How To Choose A Running Vest: From Someone Who Has Fitted 1,000 Runners In The Last Two Years

January 09, 2026

Based on our data, 70% of people who bought a running vest for the first time in 2025 were buying one for the very first time. The other 30% were upgrading and/or didn’t like their last one.

Running vests are one of those pieces of gear that seem simple until you start running in them properly. Then suddenly fit, storage, hydration, and comfort all matter way more than you expected.

From the outside, you see them everywhere, and you think well ‘they must all do the same job’.

And that may be true, but there are handful of things to know before you pull the trigger on a vest, to make sure it is the right one for you.

Spoiler: you don’t get used to a bad vest. You just stop wearing it.

But why should you listen to me?

It’s true, I own Australia’s fastest growing running vest brand. But I promise you, this is not a sales pitch.

I want to arm you with all of the information you need to know before you buy a running vest, whether it’s ours, or another brand.

In the last two years I have personally fitted more than 1,000 runners with a running vest for races all across the world.

Whether it’s for the gnarliest trail running events, a half-marathon or for a local fun run, I have fitted everyone.

I think for a long time running vests were quite intimidating, only worn by the pros. But now, we are slowly breaking down the barriers to make them accessible to all runners who could benefit from them.

So if you’re trying to figure out how to choose a running vest, this is the stuff that I share with everyone when finding them the right vest.

Start With Why You’re Wearing a Running Vest

Before you look at brands, sizes, or features, you need to be honest about why you want a vest in the first place. Not what you might do one day – what you’re actually doing now.

Training for Long Runs & Everyday Use

If most of your running is long training runs, weekend long runs, or midweek efforts where you need water, your phone, keys, and maybe some nutrition, your vest should be simple.

You don’t need massive capacity. You don’t need every strap and toggle available. What you need is comfort, stability, and easy access. A vest that’s annoying to put on or fiddly to adjust won’t get used consistently. As they say: KISS. Keep it simple, silly.

Marathon Training & Race Day

This is where people often overthink it.

Firstly, the biggest surge of running vest use in the last few years has not been in trail running events, but road running. Trail runners have worn vests for decades, it’s not new, it’s a staple of these races.

But road running, fun runs, maras, half-maras and the like have become increasingly popular for vests.

Firstly, for race day. To be self-supported, carry your own hydration, your own gels have your phone handy (if you want it) is incredibly empowering. It also can be freeing not needing to line up for half an hour to use the bag drop.

But the biggest surge in the use of vests has been in marathon training. When you’re out on your 15,20,30km long run, you don’t have aid stations, it’s on you.

Sure, you could route your run where there is water taps, but that is not always possible. You can carry water, gels, your phone, even medication or a light-first aid kit with you.

I have spoken to literally hundreds of runners who intended to only wear their vest for their long run training, but they got so used to it, they decided to also wear it on race day.

Trail Running & Self-Supported Runs

Trail running changes things. You’re often carrying more, running for longer, and dealing with uneven terrain.

This is where durability, stability, and storage access really matter. You don’t want to stop every time you need nutrition, and you don’t want weight shifting when you’re moving downhill or scrambling.

If you do both road and trail, you’ll start to notice where certain vests feel better suited to one or the other. But that’s not to say there isn’t cross-over.

Trail events sometimes have what is called ‘mandatory gear’, it’s a list, sometimes short but sometimes long, of things you must carry out on the course.

You’ll want to make sure that whatever vest you choose for trail running has a) enough capacity to fit your mandatory gear, b) have easy access pockets for your gels/fuel and c) be able to carry enough water for a comfortable run.

Fit Comes Before Features

Fit over features.

You can have the best materials, the smartest storage, and the nicest design, but if the vest doesn’t fit your body properly, it’s incredibly sub-optimal.

Why Sizes Aren’t the Full Story

Most vest brands have multiple sizes for their vests. But unlike shoe sizes, there isn’t a uniform size chart. Every brand is different.

For example at Runly, we currently have two sizes, because we have found that 90% of people are comfortable fits within these two sizes, and our vests are highly adjustable.

There are some brands with 4-5 sizes, which is overkill, if anything you start getting anxiety wondering if you got the right size, even if it feels good.

Chest width, torso length, rib shape, and where the vest sits on your body all affect how it feels once you’re running. Two people with the same chest measurement can have completely different experiences in the same vest. I’ve seen it.

Adjustability is critical. A vest should be able to fine-tune to your body, not force your body to adapt to it. Again, just using our vests as a reference point, we’ve included four-points of adjustability to get that right fit.

Everyone assumes that the chest straps are where you get the most adjustability, but perhaps surprisingly, the most adjustable comes from the side toggles. This is where you can tighten or loosen the vest based on your individual frame to get the best fit.

I will also note, that I think people can overcomplicate the fit. I've seen it first-hand. There is occasionally something of an anxiety around the fit. Perhaps they've had a bad experience in the past with a cheap vest, which is fair enough.

Everyone has their own experiences with vests - at an expo I did last year I had a young guy from France who had previously bought a cheap vest and it caused him all sorts of chafe.

He tried on one of ours, it fit like a glove. Away from the neckline, and away from the arm pits. Secure, but not too tight. It fit perfectly, but he was so anxious.

He ended up doing at least 5-6 laps jogging the expo floor to make sure it was the right one. It doesn't worry me in the slightest, I knew it was the perfect fit, but people understandably have their own reservations based on prior experience.

My point is this, if it fits, it fits. Don't overthink it too much.

A Note for Women With a Larger Bust

This is something that doesn’t get talked about enough, but it makes a huge difference to how a running vest feels.

