How to Watch March Madness 2025

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Spring is upon us, which means the beginning of the end of seasonal depression (fingers crossed), spring breaks, and of course, brackets and betting with March Madness.

This is the annual tournament that determines which men’s and women’s Division I teams will win the NCAA Basketball championships. This year, the games begin on March 18 for men and March 19 for women. However, 2025 March Madness officially starts conveniently right before Saint Patrick’s Day, with the announcement on March 16 of the participating teams on Selection Sunday. So, you can get a head start on your drinking (and screaming).

You can watch the March Madness games live if you still subscribe to the old-school cable box, but who are we kidding—I know you’ve cut the cable and want to stream the games on the internet.

You can stream March Madness games for the NCAA Championship on various platforms, including Paramount+, Max (aka HBO Max), SlingTV, and DirecTV. I’ve done all the research for you, including how much it costs and what’s included (and when you should cancel your membership after March Madness ends).

Where to StreamMax ($10 and up per month, plus another $10 a month for the Sports add-on): Your Max account lets you stream all of the men’s March Madness games airing on TBS, TNT, and truTV if you also opt into the Sports Add-on. Regularly, the Sports Add-on (featuring NBA, NHL, MLB games, March Madness, and more) is an additional $10 per month, but right now, you get one month of live sports for free when you sign up for a new plan. (WIRED also has Max promo codes, which can help you save on Max subscription plans.) No free trial.

Paramount+ With Showtime ($13 per month): To watch any men’s March Madness games that are being broadcast on CBS, get the Paramount+ With Showtime plan. Since this subscription gets you the games airing on CBS, and Max’s sports add-on gets you the games airing the big cable networks, you can watch all of the men’s March Madness games with a combination of these two plans. Just note that Paramount+ With Showtime is marketed as ad-free streaming, but that doesn’t apply to live TV; your NCAA coverage will include ads. One-week free trial.

Hulu With Live TV ($83 per month): You can watch all of the games—men’s and women’s—that are being broadcast live on CBS, TBS, TNT, truTV, and ESPN in one place by choosing a Hulu subscription with the “Live TV” add-on. This package is a steep $83 per month, but Hulu gives you a three-day free trial. Hulu has amped up its NCAA coverage this year, with personalized recommendations, live TV video streaming on up to two devices, unlimited DVR (to record and watch the games later), and push notifications to let you know when the games are beginning. (WIRED also has Hulu coupons, which can help you save on Hulu subscription plans.) Three-day free trial.

YouTube TV ($83 per month): Having YouTube TV is like having live TV from basically any channel you want, with content from over 100 channels, including CBS, ABC and the cable channels with March Madness coverage. You can stream every televised men’s and women’s game with this package. YouTube TV also has a cool multiview feature that lets you arrange four streams on the television at once, so you can watch multiple games at the same time. If you sign up right now, until March 31, you can save $13 each month for six months with a discounted plan of only $70 per month. One-week free trial. If you subscribe to the 4K Plus add-on, it’s free for 30 days.

Sling ($23 per month): Through this service, you can stream March Madness game coverage on ESPN, TNT, and TBS. Sling’s basic plan, Orange, is half off right now at $23 per month. This gets you Men’s and Women’s College Basketball streaming at home or on the go, plus you can auto-record games with DVR. For the true blue sports fanatic, you can get the Sports Extra add-on for an additional $11 a month, which includes customizable channel lineups, conference network coverage of the BIG 10, PAC-12, and SEC, and more than 40 channels, including ESPN. No free trial.

DirecTV (starting at $75 per month): DirecTV has different packages, starting from $75 per month all the way to $155 per month. The $75 Entertainment package will get you coverage from TBS, TNT, CBS, ABC, ESPN, ESPN 2, and FOX Sports 1, among other channels, so you can watch almost all of the men’s and women’s games. (There’s no TruTV at the cheapest tier, but the more expensive plans carry the channel, which will get you all the March Madness games.) Die hard college sports fans will want the Choice package (now $10 off at $80 per month) which has the Big Ten Conference, live NCAA college football, and more collegiate regional networks. DirecTV Sports Central hub also gives customized viewing experiences with real-time stats, pregame odds, game time notifications, and more. Certain plans offer a five-day free trial.

How to Watch on Cable TVIf you want to go old school and watch the men’s games live, you can watch on four cable networks: