The 25th Buffalo Marathon Weekend is set for Saturday and Sunday, 23–24 May 2026, in downtown Buffalo, New York, bringing eight events and up to 10,000 participants to the city center. The marathon and half marathon begin at 6:30 EDT on Sunday, while Saturday features the 5K Run and 5K Walk alongside family races and novelty events.
The full marathon covers 42.2 km and the half marathon 21.1 km, with both races using a shared start and finish line less than 900 feet apart in front of the Buffalo Niagara Convention Center at 153 Franklin Street. The Buffalo-Erie Marathon Association, which organizes the weekend, says the course passes LaSalle Park, the Basin Marina, Forest Lawn Cemetery, Delaware Park, Frank Lloyd Wright's Darwin D. Martin House and the Albright-Knox Art Gallery.
That route is part of what has made the race a draw for runners looking for speed. A participant identified as JoeW described it as a “great race through most of Buffalo,” calling it “super flat with a lot of tree-lined streets” and pointing to “great landmarks along the course — Frank Lloyd Wright-designed houses, Delaware Park and a lot of miles along the new waterfront.”
The Buffalo Marathon is also a certified Boston Marathon Qualifier and part of the Abbott WMM Wanda Age Group World Rankings qualifying series, giving it significance beyond Western New York's holiday weekend calendar. The organizer describes Buffalo Marathon Weekend as a Memorial Day Weekend destination event, and the flat, fast course has become part of its appeal for competitive runners.
Not every event is built for time-chasing. The weekend also includes a Kids Mini-Marathon, a Diaper Dash, a Plogging Run and a Ruffalo Dog Run, with all proceeds from the 5K and family events benefiting cardiac programs at GVI, Buffalo General and Children's Hospital. Race results will be available through Score This after the races.
For Buffalo, the anniversary weekend brings together a civic showcase, a charity fundraiser and a qualifier on one of the city’s busiest spring weekends. The question now is not whether the race can fill downtown — it is how many runners will chase a Boston time on a course built for speed.
