the drainage ports in the upper, a gaiter tab on the heel, and release grooves in the midsole for extra adaptability and flexibility.

9. Saucony Switchback 2

When you’re tackling rough ground, your shoe needs to fit you like a glove. The Saucony Switchback does just that. A BOA dial Fit System offers you the best possible fit you can get, and with absolute precision.

Saucony’s FormFit upper is designed to cradle the foot and keep it in place on rough terrain. It has a sock-like fit, contouring to the foot for a close-to-custom fit.

A PWRRUN+ midsole is lightweight and has a dash of bounce to it. Note that it’s by no means plush – it’s more responsive than it is soft. Thankfully, the foot doesn’t need much padding for protection as there’s a rock plate to keep your feet safe from beneath.

The lugs on the PWRTRAC grippy rubber outsole are low-profile and can easily handle wet and loose ground.

10. Arc’teryx Norvan VT 2

The Arc’teryx Norvan VT 2 is a stylish-looking shoe.

Tight mesh uppers offer the best of both breathability and protection. TPU overlays protect against abrasion and provide light support. A robust toe cap keeps your most sensitive parts safe.

A 4mm thick Ortholite insert offers comfort, while an EVA and polyolefin midsole absorbs shock on the trail and reduces vibration. Beneath this, a TPU film (rock plate) in the forefoot offers extended protection against the terrain.

Run confidently with the Vibram Megagrip rubber outsoles, complete with aggressive 4mm lugs for the best grip.