The Best Nike Soccer Cleats to Match Your Playing Style

In many sports, footwear is a crucial piece of equipment. But unlike activity-specific shoes that are primarily designed to help you jump, sprint or pivot, soccer cleats must support you while also helping move the ball itself.

Naturally, selecting the best soccer cleats for your style of play is an important detail. For optimal performance, it's important to wear a pair of soccer cleats designed for the playing surface — whether it's firm ground, turf, artificial grass or indoors.

Below, check out the best Nike soccer cleats, and learn how to pick the best pair for your playing style and surface.

Style of play: The Nike Phantom line of soccer cleats is best suited for players chasing high accuracy in their drives, passes and shots — plus advanced footskills.

Key design qualities: Off-center lacing and raised surface texture

Flawless aim and touch on the ball require tons of practice, but for players wanting a bit more precision, Nike Phantom soccer cleats are worth trying out. The Phantom GX boot, for example, features a sticky Nike Gripknit upper, providing optimal touch on the ball for striking and close control. Meanwhile, off-center lacing offers a clean striking zone for shots and passes. The material of the upper molds to the shape of the foot and helps with ball contact, even in wet conditions.

Debuting in 2023, the Phantom Luna features design details driven by female athletes’ unique needs and demands. The cleat was inspired, built and tested by female footballers. The result? A better football boot for all football players that delivers features they asked for, including optimal traction, a snug fit and a close boot-to-ball feeling.

The cleat’s new Nike Cyclone 360 Plate features a circular stud pattern near the toes that encourages quick moves and precise cuts. Based on feedback from the athletes who participated in the design testing, the new cuff and heel design, Nike Asym Fit, provides a snug, comfortable fit around the ankle. Finally, Nike Gripknit material in the upper supports optimal connection between the cleat and the ball — giving soccer players a “tacky” feeling with each touch.

Style of play: The Nike Mercurial is best suited for players who tend to sprint while maintaining continuous traction on the ball.

Key design qualities: Super lightweight; Vaporposite+ grippy surface texture; snug, sock-like fit

Although Nike soccer cleats are designed for players of all positions and skills, Nike Mercurial cleats are optimal for power forwards and lightning-fast midfielders who speedily cover wide swaths of the pitch with expert ball control.

That’s because Mercurial boots are the most lightweight of the three Nike soccer cleat types, many of which also incorporate Zoom Air technology, a special pressurized air system that helps absorb impact and facilitate fast movement.

Nike Mercurial cleats also feature a Nike Aerotrack plate in the footplate, which contains a special grooving pattern for lightweight (yet firm) traction. These boots are also made with breathable Nike Flyknit material, which helps keep players’ feet cool and dry.

Style of play: The Nike Tiempo is best suited for players known for a soft but precise touch on the ball.

Key design qualities: Synthetic leather, lightweight soleplate, adaptive mesh tongue

Nike Tiempo cleats are designed to maximize a player’s comfort throughout a match or practice session. The Tiempo Legend 10 — a new Tiempo boot launching in 2023 — debuts a Nike material innovation, FlyTouch Plus. This proprietary synthetic leather is soft, light and strong, offering a grippy feel that gives players a consistent touch on the ball.

The footplate is also lightweight, so players won’t feel bogged down throughout play. A cushioned insole and an adaptive mesh tongue add to the comfort of this cleat.

When it comes to choosing the optimal amount of ankle coverage in a pair of soccer cleats, it’s key to identify the primary needs and wants of the individual player. The height of the cleat likely won’t impact performance.

It’s important to find a pair of soccer cleats designed to perform on the type of surface you’re playing on. Here’s a breakdown of each type and what footwear it requires:

If playing on a professional, groomed soccer field (or artificial fields with longer turf blades), firm-ground cleats are optimal. Try not to use these on muddy surfaces, although damp surfaces are fine.

These cleats are ideal for relatively hard surfaces, so studs on the sole are a bit shorter.

This type of cleat is best for older, artificial fields with short, synthetic turf blades. They feature smaller and shorter (but more copious) studs on the sole.

These types of cleats work on most surfaces, with the exception of an indoor court or concrete floor.

Ideal for hard courts or concrete floors, these shoes feature a rubber outsole with miniature grooves for traction.