March Madness is about to begin! The beloved 2026 NCAA Division I Basketball Tournament features the nation’s top college hoopers testing their skills across the country, starting March 17 with the First Four. 68 teams enter the competition with championship aspirations, but only one will become the school of schools.
For the men’s division, this year’s television schedule is split across the four traditional channels: CBS, TNT, TBS, and truTV. Meanwhile, women’s games are on ABC and ESPN. However, if you don’t have a TV with a cable package, the tournament is also available through mobile apps, media streaming devices, and live TV streaming platforms. If you’re ready to don your alma mater’s colors, use this guide to stream the NCAA action from anywhere.
March Madness 2026: Schedule and Channels
March Madness is a huge tournament that lasts for more than three weeks, so you should pencil these important dates into your calendar so you don’t miss a basket.
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Selection Sunday: March 15 (CBS)
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First Four: March 17-18 (truTV)
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First round: March 19-20 (TBD)
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Second round: March 21-22 (TBD)
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Sweet 16: March 26-27 (TBD)
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Elite Eight: March 28-29 (TBD)
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Final Four: April 4 (TBS, starting at 6:00 p.m. EST)
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NCAA championship game: April 6 (TBS, starting at 8:30 p.m. EST)
How to Stream March Madness Brackets on the Web
The NCAA has made things less chaotic in the last few years by centralizing the tourney streams in the March Madness Live web-based app. It’s your best bet if you want to covertly stream games next to that super-important email or spreadsheet tab. It works on the desktop and mobile web.
However, the March Madness Live app comes with caveats. The games televised by CBS will be free, but you’ll need a cable or satellite login to access the live streams of the three Turner-owned channels (TNT, TBS, and truTV). Alas, even if you don’t own a TV, you’re still subject to its whims.
Our Top-Rated Live TV Streaming Services
If you’ve got a cable login, March Madness Live is still the best and most widely available way to stream the matchups. With it, you get cool features, including Fast Break (live coverage of multiple games that eliminates the need for a second screen), BracketIQ (matchup analysis), instant highlights, and real-time stats.
How to Stream March Madness Brackets With a Mobile App
If you’re not watching on a desktop computer, many live-streamed games are available on other officially supported devices and platforms. You can download the March Madness Live app for your smartphone, tablet, smart TV, or media streaming device. A reminder: Games broadcast by Turner require login credentials. Check out the full list of supported devices and services below:
Where to Stream the NCAA Tournament
If you want to watch every game without worrying about network broadcasts and login credentials, true cord-cutters can turn to one of several live TV streaming services. Check the full Men’s March Madness and Women’s March Madness NCAA Tournament schedule for where games are airing (and their start times).
NCAA Men’s Tournament
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DirecTV has a $101.98-per-month base Entertainment package that gives you access to TBS, TNT, and truTV, and a channel lookup tool to find a live CBS feed in your area. That’s pricey, but still cheaper than your typical cable plan with a sports package (the average American cable package costs nearly $150 per month).
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Fubo offers TNT, TBS, and truTV for $84.99 per month.
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Hulu’s ad-supported, $89.99-per-month live TV package lets you stream all four channels.
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HBO Max subscribers can watch more than 40 live March Madness games with the live sports add-on, which is included in all Standard ($18.49 per month) and Premium ($22.99 per month) HBO Max plans.
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Paramount+ subscribers can stream all the games broadcast on CBS. You’ll need to opt for the ad-free, premium version of the service for $13.99 per month (or $139.99 a year), since it also includes live CBS streaming.
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Sling TV is available on various streaming devices and offers two different subscription packages starting at $46 per month. Sling Blue package subscribers can access all three Turner channels: TBS, TNT, and truTV. Sling Orange customers get TNT and TBS, but can add truTV for $6 per month with the Entertainment Extra add-on.
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YouTube TV gives you access to CBS, TBS, TNT, and truTV for $82.99 per month.
How To Turn On Motion Smoothing for Sports
NCAA Women’s Tournament
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ABC (available via YouTube TV)
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ESPN (available via YouTubeTV)
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ESPN Select will stream March Madness games, too, starting at $12.99 per month.
A reminder: Turn on your TV’s motion-smoothing option for the best picture while watching March Madness and other televising sporting events. Equally as important, remember to turn it off before watching other TV shows and movies to avoid the dreaded “soap opera effect.”
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How to Watch March Madness for Free
There is no legal way to stream every March Madness game for free, but you can watch some at no cost with some creativity. The easiest way to watch free games is to fire up the March Madness Live app, which will carry the CBS games.
To watch the Turner channels without paying, your only option is to use the free trials offered by the various services. For example, Fubo and Paramount+ offer one-week trials, Hulu+Live TV offers a three-day trial, and YouTube TV’s free trials vary by plan.
Top-Rated VPNs for Streaming March Madness Games
How to Watch March Madness With a VPN
If you’re watching outside the US and games are unavailable in your country, fire up a VPN. Set the region to a US location to access local streaming content. Check out our recommended VPNs for iPhones and Android devices if you’re watching on the go. Not all VPN services work well with all streaming services, but the best VPNs for sports streaming will deliver high speeds without data limits. Great examples include Editors’ Choice winners NordVPN and Proton VPN.
For more on basketball, check out our top NBA streaming services.
About Our Expert
Jordan Minor
Senior Writer, Software
Experience
My PCMag career began in 2013 as an intern. Now, I’m a senior writer, using the skills I acquired at Northwestern University to write about dating apps, meal kits, programming software, website builders, video streaming services, and video games. I was previously a senior editor at Geek.com and have written for The A.V. Club, Kotaku, and Paste Magazine. I’m the author of the gaming history book Video Game of the Year: A Year-by-Year Guide to the Best, Boldest, and Most Bizarre Games from Every Year Since 1977, and the reason everything you know about Street Sharks is a lie.
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