The Boston Marathon is changing its qualifier registration process for 2027, and this is one of the biggest entry updates the race has made in years.
The Boston Athletic Association announced a new Boston Qualifier Selection, which is a random drawing for approximately 1,000 runners who meet their official Boston Marathon qualifying standard but do not run faster than the final cutoff. The traditional fastest-first process will remain in place, and the drawing will happen after those entries are assigned.
In other words, running a BQ will still give you the chance to apply. Running under the eventual cutoff remains the clearest route into the race. (Can’t be using the word “easiest” LOL). Starting with the 2027 Boston Marathon, runners who miss that cutoff will also have a second chance.
Here is how the new 2027 Boston Marathon qualifier drawing works, who is eligible, and what runners should know before registration opens.
2027 Boston Marathon Qualifier Drawing FAQ
Do I need to apply separately for the Boston Qualifier Selection?
No. Qualified applicants who miss the final cutoff will automatically be included.
How many runners will be selected?
The B.A.A. plans to randomly select approximately 1,000 qualified applicants.
Can someone without a BQ enter the drawing?
No. The selection is limited to runners who meet a valid Boston qualifying standard and apply during qualifier registration week.
Is 2027 Boston Marathon registration first-come, first-served?
No. Applications submitted during the September 14 through September 18 registration window will be verified and ranked after registration closes.
When will Boston Marathon applicants receive a decision?
The B.A.A. expects all qualifier applicants to receive an acceptance or non-acceptance notice by early October 2026.
What is the 2027 Boston Marathon cutoff?
The cutoff will not be known until the B.A.A. receives and ranks all qualifier applications in September 2026.
Does a BQ guarantee entry into the Boston Marathon?
No. A BQ allows a runner to apply. Direct acceptance depends on the final cutoff, while qualified runners who miss it will now enter the Boston Qualifier Selection.
What Is the New Boston Marathon Qualifier Drawing?
The official name is the Boston Qualifier Selection. Many runners will search for it as the Boston Marathon lottery or Boston Marathon qualifier drawing, although it is not a public lottery open to anyone.
To enter the selection, a runner must:
- Run a valid 2027 Boston Marathon qualifying time.
- Apply during qualifier registration week.
- Meet the standard for their age and gender category on April 19, 2027.
- Miss the final time cutoff after all qualifying applications are ranked.
There is no separate application for the drawing. Runners who meet the published qualifying standard, submit a valid application, and fall outside the cutoff will automatically be included.
The B.A.A. plans to randomly select approximately 1,000 runners from that group. The number may sound small compared with the full Boston Marathon field, but it creates a route that qualified runners outside the cutoff did not have during previous registration cycles.
When Is 2027 Boston Marathon Registration?
Qualifier registration for the 2027 Boston Marathon will be open from September 14 through September 18, 2026, through the B.A.A. Athletes’ Village platform.
Applications will close at 5 p.m. Eastern on Friday, September 18. Registration is not first-come, first-served, so applying on Monday does not provide an advantage over applying later in the week.
After registration closes, the B.A.A. will verify qualifying results and rank applicants by how far they ran under the standard for their age and gender category. The fastest applicants will be accepted through the traditional process, and the last accepted time will establish the 2027 Boston Marathon cutoff.
Applicants who met the standard but missed the cutoff will then move into the Boston Qualifier Selection. All qualifier applicants are expected to receive an acceptance or non-acceptance decision by early October 2026.
The 131st Boston Marathon will be held on Monday, April 19, 2027.
Is Boston Adding a Public Lottery?
No. The Boston Marathon is not adding an open lottery similar to the general drawings used by several other large marathons.
The Boston Qualifier Selection is limited to runners who have already earned a valid BQ and applied during qualifier registration week. Someone without a qualifying time cannot enter this drawing.
That distinction is important because headlines describing the update as a Boston Marathon lottery may make the change sound larger than it is. Boston is keeping its qualification-based registration system. The new drawing adds another route for a small group of qualified runners who would have received a non-acceptance notice under the previous system.
Will the Drawing Reduce the Number of Fastest Qualifiers Accepted?
The B.A.A. stated that the number of athletes accepted through the traditional fastest-first process will be consistent with recent years. Based on that wording, the approximately 1,000 random selections are expected to be added after the normal qualifier allocation rather than removed from it.
That detail addresses one of the first concerns runners raised after the announcement. A runner with a large buffer should still be accepted before the drawing is held, while a runner who falls short of the cutoff will enter the random selection.
The final cutoff will continue to depend on the number of applications, field limits, and the distribution of qualifying times.
Why Is the Boston Marathon Making This Change?
Demand for the Boston Marathon has grown beyond the number of qualifier entries available. A runner can beat the published standard and still miss the race because Boston ranks applicants by how far they ran under that standard.
For the 2026 Boston Marathon, the B.A.A. received 33,249 qualifier applications and accepted 24,362 qualified applicants. The cutoff was 4 minutes and 34 seconds faster than the published standard, leaving 8,887 qualified applicants outside the field.
