Cheapest Marathons: Entry Fees Compared
Marathon entry fees compared across the races on Marathon Index that publish a price, from Palermo and Skopje to Porto and Mt. Fuji, plus what the fee does and doesn't cover.
Table of Contents
Marathon entry fees vary far more than the distance would suggest. Among the marathons on this site that publish an entry fee and carry a euro figure, the lowest starting price belongs to the Palermo Marathon, while the Antarctic Ice Marathon charges $22,500 and is closer to an expedition than a road race. Between those two sit ordinary city marathons, many of them in southern and eastern Europe.
This guide only ranks what we can source. Every fee below is the figure on the race’s own page on this site, and that page cites an organiser, event-listing or press source for it. So the ranking is one among the races on this site with a published entry fee, not a ranking of every marathon in the world: a race that does not publish its price, or whose price we could not source, is not in it.
Two caveats before the table. The euro figure is the approximate conversion shown on each race page, usually of the lowest price tier, not a live exchange rate. And a group of races publish a fee in a local currency with no euro figure on file; they get their own table rather than a rank, because we do not guess a conversion.
The Lowest Published Entry Fees
Marathons only, ordered by the approximate euro figure of the lowest price tier. Half marathons are left out, and so are races whose price covers a tour or a trip (listed separately below). The Lanzarote Marathon is already priced in euros, so it is slotted in by the lowest price in its range.
| Race | Location | Published entry fee | Approx. EUR | Usual month |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Palermo Marathon | Palermo, Italy | €25–€50 | ≈ €25 | November |
| Skopje Marathon | Skopje, North Macedonia | €33–€49 | ≈ €33 | October |
| Thessaloniki Marathon | Thessaloniki, Greece | EUR 45 | ≈ €45 | April |
| Ljubljana Marathon | Ljubljana, Slovenia | from €49 (early rate) | ≈ €49 | October |
| Sofia Marathon | Sofia, Bulgaria | €50–€70 | ≈ €50 | October |
| Wellington Marathon | Wellington, New Zealand | $100–$160 | ≈ €55 | July |
| Budapest Marathon | Budapest, Hungary | 24,000 HUF (early bird) | ≈ €60 | October |
| Ulm Einstein Marathon | Ulm, Germany | €60–€65 | ≈ €60 | September |
| Caracas Marathon | Caracas, Venezuela | US$70 | ≈ €63 | February |
| Mt. Fuji Marathon | Kawaguchiko, Japan | ¥10,900–¥12,900 | ≈ €65 | December |
| Porto Marathon | Porto, Portugal | €65–€100 | ≈ €65 | November |
| Rennes Marathon | Rennes, France | €65–€75 | ≈ €65 | October |
| Florence Marathon | Florence, Italy | €69–€109 | ≈ €69 | November |
| Leipzig Marathon | Leipzig, Germany | €70–€99 | ≈ €70 | April |
| Prague Marathon | Prague, Czech Republic | €70–€120 | ≈ €70 | May |
| Podgorica Marathon | Podgorica, Montenegro | €75 | ≈ €75 | November |
| Tulsa Marathon | Tulsa, United States | $85 early / $105 regular | ≈ €76 | April |
| Toulouse Marathon | Toulouse, France | €80 | ≈ €80 | November |
| Lanzarote Marathon | Costa Teguise, Spain | €85–€90 | n/a (priced in euros) | December |
| Milwaukee Marathon | Milwaukee, United States | $94 | ≈ €85 | April |
| Big Island Marathon | Hilo, United States | $95–$185 | ≈ €86 | March |
| Muscat Marathon | Muscat, Oman | From USD $99 | ≈ €89 | January |
| Düsseldorf Marathon | Düsseldorf, Germany | €90–€120 | ≈ €90 | April |
| Kigali Marathon | Kigali, Rwanda | US$100 / €90 (foreign runners) | ≈ €90 | June |
| Fukuoka Marathon | Fukuoka, Japan | ¥16,000 (domestic) / ¥30,000 (overseas) | ≈ €96 | November |
| Hatfield-McCoy Marathon | Williamson, United States | $110–$150 | ≈ €99 | June |
Read the fee column, not just the order. Many organisers raise the price in steps as race day approaches, and the figure shown is the cheapest tier at the time the source was checked, so the price you can actually get may differ. Confirm on the organiser’s site before you book; each race page links its source.
