As the biggest players in sneakers and their fans get excited for dozens of release dates prepped for the new year, data has been shared regarding the top 10 best-selling sneakers of 2021.
Reported by Matt Powell, Senior Advisor at NPD Sports, NIKE, Inc. dominated sales throughout the last year, with the Nike Air Force 1 Low (which is currently celebrating its 40th anniversary) taking the top spot. The Nike Air Max 270 and Nike VaporMax Plus – two silhouettes that’ve consistently sold well for the brand since debuting a few years ago – landed in the top three slots despite a lack of high-profile collaborations or complex marketing roll-outs. The ever-coveted Air Jordan 1 arrived at ninth place on the list, though after-market data would likely skew its position. Among the top 10 sneakers sold in North America during 2021, only the adidas NMD R1 was free of any swoosh or Jumpman branding. Perhaps surprising to some, no adidas Yeezy releases sold enough to crack the list, which might change in 2022 given the label’s refocus on the ubiquitous Yeezy 350 v2.
Continue ahead for the full list, and head over to our “Upcoming Sneakers” section as you wait to see what pairs top 2022’s best-selling list.
The top-selling athletic sneakers for 2021 (in revenue rank order) are as follows: Nike Air Force 1 Low, Nike Air Max 270, Nike Air Vapormax Plus, Nike Revolution 5, Nike Air Max 97, Adidas NMD R1, Nike Air Max 90, Nike Air Vapormax Flyknit 3, Jordan I High OG, and Jordan XIII.
— Matt Powell (@NPDMattPowell) January 21, 2022
Source: @NPDMattPowell