How to Watch the Olympics 2024: Schedule, Streaming Tips and More
You can call the 2024 Summer Olympic Games the Paris Olympics, but you might also call them the Peacock Olympics. Unless you plan to be in the City of Light for the Games, you’ll need NBC’s streaming service to watch all of the events live in the US. At just $8 a month, Peacock is a much more affordable way to watch the Olympics than a trip to Paris.
If you’re already at your limit in terms of streaming subscriptions and don’t want to sign up for Peacock, you’ll be able to watch much of the Olympics across NBC’s family of channels: NBC, USA Network, E!, CNBC and Golf Channel. For this, you’ll need cable or satellite TV or a live TV streaming service.
The opening ceremony starts today at 7:30 p.m. local time in Paris. That’s 1:30 p.m. ET or 10:30 a.m. PT in the US.
It’ll be the first Olympic opening ceremony to be held somewhere other than a stadium. Instead of marching into and around a stadium, each national delegation of athletes will parade by boat down the Seine through the heart of Paris. This river parade will travel six kilometers from east to west, starting at the Austerlitz bridge beside the Jardin des Plantes before making its way around the two islands at the center of the city — the Île Saint Louis and the Île de la Cité — and concluding at the Trocadéro, which sits across the Seine from the Eiffel Tower.
A wide range of musicians will perform as the opening ceremony flotilla makes its way down the Seine. Céline Dion and Lady Gaga will sing a duet of Édith Piaf’s “La Vie en Rose,” marking the first performance in years for Dion after being diagnosed with a chronic neurological condition. Other opening ceremony acts include French singer Aya Nakamura and French metal band Gojira.
Below, we outline the Olympic TV schedule and provide recommendations for the best streaming services for watching the Games in the US, as well as international viewing options for Canada, Australia and the UK.
The 2024 Summer Games get underway today in Paris.
How to watch the Olympics
Without question, if you’re streaming, you want Peacock. Even after a recent price hike, which raises the monthly charge from $6 to $8, Peacock is one of the most affordable streaming services. With it you can watch any event live; NBC states Peacock will stream 5,000 hours of live coverage throughout the Games, including all 329 medal events.
In addition to livestreaming each event, Peacock will have a whip-around show, Gold Zone, from 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. ET (4 a.m. to 2 p.m. PT) each day. If you’re watching an event on Gold Zone that you’re really into, you can continue to watch it even if Gold Zone cuts away to something else. Peacock will display Live Action on-screen prompts that will let you stay with the event or follow Gold Zone’s coverage.
Peacock will also have four multiview options that will let you watch four events at once. You’ll be able to watch NBC’s nightly Primetime in Paris show on Peacock, and Peacock will have its own daily recap show “hosted” by an AI-generated Al Michaels.
Peacock offers two Premium plans, and the monthly charge for each went up by $2 last week. After the price increases, the ad-supported Premium plan costs $8 a month, and the ad-free Premium plan costs $14 a month. You can use either Premium plan to watch the Olympics.
Read our Peacock review.
How to watch individual 2024 Olympic events
There are many events, but if you only want to watch swimming, gymnastics or another specific sport, here are our guides on how to watch them.
Where is the 2024 Olympics being held?
Paris is hosting the 2024 Summer Games. It’s the third time the Olympics have been in Paris, but the first since 1924.
When do the 2024 Olympics start and end?
The 2024 Paris Olympics begin on Friday, July 26 and conclude on Sunday, Aug. 11.
The opening ceremony starts at 7:30 p.m. local time in Paris on Friday, July 26. That’s 1:30 p.m. ET, 12:30 p.m. CT, 11:30 a.m. MT and 10:30 a.m. PT in the US. The opening ceremony starts at 6:30 p.m. BST in the UK and 3:30 a.m. AEST on Saturday in Australia.
The closing ceremony is scheduled for Sunday, Aug. 11, beginning at 8 p.m. local time in Paris after the last event of the Games — the women’s marathon — concludes. That’s 2 p.m. ET or 11 a.m. PT in the US, 7 p.m. BST in the UK and 4 a.m. AEST on Monday in Australia
What’s the time difference between Paris and the US?
Paris is 6 hours ahead of New York and the rest of the Eastern time zone. It’s 7 hours ahead of the Central time zone, 8 hours ahead of Mountain time and 9 hours ahead of Pacific time.
This difference means that most events will be shown live in the morning and afternoon for US viewers.
Do I need Peacock to watch the Olympics?
Nope, you can watch the Games on TV, but Peacock will give you greater control over which events to watch.
There are five TV channels you need for the Olympics: NBC, USA Network, E!, CNBC and Golf Channel. Here’s the breakdown for how coverage will be split across them:
USA Network will show US team sports including soccer, basketball and 3×3 basketball as well as swimming, track and field, beach volleyball, rugby, cycling, volleyball and water polo.
CNBC will show boxing, cycling, rugby, skateboarding and more.
E! will feature coverage of track and field, gymnastics, canoeing, diving, equestrian, artistic swimming, breaking, fencing and water polo. That’s right, break dancing is an Olympic sport and will make its debut in Paris.
The men’s and women’s golf competitions, naturally, will be shown on the Golf Channel.
NBC will broadcast its Primetime in Paris show each evening in the US. The show is hosted by Mike Tirico and includes reports from Snoop Dogg.
What’s the best live TV streaming service for the Olympics?
Sling TV is the most affordable option if you live in one of the few markets where it offers NBC. Failing that, YouTube is the best service for the Olympics because it offers all five channels you’ll need in its base plan which costs $73.
