Cleveland Marathon Half Marathon or Mercy Health Glass City Marathon Half Marathon — which comes out ahead?

Cleveland Marathon Half Marathon and Mercy Health Glass City Marathon Half Marathon split the available advantages, so the better choice depends on which metric matters most to the runner.

Route comparison snapshot

Cleveland Marathon Half Marathon

Mapped route
Held
Elevation profile
Held
course flatness
0.4%
flat grade share
87.9% Favoured
lower ascent
102 m
climbing density
4.8 m/km
net elevation
-0 m
maximum grade
11.9%

Mercy Health Glass City Marathon Half Marathon

Mapped route
Held
Elevation profile
Held
course flatness
0.3% Favoured
flat grade share
86.4%
lower ascent
92 m
climbing density
4.4 m/km
net elevation
4 m
maximum grade
6.2%
Head-to-head comparison
MetricCleveland Marathon Half MarathonMercy Health Glass City Marathon Half Marathon
Flat grade share87.9%86.4%
GAP factor (% slower than flat)0.4%0.3%
Uphill share7.0%7.6%
Steep-up share1.3%0.0%
Downhill share5.2%6.1%
Total ascent (m)102 m92 m
Climbing density (m/km)4.8 m/km4.4 m/km
Longest climb length (m)950 m370 m
Longest climb gain (m)28 m12 m
Longest climb average grade2.9%3.2%
Total descent (m)102 m88 m
Net elevation (m)-0 m4 m
Max absolute grade11.9%6.2%
Start elevation (m)198 m182 m
Finish elevation (m)198 m186 m
Scenic score55/10030/100
Conditions69/10077/100

Only metrics available for at least one side are shown. A ✓ marks the better value for each metric (higher-is-better aware). Scores are out of 100 when available. Ascent, climbing density, max absolute grade and median finish describe course or field context and are not marked as better or worse.

Race facts that change the decision

Race facts comparison
FactCleveland Marathon Half MarathonMercy Health Glass City Marathon Half Marathon
Schedule

Exact race date not confirmed. Event weekend starts 2027-05-16 (legacy event-level date).

Exact race date not confirmed. Event weekend starts 2027-04-25 (legacy event-level date).

LocationCleveland, OhioToledo, Ohio
Actual distance21.1 km21.1 km
raceindex.org mapped route heldHeldHeld
raceindex.org elevation profile heldHeldHeld
TerrainUnavailableRoad
SceneryCity, Waterfront, Lakeside, RiversideCity, Parkland, Riverside
AtmosphereBig City, CommunityCommunity, Competitive
Total ascent102 m92 m
Climbing density4.8 m/km4.4 m/km
Total descent102 m88 m
Net elevation-0 m4 m
Max absolute grade11.9%6.2%
Flat grade share87.9%86.4%
GAP factor0.4%0.3%
Cutoff4:00:00Unavailable
Entry modelOpenOpen

Schedule

Cleveland Marathon Half Marathon

Exact race date not confirmed. Event weekend starts 2027-05-16 (legacy event-level date).

Mercy Health Glass City Marathon Half Marathon

Exact race date not confirmed. Event weekend starts 2027-04-25 (legacy event-level date).

Location

Cleveland Marathon Half Marathon
Cleveland, Ohio
Mercy Health Glass City Marathon Half Marathon
Toledo, Ohio

Actual distance

Cleveland Marathon Half Marathon
21.1 km
Mercy Health Glass City Marathon Half Marathon
21.1 km

raceindex.org mapped route held

Cleveland Marathon Half Marathon
Held
Mercy Health Glass City Marathon Half Marathon
Held

raceindex.org elevation profile held

Cleveland Marathon Half Marathon
Held
Mercy Health Glass City Marathon Half Marathon
Held

Terrain

Cleveland Marathon Half Marathon
Unavailable
Mercy Health Glass City Marathon Half Marathon
Road

Scenery

Cleveland Marathon Half Marathon
City, Waterfront, Lakeside, Riverside
Mercy Health Glass City Marathon Half Marathon
City, Parkland, Riverside

Atmosphere

Cleveland Marathon Half Marathon
Big City, Community
Mercy Health Glass City Marathon Half Marathon
Community, Competitive

Total ascent

Cleveland Marathon Half Marathon
102 m
Mercy Health Glass City Marathon Half Marathon
92 m

Climbing density

Cleveland Marathon Half Marathon
4.8 m/km
Mercy Health Glass City Marathon Half Marathon
4.4 m/km

Total descent

Cleveland Marathon Half Marathon
102 m
Mercy Health Glass City Marathon Half Marathon
88 m

Net elevation

Cleveland Marathon Half Marathon
-0 m
Mercy Health Glass City Marathon Half Marathon
4 m

Max absolute grade

Cleveland Marathon Half Marathon
11.9%
Mercy Health Glass City Marathon Half Marathon
6.2%

Flat grade share

Cleveland Marathon Half Marathon
87.9%
Mercy Health Glass City Marathon Half Marathon
86.4%

GAP factor

Cleveland Marathon Half Marathon
0.4%
Mercy Health Glass City Marathon Half Marathon
0.3%

Cutoff

Cleveland Marathon Half Marathon
4:00:00
Mercy Health Glass City Marathon Half Marathon
Unavailable

Entry model

Cleveland Marathon Half Marathon
Open
Mercy Health Glass City Marathon Half Marathon
Open

Facts are shown only when they exist in the sourced race record; Not held means no sourced value is held for that race.

Common questions

Which is flatter, Cleveland Marathon Half Marathon or Mercy Health Glass City Marathon Half Marathon?

Mercy Health Glass City Marathon Half Marathon has the lower GAP factor, making it the flatter course on our route model and more favourable on gradient alone.

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How figures are calculated →