Background Dropout rates in binge eating disorder (BED) treatment are high (17–30%), and predictors of dropout are unknown. Method Participants were 376 patients following an intensive outpatient cognitive behavioural therapy programme for BED, 82 of whom (21.8%) dropped out of treatment. An exploratory logistic regression was performed using eating disorder variables, general psychopathology, personality and demographics to identify predictors of dropout. Results Binge eating pathology, preoccupations with eating, shape and weight, social adjustment, agreeableness, and social embedding appeared to be significant predictors of dropout. Also, education showed an association to dropout. Discussion This is one of the first studies investigating pre‐treatment predictors for dropout in BED treatment. The total explained variance of the prediction model was low, yet the model correctly classified 80.6% of cases, which is comparable to other dropout studies in eating disorders. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd and Eating Disorders Association.