Higher Fees, for Comparison
For context, these are the marathons with a euro figure above the first table. The same caveats apply.
| Race | Location | Published entry fee | Approx. EUR | Usual month |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Great Ocean Road Marathon | Lorne, Australia | A$175 (adult) | ≈ €105 | May |
| Nagoya Women’s Marathon | Nagoya, Japan | ¥18,000–¥25,000 | ≈ €108 | March |
| Milan Marathon | Milan, Italy | €109 until 31 December | ≈ €109 | April |
| Beer Lovers’ Marathon | Liège, Belgium | €110–€150 plus registration fee | ≈ €110 | May |
| Kyoto Marathon | Kyoto, Japan | ¥18,500–¥35,000 | ≈ €111 | February |
| Lucerne Marathon | Lucerne, Switzerland | CHF 109–149 | ≈ €114 | October |
| Oslo Marathon | Oslo, Norway | NOK 1,350 | ≈ €115 | September |
| Dublin Marathon | Dublin, Ireland | €130 | ≈ €130 | October |
| Space Coast Marathon | Cocoa, United States | $145 | ≈ €130 | November |
| Copenhagen Marathon | Copenhagen, Denmark | 995 DKK | ≈ €133 | May |
| Ottawa Marathon | Ottawa, Canada | CAD 202.50 + HST | ≈ €134 | May |
| Dubai Marathon | Dubai, United Arab Emirates | US$150 | ≈ €135 | January |
| Zurich Marathon | Zurich, Switzerland | CHF 139–159 | ≈ €146 | April |
| New Orleans Marathon | New Orleans, United States | $170–$190 | ≈ €153 | November |
| Pikes Peak Marathon | Manitou Springs, United States | $200–$250 | ≈ €180 | September |
| Boston Marathon | Boston, United States | $270 | ≈ €243 | April |
| Big Sur Marathon | Big Sur, United States | $325 | ≈ €292 | April |
| Patagonia International Marathon | Torres del Paine, Chile | USD 336-382 (foreign runners) | ≈ €302 | September |
Fees in Local Currency (Not Ranked)
These races publish a price in a local currency, and their race pages carry no euro figure, so they cannot be placed in the ranking above. Some may well cost less than anything in the first table; convert at a current exchange rate before assuming either way.
| Race | Location | Published entry fee | Usual month |
|---|---|---|---|
| Abidjan Marathon | Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire | 20,000 FCFA | November |
| Lusaka Marathon | Lusaka, Zambia | K450 | November |
| Mauritius Marathon | Saint Félix, Mauritius | MUR 2,500–3,000 | July |
| Nairobi Marathon | Nairobi, Kenya | KES 2,500 | October |
| Safaricom Marathon | Isiolo, Kenya | KES 20,000 (adult, half and full marathon) | June |
| Bangkok Marathon | Bangkok, Thailand | ฿1,250 (Thai) / US$75 (international) | January |
| Busan Bridge Marathon | Busan, South Korea | ₩80,000 | December |
| Chengdu Marathon | Chengdu, China | ¥200 | October |
| Goa Marathon | Panaji, India | ₹2,350 | January |
| Guangzhou Marathon | Guangzhou, China | ¥180 | December |
| Kaohsiung Marathon | Kaohsiung, Taiwan | NT$1,500 | January |
| Kuwait Marathon | Kuwait City, Kuwait | KWD 27 | November |
| Manila Marathon | Manila, Philippines | Php 3,400 | June |
| Shenzhen Marathon | Shenzhen, China | ¥200 | December |
| Singapore Marathon | Singapore, Singapore | SGD 188–208 | December |
| Tashkent Marathon | Tashkent, Uzbekistan | 300,000 UZS | April |
| Cancún Marathon | Cancún, Mexico | MXN 590 | December |
| Córdoba Marathon | Córdoba, Argentina | ARS 67,600 | July |
| La Paz Marathon | La Paz, Bolivia | 170 Bs | March |
| Mexico City Marathon | Mexico City, Mexico | 870 MXN (Mexican residents) / 125 USD (foreign) | August |
| Monterrey Marathon | Monterrey, Mexico | MXN 1,350–1,650 | December |
| Santiago Marathon | Santiago, Chile | CLP 63,250 (Chilean and resident entrants); USD 138 for non-resident foreigners | May |
Expedition and Package Races
These marathons list a price that covers travel or a tour, so they are not comparable with a plain entry fee and are left out of the rankings:
- Sahara Marathon: €800–€850, an all-inclusive trip package (charter flight, insurance, visa, stay with a Sahrawi family)
- Easter Island Marathon: US$3,300-US$4,300, a travel package including four nights’ hotel
- Inca Trail Marathon: $3,975 per person, a 9-day tour including the race
- Antarctic Ice Marathon: $22,500, and the entry fee includes the three-day trip from Punta Arenas to the Union Glacier camp
- North Pole Marathon: from US$45,500, because participants pay for the whole expedition
Budget Marathons by Region
The races below stand out for their price or for what the fee buys. Dates are the ones carried on each race page: confirmed by the organiser unless the text says the race was last held.
