It is 2026 Winter Olympics time: These are one of the best methods to observe

The 2026 Winter Olympics run from February 6 by way of February 22, break up throughout Milan and the mountain venues of Cortina d’Ampezzo in Italy. For those who’re watching from the U.S., which means early mornings, lengthy afternoons of competitors, and a nightly primetime wrap-up designed for individuals who didn’t set an alarm for 3 a.m.

What’s totally different this time is how you may watch the Video games. For the primary time, one streaming service will carry each single occasion dwell and on demand—no additional logins, no channel confusion, and no cable field required.

This information is for cord-cutters who need the only, least expensive, least annoying strategy to watch the Winter Olympics. We’ll break down your choices, clarify what you’ll get with each, and allow you to decide the setup that is smart for a way you watch TV now, not the way you watched it 10 years in the past.

The published breakdown

NBCUniversal has the U.S. broadcast rights to the Olympics locked up by way of 2036, and this 12 months they’re spreading protection throughout acquainted floor: broadcast, cable, and streaming. However the way you watch is determined by the way you’re arrange.

For those who nonetheless get native channels–with a TV antenna, a dwell TV-streaming service akin to Hulu + Reside TV, Sling TV, YouTube TV, or (ugh) conventional cable TV–NBC will carry main daytime occasions together with its regular primetime spotlight present, this time branded “Primetime in Milan.” It’s the place you’ll discover the big-ticket stuff: figure-skating finals, marquee hockey matchups, Shaun White–model snowboarding drama, and the like.

The cable bundle will get you USA Community, CNBC, and a brief revival of NBCSN (NBC Sports activities Community), all working round the clock protection. Count on a gradual weight loss program of curling, hockey, and deep dives into Staff USA. It’s the standard strategy to immerse your self in the event you’re paying for a dwell TV package deal.

Then there’s Peacock. It’s the one place to observe each occasion dwell; plus, full-event replays, spotlight exhibits, and oodles extras. If you would like the complete Olympic firehose and not using a cable invoice, that is the place you’ll discover it.

Choice 1: Stream every thing on Peacock

If you would like all the Olympics, a Peacock subscription is your best option.

There are two plans that embrace sports activities protection (the $7.99-per-month Peacock Choose plan doesn’t):

• Peacock Premium runs $10.99 a month or $109.99 for the 12 months.
• Peacock Premium Plus is $16.99 a month or $169.99 yearly and provides a dwell feed of your native NBC station; plus, ad-free on-demand viewing.

What units Peacock aside isn’t simply the quantity of Olympics protection, it’s how one can watch it. The Gold Zone channel jumps between dwell medal moments. You may consider it as a Winter Olympics model of NFL RedZone. Multiview enables you to stream as much as 4 occasions without delay, whether or not you’re in your TV or your telephone. And the brand new Rinkside Reside cams provide teaching and bench views for determine skating and hockey—angles you received’t get wherever else.

For those who’re a cord-cutter who doesn’t care about conventional channels, that is the cleanest, least expensive path to the complete Video games.

Peacock has strategically stopped providing free trials to its service, however there’s a sneaky workaround to getting a free trial to Peacock Premium: Join a free trial to Instacart+ and also you’ll additionally qualify for a free Peacock trial. Peacock Premium can be included as a Walmart+ subscriber perk (you may select between that service and Paramount+, and swap between the 2 at will for so long as you will have a subscription). A Walmart+ subscription prices $12.95 monthly or $98 per 12 months, and a 30-day free trial is out there.

Choice 2: A dwell TV streaming service

For those who take pleasure in channel browsing and seeing what’s on “proper now,” dwell TV streaming providers—in business parlance, digital multichannel video programming distributors (vMVPDs)—provide a strategy to watch the Olympics with out giving up that acquainted channel grid. These providers mimic cable, simply with out the cable field.

