When does the Boston Marathon start? Here are the 2026 Boston Marathon start times

Groups of athletes will be setting off between 9 a.m. and 11:21 a.m., with runners expected to finish all throughout the day.

The starting area of the 130h Boston Marathon at Hopkinton. David L. Ryan/ The Boston Globe

April 13, 2026 | 6:34 PM

1 minute to read

The Boston Marathon is faster than ever, with the Boston Athletic Association (BAA) upping qualifying times and adding on additional racing waves.

This year’s race will see 30,000 athletes make their way from Hopkinton to Copley Square,. If you’re looking to watch any of those 30,000 athletes, here’s what you need to know about their start times and when runners will be passing by.

Athletes with wheelchairs will lead off just after 9 a.m., followed by handcycles and duos, professionals, and para-athletes. From 10 to 11:21 a.m., the six waves of open division runners will start.

Start times in Hopkinton

9:06 a.m. – Men’s Wheelchair
9:09 a.m. – Women’s Wheelchair
9:30 a.m. – Handcycles & Duos
9:37 a.m. – Professional Men
9:47 a.m. – Professional Women
9:50 a.m. – Para Athletics Division
10:00 a.m. – Wave 1
10:15 a.m. – Wave 2
10: 28 a.m. – Wave 3
10:41 a.m. – Wave 4
11:01 a.m. – Wave 5
11:21 a.m. – Wave 6

Heartbreak Hill in Newton

Between the 20th and 21st mile of the marathon, runners will tackle the infamous Heartbreak Hill in Newton.

For those wanting to cheer competitors through what might be the most challenging point of the marathon, plan to arrive before 10:04 a.m. for the men’s wheelchair division. The women’s wheelchair wave should follow about ten minutes after.

The pro men runners are estimated to go through Heartbreak Hill at 11:10 a.m., followed by the pro women at 11:32 a.m.

You can track your favorite runner using the BAA Racing app.

The MBTA Green Line services Newton, and the BAA recommends spectators get off at the Woodland or Boston College stops for viewing access.

Crossing the finish line at Copley Square

If you want to see the final moments of a runner’s 26.2 miles long journey, head to the finish line on Boylston Street.

The wheelchair men’s group should be finishing their race around 10:21 a.m., with the women finishing just about 15 minutes later.

Pro men are expected to run into Copley Square at 11:40 a.m. with women just behind at 12:04 p.m.

The other open waves will follow through depending on each runner’s time. The finish line will remain open until 5:30 p.m.

Sign up for the Today newsletter

Get everything you need to know to start your day, delivered right to your inbox every morning.

    !function(f,b,e,v,n,t,s)
    {if(f.fbq)return;n=f.fbq=function(){n.callMethod?
    n.callMethod.apply(n,arguments):n.queue.push(arguments)};
    if(!f._fbq)f._fbq=n;n.push=n;n.loaded=!0;n.version='2.0';
    n.queue=[];t=b.createElement(e);t.async=!0;
    t.src=v;s=b.getElementsByTagName(e)[0];
    s.parentNode.insertBefore(t,s)}(window, document,'script',
    'https://connect.facebook.net/en_US/fbevents.js');
                const onetrustStorageConsent = JSON.parse(localStorage.getItem( 'consent_one_trust_bdc' ) );
        if ( ( onetrustStorageConsent !== null ) ) {
            /* The above code is parsing the JSON data from the local storage and storing it in a variable.
             * Checking if the user has given consent for the cookie C0004.
             * If the user has given consent, the variable consent will be set to 'grant'.
             * If the user has not given consent,the variable consent will be set to 'revoke'.
             * Documentation https://developers.facebook.com/docs/meta-pixel/implementation/gdpr
            */
            if ( onetrustStorageConsent.C0004 !== true ) {
                fbq('consent', 'revoke');
                fbq('dataProcessingOptions', []);
            } else {
                fbq('consent', 'grant');
                fbq('dataProcessingOptions', ['LDU'], 0, 0);
            }
        }
            fbq('init', '989222871864976');
    fbq('track', 'PageView');



    !function(f,b,e,v,n,t,s){if(f.fbq)return;n=f.fbq=function()
    {n.callMethod? n.callMethod.apply(n,arguments):n.queue.push(arguments)}
    ;if(!f._fbq)f._fbq=n;
    n.push=n;n.loaded=!0;n.version='2.0';n.queue=[];t=b.createElement(e);t.async=!0;
    t.src=v;s=b.getElementsByTagName(e)[0];s.parentNode.insertBefore(t,s)}(window,
    document,'script','https://connect.facebook.net/en_US/fbevents.js');
                const onetrustStorageConsent = JSON.parse(localStorage.getItem( 'consent_one_trust_bdc' ) );
        /* The above code is parsing the JSON data from the local storage and storing it in a variable.
         * Checking if the user has given consent for the cookie C0004.
         * If the user has given consent, the variable consent will be set to 'grant'.
         * If the user has not given consent,the variable consent will be set to 'revoke'.
         * Documentation https://developers.facebook.com/docs/meta-pixel/implementation/gdpr
        */
        if ( ( onetrustStorageConsent !== null ) &amp;&amp; (onetrustStorageConsent.C0004 !== true ) ) {
            fbq('consent', 'revoke');
            fbq('dataProcessingOptions', []);
        } else {
            fbq('consent', 'grant');
            fbq('dataProcessingOptions', ['LDU'], 0, 0);
        }
            fbq('init', '813236348753005');
    fbq('track', 'PageView');

Source link