If you’ve got a larger bust, fit matters even more – not just for comfort, but for breathing, posture, and overall stability while you run.

Many running vests are designed around a fairly flat chest shape. When that doesn’t match your body, a vest can end up sitting too high, pulling awkwardly across the chest, or putting pressure in places it shouldn’t. Over a long run, that can mean restricted breathing, chafing, or constant adjusting – none of which you want to be dealing with mid-run.

What to look for is:

Adjustability across the chest, not just around it. Can you move the chest straps up or down for a more comfortable position?
Multiple front adjustment points, so the vest can contour rather than compress.
Soft, flexible materials that move with your body instead of fighting it.
A fit that feels secure without forcing everything upward, or inward.

At Runly we also designed chest strap extensions for vests, which can be a great option if you just need a fraction more space across the chest.

How a Vest Should Feel When It Fits

When a vest fits properly:

It doesn’t bounce when it’s empty or full
It doesn’t restrict your breathing
It sits high-ish and close to your body
You forget about it once you start running

If you’re constantly adjusting straps mid-run, that’s a sign it’s not quite right.

A Test I Never Recommend

I’ve seen many people in person try on the vest, and to test out if it is secure start doing massive jumps up and down on the spot.

That is not helpful to decide if a vest is right for you. It doesn’t replicate the movement of running. Instead, try and jog 50m if you need to be sure.

The truth is, the right fit is the right fit. It feels secure without being too restrictive, you’ve found the right fit, it doesn’t need to be more complicated than that.

Hydration: Bottles vs Bladders (It’s Not Just Preference)

People often frame this as personal preference, but there are practical differences.

Soft Flasks

Front-mounted soft flasks let you see how much you’re drinking and make refilling quick and easy. They also balance weight across your chest.

The downside is they can feel awkward if the vest doesn’t fit well or if the bottles aren’t positioned properly.

When I would use soft bottles:

A run longer than 10km
Any run where it is really hot (trust me, just carry some water)
Marathons, half maras or any road events
Events where there is an aid station at least every 5-10km

Bladders

Bladders work well for longer, steady runs where you don’t want to stop or think about hydration. The trade-off is cleaning, monitoring intake, and sometimes heat retention.

I’ve used both, and which I choose depends on the run, not loyalty to one system. I see and read people being so staunchly loyal to one or the other because of personal preference, but the truth is they should be used interchangably depending on your run.

When I would use a bladder:

Long runs (25km+)
Self-supported trail runs (for security and peace of mind)

Storage Layout Matters More Than Capacity

This is a big one.

A vest with heaps of storage isn’t useful if you can’t access it while running. There is a gripe I have with the running vest world. People are so caught up with the ‘volume’ - “How many litres is it?” they will say after seeing a brand like Salomon or Nathan spruiking the volume capacity.

The sheer reality of this is that volume capacity in litres should only be used as a very general guide.

It is how the vest’s storage is designed which gives you the best carrying experience.

The other problem I have is that the actual ‘litreage capacity’ is not the realistic carrying capacity. If the storage design isn’t clever, a vest that is technically 12L, may only realistically be able to carry 8L.

For context, our 12L capacity vest carries about 9.5L realistic.

What You Should Reach Without Stopping

Nutrition
Phone
Electrolytes
Water
Keys

If you have to stop to grab basic essentials, the vest isn’t doing its job. It’s not a running vest, it is just a backpack.

What Can Live in the Back

Jackets
Spare layers
Mandatory trail gear
First aid
Torch

Back storage is fine for things you won’t touch often.

The Overpacking Trap

Bigger vests encourage you to carry more than you need. More weight changes how you run, how you breathe, and how tired you feel.

Most runners are better off with less.

Trail vs Road: What Actually Changes

You don’t always need different vests, but there are differences worth understanding.

Road-focused vests prioritise:

Lightweight materials
Minimal bounce
Quick access

Trail-focused vests prioritise:

Stability on uneven terrain
Durability
Security through additional storage, usually on the rear of the vest.

If you mostly run on the road but dabble in trails, a well-balanced vest can do both. If trail running is your main thing, the details matter more.

Comfort Details You’ll Only Notice Too Late

This is the stuff no one thinks about until they’ve done a few long runs.

Seam placement, neckline shape, mesh breathability, and how the vest handles sweat all affect comfort over distance. Especially in warmer conditions.

If something rubs at 5km, it will be a problem at 25km.

There are two things you should know about why and how a vest chafes, right now.

I have had at least 200 people come up to me in the last 18 months to tell me why one of big brand vests give them chafe (this is an educational post, there’s no need to name names).

The two design reasons vests chafe are:

They are cut too close to the neckline. This is numero uno when it comes to chafe. I will never understand why vest designers try to cut the vest line so close to the runner’s neck. It is the greatest recipe for disaster (or for chafe, at least).
They are cut too close to the underarm. This one is not as obvious, and if you’re buying a vest for the first time you probably wouldn’t even think about it. But let me tell you with certainty, when you’re 25km into a race, you’re hot, sweaty and starting to fatigure, the last thing you need is a vest cutting into your underarms. Look for a vest with a low-cut arm hole. You can thank me later.

The easiest way to avoid chafe on the neck and under the arm is to look at many photos of people wearing that vest as you can. Check a brand’s product page photos, the product review images and social media. make sure it doesn’t get close to the neck line, nor the underarm.

How I Choose a Vest for Different Runs

Finally, the best running vest isn’t the one with the most features or the biggest capacity. It’s the one you’ll actually wear without thinking about it.

Prioritise fit. Be honest about your running. And don’t convince yourself you’ll “get used to” something that already feels wrong. Wear what makes you feel comfortable.

Your future self, halfway through a long run, will thank you.