2026 Boston Marathon Cutoff Time: What You Need to Know

 

The Boston Athletic Association (B.A.A.) has announced that to gain entry into the 2026 Boston Marathon, participants must have run 4 minutes and 34 seconds faster than the qualifying times for their gender and age group. 

This year's cutoff is the smallest since 2018, when the cutoff was 3:23. Last year, registrants had to run 6:51 faster than their respective qualifying times - the largest in a non-pandemic year. 

In total, the B.A.A. received 33,249 applications and accepted 24,362 runners, leaving 8,887 qualifiers without a spot. The race field is capped at 30,000 runners, with the remaining spots filled by charity runners, sponsors, and invited athletes.

For the 2026 race, qualifying standards for runners aged 18 - 59 were tightened by five minutes, while standards for runners aged 60 and above remained unchanged.

The 2026 Boston Marathon is scheduled for Monday, April 20, 2026.