Southern and Eastern Europe: The Lowest Fees on the List
The five lowest fees in the first table are all in Europe, in the south or east of the continent.
The Ljubljana Marathon (from €49, early rate) and the Sofia Marathon (€50–€70) are in that group but not profiled below; both are held in October.
Palermo Marathon — €25–€50
The Palermo Marathon has the lowest starting price in the euro-ranked table: the organiser’s rules list €25–€50. It is a city-centre road marathon in the Sicilian capital, held on a Sunday in mid-November, with the next edition on 15 November 2026.
- Course: two laps of a roughly half-marathon-length circuit along Viale della Libertà, into the Parco della Favorita and past the Quattro Canti
- Time limit: 5.5 hours
- Race-day weather: a high of about 20°C and a low of about 14°C in mid-November
Cheap does not mean easy. A report by the Italian athletics federation (FIDAL) on an earlier edition called the course difficult but rewarding for its art and culture, so don’t pick it for a fast time on the strength of the price alone.
Skopje Marathon — €33–€49
The Skopje Marathon, run as the Wizz Air Skopje Marathon, prices by payment date: for the 2027 race the organisers list €33, €40 or €49 depending on when you pay. It is a road marathon through the centre of North Macedonia’s capital, held on a Sunday in early October (3 October 2027), and the organisers call it the largest sports event in the country.
- Course: a loop through central Skopje, certified by AIMS since 2008
- Entry: open to participants over 18
- Race-day weather: highs of about 20°C and lows of about 8°C in early October
Thessaloniki Marathon — €45
The Thessaloniki Marathon, also called the Alexander the Great Marathon, is a point-to-point race from Pella, the birthplace of Alexander the Great, to Thessaloniki’s waterfront. Basic entry was 45 euros, and the next race is on Sunday 4 April 2027.
- Course: point-to-point; after the first kilometre of downhill road, runners join the Thessaloniki–Edessa highway and continue along a mostly straight line with few turns, finishing at the statue of Alexander the Great on Megalou Alexandrou Avenue
- Race-day weather: April highs of about 19°C and lows of about 9°C
Podgorica Marathon — €75
The Podgorica Marathon is the longest race of a November running weekend in the capital of Montenegro. The €75 entry fee includes a bib with timing chip, a finisher’s medal, a T-shirt and a bag, which makes it an easy fee to compare. The next edition is on 8 November 2026.
- Course: the start is on the Millennium Bridge (Most Milenijum), and the course crosses seven bridges
- Time limit: 6 hours
- Entry: runners must be at least 18
Western and Central Europe: Tiers and Early Prices
Porto Marathon — €65–€100
The Porto Marathon shows how much timing matters. The organisers set prices in tiers during the year, from a €65 first price to €100 for a last-minute entry at the expo, and they cap capacity. Their 2026 rules also list a €42.50 Christmas promotion, which is a time-limited offer and not the price we rank on.
- Course: starts at Castelo do Queijo on the Atlantic, runs out and back along the Matosinhos seafront, then follows the Douro and crosses the Dom Luís I Bridge to Vila Nova de Gaia and back; the finish is at the Queimódromo in Parque da Cidade
- Time limit: 6 hours
- Race-day weather: mild and wet in early November, with highs of about 17°C and lows of about 9°C
Ulm Einstein Marathon — €60–€65
The Ulm Einstein Marathon is held on a Sunday in late September in Albert Einstein’s birth city. The entry fee for the marathon was €60 for registrations before 7 September 2026. The 27 September 2026 edition was the latest held, and the next date had not been announced.
