How to Watch Music Festivals Without Cable

Best of

Each year, music fanatics get excited anticipating the next big music festival they’e going to attend. But what about if you can’t make it in person? No worries! We created this guide to help you learn how to stream all of your favorite music festivals.

To make it easier to navigate, we’ve organized these by the time of year when they usually air, with the next upcoming show at the top.

Watch Coachella on Youtube

The 2023 Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival will be held over two weekends, from April 14-16 and 21-23. Performances from Coachella will be streaming for free on Youtube, so you won’t need to subscribe to anything to check them out. If you’re interested in live tv, though, we recommend getting Youtube TV since it’s a great service and well worth the price of admission.

YouTube TV Spanish

Only $24.99 for the first 6 months

  • Unlimited DVR space
  • 6 accounts to share at home
  • Stream on three screens
  • 30+ Spanish channels

$34.99/month

Watch Now

YouTube TV

Only $54.99 for the first 3 months

  • Unlimited DVR space
  • 6 accounts for one price
  • Stream on three screens
  • 100+ live TV channels

$72.99/month

Watch Now

How to watch other festivals, like Bonnaroo Music and Arts Festival and Lollapalooza

The 2023 SXSW Music Festival is almost done with its week long festivities, but there’s plenty more to come. Here’s our schedule for upcoming festivals.

FestivalDateAiring on
CMA FestJune 8-11, 2023ABC
Governor’s BallJune 9-11, 2023Twitch
Bonnaroo Music & ArtsJune 15-18, 2023Hulu
Glastonbury FestivalJune 23-25, 2023BBC iPlayer
SummerfestJune 22-24, June 29-July 1, & July 6-8, 2023TBA
ESSENCE FestJune 29-July 3, 2023TBA
Rolling Loud MiamiJuly 21-23, 2023TBA
Pitchfork Music FestivalTBA 2023TBA
LollapaloozaAugust 3-6, 2023Hulu
Austin City LimitsOctober 6-8, 13-15, 2023Hulu
SXSW Music FestivalTBA 2024SXSW TV

Below, we get into some of our team’s top picks for watching the most popular festivals. We update this list throughout the year, so check back before a festival starts to see if we’ve updated this list.

Watch CMA Fest on ABC with Sling

If you're looking for the cheapest way to stream performances from CMA Fest on ABC, Sling could be your best choice. Sling is even offering half off your first month, so you can subscribe at less than the standard advertised rate.

The cheapest way to get access to CMA Fest without cable is the Sling Blue package, which allows you to stream a total of 45 channels including ABC and FOX, NBC, or MSNBC.

If you think you’ll watch more than the Oscars on Sling, the Sling Orange + Blue package could be a good deal for you. This package allows you to stream even more channels.

Sling Orange

$10 off your first month

  • 30+ channels
  • ESPN
  • Stream on one device

$40/month

Try Sling

Sling Blue

$10 off your first month

  • 40+ channels
  • Local channels in select cities
  • News and entertainment
  • Stream on three screens

$45/month

Try Sling

Sling Orange & Blue

$10 off your first month

  • General cable replacement
  • 45+ channels
  • Stream on three screens

$60/month

Try Sling

Watch out, though. The Sling Blue package only carries ABC in the following markets: Chicago, Fresno/Visalia, Houston, Raleigh, Los Angeles, New York, Philadelphia, and San Francisco.

Read our Sling TV review.

Watch CMA Fest on ABC with Hulu + Live TV

Hulu + Live TV is well worth the price, offering 100+ live channels including ABC, it’s entire on-demand library, and Disney+ and ESPN+ included in its subscription.

