442 v3 is New Balance‘s offering in the synthetic leather boot category. Does it do a better job than Nike’s Tiempo or Puma’s King Ultimate? And does the boot has its own merit? Decide for yourself as you study more about the boots here in this 442 v3 review.
What You’ll Find On This Page:
- 442 v3 Elite Review
- Takedown 442 v3 Pro
- Cheap 442 v3 Team
- Evolution of the New Balance Furon Football Boots
5 Things To Know About the 442 v3
- First launched as a K-leather boot, the 442 has joined other mainstream boots in switching to synthetic leather
- Currently priced at £170.00
- Comes with a integrated knitted tongue and a u-throat with floating tongue versions
- The synthetic ‘True Touch Tech’ leather used in 442 v3 feels more rich and padded, but noticeably less soft out-of-the-box, than the synthetic leather in the previous 442 v2.
- 442 v3 Elite is the top-end execution (which has the 2 versions mentioned in bullet #3); Pro and Team offer budget pricing for the silo
442 v3 Elite Review
| ELITE ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ | |||
|---|---|---|---|
 Live Wire | Water-based PU microfibre upper Nylon outsole with conical stud layout  |  >> Get 442 v3 Elite from New Balance | |
 Knit – Live Wire |  >> Get 442 v3 Elite from New Balance | ||
Let’s get this one out of the way right off the bat. For traditionalists, this one is not for you. There is still a hint of that synthetic tension that leather purists will definitely notice. And yes, the change can be disappointing to some who liked the value-for-money offered by the now-replaced K-leather 442 v2 Pro. This is most especially felt with the price increase of the 442 v3 Elite.
With that said, I dare say that this is a better synthetic leather, even more so than the Nike’s Flytouch Plus from the Tiempo Legend 10 and Puma’s K-BETTER from the 2023 and 2024 King Ultimate. It breaks down easily and the softness and pliability is serviceable. I have to say though that the True Touch Tech synthetic leather is less soft out-of-the-box if your coming from the previous 442 v2 synthetic model that it replaces. and certainly has long ways to go in catching up with the Tiempo Maestro’s Tech Leather. Touch on the ball is balanced-still a hint of sharpness but the internal foam backing does provide that dampened sensation normally associated with leather uppers.
On-feet, 442 v3 feels pleasant because of that uber pliability and, surprisingly, lightweight feel (comparable to the Nike Mercurials weight). With the u-throat with floating tongue version, it does cater more to wider sizes. The knit tongue model, because of the lack of adjustability of its one-piece upper construction, may be the friendlier of the two for those with narrow feet. Because the toe box is low and pointy, I recommend going half-a-size.
Considerations Regarding The Testing of NB 442 v3
All things considered, you’d have to judge 442 v3 as a synthetic leather boot to see its worth. And at its current price, it easily beats out Nike and Puma in this category. But for value-for-money, Puma’s King Pro takedown might present a challenge to the 442.
By the way, for more about our boot testing principles, click here.
Takedown 442 v3 Pro
| PRO ⭐⭐⭐⭐ | |||
|---|---|---|---|
 442 v3 Pro | Stitched synthetic upper Plastic outsole |  >> Get 442 v3 Pro from New Balance | |
The change of the Pro to a standard tongue, u-throat construction. And that might appeal more than the one-piece upper of the knitted Elite, especially if you don’t mind the denser feel of the upper at this takedown level. Heel liner has also been changed to a suede-like material.
Cheap 442 v3 Team
| TEAM ⭐⭐⭐ | |||
|---|---|---|---|
 Live Wire | Stitched synthetic upper TPU outsole |  >> Get 442 v3 Team from New Balance | |
The cheapest 442 v3 is the Team takedown. It shares some of that upper build of the Pro but changes the heel liner to mesh. The TPU outsole also has a weightier feel, and the studs are changed to a rounded-corner, squarish type of stud layout.
Brief History of the New Balance 442
442 (2018)
442 entered in 2018 to compete on that value-for-money leather boot space. The stud layout used in the 442 v2 Team takedown was taken straight from the version 1 of this silo. The upper had that leather forefoot-synthetic midfoot divide and capped of the build with a fold-over tongue
442 v2 (2022)
Reason why the first 442 v2 was missed was that it improved the first-gen by engulfing the upper entirely with K-leather, boosting its proposition as a value-for-money football boot. Its nylon soleplate with conicals informed the tooling of the 442 v2 Elite.
442 v2 Elite (2025)
New Balance reinvented 442 v2 to become a synthetic leather in 2025. This informed the make-up of the v3, which simply increased the richness and padded sensation of the upper compared to the thinner feel of its predecessor.