Recent cutoffs show how much the required buffer can change:
| Boston Marathon | Cutoff below qualifying standard | Qualified applicants not accepted |
|---|---|---|
| 2024 | 5:29 | 11,039 |
| 2025 | 6:51 | 12,324 |
| 2026 | 4:34 | 8,887 |
The standards for runners younger than 60 were also tightened by five minutes beginning with the 2026 Boston Marathon. That reduced the 2026 cutoff compared with 2025, although thousands of runners who met the newer standards were still denied entry.
The qualifier drawing gives some of those runners another opportunity without replacing the ranked system Boston has used for years.
What Are the Odds of Getting Selected?
The B.A.A. has not published odds because the size of the drawing pool will not be known until registration closes.
The odds will depend on how many runners meet the standard, apply during registration week, and miss the 2027 cutoff. Every eligible runner in that group will have a chance at approximately 1,000 entries.
Using 2026 only as an example, 1,000 selections from a group of 8,887 non-accepted qualifiers would equal about 11.3 percent. That is not a prediction for 2027 because the number of applicants and the cutoff could be different. I suspect it will jump back to around 10,000.
The advice is still the same: runners should still aim for the largest buffer they can reasonably run. A faster time improves the chance of direct acceptance, while meeting the standard keeps the drawing available if the cutoff moves beyond their result.
How Do the New Downhill Marathon Rules Affect the Drawing?
The new qualifier selection is arriving during the first registration cycle that includes Boston’s time adjustments for steep net-downhill courses.
For 2027 Boston Marathon registration:
- A qualifying time from a course with 1,500 to 2,999 feet of net elevation loss will receive a five-minute adjustment.
- A qualifying time from a course with 3,000 to 5,999 feet of net elevation loss will receive a 10-minute adjustment.
- A course with at least 6,000 feet of net elevation loss will not be accepted as a Boston qualifier.
The adjusted time will be used to decide whether a runner met the qualifying standard and how far under the standard the runner ranks. It will also determine whether the runner is eligible for the qualifier drawing.
For example, a runner who finishes five minutes under the published standard on a course receiving a five-minute adjustment would be treated as running exactly the standard. That runner could apply and would remain eligible for the qualifier drawing if the final cutoff were faster.
Not every net-downhill marathon receives an adjustment. The California International Marathon has a 366-foot net elevation drop, which is far below the 1,500-foot threshold. I also suspect we will see more net downhill races pop up that don’t drop enough to need the buffer.
CIM was also one of the five most frequently used qualifying races among runners accepted for the 2026 Boston Marathon. I ran CIM in 3:19:57, and while the course is fast, the rolling first 20-plus miles should not be confused with running straight downhill for 26.2 miles.
Should You Pre-Verify Your Boston Qualifying Time?
The B.A.A. is allowing runners to pre-verify 2027 qualifying times through July 31, 2026, in Athletes’ Village.
Pre-verification confirms the qualifying result before registration week and may make the September review process faster. It does not register a runner for the Boston Marathon, and anyone who pre-verifies still needs to submit an application between September 14 and September 18.
Runners using a course affected by the new downhill rules should expect the time adjustment to be included during pre-verification and registration.
My Take on the Boston Qualifier Selection
The opinion no one asked for. Meeting a Boston qualifying standard is a major running achievement, yet the published time has not been enough to get into the race during many recent registration cycles. The new selection gives about 1,000 runners a route that did not exist before. Some people think: they should run faster, but that is not possible for everyone. Some people’s ceiling might be around the same time as a BQ.
I also understand why some runners dislike it. A person who misses the cutoff by one second could lose a bib while someone several minutes behind receives one through the drawing. The existing system was harsh, although it was easy to explain: faster applicants were accepted first until the qualifier allocation was full.
The new process introduces luck into one section of qualifier registration, although Boston is not abandoning performance-based entry. Most qualifier bibs will still go to the fastest applicants, and the B.A.A. says that allocation will remain consistent with recent years.
My biggest question is whether approximately 1,000 entries will change how runners view the published standards. It gives every qualified applicant some chance of acceptance, but it does not resolve the gap between earning a BQ and running the time needed for direct entry.
I believe running for charity is essential and maybe one of the most important pieces to the race. Training for charity while also raising $5000+ is incredibly difficult. That money can make huge differences and I hope that component never goes away.
What Runners Should Do Before September
Runners planning to apply should confirm that their marathon is certified, check whether the course receives a downhill adjustment, and verify that their qualifying standard is based on their age on April 19, 2027.
The official 2027 Boston Marathon registration announcement explains the new drawing. The B.A.A. also lists the full 2027 Boston Marathon qualifying standards and downhill rules and provides registration information for athletes.
A faster qualifying time remains the best route into Boston. The difference for 2027 is that runners who meet the standard and miss the cutoff will no longer be finished after the ranked selection. Approximately 1,000 of them will receive another chance.
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Question for you:
Do you like the new Boston Marathon qualifier drawing, or would you rather see every available qualifier bib awarded by time?