adidas Terrex Anylander Mid review: the mid-tier sweet spot

The adidas Terrex Anylander Mid is the boot version of a shoe we already rate highly, and it occupies the most useful price point in the boots category. At £75 to £85 it sits squarely between the £40 to £50 budget tier and the £120-plus serious-boot tier, and it answers the question most walkers actually have: how little can I spend and still get a waterproof mid-cut boot from a brand with real pedigree? This is that boot.

We have already reviewed the low-cut Anylander, our best value waterproof walking shoe, and the Mid is the same platform with a taller cuff: same RAIN.RDY waterproof membrane, same gusseted tongue, same Traxion outsole. You are choosing collar height, not a different shoe. Everything that makes the low version the value pick carries straight up into the Mid, plus the ankle cover and puddle protection that a low shoe can never give you.

They look great too, and at the time of writing they are well stocked on Amazon with loads of colours and sizes available, which is not always true of value boots from the big brands.

Who the Anylander Mid is for

The Anylander Mid suits the walker who wants a proper waterproof boot without the outlay of the serious-boot tier. If your walking is coast path, downland, bridleway, field paths and moderate trail, and the wet half of the British year is your main enemy, this covers it for well under £100.

It is a strong first hiking boot. Someone moving up from trainers or a low shoe gets a real membrane, a grippy sole and ankle cover from a brand with a deep footwear pedigree, at a price that does not sting if hiking turns out to be an occasional hobby rather than an obsession.

It is also the right call for the walker who has been eyeing the £40 to £50 budget boots and wondering whether they are a false economy. That question gets its own section further down, because it is the whole point of this review.

Who should look elsewhere? Anyone doing long, loaded days on rough mountain ground, or anyone who wants a boot to last many years of hard use, should step up to the £120-plus tier, where the Salomon X Ultra 360 Leather Mid GTX is our pick. The Anylander Mid is a value boot doing a value boot's job, and it should be judged on that brief.

RAIN.RDY waterproofing

RAIN.RDY is adidas's own waterproof, breathable membrane, its equivalent of a brand membrane like KEEN.DRY rather than GORE-TEX. It sits inside the boot as a barrier that keeps water out over the height of the upper while letting some sweat vapour escape, and on typical UK conditions, wet grass, dew, shallow puddles and light-to-moderate rain, it does the job it is priced to do.

The gusseted tongue matters as much as the membrane. The tongue is stitched to the sides of the boot rather than hanging free, so there is no open channel for water, mud and grit to run down into. On a value boot a free tongue would be the obvious weak point, and adidas have sealed it.

The Mid's taller cuff extends that protection upwards. Where the low Anylander gives up the moment a puddle is deeper than the collar, the Mid keeps ankle-deep water and splashes out, which on a flooded winter bridleway is the difference between dry socks and a squelching walk home.

On the brand's waterproofing more broadly, I can speak from my own feet. I own adidas Terrex footwear, my Trailmaker 2 GORE-TEX pair is reviewed on this site, and I love them: after years of use mine have on the whole remained waterproof. That is the pedigree the Anylander Mid comes from, and it is a large part of why I back it over no-name budget boots at a similar spec on paper.

What the taller cuff buys you

The Mid's case over the low shoe is simple. The taller cuff keeps ankle-deep puddles and trail debris out and adds a little support on rougher ground. If you walk rocky or properly muddy ground, or you just prefer the planted feel of a mid, it is the version to have.

In practice that means three things for a UK walker. First, winter field and bridleway walking, where the mud is deeper than a low collar for months at a time. Second, stony and rutted ground, where the cuff steadies the ankle. Third, the general confidence of a boot: some walkers simply feel more secure in a mid, and there is nothing wrong with buying for that.

The trade is the one every mid carries against its low sibling: a touch more warmth around the ankle and a slightly less airy feel in high summer. For the wet three quarters of the British walking year, the cuff earns its place.

Traxion grip

The outsole is adidas's Traxion, a multi-directional lug pattern designed to bite in every direction on mixed ground. On the surfaces this boot is built for, gravel, hardpack, damp paths, wet rock and roots at walking pace, it is a secure, confident sole, and it is the same outsole that impressed on the low Anylander.

Where Traxion is less specialised is deep, soft mud. The lugs are a moderate all-round pattern rather than the deep, widely spaced chevrons of a dedicated mud shoe, so in a proper winter bog it will clog where an aggressive tread clears. For general trail, coast path and downland walking, the grip is a strength rather than a compromise.

