How to Watch, Time, Nominees, Livestream

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Prepare for a night of stardom as Hollywood’s biggest names, including Sinners director Ryan Coogler, One Battle After Another actor and singer Teyana Taylor, Grammy-Award winning rapper Kendrick Lamar amongst others celebrate black talent and excellence at the 57th NAACP Image Awards.

Airing on on Saturday (Feb. 28) at 8 p.m. PT/ET, the awards ceremony will broadcast on both BET and CBS from the Pasadena Civic Auditorium in Pasadena, Calif. Don’t have cable? There are plenty of popular streaming services fans can subscribe to and watch the event live and for free. Signing up for either DirecTV, Fubo or Hulu + Live TV, new subscribers can take advantage of free trials for award night.

How to Watch 2026 NAACP Image Awards, At a Glance:

The nominations are jam-packed with top talent, including Teyana Taylor who has a whopping six nominations for the night, tying Kendrick Lamar in the music categories. Both are also nominated for entertainer of the year along with Cynthia Erivo, Doechii and Michael B. Jordan.

Since the ceremony’s creation in 1967 by activist and Hollywood stuntwoman Toni Vaz, the NAACP Image Awards have honored many iconic names in the creative industry including Jennifer Hudson, Chadwick Boseman, and Will Smith. Tonight, Double-Academy Award winning actress Viola Davis will also be honored with the Chairman’s Award for her career and contributions to the arts and advocacy throughout her career.

How to Watch the 2026 NAACP Image Awards Online

If you don’t have cable, you will be able to watch the 2026 NAACP Image Awards through many popular streaming platforms, including Paramount+, DirecTV, Sling, Philo Paramount+ and Hulu + Live TV. The show airs on CBS and BET, and streaming services with free trials make it easy to tune in from home. Keep reading on how to watch the event for free.

At $39.99 per month, the streaming service’s MyNews package features CBS, along with other local channels, like NBC, ABC and FOX. It has cable news networks, like CNN, FOX News, MS Now and others, while DirecTV features unlimited DVR storage and the ability to stream on three devices simultaneously. Once the five days is up you’ll be charged the subscription price based on what package you choose at checkout.

There are four packages to choose from and ever single one includes CBS and CBS Sports. You’ll receive more than 200 channels starting at $48.99 for your first month of service ($73.99 per month). Along with the ability to livestream channels, you’ll get 1,000 hours of DVR and the ability to stream on up to 10 devices simultaneously.

The Essential plan is ad-supported package and is the cheapest option at $8.99 per month. You’ll get access to tens of thousands of episodes and movies including exclusive and original content as well as NFL on CBS, UEFA Champions League and 24/7 live news on CBS News.

If you want to go ad-free, you can subscribe to Paramount+ Premium for $13.99 per month and you’ll not only receive access Showtime’s exclusive and original programs, but your local CBS station, additional live sports and the ability to download content to watch on-the-go.

If you don’t have a Hulu + Live TV subscription, the streamer offers a free trial that’ll get you your first three days free. Once the free trial is over, you’ll be charged the regular subscription fee starting at $89.99 per month. For even more content, you can also bundle Hulu + Live TV with Disney+ and ESPN Unlimited to watch additional exclusive and original sporting events and programs that won’t air on CBS.

Stream the 57th Annual NAACP Image Awards without cable using Philo. The service includes a variety of networks, including BET, and offers a seven-day free trial. Alongside many on-demand titles, Philo offers free live channels too for entertainment, lifestyle, news, sports, shopping and much more.

The service includes more than 110 channels, such as AMC Thrillers, beIN Sports Xtra, Cheddar News, Design Network, Ebony TV, Game Show Central, HSN, IFC Films Picks, Kin, LOL!, QVC, Screambox TV and many others.