How To Watch the San Francisco 49ers in 2026 Without Cable

Sixteen of the 17 San Francisco 49ers games this season have a network assigned, and 13 of those are on FOX, CBS, or NBC. The other three sit behind paid streaming — the Melbourne opener on Netflix, a Monday night game on ESPN, and a Thursday night game on Prime Video. If you’re watching from outside the Bay Area, you’ll also need NFL Sunday Ticket. This guide covers both — and what each one costs.

The 49ers open 2026 on the other side of the world. San Francisco won 12 games last season, returned to the playoffs as a Wild Card, and upset the defending champion Eagles before their run ended in a 41–6 Divisional Round loss to Seattle. Kyle Shanahan returns for a tenth season, with Christian McCaffrey coming off Comeback Player of the Year.

What channels do you need to watch the San Francisco 49ers?

Every scheduled San Francisco 49ers regular season game in 2026 airs on FOX, CBS, NBC, Netflix, ESPN, or Prime Video — eight games on FOX, three on CBS, and two on NBC. The three premium games are Week 1 against the Rams on Netflix, Week 6 against Washington on ESPN, and Week 15 at the Chargers on Prime Video. Week 18 at Arizona has not been assigned a network yet.

The 49ers play two games abroad this season. They open at the Melbourne Cricket Ground in Australia on Thursday, September 10, and face Minnesota at Estadio Banorte in Mexico City in Week 11 on NBC.

One useful quirk: the Week 6 Monday night game against Washington is listed as ESPN and ABC. ABC is a free over-the-air network, so if your live TV service carries your local ABC station, you can watch that one without an ESPN subscription.

Here’s the full schedule with the channel for each game.

Game (All times Pacific)	Opponent	Channel
Preseason Week 1: Aug. 13 at 6:00 p.m.	Tennessee Titans	KPIX (CBS Bay Area) / NFL Network
Preseason Week 2: Aug. 20 at 7:00 p.m.	@ Los Angeles Chargers	KPIX (CBS Bay Area)
Preseason Week 3: Aug. 27 at 5:00 p.m.	@ Las Vegas Raiders	KPIX (CBS Bay Area)
Week 1, Game 1: Sep. 10 at 5:35 p.m. (Melbourne)	Los Angeles Rams	Netflix
Week 2, Game 2: Sep. 20 at 1:25 p.m.	Miami Dolphins	FOX
Week 3, Game 3: Sep. 27 at 1:05 p.m.	Arizona Cardinals	FOX
Week 4, Game 4: Oct. 4 at 1:25 p.m.	Denver Broncos	CBS
Week 5, Game 5: Oct. 11 at 1:25 p.m.	@ Seattle Seahawks	FOX
Week 6, Game 6: Oct. 19 at 5:15 p.m.	Washington Commanders	ESPN / ABC
Week 7, Game 7: Oct. 25 at 10:00 a.m.	@ Atlanta Falcons	FOX
Week 8: BYE WEEK	—	—
Week 9, Game 8: Nov. 8 at 1:05 p.m.	Las Vegas Raiders	CBS
Week 10, Game 9: Nov. 15 at 1:25 p.m.	@ Dallas Cowboys	FOX
Week 11, Game 10: Nov. 22 at 5:20 p.m. (Mexico City)	Minnesota Vikings	NBC
Week 12, Game 11: Nov. 29 at 1:25 p.m.	Seattle Seahawks	FOX
Week 13, Game 12: Dec. 6 at 10:00 a.m.	@ New York Giants	FOX
Week 14, Game 13: Dec. 13 at 1:25 p.m.	Los Angeles Rams	FOX
Week 15, Game 14: Dec. 17 at 5:15 p.m.	@ Los Angeles Chargers	Prime Video
Week 16, Game 15: Dec. 27 at 1:25 p.m.	@ Kansas City Chiefs	CBS
Week 17, Game 16: Jan. 3 at 5:20 p.m.	Philadelphia Eagles	NBC
Week 18, Game 17: Date TBD	@ Arizona Cardinals	TBD

What it costs to watch every San Francisco 49ers game

The 49ers play three “premium” games this season — one on Netflix, one on ESPN, and one on Prime Video — and covering all three costs $147.88 for the season, or $36.97 if you subscribe and cancel around each game. Every other scheduled game is on FOX, CBS, or NBC.

Premium games are the ones whose broadcast rights have been bought by streaming platforms: Monday and Thursday night matchups, international games, and holiday matchups.

Where you’re watching	What you need	Cost for the 2026-2027 season
In the Bay Area, with cable or live TV already	Netflix for the Melbourne opener and Prime Video for Week 15, plus ESPN Select for Week 6 — though a live TV service carrying ABC covers that one too	$147.88 (or $36.97 subscribing and cancelling around each game)
In the Bay Area, starting from scratch	A live TV streaming service carrying local FOX, CBS, and NBC (Fubo, YouTube TV, Hulu + Live TV, or DIRECTV Stream), plus Netflix, Prime Video, and ESPN Select	$419–$508 for the season, depending on service
Outside the Bay Area	NFL Sunday Ticket via YouTube TV, plus Netflix, Prime Video, and ESPN Select	$757.83 for new subscribers $940.83 for returning subscribers

Sunday afternoon games are assigned by region, so CBS and FOX show different matchups depending on where you live. If you’re outside Northern California, your local channels will usually be carrying another team, which is why out-of-market fans need Sunday Ticket to get every 49ers game.

Watching out-of-market games

The NFL makes it challenging to watch your favorite team if you don't live close to its home market. If you're a San Francisco 49ers fan outside the Bay Area, here are two ways to watch out-of-market games:

How to stream San Francisco 49ers games

Watching the San Francisco 49ers with YouTube TV

Watching the San Francisco 49ers with Hulu

Watching the San Francisco 49ers with Fubo

Watching the San Francisco 49ers with DIRECTV Stream

Bottom line

If you’re in the Bay Area, most of the season costs you nothing beyond the TV service you already have — 13 of the 16 scheduled games are on FOX, CBS, or NBC. The three exceptions are the Melbourne opener on Netflix, Week 6 on ESPN, and Week 15 on Prime Video.

Outside Northern California, your local FOX and CBS affiliates will be carrying other teams most Sundays, so NFL Sunday Ticket through YouTube TV is the only way to get every game.

Week 18 at Arizona still doesn’t have a network assigned, and the NFL can move games into prime time late in the season, so it’s worth checking back.

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