What Amazon owners say

The owner feedback is worth reading closely on a value boot, because this is the tier where corners usually show. Amazon's customer review summary is unusually positive. Customers find these hiking shoes water-resistant, with one mentioning they stayed dry in muddy puddles, and they appreciate the durability, reporting no signs of wear. Owners describe them as lightweight and versatile, with one calling them perfect for long winter dog walks over fields, and they rate them excellent value for money and like how they look.

That is close to a checklist of what you want from this boot: dry feet in mud, no early wear, light on the foot, good value, good looks. The one consistent negative is fit and sizing, which is mixed enough that it gets its own section below.

Long winter dog walks over fields is, incidentally, a near-perfect description of the duty cycle most mid-cut boots in Britain actually live: daily, muddy, unglamorous mileage. Feedback from that use is more telling than a week on a test bench.

Worth the extra over budget boots?

Here is the question this boot exists to answer. The budget tier, boots like the NORTIV 8 at around £40 to £50, covered in our NORTIV 8 waterproof hiking boots review, will save you £25 to £40 over the Anylander Mid. Is the extra worth paying?

For most walkers, yes. Two reasons.

First, the waterproofing feedback is more consistent here. The Anylander Mid pairs a brand membrane with a sealed gusseted tongue, and the owner feedback backs the water resistance up. At the budget tier, waterproofing is the spec most likely to flatter on the listing and disappoint in the field, and a boot that lets water in has failed at its one job.

Second, the Terrex pedigree. adidas Terrex is a serious outdoor line with a track record, the same line as the Trailmaker 2 that has kept my own feet dry through years of hard use. You are buying into proven waterproof construction and a brand that has to stand behind it, not a listing that can vanish and relaunch under another name.

At the other end, the Anylander Mid is not trying to be a £120-plus boot, and you should not expect it to be. The serious tier, our pick being the Salomon X Ultra 360 Leather Mid GTX, buys you GORE-TEX, tougher materials and the support for long, loaded days on rough ground. If that is your walking, spend the money there.

That is exactly what makes the Anylander Mid the sweet spot. Meaningfully better backed than the budget tier, well under half the outlay of stretching to a premium boot, and pitched precisely at the walking most people in this country actually do.

Fit and sizing: the mixed bit

The one area where owner opinion splits is fit. Some find the sizing perfect. Others say they run really tight and are not true to size. That is a genuine divide in the feedback rather than a lone grumble, so take it seriously.

The practical answer: buy from somewhere returns are painless, try them indoors with your usual hiking socks, and send them back for a different size without hesitation if they pinch. A boot that is tight in the hallway will be worse at mile ten, and no amount of value survives a boot that does not fit your foot.

Specs at a glance

Type

Mid-cut waterproof hiking boot

Waterproofing

adidas RAIN.RDY membrane, gusseted tongue

Cuff

Mid height, keeps ankle-deep puddles and trail debris out

Outsole

Traxion, multi-directional lugs

Fit

Owner feedback on sizing is mixed, some find them tight and not true to size

UK price

£75 to £85

Availability is a quiet strength: at the time of writing the Mid is well stocked on Amazon with a wide spread of colours and sizes, and prices vary by colourway, so check a couple of colours in your size before committing.

Pros and cons

• The mid-tier sweet spot: a brand waterproof boot at £75 to £85
• RAIN.RDY membrane and gusseted tongue, with owner feedback backing the water resistance
• Taller cuff keeps ankle-deep puddles and trail debris out and steadies the ankle
• Grippy Traxion outsole, secure on gravel, hardpack, damp paths and wet rock
• Owners rate them lightweight, durable and excellent value, and they look great
• Well stocked in loads of colours and sizes

• Sizing feedback is mixed: some find them really tight and not true to size
• RAIN.RDY is not GORE-TEX and carries no equivalent wear guarantee
• Moderate lugs will clog in deep, soft winter mud
• Not built for long, loaded days on rough mountain ground; that is the £120-plus tier's job

Verdict: the mid-tier sweet spot

The adidas Terrex Anylander Mid takes the platform of our best value waterproof shoe and adds the cuff that British winters demand. RAIN.RDY membrane, gusseted tongue, Traxion grip, ankle cover, £75 to £85, and owner feedback that reads like a wish list: dry in muddy puddles, no signs of wear, light, versatile and good value.

Against the £40 to £50 budget boots, the extra money buys more consistent waterproofing feedback and a brand with a track record my own adidas Terrex pairs have borne out over years. Against the £120-plus tier it gives up GORE-TEX, tougher materials and mountain-day support, none of which most walkers on the coast path and downland will miss.

The one caution is sizing. Feedback is mixed, some owners find them tight, so buy where returns are easy and be ruthless about fit. Get the size right and this is the most sensible boot purchase in the category for the walking most people actually do.

Rating: 4.5 / 5

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