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Best Boston Marathon Qualifiers for 2026

Best Boston Marathon Qualifiers

It's here! Our annual list of the year's
best marathons to help you qualify for the Boston Marathon.

2026 IS HERE!


Marathon Pace Bands

Marathon Pace Bands

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Nearly 500 marathon courses.
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Top Downhill Marathons

Ranked by Net Downhill (start to finish elevation loss). Use this guide to find courses with downhill profiles, view Boston Qualifier (BQ%) trends, and prepare for the 2027 Boston Marathon course adjustments.

Net Downhill

The total elevation difference between the start and finish lines. A higher number generally indicates a steeper descent, which can lead to faster times but may incur time penalties for Boston Marathon qualifying.

2027 Boston Adjustments

Red: 10-minute BQ time adjustment
Blue: 5-minute BQ time adjustment
*Adjustments based on the new Boston Downhill Index.
Note Races may plan to alter courses to minimize or avoid these time penalties. We recommend checking with race directors before registering if your primary goal is a 2027/2028 BQ.
 

Downhill Marathon Courses

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Race Name Net Downhill BQ % Course High/Low
1 REVEL Big Cottonwood Marathon
Murray, UT
09/12/2026 		5,259'
4.33%
9625'
4377'
2 REVEL Mt. Charleston Marathon
Las Vegas, NV
04/03/2027 		5,101'
9.75%
7651'
2502'
3 REVEL Big Bear Marathon
Redlands, CA
11/07/2026 		5,072'
6630'
1545'
4 Runtastic NEBO Marathon
Payson, UT
08/29/2026 		4,560'
16.11%
9367'
4689'
5 Revel Reno Tahoe Marathon
Reno, NV
05/17/2026 		4,462'
4.60%
8914'
4452'
6 Huntsville Marathon
Huntsville, UT
09/20/2025 		3,741'
6.06%
8733'
4927'
7 Hawaii Bird Conservation Marathon
Hilo, HI
12/20/2026 		3,653'
13.39%
4029'
356'
8 Sundance to Spearfish Marathon
Spearfish, SD
09/13/2026 		2,972'
25.88%
6618'
3640'
9 St. George Marathon
St. George, UT
10/03/2026 		2,558'
8.56%
5244'
2685'
10 East Canyon Marathon
Morgan, UT
08/29/2026 		2,330'
8.53%
7429'
5054'
11 Leading Ladies Marathon
Spearfish, SD
08/23/2026 		2,261'
11.20%
6065'
3669'
12 Bears Ears Marathon
Bluff, UT
11/07/2026 		1,699'
8.75%
6135'
4324'
13 Sun Marathon
Santa Clara, UT
01/23/2027 		1,660'
8.62%
4584'
2902'
14 Pocatello Marathon
Pocatello, ID
09/05/2026 		1,519'
9.96%
5990'
4455'
15 Tucson Marathon
Tucson, AZ
12/13/2026 		1,493'
17.33%
3994'
2294'
16 Deseret News Marathon
Salt Lake City, UT
07/24/2026 		1,474'
13.41%
6239'
4242'
17 New England Green River Marathon
Greenfield, MA
08/23/2026 		1,458'
11.21%
1655'
175'
18 Wicked Fast (AZ) Marathon
Tucson, AZ
02/21/2026 		1,447'
10.81%
3993'
2388'
19 Utah Valley Marathon
Provo, UT
06/05/2027 		1,438'
13.10%
5986'
4549'
20 Leavenworth Marathon
Leavenworth, WA
10/03/2026 		1,312'
9.09%
2465'
1092'
21 Steamboat Marathon
Steamboat Springs, CO
06/07/2026 		1,299'
4.07%
8165'
6663'
22 Wicked Fast (MT) Marathon
Pine Creek, MT
08/15/2026 		1,285'
12.34%
5825'
4497'
23 Aspen Valley Marathon
Basalt, CO
07/25/2026 		1,279'
10.36%
7960'
6507'
24 Super Hyak Marathon
North Bend, WA
06/13/2026 		1,247'
19.02%
2578'
1409'
25 Cascade Express Marathon
North Bend, WA
09/12/2026 		1,247'
25.87%
2578'
1409'
26 Colorado Marathon
Fort Collins, CO
05/02/2027 		1,200'
6.28%
6117'
4969'
27 Mud Mountain Dam (Spring) Marathon
Enumclaw, WA
05/29/2027 		1,187'
25.00%
1335'
134'
28 Mud Mountain Dam (Fall) Marathon
Enumclaw, WA
09/19/2026 		1,187'
1335'
134'
29 Wicked Fast (CA) Marathon
El Cajon, CA
06/13/2026 		1,166'
9.14%
2145'
395'
30 Ogden Marathon
Ogden, UT
05/16/2026 		1,116'
8.44%
5421'
4292'
31 Bizz Johnson Marathon
Susanville, CA
10/11/2026 		1,101'
0.10%
5579'
4254'
32 Rogue Marathon
Medford, OR
10/10/2026 		955'
14.04%
2308'
1350'
33 Steamtown Marathon
Scranton, PA
10/11/2026 		954'
18.16%
1698'
713'
34 Jack and Jills Downhill Marathon
North Bend, WA
07/26/2026 		952'
32.17%
2578'
1696'
35 Jack and Jills Downhill Marathon (Saturday)
North Bend, WA
07/25/2026 		952'
24.04%
2578'
1696'
36 Salmon Marathon
Salmon, ID
09/05/2026 		951'
3.85%
4887'
3931'
37 Ventura Marathon
Ventura, CA
02/21/2027 		932'
26.66%
1010'
18'
38 Light at the End of the Tunnel Marathon
North Bend, WA
06/07/2026 		873'
20.35%
2578'
1696'
39 Tunnel Light Marathon
North Bend, WA
09/13/2026 		873'
12.88%
2578'
1696'
40 Tunnel Vision Marathon
North Bend, WA
08/09/2026 		873'
33.46%
2578'
1696'
41 Montana Marathon
Billings, MT
09/20/2026 		831'
3.62%
4208'
3131'
42 Marquette Marathon
Marquette, MI
09/05/2026 		804'
21.65%
1463'
605'
43 Mesa Marathon
Mesa, AZ
02/13/2027 		767'
16.29%
2063'
1197'
44 Mountains 2 Beach Marathon
Ventura, CA
04/18/2027 		740'
18.25%
941'
8'
45 P tit Train du Nord Marathon
Saint-Jerome, QC
10/04/2026 		722'
15.23%
1054'
309'
46 Monument Marathon
Gering, NE
09/26/2026 		610'
4.84%
4635'
3879'
47 Salt Lake City Marathon
Salt Lake City, UT
04/24/2027 		600'
3.26%
4872'
4243'
48 Jim Thorpe Marathon
Jim Thorpe, PA
04/25/2027 		587'
22.74%
1192'
545'
49 Sugarloaf Marathon
Kingfield, ME
05/17/2026 		574'
14.29%
1548'
584'
50 Wicked Fast (PA) Marathon
Jim Thorpe, PA
09/12/2026 		539'
13.66%
1274'
592'