The Productivity Killer Returns: How to Watch March Madness Online

It’s time for March Madness! The 2024 NCAA Division I Men’s Basketball Tournament sees the finest young hoopers test their skills—and rep their colleges—across the country. Sixty-eight teams enter, and only one will become champion.

This year’s television schedule is split across the four traditional channels: CBS, TNT, TBS, and truTV. However, if you don’t have a TV with a cable package, the tournament is also available through apps, media devices, and streaming video platforms. Here’s how to watch the basketball action online when the games kick off on March 17.

How to Watch March Madness With Cable

The NCAA has made things a little less chaotic the last few years by centralizing the tourney streams in the March Madness Live web-based app. The main web app is your best bet if you 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 available for free through the app, and viewing them doesn’t require a cable login. However, you’ll need a cable or satellite login to access the live streams from 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. Make sure to check the full March Madness TV schedule for where games are airing (and their start times).

If you’ve got a cable login, this is still the best and most widely available way to stream March Madness games. You also get extra features, such as Fast Break (live coverage of multiple games that eliminates the need for a second screen), BracketIQ (matchup analysis), instant highlights, and real-time stats we’ve seen in past years.

How to Use the March Madness Live Everywhere 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:

How to Watch March Madness Without Cable TV

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. Most of these have free trials if you’re really desperate to stream the games without paying:

• Sling TV is available on a variety of streaming devices, offering two different subscription packages starting at $40 per month. Sling Blue package subscribers have access to all three Turner channels: TBS, TNT, and truTV. Sling Orange customers have TNT and TBS, but can add truTV for $6 per month with the Entertainment Extra add-on.

• Paramount+ subscribers can live stream all the games broadcast on CBS. Paramount+ is priced at $5.99 per month (or $59.99 a year) with limited commercials. There’s also an ad-free version for $11.99 a month (or $119.99 a year); both offer a 7-day free trial.

• DirecTV Stream has a $79.99-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.

• Hulu lets you stream all four channels with its ad-supported, $76.99-per-month live TV package; there’s no free trial available.

• YouTube TV gives you access to CBS, TNT, TBS, and truTV for $72.99 per month. Free trials vary by plan.

• Fubo offers TNT, TBS, and truTV with a one-week trial, after which it’s $74.99 per month.

• Max subscribers can watch 46 live March Madness games with the B/R Sports add-on for $9.99 per month. This is on top of a base Max subscription which starts at $9.99 per month with ads.

How to Watch NCAA Women’s College Basketball Without Cable

Women’s college basketball games are airing across ABC and ESPN. In addition to the live TV streaming services mentioned above, you can watch March Madness games through ESPN+ for $10.99 per month. For more, check out the full Women’s NCAA Tournament schedule.

Video Streaming Services: What You Should Know

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 location in the US to access local streaming content. If you’re watching on the go, check out our best VPNs for iPhones and Android devices. 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 CyberGhost VPN, NordVPN, and Editors’ Choice pick ProtonVPN.

Jason Cohen also contributed to this article.