- Course: the marathon and half marathon start at the Ulm Messe grounds and end on the Münsterplatz at the foot of Ulm Minster; the routes change from year to year
- Race-day weather: highs of about 18°C and lows of about 9°C in late September
Asia and the Middle East
The ranked table has a handful of Asian and Middle Eastern races, and many more Chinese, Korean, Indian and Southeast Asian marathons appear in the local-currency table, where a euro comparison is yours to make.
Mt. Fuji Marathon — ¥10,900–¥12,900
The Mt. Fuji Marathon is a road marathon around Lake Kawaguchi and Lake Saiko in Yamanashi, held in December; the next edition is on 13 December 2026. Entry is first-come, first-served and runners must be at least 18, so a low fee is not complicated by a lottery.
- Course: one lap from and back to the Funatsuhama parking lot on the shore of Lake Kawaguchi, certified by the Japan Association of Athletics Federations
- Time limit: 6 hours from the gun, with six checkpoints along the course
- Race-day weather: cold, with highs of about 8°C and lows of about -3°C
Muscat Marathon — from $99
The Muscat Marathon is a January running festival in Oman’s capital with the marathon run in the early morning; the next edition is on 29 January 2027. The listed price is “From USD $99”.
- Course: the 2026 route ran from Al Khuwair Square along Ministries Street to Qurum Beach, through Qurum Park and past the Muscat Waterfront before returning to the square; the event is certified by World Athletics
- Time limit: a six-hour cut-off, with a minimum age of 17
- Race-day weather: highs of about 25°C and lows of about 17°C in January, cooler in the early morning
Tashkent Marathon — 300,000 UZS
The Tashkent Marathon, the Tashkent International Marathon, is held in early April during the Navruz celebrations. The 2026 entry fee was 300,000 sum, according to the Athletics Federation of Uzbekistan’s website. We have no euro figure on file for it, so it is not in the ranked table; convert it at today’s rate to compare. The eighth edition was held on 5 April 2026 and the next date had not been announced.
- Course: start and finish at the Humo Arena, through central Tashkent streets on Afrosiyob Street, Islam Karimov Street and Sharaf Rashidov Street
- Status: World Athletics Label race since 2022 and AIMS-certified
- Race-day weather: highs of about 22°C and lows of about 10°C in early April
Africa
Kigali is the only African marathon in the ranked tables; the other African races with a sourced fee are in the local-currency table or the package list.
Kigali Marathon — US$100 / €90 for foreign runners
The Kigali Marathon, officially the Kigali International Peace Marathon, charges foreign runners US$100 or €90 and Rwandans 20,000 Rwandan francs. It is held in June, and the next edition is on Sunday 13 June 2027.
- Course: two laps of a 21.1 km circuit starting and finishing in front of Amahoro Stadium, AIMS-certified
- Time limit: 6 hours
- Race-day weather: a high of about 27°C and a low of about 16°C in June
Abidjan Marathon — 20,000 FCFA
The Abidjan Marathon added the full marathon distance in 2025 to a district race that returned in November 2023. The entry fee is 20,000 FCFA, with no euro figure on file, and the next edition is on 29 November 2026.
- Course: point-to-point from the Plateau district to the Parc des Sports in Treichville, which the organisers describe as flat and fast
- Race-day weather: hot and humid in late November, with highs of about 32°C and lows of about 24°C
The Americas
The ranked tables have Caracas and a run of US marathons, while several Latin American races publish in local currency and sit in the unranked table.
Caracas Marathon — US$70
The Caracas Marathon, the Maratón CAF-Caracas, is organised by CAF, the development bank of Latin America and the Caribbean, and held on a Sunday in February. The fee is US$70, and the 11th edition is scheduled for 21 February 2027.
- Course: starts and finishes at Parque Los Caobos
- Time limit: 6 hours
- Entry: numbers are capped, and for the 2026 edition entrants had to show a recent race result to register
- Race-day weather: a high of about 28°C and a low of about 18°C in February, with little rain
Tulsa Marathon — $85 early / $105 regular
The Tulsa Marathon, known as the Golden Driller Marathon, is a small, flat-and-fast race on the paved Riverparks trails along the Arkansas River, apart from one hill on the marathon course according to the organisers. It is held on a Saturday in April, next on 17 April 2027, and every entrant gets a tech shirt and a finisher medal. The course is USATF certified and the marathon is a Boston qualifier.
Another spring option at a similar price is the Milwaukee Marathon, listed at $94 for the marathon in April, whose course is also USATF-certified and Boston-qualifying.
