Test 2016: Road cycling shoes for men and women - 40 pairs of road cycling shoes from €100 to €400 put to the test

There's no doubt about it: a stylish road bike shoe can really spice up your outfit - and with the argument of only treating your maltreated cycling feet to the best, some people are happy to spend a few euros more on the techno slippers. But does it necessarily have to be the top model, at prices that break through the 400 euro barrier? Or can you get good shoes for half the money with a solid mid-range model? To find out, we took a look at the top shoes from a good dozen cycling shoe manufacturers - and compared them with models that are around half the price (which are generally not the cheapest).

Note: In the shoe test in , the "weight (size 44)" information for women's shoes was incorrect. For the women's models, the weight information refers to shoe size 41. Please note this!

The entire article with the test results of these models can be found below as a PDF download:

Men's shoes 200 to 390 euros:

- Bontrager XXX Road Shoe
- Fizik R1B UOMO
- Gaerne Carbon G. Stilo
- Giro Empire SLX
- Lake CX331
- Mavic Cosmic Ulitmate II
- Pearl Izumi P.R.O. Leader III
- Scott Road RC (TOUR tip: test winner)
- Shimano SH-R321W
- Sidi Wire Carbon Man
- Specialzed S-Works 6

Men's shoes 100 to 200 euros:

- Bontrager Specter Road Shoe
- Fizik R4B Uomo
- Gaerne G. Motion
- Giro Apeckx II
- Lake CX217
- Mavic Ksyrium Pro II
- Pearl Izumi Elite RD IV
- Scott Road Pro Shoe
- Shimano SH-R171W
- Sidi Genius 5 Fit
- Specialised Comp Road

Women's shoes 200 to 390 euros:

- Bontrager Meraj Women's Road
- Fizik R3B Donna
- Gaerne Carbon G. Chrono
- Giro Factress ACC
- Pearl Izumi W Elite Road (TOUR tip: test winner)
- Scott Road RC Lady Shoe
- Shimano SH-WR84L
- Sidi Wire Carbon Woman
- Specialised Women's S-Works 6

Women's shoes 100 to 200 euros:

- Bontrager Race Road Women's
- Fizik R5B Donna
- Gaerne G. Record
- Giro Solara 2
- Pearl Izumi Select RD IV
- Scott Road Pro Lady Shoe
- Shimano SH-RP3W Women
- Sidi Genius 5 Fit Carbon Woman
- Specialised Women's Ember Road

SHORT & SHORT

A stiff carbon sole is standard for the top shoes, and the trend for fasteners is clearly moving towards the comfortable Boa system; the only exception among the expensive shoes is Giro's ultra-light Empire SLX lace-up shoe. Lake, Pearl Izumi and Shimano offer the best shoes at a lower price.

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