| Margin | Year | Winner |
|---|---|---|
| < 1 second | 2000 | Elijah Lagat (2:09:47) over Gezahegne Abera (2:09:47) |
| 1 second | 1988 | Ibrahim Hussein (2:08:43) over Juma Ikangaa (2:08:44) |
| 2 seconds | 1978 | Bill Rodgers (2:10:13) over Jeff Wells (2:10:15) |
| 2 seconds | 1982 | Alberto Salazar (2:08:52) over Dick Beardsley (2:08:54) |
| 3 seconds | 1998 | Moses Tanui (2:07:34) over Joseph Chebet (2:07:37) |
| 3 seconds | 2002 | Rogers Rop (2:09:02) over Christopher Cheboiboch (2:09:05) |
| 4 seconds | 1994 | Cosmas Ndeti (2:07:15) over Andres Espinosa (2:07:19) |
| 5 seconds | 1971 | Alvaro Mejia (2:18:45) over Patrick McMahon (2:18:50) | 6 seconds | 1906 | Tim Ford (2:45:45) over Dave Kneeland (2:45:51) |
| 10 seconds | 1993 | Cosmas Ndeti (2:09:33) over Kim Jae (Ryong (2:09:43) |
| 11 seconds | 1916 | Arthur Roth (2:27:16) over Willie Kyronen (2:27:27) |
| 11 seconds | 1996 | Moses Tanui (2:09:15) over Ezekiel Bitok (2:09:26) |
| 12 seconds | 1997 | Lameck Aguta (2:10:34) over Joseph Kamua (2:10:46) |
| 13 seconds | 1944 | Gerard Cote (2:31:50) over John A. Kelley (2:32:03) |
| 14 seconds | 1914 | Jim Duffy (2:25:01) over Edouard Fabre (2:25:15) |
Source: Boston Athletic Association