Oceania
Wellington Marathon — $100–$160
The Wellington Marathon is the only Oceania race in the first table, with a published fee of $100–$160. It is a winter road marathon on Wellington’s harbour front, held on a Sunday around the end of June or the start of July, with the next edition on 4 July 2027.
- Course: two laps of the half-marathon route out and back from Hnry Stadium; the organisers call it flat and fast and say the only hill is the ramp into the stadium
- Entry: runners must reach the end of the first lap (22.2 km) before the cut-off or finish as half marathoners; entrants must be 15 or older on race day
- Race-day weather: cool and damp, with highs of about 12°C and lows of about 7°C
The True Cost of Marathon Travel
Entry fees are only the start. What drives the total cost of a destination marathon is mostly outside the registration page.
Flights
For a race away from home, flights are often the largest and most variable cost. Book well ahead for international races, use fare alerts, and consider nearby airports and connecting routes: a saving on the flight can outweigh any difference between two entry fees.
Accommodation
Prices swing with the city, the season and the race weekend itself, when hotels near the start and finish tend to fill up. Staying a few stops out on public transport usually costs less, and sharing a room cuts the bill per person.
Food
Local food is usually cheaper than restaurants aimed at tourists, and self-catering the pre-race meals keeps both the budget and the menu predictable. Check the organiser’s page for a pasta party or expo meal rather than assuming it is free.
Race Extras
The fee itself is not the same everywhere. Check what it buys:
- The Podgorica Marathon lists a €75 fee that includes a bib with timing chip, a finisher’s medal, a T-shirt and a bag.
- The Tulsa Marathon gives every entrant a tech shirt and a finisher medal.
- The Rennes Marathon lets runners choose a Dossard Vert and give up the T-shirt and finisher medal; the organisers’ 2026 price tiers are €65–€75, and they list €55–€65 for the Dossard Vert.
- Taxes and extra registration fees can come on top: the Ottawa Marathon is listed as CAD 202.50 + HST, and the Beer Lovers’ Marathon as €110–€150 plus registration fee.
- Photos, bag drop, transport to a point-to-point start and pre-race events can all be extra, so look for them in the registration terms.
Several races also price foreign entrants separately from local runners: the Kigali Marathon, Fukuoka Marathon, Bangkok Marathon, Mexico City Marathon and Santiago Marathon all publish more than one price in the tables above. Make sure you are reading the column that applies to you.
Budget Marathon Strategy
Compare Total Cost, Not the Fee
A marathon with a very low entry fee that costs a lot to reach is not automatically cheaper than a mid-priced race a short train ride away. Add up, for your own dates and home airport:
- the entry fee, at the tier you will actually pay
- flights or trains, in both directions
- nights of accommodation, multiplied by the room price for race weekend
- food and local transport
- extras not in the fee (bag drop, photos, a shirt you want)
Do the sum for two or three candidate races and the cheapest start line often stops being the cheapest trip.
Timing Your Registration
Tiered pricing is common, and the gaps can be real. The Skopje Marathon lists €33, €40 or €49 depending on the date of payment, the Porto Marathon runs from €65 at the first tier to €100 at the expo, the Ulm Einstein Marathon charged €60 before 7 September 2026, and the Tulsa Marathon has an early price of $85 and a regular price of $105. If your plans are settled, register in the first tier; read the cancellation and transfer rules first, because they vary by organiser.
Charity and tour-operator places are priced differently from direct entries, so compare like for like. Package races, like those listed above, are priced for the trip, not just the race.
Combining Races with Travel
The smartest budget strategy is choosing a race in a destination you want to visit anyway. The marathon becomes the anchor for a trip that delivers more than 42.195 kilometres. A race in a place you would not otherwise visit adds a fixed cost with no other return, so the cheapest start line is not always the best use of the money.
Check our guides to the best marathons in Europe and bucket-list marathons for more destination ideas, or browse the full race directory to compare costs directly.
The Bottom Line
Among the races on this site with a published entry fee and a euro figure, the Palermo Marathon has the lowest starting price (€25), followed by the Skopje Marathon (€33) and the Thessaloniki Marathon (EUR 45). Those rankings come from the lowest price tier, and they can shift as organisers update their prices.
The fee is the part of a marathon trip you can see most clearly, and not the part that decides what it costs. Pick a race for the place, the date and the course; use the entry fee to break a tie; and check the organiser’s page for the price you will actually pay.