Guides
Plain answers for runners thinking about a charity place: what a charity entry is, how much charities ask you to raise, how to raise it, and what to do when the lottery says no. Every figure links to the race organiser's or charity's own page.
New to this? Read them in order. The first explains how charity entries work at New York, Boston, Chicago, London, Berlin and Tokyo. The second compares real 2027 minimums. The third turns your minimum into a weekly plan, and the fourth covers every route still open after a lottery rejection.
- How marathon charity entries workWhat a marathon charity entry is, how applying works at New York, Boston, Chicago, London, Berlin and Tokyo, and what you sign up to.Reviewed Nov 9, 2026 11 sources
- Marathon charity fundraising minimums explainedReal 2027 charity minimums for New York, Boston, Chicago, London, Berlin, Tokyo and Sydney, who sets them, and what happens if you fall short.Reviewed Nov 9, 2026 16 sources
- A 16-week plan to hit your fundraising minimumA week-by-week plan to raise a $2,500 to $5,000 charity marathon minimum, with the weekly maths and the deadlines charities really set.Reviewed Nov 9, 2026 8 sources
- Marathon lottery rejected? Your optionsMissed the London, Chicago, Berlin, New York or Tokyo draw? The official routes still open for 2027, starting with charity places.Reviewed Nov 9, 2026 12 sources
How we write these guides
We start from each race's official charity program page and the charities' own terms, then write down only what those pages say. Where a race publishes a rule, such as Chicago's $2,500 floor for 2027 or Tokyo's 100,000 yen minimum donation, we quote it and link it. Where each charity sets its own rules, we give real examples and tell you to check the charity's page.
Each guide shows the date we last checked it and lists its sources at the end. Races change their rules every year, so if you find something out of date, tell us and we will fix it. For each race in detail, see the race pages, and for who we are, see about OpenBibs.