If Sling takes a conditional gold medal and YouTube TV gets the silver among live TV streaming services for watching the Olympics, then Hulu with Live TV is awarded the bronze. It costs only $4 more per month than YouTube TV and includes all five channels for watching the Olympics.
Read more: Best Sports Streaming Service for 2024
With a live TV streaming subscription (or cable/satellite plan), you’ll be able to authenticate yourself as a pay TV subscriber to watch live streams of every event on NBCOlympics.com, NBC.com, the NBC app or the NBC Olympics app. That’s a great option if you don’t want to sign up for Peacock and want to pick and choose which events to watch.
Sling TV’s $40-a-month Blue plan includes NBC, USA Network and E!. You can add CBNC for an extra $6 a month and the Golf Channel for another $11 a month. Even with those add-ons, Sling TV is the cheapest way to get all five channels for the Olympics — provided you live in one of the few markets where Sling offers NBC.
Read our Sling TV review.
YouTube TV costs $73 a month and includes NBC, USA Network, E!, CNBC and Golf Channel. Plug in your ZIP code on its welcome page to confirm which local networks are available in your area.
Read our YouTube TV review.
Hulu with Live TV costs $77 a month and includes NBC, USA Network, E!, CNBC and Golf Channel. Click the “View channels in your area” link on its welcome page to confirm which local channels are offered in your ZIP code.
Read our Hulu with Live TV review.
All of the live TV streaming services above allow you to cancel anytime and require a solid internet connection. Looking for more information? Check out our live TV streaming services guide.
How to watch the Olympics from anywhere with a VPN
If you find yourself unable to view the Olympics locally, you may need a different way to watch the games — that’s where using a VPN can come in handy. A VPN is also the best way to stop your ISP from throttling your speeds on game day by encrypting your traffic, and it’s also a great idea if you’re traveling and find yourself connected to a Wi-Fi network, and you want to add an extra layer of privacy for your devices and logins.
With a VPN, you’re able to virtually change your location on your phone, tablet or laptop to get access to the game. Most VPNs, like our Editors’ Choice, ExpressVPN, make it really easy to do this.
Using a VPN to watch or stream sports is legal in any country where VPNs are legal, including the US, UK and Canada, as long as you have a legitimate subscription to the service you’re streaming. You should be sure your VPN is set up correctly to prevent leaks: Even where VPNs are legal, the streaming service may terminate the account of anyone it deems to be circumventing correctly applied blackout restrictions.
Latest Tests DNS leaks detected, 25% speed loss in 2024 testsNetwork 3,000 plus servers in 105 countriesJurisdiction British Virgin Islands
ExpressVPN is our current best VPN pick for people who want a reliable and safe VPN, and it works on a variety of devices. It’s normally $13 a month, but if you sign up for an annual subscription for $100 you’ll get three months free and save 49%. That’s the equivalent of $6.67 a month with code SPECIALDEAL, which should be automatically applied.
Note that ExpressVPN offers a 30-day money-back guarantee.
Livestream the 2024 Olympics in UK
The BBC will broadcast the 2024 Games on its free-to-air channels BBC One and BBC Two. It promises more than 250 hours of live coverage across the two channels. You can also live stream all the action from Paris on the BBC iPlayer.
The BBC iPlayer has dedicated apps available for Android and Apple mobile devices, as well as a vast array of smart TVs and streaming boxes, all you need is a valid UK TV license to stream the tournament.
Livestream the 2024 Olympics in Australia
Aussies can watch the Olympics on more than 40 free-to-air channels on the Nine Network. You can watch on-demand highlights on the network’s streaming service 9Now.
Meanwhile, pay-TV service Stan Sport will show all 329 Olympic events ad-free and in 4K Ultra HD.
Channel 9’s streaming service 9Now is free to use for viewers in Australia, with dedicated apps for Android and Apple devices, as well as Amazon Fire, plus a wide range of smart TVs.
Stan Sport costs AU$10 a month (on top of an AU$10 Stan subscription), but the streaming service is currently offering a seven-day free trial. It will show every event — ad-free and in 4K — and you’ll be able to stream live or on-demand.
Livestream the 2024 Olympics in Canada
In Canada, the Games will be broadcast on TV channels CBC, TSN and Sportsnet. They will be shown on the free CBC Gem streaming service.
The free CBC Gem streaming service will show live events each day of the 2024 Olympics.
Quick tips for streaming the 2024 Olympics using a VPN
- With four variables at play — your ISP, browser, video streaming provider and VPN — your experience and success when streaming the Olympics live may vary.
- If you don’t see your desired location as a default option for ExpressVPN, try using the “search for city or country” option.
- If you’re having trouble getting the game after you’ve turned on your VPN and set it to the correct viewing area, there are two things you can try for a quick fix. First, log into your streaming service subscription account and make sure the address registered for the account is an address in the correct viewing area. If not, you may need to change the physical address on file with your account. Second, some smart TVs — like Roku — don’t have VPN apps you can install directly on the device itself. Instead, you’ll have to install the VPN on your router or the mobile hotspot you’re using (like your phone) so that any device on its Wi-Fi network now appears in the correct viewing location.
- All of the VPN providers we recommend have helpful instructions on their main site for quickly installing the VPN on your router. In some cases with smart TV services, after you install a cable network’s sports app, you’ll be asked to verify a numeric code or click a link sent to your email address on file for your smart TV. This is where having a VPN on your router will also help since both devices will appear to be in the correct location.
- Remember, browsers can often give away a location despite using a VPN, so be sure you’re using a privacy-first browser to log into your services. We normally recommend Brave.
