BET Awards 2026: Here’s How to Watch the Ceremony Live Online for Free

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“Culture’s biggest night” is back. The 2026 BET Awards return to Los Angeles on Sunday (June 28), with Druski set to host this year’s awards ceremony.

Cardi B leads the nominees list with six nominations. Kendrick Lamar and Mariah the Scientist follow with five nods each, while Doechii, Doja Cat, Clipse, Teyana Taylor, Olivia Dean and Latto all have four nods each. Meanwhile, Ms. Lauryn Hill will be honored with the Living Legend Icon Award, which is presented to industry pioneers who have “mastered their craft and never let go of the culture.”

How to Watch 2026 BET Awards Live Online, At a Glance:

Who’s Performing During the 2026 BET Awards?

There’s a number of live performances by famous recording artists throughout the BET Awards, including Cardi B, Doechii, Nas, RAYE, The War and Treaty, T.I. and others. Check out a complete list of performers and presenters here.

How to Watch the 2026 BET Awards Online

The BET Awards will take place at the Peacock Theater in Los Angeles, Calif., on Sunday (June 28) at 8 p.m. ET/PT on BET. If you don’t have cable, you can still watch the awards ceremony live online with a free trial from DirecTV, Philo, Hulu + Live TV and Fubo.

A subscription to DirecTV — which comes with BET — gets you access to live TV, local and cable channels with the streamer’s “Entertainment” package, starting at $59.99 per month for the first month of service ($89.99 per month afterward). It also includes MTV, VH1, CMT, Comedy Central, Nickelodeon and TV Land. The service even offers a five-day free trial to watch for free, if you sign up now.

Paramount+ Premium has a livestream feed of the 2026 BET Awards, as it airs on BET too. If you don’t already have a Paramount+ subscription, the streaming service plan goes for $13.99 per month (or $139.99 per year), and it grants you access to just about everything it has to offer. With Paramount+, you’ll get access to a wide selection of TV shows and movies, live sports, 24-hour news with CBS News and more.

Starting at $25 per month, Philo comes with BET and gets you access to live TV from cable channels. It even comes with a 7-day free trial to get you started. In fact, you can watch more than 70 cable networks, such as MTV, VH1, CMT, Comedy Central, Paramount Network, Nickelodeon, TV Land, POP, LOGO and many others.

Sling TV offers Orange, which comes with BET, along with Comedy Central. With more than 30 channels, the streaming plan goes for $45.99 per month and comes with a free cloud DVR and additional free channels. Please note: Pricing and channel availability vary from market-to-market.

With prices starting at $63.99 per month for the first month of service ($88.99 per month afterward), Fubo’s “Pro” plan is a cable alternative streaming service that offers BET. The plan features more than 200 other channels, including MTV, VH1, CMT, Comedy Central, Paramount Network, Nickelodeon, TV Land, POP and LOGO. Fubo comes with a five-day free trial, so you can try out the service before you commit month-to-month.

For the best streaming bundle, you can sign up for Hulu + Live TV and get access to the Hulu library in addition to more than 90 live TV channels, including BET, as well as MTV, VH1, CMT, Comedy Central, Paramount Network, Nickelodeon, TV Land and POP. The streaming platform starts at $89.99 per month. And, for even more programming, the streaming service comes bundled with Hulu, Disney+ and ESPN Unlimited.

On Sunday (June 28), the 26th annual BET Awards air live on BET, with a start time of 8 p.m. ET/PT. The best way to watch is with DirecTV.

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