RunSignup, the US-based technology provider for endurance events, has reported record participation numbers for 2025 Thanksgiving Day races, with over 1.3 million people registering for ‘Turkey Trots’ across the country.
The platform saw 1,330,726 participants registered for 1,056 races. This represented a 20% increase in registrations compared to the previous year, with three key factors driving the growth:
- Increasing Market Share: RunSignup secured market share from competing platforms, with 52 races moving to the platform in 2025.
- New Races: At least 48 inaugural Turkey Trots were added to the platform in 2025.
- Per-race Growth: Existing Turkey Trots on the platform grew by an average of 11% year–over–year, marking the third consecutive year of double–digit growth.
Alongside these factors, RunSignup notes other themes for running across Thanksgiving in the USA:
- Charitable Giving: Thanksgiving Day races raised a total of over US$3.17 million for charities, with the majority of Turkey Trots (76%) supporting one or more non–profits.
- Race Size: Thanksgiving Day races were significantly larger than most annual races, averaging 1,260 participants per race. 37% of all Thanksgiving Day races exceeded 1,000 registrants.
- Distance Popularity: The 5km distance was the most popular, featured in 91% of the races. Other popular options included a Kids Run, a 1 Mile, and a 10km.
RunSignup’s RaceDay CheckIn App was used by 58% of races on its platform to check in 72% of registrants, with a low no–show rate of just 6% among participants using the app.
Bob Bickel, Founder and CEO at RunSignup, said “Thanksgiving Day is always celebratory for RunSignup. We love seeing all our various technologies put into action at once, seamlessly, to bring joy to runners across the county.”
He added that with continuing signs of growth for Turkey Trots, the company looks forward to breaking even more records next year.
RunSignup is an employee-owned US-based company, which processes over 11 million annual participants across more than 30,000 events.
