The Best Spring Marathons of 2027

The fast version

Twelve races, March 21 to May 29. Two majors, four genuine BQ courses, three of the prettiest courses in the country, and three races that are really parties with a marathon attached. Every number below comes from FindMyMarathon, and every BQ rate is from the 2026 edition unless noted.

* Sugarloaf's 2026 BQ rate fell to 14% in a hot, shadeless year. It was about 30% in both 2024 and 2025. Read the Sugarloaf section before you judge it on one number.

One scheduling fact shapes this whole list: four of these twelve races fall on the same day, Sunday, April 25. Eugene, Big Sur, London, and Toledo. Pick your weekend before you pick your race, because you cannot run two of them.

How this list is different

This is not a fastest list and it is not a month-by-month list. We already have both. The Fastest Spring Marathons for a PR ranks spring races purely on speed, and The Best Spring Marathons for a BQ or PR sequences them by month and weather risk. This list answers a different question: if you could only run one spring marathon in 2027, which one should it be?

So the filter here is broader. Course quality matters, but so does BQ friendliness, scenery, organization, and the experience of the weekend. A race can be slow and still belong here, if the weekend is worth the trip. A race can be fast and still miss, if getting in is a lottery you already lost.

That last point matters more in 2027 than in most years. Four races on this list are already closed or sold out as of early November: Boston, London, Big Sur, and Paris. We include them anyway, because they are the best spring races and because the routes in (charity places, tour operators, next year's plan) are part of the honest picture. The other eight are open now or open soon, and we say exactly which.

The majors: Boston and London

The race every other race is measured against. Point to point from Hopkinton, 815 feet of climbing against 1,275 feet of loss, and the Newton Hills waiting at miles 16 to 21. Heartbreak Hill is only 88 feet, but it arrives after 20 miles of quad-pounding downhill, which is why Boston punishes runners who go out too fast and rewards runners who wait.

Registration for 2027 is closed. The cutoff was 5 minutes 17 seconds under standard, and 25,630 runners were accepted. If you are in, you already know what this is. If you are not, this is the goal the rest of this list serves. There is no BQ rate to quote for Boston, because the whole field already qualified to get there.

The flattest major and the biggest marathon on earth by finishers. The course gains only 419 feet as it tours the Thames, crosses Tower Bridge at mile 12.5, threads the tight turns of Canary Wharf, and finishes down the Embankment to The Mall. The 2027 race is a two-day event, April 24 to 25, with 100,000 runners across the weekend.

The ballot closed May 1, 2026 after 1,338,544 applications, so the remaining routes in are charity places and tour operators. About 11% of finishers ran a Boston qualifier in 2026. If you want a major without Boston's hills, and you can get a place, this is the one.

Best BQ odds

These four are where your odds of qualifying are actually good. Not theoretical, not based on the course profile alone, but measured: roughly one in five finishers or better qualified in 2026.

The best all-around spring race, and the one we would pick if we could only pick one. A mostly flat loop with 586 feet of gain, a race-day high that averages 64F, and a finish on the track at Hayward Field. There were 4,536 finishers in 2026, which means real pace groups and enough runners around you to stay honest in the early miles.

Registration is open for the 20th running, but do not sit on it. The race sold out in 2024, 2025, and 2026, most recently in mid-January. If Eugene fits your calendar, register this week.

The sleeper. A flat loop with 412 feet of gain, a finish on the 50-yard line of the University of Toledo's Glass Bowl, and a BQ rate that embarrasses races ten times its size. Only 1,223 runners finished the marathon in 2026, and about one in four of them qualified for Boston.

The tradeoffs are real and we will not hide them. Crowds thin out after the half marathon splits off, the expo is small, and the back half of the course is quiet. But registration is open at $120, there is no lottery, and this is the 50th running. If you want a BQ with no fuss, this is the best value on the list.

