- Full Olympics coverage
- $9.99/mo. (w/ free trial)
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- All Olympics channels
- $35/month (w/ free trial)
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- Includes all Olympics channels
- Best picture quality
The 2022 Winter Olympics games open on February 4, 2022, in Beijing. You’re probably thinking, “Didn’t we just have the Summer Olympics?” Yes, we did, about six months ago. In our opinion, the more Olympics, the better, and this Winter Olympics will feature seven winter sports with 109 medal events up for grabs. Let’s see how many gold medals Shaun White, Nathan Chen, and the rest of Team USA can net this year.
Here are your best options for watching the Beijing Olympics live.
Check out our "Watch the 2022 Winter Olympics" video
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Channels you’ll need to watch the 2022 Winter Olympics
NBC owns the rights to broadcast the 2022 Winter Olympics, so you’ll need access to all the NBC-related channels out there. Here are the channels that will broadcast Olympic events:
- CNBC
- NBC
- USA Network
- Olympic Channel
- Universo, Telemundo (Spanish-language coverage)
To catch all the events, you’ll need to get one of those channels on a streaming platform or cable service. Alternatively, you can use the Peacock app, which airs every event live and posts replays once events conclude. So, the best way to watch the Beijing Olympics will depend on whether or not you want a full TV service (like Sling or Spectrum) or if you just want to catch the Olympic events on the Peacock app for a small fee. Let’s take a closer look at your options.
What channel will show the Winter Olympics opening ceremony?
The opening ceremony for the Beijing Olympics will air on NBC on February 4, 2022. You can watch the opening ceremony on NBC using any of the services we recommend on this page.
BEST VALUE FOR WATCHING 2022 OLYMPICS
Peacock app | Peacock Premium | $4.99/mo–$9.99/month
The Peacock app is the absolute easiest way to stream the 2022 Winter Olympics. As opposed to the last Winter Olympics (what happened, Peacock?), the Peacock app will cover every single Olympic event as well as on-demand replays once they finish. That means you won’t need to stay up until 2 a.m. to watch figure skating finals unless you want to (though that does sound kind of fun). You can catch all the events you missed when you wake up and watch as if it were live TV—just skip checking your phone to avoid any spoilers.
You even get supplementary content on the Peacock app that you won’t find anywhere else. If you were a subscriber to Peacock during the recent Tokyo Olympics, you might remember the show Olympic Highlights with Kevin Hart & Snoop Dogg. You never knew you needed Snoop Dogg to explain the Olympics to you until it happened. Expect similarly enjoyable Olympics-centric content on the Peacock app to keep you engaged in-between events.
You have two options with the Peacock app: an ad-based plan for $4.99/month or an ad-free plan for $9.99/month. In this case, you’d probably be fine with the ad-based plan considering you’ll see ads no matter what while streaming the Olympics live.
- Pros: Really inexpensive, covers every Olympic event live, on-demand coverage for events you missed
- Cons: Not a stand-alone TV service
BEST STREAMING APP FOR WATCHING 2022 OLYMPICS
Sling TV | Sling Blue + Sports Extra add-on | $46/month
If you want to cut the cord, Sling TV is the most cost-effective way to stream the 2022 Winter Olympics and other channels as well. To get all the channels broadcasting the Olympics, you’ll need the Sling Blue channel package ($35/month) and the Sports Extra add-on ($11/month). With those channel packages combined, you’ll get NBC networks, USA Network, the Olympic Channel, and 55 other channels on top of that.
Your total for the month will be $46, which breaks down to about $0.84 per channel. That’s higher than the per channel cost with a major cable service provider like Spectrum, but your final monthly cost is cheaper.
There’s one big thing to note with Sling TV (and all streaming services in general): there’s no guarantee that you’ll get your local NBC station. If you can’t stream your local NBC affiliate, Sling will give you an antenna for free that should hook you up with all your local networks.
- Pros: Affordable streaming package, all major Olympic channels, free antenna for local networks, 55+ other channels to enjoy
- Cons: Fairly high price-per-channel
Alternative streaming providers
If you don't get NBC coverage with Sling TV, you've got other options that aren't quite as cheap, but offer extensive coverage for local networks. YouTube TV, for example, is easily one of the best streaming carriers, but it costs $64.99/mo. Same story with Hulu Live TV, which costs $69.99/mo. Either streaming option is more likely to carry your local NBC affiliate station.
You can also stream the Olympics on the NBC Sports app if you have an eligible cable or streaming account. The NBC Sports app puts all the Olympics coverage in the same place, making it extremely easy to use.
BEST CABLE SERVICE FOR WATCHING 2022 OLYMPICS
Spectrum | TV Silver | $74.99/month for 12 months
If you don’t have the most reliable internet connection, cable TV is still an option. Even though I cut the cord years ago, I still miss cable TV and its complete lack of buffering and connection issues. Spectrum is one of the biggest cable providers in the country, and its TV Silver package will get you every channel you need to watch the 2022 Olympics.
On top of all the Olympics coverage, you’ll get 175 channels to flip through. Don’t worry about breaking out your calculator because I just did, and that comes down to $0.43 per channel. That’s nearly half of what you pay per channel with Sling, but the total cost is about $30/month more. The downside is you may be paying for channels you never watch with Spectrum, like the Game Show Network or something.
Watching the Olympics with cable isn’t the cheapest option out there, but Spectrum gives you a whole lotta channels for a relatively low price. It’s especially enticing for sports fans who want all the best sports networks, like NBA TV, MLB Network, Golf Channel, and others. Oh, and the icing on the cake: you get HBO MAX and SHOWTIME included for free. HBO MAX alone costs $14.99/month, so having that paid for actually makes a big difference.
Pros: Reliable picture quality, low price per channel, free premium channels, guaranteed local network coverageCons: Pricey, not available nationwideview plan
How do we choose the best ways to watch the Olympics?
Our recommendations for watching the Olympics live are based on required channels for complete coverage, price, and availability. Since the Peacock app is the least expensive, available nationwide, and offers full coverage of the Olympic games, it is our top recommendation.
Sling TV is the best streaming platform for watching the Olympics due to its price and free antenna inclusion. Spectrum is our number one cable recommendation due to its cheap price per channel, and premium channel inclusion.
Best Internet Providers for Streaming the 2022 Winter Olympics
If you decide to stream the 2022 Winter Olympics, you’ll need a reliable internet connection. Few things are more annoying than your stream cutting out right at the finish line of a speed skating medal round. You can enter your address in our internet finder tool to get a snapshot of all internet providers available in your neck of the woods.
To give you an idea of what to look for, check out the most popular internet service providers in the country:
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#1
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AT&T
Internet 300 (Fiber 300Mbps)
$35/mo
Price after Autopay & Paperless bill discount. Plus taxes & fees. Limited availability. May not be available in your area.
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#2
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Xfinity
300 Mbps
$40/mo
5 year price guarantee
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#3
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Frontier
Fiber 500 Internet
$29.99/mo
with AutoPay
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#4
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Spectrum
Internet Gig
$70/mo
($60 plan + $10 modem)
for 1 year
+ $20 Upfront
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#5
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Kinetic
100 Mbps
$24.99/mo
for 12 months. This advertised price includes a $5.00 credit for AutoPay enrollment.
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Tyler Abbott
Contributing Writer
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