Not one of them won a coveted spot on the start line in Staten Island this November.<\/p>\n
They were far from alone. Just 1% of lottery entrants got a bib for the 2026 New York City Marathon. It\u2019s the lowest acceptance rate in the race\u2019s 50-year history, and the first time Dick and her friends felt like their dream of joining 60,000 runners through a raucous tour of the city\u2019s five boroughs may be permanently out of reach.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt used to feel like if you kept applying, you\u2019d eventually get in, but now it seems different,\u201d Dick says. \u201cI\u2019ll keep applying\u2014I might be 80, but I\u2019ll always try.\u201d<\/p>\n
But getting exceptionally lucky isn\u2019t Dick\u2019s\u2014and your\u2014only option. If the lottery gods scorned you as well this year, don\u2019t despair quite yet. There are some sneaky backdoor ways to run the NYC Marathon without winning the lottery<\/a>. A few of these could still get you into the race this fall, and they\u2019ll all get you in next year if you jump on it now.<\/p>\n How to Get Into the New York City Marathon, Without Winning the Lottery New York Road Runners (NYRR), the nonprofit that puts on the race, partners with numerous charities<\/a> supporting a wide range of causes, including Brave Like Gabe, Every Mother Counts, and Protect Our Winters. Just be prepared to do some extra legwork: If you register with an official charity partner and raise a minimum of $3,000\u2013$3,500 (depending on the organization), you get a guaranteed spot.<\/p>\n Book a Tour<\/p>\n Marathon Tours & Travel has an agreement with NYRR that members of the Seven Continents Club (a club for runners who want to run a marathon on all seven continents) can book a New York City Marathon \u201ctour\u201d that includes a race entry. Membership costs $200 and allows you a chance to not only run New York, but also some of the other World Marathon Majors, including London and Tokyo. (Not Boston, you still have to qualify for Boston.)<\/p>\n After the membership fee, you pay a hefty price for the tour, which includes food and hotel. It usually costs more than $2,000, plus the race entry fee.<\/p>\n But even if you have a few thousand bucks to blow, don\u2019t procrastinate on this opportunity for next year. The waitlist, at over 200, is closed for the 2026 New York City Marathon, says Marathon Tours & Travel representative Julia Sheehan.<\/p>\n And there\u2019s (another) catch: Runners who\u2019ve booked the most tours with Marathon Tours get first priority, she says.<\/p>\n NYRR also partners with other tour operators, but mostly for people who don\u2019t live full-time in the U.S.<\/p>\n Second Chance Drawing<\/p>\n If you\u2019re really hell-bent on earning a lottery entry, it could be worth becoming a NYRR member for $60 per year. NYRR members can try for a second lottery drawing, which happened after the first round of results came out on March 4.<\/p>\n \u201cTo be eligible, your membership must be active the day before the drawing application opens, and remain active through the drawing day for the event,\u201d NYRR states on its website<\/a>.<\/p>\n 9+1 Program<\/p>\n Your NYRR membership also pays off with the 9+1 program. NYRR members who complete the 9+1 program\u2014which entails racing nine qualifying races in 2026 plus volunteering at another one\u2014earn a guaranteed spot into the marathon.<\/p>\n The list of qualifying races<\/a> includes the Brooklyn Half and several 5Ks and 10Ks. But there\u2019s another catch: Some of these races, especially the Brooklyn Half, also sell out and have their own lotteries<\/a><\/p>\n Dick, the runner who\u2019s losing hope of ever doing NYC, says she has friends who live in San Diego and are considering flying back and forth to New York 10 times next year to complete the requirement. Now that\u2019s commitment.<\/p>\n If you\u2019re beginning to sense a theme here, money can\u2019t buy you happiness, but it can buy you a spot into the race. People who join NYRR at the 5K and 10K level (and that means dollars, not distances) get a guaranteed NYC Marathon spot.<\/p>\n Run Very Fast<\/p>\n Just like Boston, you can qualify by time for the New York City Marathon. It\u2019s just that the times are very, very fast.<\/p>\n To get a guaranteed entry, you have to run within the time standard in one of five NYRR races (Fred Lebow Half Marathon, United Airlines NYC Half, Maybelline Women\u2019s Half, RBC Brooklyn Half, or of course the New York City Marathon). The qualifying window for next year is January 1 through December 31, 2026.<\/p>\n You can also run the qualifying time in other marathons, but you don\u2019t get a guaranteed entry. Just like with the Boston Marathon, they take the fastest qualifiers first, and it\u2019s tough to get a spot. This year, you had to run 22 minutes and 52 seconds faster than the time standard for your division to get in.<\/p>\n 2026 NYC Marathon Qualification Standards: Men *for runners who didn\u2019t automatically qualify by hitting the time standard at one of the five aforementioned NYRR races.<\/p>\n Race 15 Other NYC Marathons<\/p>\n If you\u2019ve run at least 15 New York City Marathons, you get a guaranteed entry for future years. Of course, this is sort of like salt in the wound for runners who can\u2019t get into one marathon in the first place.<\/p>\n When All Else Fails, Race Another Marathon<\/p>\n For this year, Dick and her friends are looking for other fall or winter marathons<\/a> to put on their training calendars. The California International Marathon in Sacramento has long been popular for its fast course, and it sold out soon after the New York City Marathon lottery results were announced.<\/p>\n Here are some other stellar fall options:<\/p>\n You can still get the feeling of running through a big city with big crowds. More than 30,000 runners did the Marine Corps Marathon<\/a> last year, and there is plenty of crowd support.<\/p>\n Las Vegas Marathon, October 25<\/p>\n The Las Vegas Marathon<\/a> doesn\u2019t hit the Strip, but goes through the desert outside the city on a point-to-point course.<\/p>\n Niagara Falls International Marathon, October 25<\/p>\n Close in geography to New York City, the Niagara Falls International Marathon<\/a> has more scenic splendor of the river and massive waterfall than a big city vibe.<\/p>\n City of Oaks Marathon, Raleigh, NC, November 1<\/p>\n
\n![\"Runners](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/New-York-City-Marathon-2.png\"\/)
A record-breaking 240,000-plus runners applied for the 2026 New York City Marathon lottery. That\u2019s almost a 20% increase from the previous year. (Photo: Angela Weiss\/Gettu Images)
\nRun for Charity<\/p>\n![\"Brooklyn](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/Brooklyn-Half-Marathon.png\"\/)
Starting in Brooklyn, New York, and finishing on the boardwalk at Coney Island, the Brooklyn Half is another avenue into the New York City Marathon, as long as you race at an additional eight NYRR races and volunteer at yet another. (Photo: Bryan Bedder\/New York Road Runners via Getty Images)
\nDonate $5,287 to NYRR<\/p>\n
\n2026 NYC Marathon Qualification Standards: Women and Nonbinary<\/p>\n![\"Marine](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/Marine-Corps-Marathon.png\"\/)
Runner Harry Weber greets supporters on Maryland Avenue during the 50th Marine Corps Marathon on Sunday, October 26, 2025 (Photo: (Tom Williams\/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images)
\nMarine Corps Marathon, Washington DC, October 25<\/p>\n