The fastest course in Maine, and one of the fastest courses in the country by FindMyMarathon's course score. Point to point down Route 27, 713 feet of gain against 1,285 feet of loss, dropping from 1,548 feet at the start to 584 at the finish. The first five miles are flat, miles 5 to 10 roll, and the last 16 miles are downhill.

Here is the honest caveat. The BQ rate was about 30% in 2024 and 2025, then fell to 14% in 2026, when race day turned hot with no shade and no wind. A downhill course does not save you from a hot day, and a downhill course punishes quads that never trained for the descent. Only 497 runners finished in 2026 under a 1,500-runner cap. Registration had not opened yet as of early November, so watch the race site in the new year.

The fastest course in California by FindMyMarathon's course score. It starts just over 700 feet up in downtown Ojai, loops through East Ojai for six miles, then descends to sea level over 22 miles and finishes with a mile of beachfront running at the Ventura Pier. The numbers are 536 feet of gain against 1,260 feet of loss, and 2,060 finishers in 2026.

Two warnings. First, it sells out every year, so register the day entries open rather than the week after, and book lodging at the same time, since the start and finish are in different towns. Second, the course is elite and the production is not: the community rating on FindMyMarathon is 3.3, the lowest on this list. Expect a fast course with a smaller-race feel, not a big-event show.

Most scenic

These three are the races you run for the pictures and the memory, and you accept the tradeoff in speed. All three are honest about it: the views are the point.

The most beautiful marathon in America, and one of the hardest. Twenty-six miles north on Highway 1, past Bixby Bridge at the half and over Hurricane Point, a two-mile climb at miles 10 to 12 that rises 560 feet into the wind the point is named for. There were 3,222 finishers in 2026 and only 4.5% qualified for Boston, because nobody runs Big Sur for a time.

General registration sold out in the September lottery for the 40th running, and the entry fee was $325. The remaining route is Boston 2 Big Sur, open only to runners entered in the 2027 Boston Marathon, plus charity entries. If you missed it, plan for 2028. This is a bucket-list race, not a backup plan.

The 50th edition, and almost everything about getting in changed. It is now the ASICS Marathon de Paris under a new organizer, Cadence Running United, replacing ASO after nearly 30 years. And for the first time, entry is by lottery: it ran September 8 to 30, 2026 and is now closed. Charity bibs and tour operators are the remaining routes.

The course has not been published yet. The organizer will reveal it a few weeks before race day, with the Champs-Elysees start and Avenue Foch finish staying put. The course gains 541 feet across the city, with cobblestones in the opening mile, the parks of Vincennes and Boulogne, and short sharp tunnels along the Seine. Book it as a trip first and a race second this year.

The prettiest flat course in the Midwest. Out and back along Grand Traverse Bay on the Old Mission Peninsula, 371 feet of gain, shaded much of the way, with a finish on the high school track where friends and family can watch from the bleachers. There were 1,732 finishers in 2026.

Bayshore is also a genuinely fast race, which is rare for a scenic one. About one in five finishers qualified for Boston in every year from 2022 to 2026. Registration opens December 1, 2026 at 9 a.m. Eastern, the early entry is $129, and the race sells out, so set an alarm. This is the 45th anniversary.

Best first marathon

If this is your first 26.2, speed is the wrong filter. You want a generous time limit, crowds that carry you through the hard miles, and a finish line worth the months of training. These three deliver that.

The best first marathon on this list. Cincinnati's race weekend is a genuine party, and the course is a hilly loop with a 300-foot climb to Eden Park in miles 6 to 9, rolling plateaus through the neighborhoods, then a fast downhill finish on the riverfront. The total gain is 954 feet, so train for the hills, but the 7-hour limit means you will not be swept for walking them.

There were 5,267 finishers in 2026 and only 4.6% qualified for Boston, which tells you what the field is here for. Morning temps start near 56F and warm toward 70F, so train for the heat as well as the hills. Registration is open.

