World record | Tatyana Ledovskaya, Olga Nazarova, Mariya Pinigina, Olga Bryzgina | 3:15.17 | Seoul, South Korea | 1 October 1988 |
Championship record | Gwen Torrence, Jearl Miles Clark, Natasha Kaiser-Brown, Maicel Malone-Wallace | 3:16.71 | Stuttgart, Germany | 22 August 1993 |
World Leading | Monica Hargrove, Natasha Hastings, Allyson Felix, Sanya Richards | 3:23.08 | Philadelphia, United States | 25 April 2009 |
African Record | Falilat Ogunkoya, Fatima Yusuf, Olabisi Afolabi, Charity Opara | 3:21.04 | Atlanta, United States | 3 August 1996 |
Asian Record | An Xiaohong, Bai Xiaoyun, Cao Chunying, Ma Yuqin | 3:24.28 | Beijing, China | 13 September 1993 |
North American Record | Denean Howard-Hill, Diane Dixon, Valerie Brisco-Hooks, Florence Griffith-Joyner | 3:15.51 | Seoul, South Korea | 1 October 1988 |
South American record | Lucimar Teodoro, Geisa Aparecida Coutinho, Maria Laura Almirão, Josiane Tito | 3:26.82 | Helsinki, Finland | 13 August 2005 |
European Record | Tatyana Ledovskaya, Olga Nazarova, Mariya Pinigina, Olga Bryzgina | 3:15.17 | Seoul, South Korea | 1 October 1988 |
Oceanian Record | Cathy Freeman, Melinda Gainsford-Taylor, Tamsyn Lewis, Nova Peris | 3:23.81 | Sydney, Australia | 30 September 2000 |
Rank | Heat | Nation | Athletes | Time | Notes |
| 2 | | Natalya Nazarova, Tatyana Firova, Natalya Antyukh, Lyudmila Litvinova | 3:23.80 | Q, SB |
| 2 | | Kaliese Spencer, Shereefa Lloyd, Rosemarie Whyte, Novlene Williams-Mills | 3:24.72 | Q |
| 2 | | Fabienne Kohlmann, Sorina Nwachukwu, Esther Cremer, Claudia Hoffmann | 3:25.08 | Q, SB |
| 2 | | Nicola Sanders, Vicki Barr, Jenny Meadows, Lee McConnell | 3:25.23 | q, SB |
| 2 | | Susana A. Clement, Daisurami Bonne, Zulia Calatayud, Indira Terrero | 3:27.36 | q, SB |
| 2 | | Esther Akinsulie, Adrienne Power, Jenna Martin, Carline Muir | 3:29.17 | SB |
| 1 | | Debbie Dunn, Natasha Hastings, Jessica Beard, Sanya Richards | 3:29.31 | Q |
| 1 | | Endurance Abinuwa, Muizat Ajoke Odumosu, Josephine Ehigie, Folashade Abugan | 3:29.60 | Q, SB |
| 1 | | Virginie Michanol, Aurélie Kamga, Symphora Béhi, Solen Désert-Mariller | 3:29.60 | Q, SB |
10 | 2 | | Yuliya Baraley, Tetiana Petlyuk, Anastasiya Rabchenyuk, Antonina Yefremova | 3:30.76 | |
11 | 1 | | Pirrenee Steinert, Madeleine Pape, Caitlin Willis-Pincott, Tamsyn Lewis | 3:30.80 | |
12 | 1 | | Marta Milani, Daniela Reina, Maria Enrica Spacca, Libania Grenot | 3:31.05 | |
13 | 1 | | Geisa Aparecida Coutinho, Emmilly Pinheiro, Sheila Ferreira, Jailma de Lima | 3:31.42 | |
14 | 2 | | Sayaka Aoki, Asami Tanno, Mayu Sato, Satomi Kubokura | 3:34.46 | |
15 | 1 | | Alejandra Cherizola, Nallely Vela, Ruth Grajeda, Karla Dueñas | 3:40.03 | |
| 1 | | Sasha Rolle, Shakeitha Henfield, Rashan Brown, Katrina Seymour | | DQ |
Rank | Nation | Athletes | Time | Notes |
| | Debbie Dunn, Allyson Felix, Lashinda Demus, Sanya Richards | 3:17.83 | WL |
| | Rosemarie Whyte, Novlene Williams-Mills, Shereefa Lloyd, Shericka Williams | 3:21.15 | SB |
3 | | Anastasiya Kapachinskaya, Tatyana Firova, Lyudmila Litvinova, Antonina Krivoshapka | 3:21.64 | Doping |
| | Lee McConnell, Christine Ohuruogu, Vicki Barr, Nicola Sanders | 3:25.16 | SB |
4 | | Fabienne Kohlmann, Sorina Nwachukwu, Esther Cremer, Claudia Hoffmann | 3:27.61 | |
5 | | Endurance Abinuwa, Muizat Ajoke Odumosu, Josephine Ehigie, Folasade Abugan | 3:28.55 | SB |
6 | | Virginie Michanol, Aurélie Kamga, Symphora Béhi, Solen Désert-Mariller | 3:30.16 | |
7 | | Diosmely Peña, Daisurami Bonne, Zulia Calatayud, Indira Terrero | 3:36.99 | |