On Cloudmonster Hyper vs Cloudeclipse – Battle of On’s Big Daily Trainers

Stack Height, Drop, Weight and Price

The On Cloudmonster Hyper midsole stack comes in marginally higher with 37.5mm in the heel and 31.5mm in the forefoot. The Cloudeclipse stack drops in at 37mm in the heel and 31mm with both shoes boasting a 6mm drop.

The On Cloudmonster Hyper weighs in at 9.1oz in a US Men’s size 9 – that’s slightly lighter than the Cloudeclipse which comes in the same weight as the On Cloudmonster 2 at 10.5oz.

There’s a sizable difference in price. At $220, the On Cloudmonster Hyper packs a princely super-shoe price tag. Up there with the ASICS Superblast. It’s also the best part of $40 pricier than the Cloudeclipse at $179.99

Design

The Cloudmonster Hyper drops in as the biggest-stack shoe in On’s line-up. It packs a wedge of high-energy PEBA in an EVA CloudTec foam cradle. For a so-called super trainer, it’s a bit surprising there’s no plate – not even one of On’s nylon Speedboards.

The On Cloudeclipse has a similarly big wedge of midsole foam with On’s CloudTec Phase set up. We first saw this system in the Cloudsurfer. The cloud elements collapse in sequence – a bit like dominos – and then release as we roll through to create a smoother transition and bit of energy. There’s a Speedboard plate towards the bottom of the midsole unit to provide some stiffness to those foam elements, along with a more aggressive forefoot rocker.

That makes for a firmer, more responsive ride compared to the softer feel of the Cloudmonster Hyper which relies more on the resilience of the foam to provide the energy.

Up top, the Cloudmonster Hyper has excellent engineered woven uppers while the Cloudeclipse has dual-layered mesh uppers. There’s good flex in both for ample wiggle room. The heel collars offer similar levels of padding and there’s a small external heel clip on the Cloudeclipse for extra security.

The tongues on both shoes are nicely thin and foot wrapping. The lacing is quite different. The On Cloudeclipse has a lower section that cinches just behind the toes for a bit more security while the Cloudmonster Hyper uses rubberized laces that lock tight and don’t come loose.

Flip them over, and the Cloudeclipse has more outsole rubber, particularly in the heels, – good news if you’re a heel striker. The Cloudmonster Hyper sticks with On’s familiar reinforcements on the cloud pads. Those are showing signs of wearing faster.

In both shoes, On’s trademark stone catching channel has largely been eliminated. Though the Cloudmonster Hyper has a deeper channel towards the heel that might still pick up bits and pieces.

Fit

In testing, I ran in a US 9 in both shoes which is my regular On running shoe size and overall I would recommend going true to size in both shoes.

The On Cloudeclipse fit is nicely balanced – good security and snugness in the right places with ample room on the toe box.

The On Cloudmonster Hyper fit is notably more spacious with more toe box volume and there’s more space lengthwise than you get in the Cloudeclipse.

Lockdown across the top of the foot was nicely reliable in both shoes, helped by the wrapping tongues.

Overall, the Cloudmonster Hyper feels looser, the Cloudeclipse feels more dialled in. If you like – or need – a roomier shoe, go Hyper. If you like snugger security, the Eclipse is the one.

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Performance

In testing I’ve clocked more than 40 miles in the Cloudeclipse and close to 100 miles in the On Cloudmonster Hyper, all at a mix of paces, on road and light off roads. I also recently ran the 55-mile Comrades Marathon in the On Cloudmonster Hyper. A thorough 9-hour run test of its comfort, energy and cushioning.

There’s decent step-in comfort in both shoes and if you put the price aside for a second and focus on the ride and comfort, they both deliver a lot of what you want from a good daily trainer.

The Cloudeclipse’s Cloudsurfer-Cloudmonster hybrid design provides cushion and protection while being surprisingly nippy and versatile. The well-cushioned stack avoids feeling over-egged. It’s almost got that easy rolling, rockered ride of the original Cloudmonster, but with some of the compact, precision and agility of the Cloudsurfer. And it works nicely.

The Cloudmonster Hyper is harder to pin down. In my Cloudmonster Hyper review, I noted that I wasn’t entirely sold on the shoe. It’s a happy cruising shoe that provides good cushioned protection with some liveliness underfoot. It’s not overly aggressive. But it’s also not packing enough punch – at least not what you’d expect – for a high-ticket, so-called super trainer. At times the elements in the midsole can feel disconnected and I found I had to run the shoe in for each run. The Cloudeclipse is much smoother straight out of the blocks.

However, having used the Cloudmonster Hyper to run 55 miles in roughly 9 hours at my easy-ish pace, it impressed me a lot. It served up just the right balance of cushion and energy for that kind of effort. As a roomy road ultra shoe, or an easy-day cushion shoe, it’s definitely got good credentials and offers more protection underfoot than you’d get from the Cloudeclipse. I’m just not sure it has the same top-end agility as the Cloudeclipse.

If I was out to run a tempo run, or hit half marathon pace, I’d choose the Cloudeclipse first. If I wanted guaranteed happy, cushioned feet over 2 hours I’d choose the Hyper.

My Verdict

Let’s get straight to the point: as a daily trainer, the Cloudmonster Hyper is overpriced and if you’re after best-value versatility, the Cloudeclipse is definitely the better shoe. It’s almost as cushioned, easily as lively and – for most runs – on par for overall comfort. It can do everything the Hyper does and do it for less.

If you take money out of the equation and separate these solely on the ride performance, the Cloudeclipse is the more nimble, punchier shoe though you’ll sacrifice a little of the plush cushion comfort. If you like a stiffer, more rockered responsive ride, this is the shoe for you.

If you want more cushioning, the Cloudmonster Hyper offers marginally more reliable road protection. You can squeeze out energy if you land further up, engaging that PEBA wedge but the main problem is that it’s not as punchy as the price tag might suggest. And that makes it harder to recommend as a go-to daily.

As a road ultra race shoe it’s a different story. The Cloudmonster Hyper has more long-haul cred and perhaps that top dollar pricing becomes less of an issue.

But as a daily trainer, the Cloudeclipse has the edge.