Hulu (with ads)

Get 3 HULU, DISNEY Plus, ESPN

  • Stream on two screens
  • Big movies
  • Hit TV shows
  • On demand content

$7.99/month

Watch Now

Hulu (no ads)

Get 3 HULU, DISNEY Plus, ESPN

  • Stream on two screens
  • Big movies
  • Hit TV shows
  • On demand content
  • No ads

$17.99/month

Watch Now

Hulu Live TV only

  • 90+ live channels
  • Stream on two screens

$75.99/month

Watch Now

Hulu Live TV (with ads)

Disney+ and ESPN+ included

  • Stream on two screens
  • ESPN+ and Disney+ included
  • On demand content
  • 90+ live channels

$76.99/month

Watch Now

Hulu Live TV (some ads)

Disney+ and ESPN+ included

  • Stream on two screens
  • ESPN+ and Disney+ included
  • On demand content
  • 90+ live channels

$81.99/month

Watch Now

Hulu Live TV (no ads)

Disney+ and ESPN+ included

  • Stream on two screens
  • ESPN+ and Disney+ included
  • On demand content
  • 90+ live channels

$89.99/month

Watch Now

Hulu+ Live TV is a bit more expensive than Sling, which is why we’ve made it our second pick for watching CMA Fest without cable. That said, if ABC isn’t available in your market on Sling TV, it could be available on Hulu.

Unfortunately, Hulu recently lost somewhere around 30 local ABC affiliates, but it might still be possible to watch ABC on Hulu in your area. It’s worth checking with Hulu before subscribing if you’re just looking for a way to watch CMA Fest.

Read our Hulu review for more on Hulu+ Live TV, or check out our Hulu+ Live TV guide to see what’s on Hulu and when.

Watch the Bonnaroo, Lollapalooza, and Austin City Limits Music Festivals with Hulu

All three festivals will be streaming exclusively on Hulu. All you need to watch the livestreams is a Hulu on-demand subscription. If you’re looking for live tv channels, though, Hulu’s + Live TV plan comes with 100+ channels, as well as a subscription to both Disney+ and ESPN.

Hulu (with ads)

Get 3 HULU, DISNEY Plus, ESPN

  • Stream on two screens
  • Big movies
  • Hit TV shows
  • On demand content

$7.99/month

Watch Now

Hulu (no ads)

Get 3 HULU, DISNEY Plus, ESPN

  • Stream on two screens
  • Big movies
  • Hit TV shows
  • On demand content
  • No ads

$17.99/month

Watch Now

Hulu Live TV only

  • 90+ live channels
  • Stream on two screens

$75.99/month

Watch Now

Hulu Live TV (with ads)

Disney+ and ESPN+ included

  • Stream on two screens
  • ESPN+ and Disney+ included
  • On demand content
  • 90+ live channels

$76.99/month

Watch Now

Hulu Live TV (some ads)

Disney+ and ESPN+ included

  • Stream on two screens
  • ESPN+ and Disney+ included
  • On demand content
  • 90+ live channels

$81.99/month

Watch Now

Hulu Live TV (no ads)

Disney+ and ESPN+ included

  • Stream on two screens
  • ESPN+ and Disney+ included
  • On demand content
  • 90+ live channels

$89.99/month

Watch Now

Read our Hulu review for more on Hulu+ Live TV, or check out our Hulu+ Live TV guide to see what’s on Hulu and when.

Davan Hamilton

Davan Hamilton Author

Davan Hamilton is an editor and writer based in Jacksonville, FL. Holding a degree in Interdisciplinary Studies, her writing spans a wide range, from essays on film criticism and analysis to surreal poetry. Now, she works for Flixed as an editor, continuing to ignore the list of passion projects she’s accumulated. When she’s not glued to her computer, you can find her building endless amounts of Lego sets, binge-reading manga, or playing with (fighting) her cat.

Kelsey Reynolds

Kelsey Reynolds Editor

Kelsey is a content strategist based in Minneapolis, Minnesota. She holds a Master of Fine Arts in Creative Writing from the University of Minnesota. Kelsey was drawn to working at Flixed because the team was so open, motivated, and curious. She most enjoys thinking about how to blend programmatic and editorial content to answer readers’ questions as completely and efficiently as possible. When she’s not at her computer, Kelsey can usually be found working in her garden or walking her two dogs in the park.

How To Watch

Affiliate Disclosure

Flixed.io's contributors and editorial team will often recommend products we believe to be useful for our readers. We may receive an affiliate commission from product sales generated through these affiliate links.