All the best running brands used to be found at your local big box sporting goods store. Nike Dri-Fit and Under Armour were all you needed, but an old cotton tee would do the trick too; you're just going out for a jog after all. That was a long, long time ago. Today, nobody's jogging—but it seems like everybody's running.
A record 55,646 runners finished the New York City Marathon in 2024 (and more than 200,000 tried to get a spot for this year's race). More and more people are taking up running, not just as a daily exercise but as a lifestyle. Run clubs are popping up in every city around the globe, and dozens of bands have sprung up to support every niche within the ever expanding customer base.
In today's fractured media landscape an opportunity exists for smaller, savvy brands to find and build dedicated communities around their particular approach to run culture. From finance bros to recovering punk rockers, a brand now exists just for you. And because good branding means life or death, they're are cooler than ever.
The new running brands are meeting the moment. If running is cool, then running clothing should be, too. In 2025, activewear—a dated term that hasn't found a replacement yet—can't just wick sweat and have well-placed pockets. It has to project lifestyle values. Better yet, access to a subculture (of hot, fit, renegade runners no less). Some brands gatekeep, others run with open arms. With so many running brands out there nowadays, it's important to know where they—and you—fit in.
Below I've outlined the most influential running brands, selected for both their performance capabilities (based on both brand reputation and my own extensive testing experience) and their cultural impact. Also sidestepping hybrid brands like Portal, which makes certifiably cool running gear, but also hiking & cycling. As a lifelong runner and frequent marathoner myself, this one hits close to home. Hope you dig it.
The 15 Best Running Brands Dominating the Culture Right Now
Image courtesy Satisfy
Satisfy
Based in: Paris, France
Year Founded: 2015
Known for: Edgy apparel and something called "MothTech"
Notable Products: MothTech T-Shirts, TechSilk Shorts
To the few who came across Satisfy in its early days, the brand might've seemed like a blip; surely, nobody would spend $140 on a cotton t-shirt with holes in it, (even if they were supposedly for breathability). But founder Brice Partouche knew that he was onto something. Having grown up immersed in punk rock and skateboarding, Partouche recognized the running's creative counterculture spirit (and the hardcore kid to degenerate runner pipeline) before pretty much anyone else. A background as a brand founder primed him to channel it into apparel that's been mimicked but never copied. More and more have become "Running Cult Members," and now Satisfy has a newsprint magazine, supports underground races like The Speed Project, and recently released its first running shoe, TheROCKER.
