The New Balance 550 came into the sneaker world with a bang. Well, the second time around, that is. Originally hitting shelves in 1989, the New Balance 550 was essentially forgotten about for the best part of 30 years. Until 2020, when Aimé Leon Dore founder — and now New Balance Creative Director — Teddy Santis resurrected the underrated silhouette.
Underrated at the time. By that, we mean that the New Balance 550 has gone from zero to hero in just over a year. Since its first resurgence as a collaboration pack with Aimé Leon Dore, New Balance 550 collaborations with names like Auralee and Rich Paul have been the turbo boost that this silhouette needed to hit the peak of its popularity.
That’s not the whole story, though. A wealth of fire New Balance 550 general release silhouettes offer a kinder entry point for those looking to bring a retro protagonist into their rotation.
But since the 550 has been so popular, there have been many drops to keep up with. To make things easier, we’ve rounded up 12 of the best New Balance 550s to buy below.
Let’s begin with the basics. This triple-white 550 is an absolute staple in the rotation. It’s as versatile as kicks come.
Part of the Shifted Sport pack, this Royal iteration looks to white, black, and blue to leave its mark. As most 550s are set in two-tone palettes, this one stands out.
A majority white upper saves this multi-color version from being over-the-top. The heel of the shoe and outsole are home to a selection of varsity-style colors, though.
The inclusion of a suede mudguard wrapping around the toe adds perfect texture to this Burgundy New Balance 550. In combination with the perforated panel, it’s enough to keep the eye trained on the understated colorway.
Love the suede panel but burgundy’s not for you? This Royal Blue version should do the job.
Dropping alongside the earlier Royal version, this Sport Red 550 made up part of the Shifted Sport Pack. Black panels to the upper bring a sportier aesthetic to the basketball silhouette.
Many of the greatest sneaker colorways of all time have been homages to universities across America. One such colorway is the UNC which features the college’s distinctive light blue hue against a white backdrop.
99 percent of New Balance 550s rely on a clean white backdrop to set the foundations for their color scheme. Shadow flips the script with a black and grey leather combination to the upper.
Aimé Leon Dore can be credited with bringing the 550 back to life, so it’s only natural that most of our favorite New Balance 550 collaborations come from the New York label.
Many will tell you that this is the colorway that started it all. We’d agree. If you’re looking to cop a future icon then this is a safe bet.
Rich Paul is the agent to some of America’s greatest athletes and, since December 2021, the namesake of one of the best New Balance 550 colorways around. A neutral off-white base leaves room for grained leather to shine.
Did we save the best till last? That’s for the people to decide, but we’re definitely not saying no. Japanese label Auralee put its wildly subtle spin on the 550 last year and it’s yet to be beaten on outright versatility.
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