Saucony Ride 19 vs ASICS Gel-Cumulus 28 — Spec Comparison
On every published number these two are the same shoe: 4 g apart, half a millimetre apart at both ends, the same 8 mm drop, and five cents apart at retail. If you are choosing between them on the spec sheet, the spec sheet cannot help you.
On this page
- The numbers, side by side
- What a foot and ankle surgeon takes from this
- Which one is worth trying first
- Widths: the one specification that decides this pair
- Why you cannot compare these two stack heights directly
- Where the two shoes are genuinely interchangeable
- The rearfoot difference, and who it actually matters to
- Neither one is confirmed as an orthotic host
- What we cannot tell you until we test them
- Where to buy
- Read the full analysis of each
That is the honest answer, and it is worth more than a manufactured winner. What actually separates two shoes this close is foam behaviour under load, last shape and upper hold — none of which either brand publishes, and none of which we have measured yet.
This is a spec comparison. We have not measured, worn or scored either shoe. No Orthotic Volume Rating, no toe-box figure, no durability finding — those come off the bench. This page is replaced when both shoes have been tested.
The numbers, side by side
| Specification | Saucony Ride 19 | ASICS Gel-Cumulus 28 | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Weight (men’s sample) | 255 g | 259 g | Doctors of Running; ASICS |
| Heel stack | 38 mm | 37.5 mm | Doctors of Running / Running Warehouse; Marathon Sports |
| Forefoot stack | 30 mm | 29.5 mm | Doctors of Running / Running Warehouse; Marathon Sports |
| Heel-to-toe drop | 8 mm | 8 mm | Manufacturer |
| MSRP | $144.95 | $145 | Manufacturer |
| Internal toe-box width | Not measured | Not measured | — |
| Orthotic Volume Rating | Not measured | Not measured | — |
| Torsional rigidity | Not measured | Not measured | — |
What a foot and ankle surgeon takes from this
Half a millimetre of stack is not a real difference. It is inside the tolerance of how different sources measure the same shoe, and it is far inside the change a new insole or three hundred miles of wear will produce. Four grams is roughly the weight of a shoelace. Treat these two as dimensionally identical and stop comparing the table.
Both run an 8 mm drop. That is the traditional middle of the market and it is the reason both are marketed as everyday trainers: enough heel lift to keep the Achilles and calf comfortable for someone who is not used to a low drop, without the forward pitch of a 4 mm shoe. If you have a history of Achilles tendinopathy or a tight calf, an 8 mm drop is the safer of the common options — and that applies equally to both shoes here.
So the decision is not dimensional. It comes down to three things the spec sheet never carries: how the foam behaves under your body weight at your cadence, whether the last shape suits your forefoot, and whether the heel counter holds you. A heavier runner can bottom out a soft foam that feels perfect on a lighter one; the same shoe is then a different shoe. Neither brand publishes foam durometer, and we have not measured either.
The practical advice: try both, in the afternoon, in the socks you actually run in, and buy the one your forefoot prefers. When two shoes are this close on paper, fit is the entire decision, and fit is individual. Anyone telling you one of these is decisively better than the other, from the published numbers alone, is guessing.
Which one is worth trying first
Start with the Ride 19 if…
- You have got on with Saucony’s last before — brand fit consistency is a better predictor than any number here.
- You want the marginally taller heel, though 0.5 mm is not something you will feel.
Start with the Cumulus 28 if…
- ASICS uppers have suited your foot shape before.
- You want the wider size range ASICS typically offers, which matters more than any figure in the table if you need a wide.
Widths: the one specification that decides this pair
ASICS lists the Gel-Cumulus 28 in standard, 2E (wide) and 4E (extra wide) — in both men’s and women’s. Saucony lists the Ride 19 in men’s D and 2E, and women’s B and D. Nothing else on this page matters as much as that.
If your forefoot needs more room than a 2E, the Ride is not in the conversation, however good its numbers look. And a women’s 4E is genuinely uncommon — most brands stop at D or 2E in women’s sizing, which is why a wide-footed woman so often ends up shopping in men’s shoes. The Cumulus avoids that problem.
This sits first on purpose. A shoe that fits the forefoot badly undoes whatever the midsole is doing, and width is the specification most often given up in exchange for cushioning.
Why you cannot compare these two stack heights directly
Saucony publishes the Ride 19’s stack itself, inside its offset figure: 8 mm, stated as 36 mm at the heel and 28 mm at the forefoot. ASICS publishes no stack height for the Gel-Cumulus 28 at all. The figures usually quoted for it — about 38.5 mm heel and 30.5 mm forefoot in men’s — come from a retailer, not from ASICS.
So the Cumulus’s apparent two-and-a-half millimetre advantage compares a manufacturer figure against a retailer figure. Those are not the same tier of evidence. The same trap sits on the other side: third-party listings put the Ride at 38/30 while Saucony’s own number is 36/28.
Practically: treat both as roughly 8 mm of drop on a mid-to-high stack, and do not pick between them on a two-millimetre difference that may not survive a caliper. Stack height is the first figure our bench measures, for exactly this reason.
Where the two shoes are genuinely interchangeable
| Specification | Ride 19 | Gel-Cumulus 28 | Does it separate them? |
|---|---|---|---|
| Drop | 8 mm | 8 mm | No — and it is the number that matters most for a sore heel |
| Weight, men’s | 8.9 oz / 255 g | 9.1 oz / 259 g | No — 4 g is noise |
| List price | $144.95 | $145 | No |
| Category | Neutral daily trainer | Neutral daily trainer | No |
| Widest option | 2E men’s, D women’s | 4E men’s and women’s | Yes — decisively |
On geometry and on price this is close to a coin flip. The decision sits on fit, and on one construction difference.
The rearfoot difference, and who it actually matters to
ASICS places a PureGEL unit in the rearfoot of the Cumulus. Saucony uses PWRRUN+, a supercritical eTPU foam, throughout the Ride. For someone whose pain is under the heel at first contact, a cushioning element placed specifically under the heel is a reasonable thing to prefer.
Two honest limits. Neither shoe does anything special under the forefoot, so if your pain is at the ball of the foot this difference is irrelevant to you. And gel in the heel is a construction fact, not a measured outcome — nobody has shown that a gel unit beats an equivalent thickness of modern foam. Treat it as a tiebreaker, not a reason.
Neither one is confirmed as an orthotic host
Both spec sheets list the removable insole as not published, and neither shoe is confirmed on the APMA accepted list. If you wear a custom device or a full-volume insole, that unpublished figure is the one that decides whether the shoe works for you — and neither brand will tell you what it is.
The workaround is the same for both: pull the footbed out in the shop before you buy and see how much depth is left underneath. Our Orthotic Volume Rating exists because this figure is missing from nearly every spec sheet.
What we cannot tell you until we test them
- Internal toe-box width and depth. The measurement most likely to actually separate these two, and neither brand publishes it.
- Orthotic Volume Rating. Whether either accepts a custom device without lifting your heel.
- Foam behaviour under load. The real difference between two shoes with identical stacks.
- Torsional rigidity and heel-counter stiffness.
- Durability. Both need logged miles before we say anything.
Where to buy
Paid link. We earn a commission at no extra cost to you; commissions never influence a score, a ranking or the seal. Price and availability change, so check the listing.
Saucony Ride 19
Women’s:
ASICS Gel-Cumulus 28
Women’s:
Read the full analysis of each
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Our funding and evidence policy
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