Right here’s a rundown of your finest selections, sorted by value:

• Sling TV (Blue): $45.99/month. The most cost effective choice, however NBC is barely out there in choose markets. You do get USA Community, so it really works in the event you primarily need the cable protection. Join Sling TV (Blue).
• Hulu + Reside TV: $82.99/month. Contains NBC, USA Community, CNBC, and the revived NBCSN, together with DVR service within the cloud. Join Hulu + Reside TV.
• YouTube TV: $82.99/month. The identical channel lineup as Hulu + Reside TV, however with a greater cloud DVR service and the choice of sports activities streaming in 4K decision, which may make occasions like downhill snowboarding or velocity skating look unbelievable (albeit at an added value of $9.99 monthly). Join YouTube TV.
• DirecTV: Beginning at $89.99/month. Whereas it has the identical channel lineup as Hulu + Reside and YouTube TV, this service comes the closest to replicating the standard cable TV viewing expertise. Join DirecTV.

Fubo is one dwell TV streaming service you received’t need to join forward of the Olympics, because it’s at present embroiled in a carriage dispute with NBC mother or father Comcast. And that’s doubly unlucky as a result of not like YouTube TV, Fubo doesn’t cost additional for streaming sporting occasions in 4K.

Every of these different providers prices greater than Peacock, however you’re primarily paying for a standard TV expertise in a digital wrapper. However if you need a grid information, prompt rewind, a DVR, and the power to flip between occasions prefer it’s nonetheless 2012, dwell TV streaming providers are the way in which to go. That’s very true if you need each broadcast and cable channels in a single place. We’ve reviewed all of the dwell TV streaming providers in depth and may give you extra particulars about every of them.

Professional tricks to maximize your Olympics expertise

1. Don’t sleep by way of the great things
   Milan is six hours forward of the U.S. East Coast. Which means dwell occasions can begin as early as 2 a.m. ET and wrap up by mid-afternoon. For those who’re not the sort to get up earlier than dawn for luge, Peacock’s full-event replays are your finest good friend. Your different choice could be to avail your self of the cloud DVR any of the dwell TV streaming providers provides.

2. Improve your image
   NBC is streaming the Video games in 4K HDR, which makes fast-action sports activities like velocity skating and snowboard cross look razor-sharp. To see it, you’ll want the precise combo:

• A TV or monitor with 4K decision (or increased)
• A 4K good TV or a 4K-capable streaming system (Roku Streaming Stick Plus, Amazon Fireplace Stick 4K, Apple TV 4K, or the like; examine our high picks in media streamers)
• A service that helps 4K streaming (Peacock or or YouTube TV with the 4K add-on)

3. Go old-school to economize
   Nonetheless have a TV with an onboard tuner? An affordable antenna will pull in your native NBC station in HD (examine our favourite TV antennas). You received’t get USA Community or the deep protection on Peacock, however you’ll nonetheless catch prime-time highlights and marquee occasions without cost. It’s a wise fallback, particularly in the event you’re attempting to chop month-to-month prices.

4. Complement your TV antenna with an over-the-air DVR
   Since a lot of the Olympic motion will happen within the early-morning hours, including an over-the-air digital video recorder to your antenna and TV tuner will allow you to time-shift your occasion viewing to a extra handy time, offered you may keep away from spoilers carried by information providers.

5. Don’t pay full value in the event you don’t must
   Peacock provides vital reductions to verified college students, medical professionals and first-responders, and members of the army. And whereas we haven’t seen standalone free trials, don’t overlook the chance to piggyback a free Peacock trial on high of a free trial to Instacart+ or Walmart+ (see hyperlinks above). A lot of the dwell TV streaming providers additionally provide free trials, some longer than others.

Remaining advice: What’s the neatest play?

If all you care about is watching the Olympics—each occasion, dwell or replayed—Peacock Premium is the transfer. It’s low cost, easy, and offers you every thing with out the muddle of channels you don’t want.

For those who’re somebody who nonetheless likes flipping by way of a information, Sling TV (Blue) is your least expensive choice–offered it provides native channels in your space (you may test by coming into your zip code on the Sling web site). If native channels aren’t out there, you’ll at the least get the USA Community protection. If neither of these situations works for you, Hulu + Reside TV or YouTube TV are your finest choices.

Making an attempt to spend as little as attainable? Mix an over-the-air antenna with a month of Peacock Premium and name it a win. You’ll get the most important moments dwell on NBC, and the remaining on-demand everytime you need.

Let the Video games start

With the precise setup, your Olympics expertise will be quicker, sharper, and much more versatile than the old-school TV schedule ever allowed. Simply stream, watch, and get again to rooting on your favourite underdog within the biathlon.