Preparation guide · Mainova Frankfurt Marathon
Frankfurt Marathon 2026: split times, aid stations and how to run it
The next edition is on Sunday 25 October 2026, starting in Frankfurt (Friedrich-Ebert-Anlage, Germany) at 10:00. Here you have the Frankfurt Marathon route, split times for your target, what's at each aid station, how many gels to carry and the usual weather.
Frankfurt Marathon: route and profile
Official route (organisers' GPX). Wave starts from 10:00 to 10:35 on the Friedrich-Ebert-Anlage (you must have started by 10:45); finish inside the Festhalle, which closes at 17:00.
No hills that change your pace: what matters is starting under control, and the wind.
Route keys
- It's flat (about 40 m of elevation gain) and has one of the most special finishes in Europe: the last metres are inside the Festhalle, with a red carpet, lights and music. Save something to enjoy it.
- Every 5 km there's a full aid station with water, sports drink and tubs of water to soak the sponge that comes in your race bag; from km 10 also PowerBar gels, bananas from 15 to 30 and cola from 30 onwards. In between, water points.
- From km 25 to 30 you run through Höchst, west of the city, and come back along the long straight Mainzer Landstraße (km 30–33) towards the skyscrapers: it's the section with the fewest spectators. Find a group.
- There are pacers for 2:59, 3:14, 3:29, 3:44, 3:59, 4:14, 4:29, 4:44, 4:59 and 5:29: pick yours, they set the pace and you only have to eat and drink.
4 more keys in WinWatts: with the forecast for the days before, the wind and heat, and your split times at your pace.
Split times
At an even pace (the profile hardly changes anything), with the clock time counted from the 10:00 gun. If you start from a later corral or wave, add the time it takes you to cross the start. Write yours down or wear them on a pace band: watch GPS usually reads long.
| Point | 3 h | 3 h 30 | 4 h | 4 h 30 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Average pace | 4:16 /km | 4:59 /km | 5:41 /km | 6:24 /km |
| km 5 | 0:21:23 10:21 | 0:24:57 10:24 | 0:28:31 10:28 | 0:32:05 10:32 |
| km 10 | 0:42:52 10:42 | 0:50:00 10:50 | 0:57:09 10:57 | 1:04:17 11:04 |
| km 15 | 1:04:03 11:04 | 1:14:44 11:14 | 1:25:24 11:25 | 1:36:05 11:36 |
| km 20 | 1:25:18 11:25 | 1:39:31 11:39 | 1:53:45 11:53 | 2:07:58 12:07 |
| Halfway | 1:29:58 11:29 | 1:44:57 11:44 | 1:59:57 11:59 | 2:14:57 12:14 |
| km 25 | 1:46:36 11:46 | 2:04:23 12:04 | 2:22:09 12:22 | 2:39:55 12:39 |
| km 30 | 2:07:56 12:07 | 2:29:15 12:29 | 2:50:35 12:50 | 3:11:54 13:11 |
| km 35 | 2:29:16 12:29 | 2:54:09 12:54 | 3:19:02 13:19 | 3:43:54 13:43 |
| km 40 | 2:50:44 12:50 | 3:19:11 13:19 | 3:47:38 13:47 | 4:16:06 14:16 |
| Finish | 3:00:00 13:00 | 3:30:00 13:30 | 4:00:00 14:00 | 4:30:00 14:30 |
Aid stations: what's there and how much to drink
For a typical runner finishing in about 3 h 30: sip without stopping and take each gel just before an aid station, to wash it down with water. The organisers hand out gels at km 10, 15, 20.5, 25.2, 30.5, 34.8 and 39.8: if they match your plan, those are gels you don't need to carry.
| Where | What's there | Time (for 3 h 30) | You |
|---|---|---|---|
| km 5.5 | water, sports drink, sponges | 10:27 | ~250 ml |
| km 10.0 | water, sports drink, sponges, gels | 10:50 | ~200 ml · gel: theirs or yours |
| km 12.5 | water, sponges | 11:02 | ~100 ml |
| km 15.0 | water, sports drink, sponges, gels, fruit | 11:15 | ~100 ml · gel: theirs or yours |
| km 18.0 | water, sponges | 11:29 | ~100 ml |
| km 20.5 | water, sports drink, sponges, gels, fruit | 11:42 | ~100 ml · gel: theirs or yours |
| km 23.0 | water, sponges | 11:54 | ~100 ml |
| km 25.2 | water, sports drink, sponges, gels, fruit | 12:05 | ~100 ml |
| km 28.0 | water, sponges | 12:19 | ~100 ml · gel just before |
| km 30.5 | water, sports drink, sponges, gels, fruit, cola | 12:31 | ~100 ml |
| km 32.7 | water, sponges | 12:43 | ~100 ml |
| km 34.8 | water, sports drink, sponges, gels, cola | 12:53 | ~100 ml · gel: theirs or yours |
| km 38.2 | water, sponges | 13:10 | ~150 ml |
| km 39.8 | water, sports drink, sponges, gels, cola | 13:18 | ~100 ml |
How many gels and how much to drink
What a typical runner (68 kg) needs depending on their time, with 35 g gels. When running the stomach tolerates less than on the bike: more than 60 g of carbs per hour only if you've trained it. Gels alone don't reach that figure (the first one comes around 45 minutes and none are due in the last half hour): the rest comes from drinking sports drink instead of water at a few aid stations.
| Time | Carbs per hour | Gels | Total drink | Sodium per hour |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3 h | 60 g/h | 4 × 35 g | 1.5 l | 300 mg/h |
| 3 h 30 | 60 g/h | 5 × 35 g | 1.8 l | 300 mg/h |
| 4 h | 60 g/h | 5 × 35 g | 2.0 l | 300 mg/h |
| 4 h 30 | 60 g/h | 6 × 35 g | 2.2 l | 300 mg/h |
Nothing new on race day: gels, breakfast, shoes and socks, all tested on your long runs. Vaseline on your feet, groin and armpits, and protect your nipples. If it's cold at the start, wait in your corral in old clothes you can throw away.
Frankfurt Marathon: weather in late October
What the weather was like during the race (from 10:00 to the finish of a 3:30 runner) in recent editions:
| Year | Low | High | Rain | Max wind |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2022 | 16 ºC | 19 ºC | 0.0 mm | 6 km/h |
| 2023 | 12 ºC | 14 ºC | 3.0 mm | 20 km/h |
| 2024 | 12 ºC | 15 ºC | 0.0 mm | 9 km/h |
| 2025 | 7 ºC | 9 ºC | 0.1 mm | 26 km/h |
When running, heat slows you down: allow roughly 2 % more time for every 5 ºC above 12 ºC.
Your Frankfurt Marathon, tailored to you
This guide uses a typical runner. In WinWatts we calculate it with your data:
- Your time, your pace and your split times from your threshold pace and the expected heat.
- The race-day forecast, and what to wear at the start and during the race.
- How much to drink at each aid station and where to take each gel, with your own gels.
- Your training plan until Sunday 25 October 2026, adjusted every week to how you're doing.
WinWatts is not affiliated with the organisers of the Frankfurt Marathon. Dates, routes, schedules and registration: official website. Route measured on the organisers' official GPX (elevation added by WinWatts); schedule and aid stations from the official 2026 runner guide; weather from past editions (Open-Meteo). For guidance only: it doesn't replace advice from a health professional.