The best big-city party in spring. Fourteen neighborhoods, three rivers, bridges, bands, and cheer zones the whole way. The course is rolling, 933 feet of gain, and the second half is tougher than the first, with a climb into Oakland around mile 12 and a descent back downtown at mile 22.

There were 5,024 finishers in 2026 and 4.5% qualified for Boston. That is not the point here. Stay downtown, walk to the start, and treat it as a race and a weekend. Registration is open.

The earliest date on this list and the flattest course: 270 feet of gain, most of it the Rudee Inlet Bridge, crossed twice at miles 15 and 23. The finish is a 1.5-mile sprint down the oceanfront boardwalk to the King Neptune statue, and the post-race party on the beach is the best in spring.

Here is the honest part. Only about 5% of finishers qualified for Boston in 2026, despite the pancake-flat course, because the field is here for the St. Patrick's Day party, not a time trial. That is a feature, not a flaw, if you want a fast course with a 7.5-hour limit and no pressure. There were 2,435 finishers in 2026, registration is open at about $130 to $140, and this is the 55th running.

Registration reality check

Spring registration does not wait for your training plan. Here is where all twelve stand as of November 10, 2026.

• 01Open now: Shamrock, Mountains 2 Beach, Eugene, Toledo, Pittsburgh, Flying Pig. Eugene sold out in mid-January last year, and Mountains 2 Beach sells out every year, so those two are urgent.
• 02Opening soon: Bayshore opens December 1, 2026 at 9 a.m. Eastern. Sugarloaf has not opened yet and opens in 2027.
• 03Closed or sold out: Boston (qualified entry only), London (ballot closed May 1, 2026), Big Sur (general registration sold out), Paris (lottery closed September 30, 2026). Charity places and tour operators are the remaining routes for all four.

The pattern is worth naming. The famous races close in the fall, months before race day. If you are planning a spring marathon, the decision is a fall decision. By January, the only question left is which of the open races is still open.

How to pick

It comes down to what you actually want from the spring.

• 01Chasing a BQ and want the best odds: Toledo or Eugene. Sugarloaf if you can handle downhill running and a hot-day risk.
• 02Want a major: Boston if you qualified. London or Paris through a charity place or a tour operator, since both ballots are closed.
• 03Want the most beautiful 26.2 miles: Big Sur if you can get in, Bayshore if you want beauty and a fast time in the same race.
• 04First marathon: Flying Pig or Shamrock. Generous time limits, huge crowds, and finish lines worth the training.
• 05Early season: Shamrock on March 21 or Paris on April 4.
• 06Net-downhill PR: Mountains 2 Beach or Sugarloaf. Train your quads for the descent either way.

If you are still not sure which one fits your goal time, training base, and geography, the quiz handles it. Answer five questions and get a ranked recommendation.

The bottom line

Spring is short. Four of the twelve best races fall on the same Sunday, April 25, so pick your weekend first and your race second. And register now for the ones that are open, because the famous ones are already gone.

If we had to pick one race for most runners, it would be Eugene: the best all-around spring race, flat, fast, well organized, and with a finish at Hayward Field that no other race can offer. If we had to pick one for BQ odds alone, it would be Toledo: the same speed, a fraction of the attention, and a $120 entry with no lottery.

For the full speed picture, see The Fastest Spring Marathons for a PR, which ranks spring races purely on course, weather, and BQ rate. For the month-by-month weather picture, see The Best Spring Marathons for a BQ or PR, which sequences March through June by weather risk. This list is the third angle: the best spring races, all things considered.

Frequently asked

1. 01FindMyMarathon course comparisons · FindMyMarathon
2. 02Eugene Marathon official site · Eugene Marathon
3. 03Bayshore Marathon official site · Traverse City Track Club
4. 04Sugarloaf Marathon official site · Sugarloaf
5. 05Big Sur International Marathon official site · Big Sur Marathon Foundation