The Chicago Marathon is known for its fast and flat course through one of the world's most magnificent cities. Elite athletes and amateurs alike annually target the race for its potential to generate personal, national and world records. In addition to its speed, the course offers a scenic tour of Chicago and its lively neighborhoods, as well as a convenient start and finish in beautiful Grant Park.
The Chicago Marathon was the 2nd largest marathon in the U.S. last year and was the 2nd largest in 2022.
This year 14% of finishers qualified for the Boston Marathon and 19.5% of runners qualified for Boston in 2023.
This gives the Chicago Marathon the 57th highest percentage of Boston Marathon qualifiers in the U.S. last year and the 96th highest percentage so far in 2024.
Its Course Score of 99.76 ranks it as the 54th fastest marathon course in the U.S. and the 1st fastest course in Illinois.
The typical race time temperature and humidity levels are the ideal range for optimal marathon performance. This, coupled with the Course Score, gives the Chicago Marathon a PR Score of 99.76. This PR Score ranks it as the 43rd fastest marathon in the U.S. and the 1st fastest in Illinois.
Learn more about PR Scores and Course Scores on the FAQ page.
Chicago Marathon Elevation Chart
Max Elevation: 612 feet (186m) Min Elevation: 580 feet (176m)
2022 marathon was well organized with great conditions and super organization. The crowds were great along the route and the course was super fast. Having the start/finish downtown makes the logistics much easier than New York and Boston and its nice to not have to head out so early if you are staying in a hotel downtown. I really thought the organization was incredible and there was even a place to warmup which I've never had access to at other big city marathons. The corral system worked great with being able to get up to speed quickly.
Race Tips
It was my first experience with following the blue line for the shortest distance and it made it easy to run the tangents without knowing the course. Its really flat with a tiny hill in the last half mile that feels like a mountain
Book early through the marathon website for best access to hotels at a still slightly unreasonable price but far better than doing it later by yourself. Make sure you get yourself into the best corral possible for the start if you are aiming for a PB and check in with the Nike pace group at the expo.
Andy's review of 2018 Chicago Marathon.
5 /
5 Stars
Review
Super well organized for how many people are involved. Did not like that they advise getting to your corral 2 hours prior to the race. 1) it's not necessary, 2) if you do, you'll lose all of your warm clothing and stand in the cold/rain until the start. Watch the weather - if rain is forecast definitely have disposable clothing or trash bags to use to keep warm. Overall, the race was great. Super well supported, flat, pacers were perfect, etc.
Race Tips
The course winds through a ton of fun chicago neighborhoods. Tons of people will be cheering you on, which is great. The hardest part for me was miles 18-22ish, where physical and mental fatigue really hit me. Watch out for the bridges crossing the river - the surfaces are metal grates and only part is covered by carpet.
Book early to stay close to the start/finish area. Getting around the city on race weekend is difficult.
The expo is very busy. It opened at 9am on Saturday morning. Lots of people showed up early and queued up thinking it was necessary. At 9am the event opened and everybody just piled in. Short story - don't bother getting in line :).
BAB's review of 2018 Chicago Marathon.
5 /
5 Stars
Review
This race lets you run unimpeded through one of the greatest cities in the world. The race takes you to and through 29 neighborhoods running between tall skyscrapers, gorgeous parks, the lake, and over the river. Always interesting. I ran Boston in the spring and Chicago in the fall and enjoyed Chicago much more. I especially liked the relatively short time between when you show up and when you run. I arrived at Grant Park at 6:30 and was running by 7:30. Do not underestimate the beauty of this City.
Race Tips
Unlike the other large marathons I have run (i.e., New York and Boston), the Chicago marathon actually let me run my best race. The corrals for the first wave are tightly matched for time (the corral I was assigned to included runners with entry times within a ten minute window), the result was that I did not need to expend energy dodging runners in the early miles before settling into my pace. Also, because the corrals narrow to a bottleneck then widen again within a few yards of the start line, you may be walking for a few minutes after the race starts, but by the time you cross the start line runners are relatively spread out and running at a race pace. Further, this course is the flattest course I have ever run. Many courses will be described as flat or downhill when they are really rolling, i.e., much of the course is either uphill or downhill in small increments. The Chicago course is flat, as in, not only are there no long inclines (the bridges crossing the river are the biggest hills you face), there are also very few dips or hills of any kind. The result is that you will be able to run miles and miles at essentially the same pace. Further, many of the roads are wide with only small inclines at the edge for drainage. Accordingly, you do not have to run at an angle on the edge of the road trying to keep your pace. Given the consistency of the course, the best pacing strategy is to run at the same pace through every mile of the race.
Corrals opened at 5:30, but having arrived at Grant Park at 6:30 I had plenty of time to get to my starting position (in Corral C) by 7 for a 7:30 start. Note that I was not storing any gear, so this saved some time. Stay near the finish line, it is also near the start, and will make your race day experience much nicer.
ELK's review of 2018 Chicago Marathon.
5 /
5 Stars
Review
The crowds are great, sometimes it's detrimental that they're so far in the street that runners are pushed into the middle lanes, but otherwise really fun. It's a flat course, and if the weather cooperates it's fast.
Race Tips
Even splits or negative splits work well for this flat course. Don't go out to fast for sure, it's easy to speed up b/c it is so flat and the crowds are good.
There's more than enough restrooms, they might not be right next to your bag check but make sure to look around instead of waiting in a 30 min bathroom line in the AM.
LA's review of 2018 Chicago Marathon.
5 /
5 Stars
Review
I've run the Chicago Marathon 5 times. It's a really fun, flat course with TONs of crowd support. You go through the entire city!
Race Tips
Make sure to stick to the dashed blue line. There are a lot of turns so it's easy to run 27 miles if you're not conscious of riding the tangents.
Also, head to your corral about 1 hour before start if you are in the first wave. Security has been stupid and disorganized. Tried to walk over to my corral about 30 min prior to start this past year and nearly didn't make it- the security line was long and full of wave 2 runners which was frustrating. There should be separate lines as there is a 30min gap between waves.
