Every year, qualifying and registering for the upcoming Boston Marathon are highly anticipated events for thousands of runners who hope to gain entry into the oldest annual marathon in the world and run the iconic 26.2-mile course from Hopkinton, Massachusetts to Boston in April.
The Boston Athletic Association (B.A.A.) pays close attention to the anticipated number of Boston Marathon applicants relative to the maximum field size of 30,000 runners. This helps determine the appropriate Boston Marathon qualifying standards every year.
If you have posted a qualifying time based on your age and gender category within the qualifying time frame, you are able to register for the upcoming Boston Marathon during the registration window the September that precedes the race the following April.
Due to the popularity of the race and the regulations that have been established to gain entry, it is imperative that you hit the qualifying time within the qualifying window and remember to register during the five-day registration or you will not be eligible to toe the line.
The B.A.A. has just announced the entry standards and registration window for the 128th Boston Marathon, which is scheduled to take place on Monday, April 15, 2024.
Here is the need-to-know information about qualifying and registering for the 2024 Boston Marathon:
- The 2024 Boston Marathon registration period will open on Monday, September 11, 2023, at 10 AM EST.
- The registration window closes on Friday, September 15, 2023, at 5 PM E.T.
- As long as you have race results that indicate that you have run a Boston Marathon qualifying time (BQ time) within the qualifying window for the 2024 Boston Marathon, you will be able to register for the race during this five-day registration window.
- Athletes with active Boston Marathon finisher streaks (who have finished at least 10 consecutive Boston Marathons including this past year with no lapses) are granted early registration from August 28th, 2023 to September 1, 2023.
- The qualification window for the 2024 Boston Marathon is from September 1, 2022, to September 15, 2023. This means that the race results that you are using to prove that you have run a BQ must occur within this specific date range.
- The gender categories for the 2024 Boston Marathon are women, men, and non-binary. The non-binary gender category was first offered in the 2023 Boston Marathon, and there are qualifying standards for this gender category as well.
- As with any other year, successfully submitting your application during the registration window does not guarantee entry, even if you have an appropriate Boston Marathon qualifying time. Runners are granted entry into the race based on the fastest applicants within each gender and age category, such that the selection process starts with the fastest athlete within any given category and ends after the quota for that gender and age group has been filled.
- Some years, there are cut-off times in addition to the qualification standards. This time represents the amount of time under the qualification standard you had to have met to actually be accepted into the race. For the past two years, the Boston Marathon has not had any cut-off times, though historically Boston Marathon cut-off times can range anywhere from 1 to 7 minutes for any age group.
Note that if the race field does not completely fill up with applications during the designated Boston Marathon window from September 11 through September 15, the registration window will re-open to the public on September 17 and will remain open until the race is full.
The 2024 Boston Marathon qualifying times have not changed relative to the 2023 qualifying standards.
Here are the 2024 Boston Marathon times for each age and gender category:
| Age Group | MEN | WOMEN | NON-BINARY |
| 18-34 | 3hrs 00min 00sec | 3hrs 30min 00sec | 3hrs 30min 00sec |
| 35-39 | 3hrs 05min 00sec | 3hrs 35min 00sec | 3hrs 35min 00sec |
| 40-44 | 3hrs 10min 00sec | 3hrs 40min 00sec | 3hrs 40min 00sec |
| 45-49 | 3hrs 20min 00sec | 3hrs 50min 00sec | 3hrs 50min 00sec |
| 50-54 | 3hrs 25min 00sec | 3hrs 55min 00sec | 3hrs 55min 00sec |
| 55-59 | 3hrs 35min 00sec | 4hrs 05min 00sec | 4hrs 05min 00sec |
| 60-64 | 3hrs 50min 00sec | 4hrs 20min 00sec | 4hrs 20min 00sec |
| 65-69 | 4hrs 05min 00sec | 4hrs 35min 00sec | 4hrs 35min 00sec |
| 70-74 | 4hrs 20min 00sec | 4hrs 50min 00sec | 4hrs 50min 00sec |
| 75-79 | 4hrs 35min 00sec | 5hrs 05min 00sec | 5hrs 05min 00sec |
| 80 and over | 4hrs 50min 00sec | 5hrs 20min 00sec | 5hrs 20min 00sec |
For more information about how to qualify for the Boston Marathon, check out our article here.
You can also read more about the Boston Marathon qualification and registration on the B.A.A. website here.
Are you planning to run the 2024 Boston Marathon? Check out some of our free marathon training plans to help you get ready for the race of your life.
