The stars of tomorrow get picked in the 2026 WNBA Draft
The stars of tomorrow get picked in the 2026 WNBA Draft
We’ll show you how to watch every pick in this year’s draft, whether you follow just one team or the whole league.
A fresh wave of talent is about to hit the WNBA! The 2026 WNBA Draft begins on Monday, April 13, at 7 p.m. on ESPN, with all three rounds of the draft to be presented live. Ryan Ruocco, Rebecca Lobo, Andraya Carter, and Holly Rowe will present the draft for ESPN, and the event will be hosted at The Shed at Hudson Yards. See ESPN’s comprehensive coverage of draft night at a great price with a subscription to Sling TV.
How to watch the 2026 WNBA Draft
- When: Monday, April 13 at 7 p.m. ET
- TV: ESPN
- Stream: Watch with a subscription to Sling TV.
- From anywhere: Watch with a subscription to a VPN.
Everything you need to know about the 2026 WNBA Draft
What time does the 2026 WNBA Draft start?
The 2026 WNBA Draft starts at 7 p.m. ET on ESPN. All three rounds of the draft will be offered live on the channel.
Why watch the 2026 WNBA Draft with Sling TV?
The sheer number of choices available for watching ESPN with Sling TV makes it our No. 1 overall pick to watch the WNBA Draft. Sling carries ESPN in its Orange package (30+ channels), as well as the newly launched Essentials package(10+ channels). Customers can get Sling Orange for $46 per month, or Sling Essentials for $20.
Viewers can also watch Sling’s Orange package with Passes — short-term subscriptions that allow customers to sign up to watch all channels in the Orange plan for $5 per day, $10 for three days, or $15 for seven days. Once you’re finished watching, there’s no auto-renewal; simply come back to Sling whenever you want.
Sling offers a great selection of choices for watching the 2026 WNBA Draft on ESPN, with options starting at just $5. That flexibility and affordability are what make Sling our top pick to watch the WNBA Draft!
Sling TV
Sling TV is The Streamable’s choice for cord-cutters on a budget. Sling is a live TV streaming service with multiple channel packages. The $45.99/month Sling Orange plan offers about 30 channels, including Disney Channel and ESPN. The $45.99/month Sling Blue plan offers about 40 channels, including ABC, Fox, and NBC in major markets.
You can combine Orange+Blue for a total of $60.99 / month. Sling also offers many channel add-on packages starting at $6/month.
Can you watch the 2026 WNBA Draft for free?
There are several services that include ESPN and offer free trials you can use to watch the 2026 WNBA Draft.
DIRECTV has a five-day free trial for new customers, after which its MySports Genre Pack starts at $45 per month. ESPN is also available in all DIRECTV Signature packages.
Hulu + Live TV includes a three-day free trial, after which plans with the Disney Bundle cost $90 per month.
Fubo offers ESPN in the Fubo Sports service starting at $46 per month, or the Pro plan starting at $49 for one month. Both offer a free trial of between one and seven days, depending on factors like what time of month it is.
YouTube TV also has a sports-only plan, which is discounted to $55 perm onth for one year for new subscribers. ESPN is also found in the YouTube TV core plan, costing $83 per month after a free trial that can last between two and 21 days.
| DIRECTV | Fubo | Hulu | Philo | Sling TV | YouTube TV | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Free Trial | Free Trial | Free 3-Day Trial | Free Trial | Save with Sling | Free Trial | |||||
| $20.99 | $9.99 | $28.99 | $25 | $19.99 | $29.99 | $45.99 | $45.99 | $64.99 | ||
| ESPN | + $24 | + $59 | + $61 | - | ✓ | - | ✓ | - | ✓ | |
What are all the services you can use to watch the 2026 WNBA Draft?
DIRECTV, Fubo, Hulu + Live TV, Sling TV, and YouTube TV are the live TV streamers you can use to watch the 2026 WNBA Draft. Of these selections, Sling TV is our favorite choice, as we talked about above.
You can also watch the 2026 WNBA Draft with a subscription to ESPN Unlimited, costing $30 per month.
ESPN Unlimited
ESPN launched its highly anticipated direct-to-consumer streaming service on August 21, 2025. For the first time, this service gives sports fans access to its full lineup of linear channels without a traditional cable or satellite subscription.
Watch a preview of the 2026 WNBA Draft
How to watch the 2026 WNBA Draft from anywhere
If you’ll be away from home and can’t watch the 2026 WNBA Draft as you normally would, you can still catch all of the action no matter where you are in the world with a VPN. A VPN can be used on your phone, tablet, or computer and make you appear to be back home — even when you’re not — making sure you feel at home no matter where you are. A VPN is a safe and secure way to stay protected online while streaming your favorite sports, movies, and shows on the go. Keep in mind that you will still need to be subscribed to a live TV streaming service like Sling TV in order to stream the draft with a VPN.

NordVPN is one of the best providers around, at one of the best prices. Currently, you can get two full years of protection for just $3.59 per month — plus you’ll get three extra months FREE. A high-speed VPN with best-in-class security that can be used on up to 10 devices at once — what more could you ask for? Simply sign up, install the software on your device of choice, and start streaming just as you would back home. It couldn’t be easier!
While NordVPN is our recommendation for the best VPN to use while you are traveling, there are a number of other high-quality options available depending on what you are looking for.
- Best Features: ExpressVPN | Starting at $5 per month
- Best Budget Option: Surfshark | Starting at $2.50 per month
- Best Free Option: Proton VPN | Free plan available
