All products and services featured are independently chosen by editors. However, Billboard may receive a commission on orders placed through its retail links, and the retailer may receive certain auditable data for accounting purposes.
On Saturday (May 16), Saturday Night Live is new with series alumnus Will Ferrell serving as host, while rock legend Paul McCartney is set as musical guest.
Ferrell returns for his sixth hosting appearance, as McCartney joins the long-running comedy series’ “Five-Timers Club” with his fifth performance since 1980. SNL broadcasts live on NBC, and livestreams on Peacock Premium with a start time of 11:30 p.m. ET/8:30 p.m. PT.
The easiest way to watch SNL online for free is to grab a free trial to DirecTV to livestream an NBC live feed online without needing a cable subscription.
Keep reading to learn the other streaming options to watch SNL online without cable.
How to Livestream ‘Saturday Night Live’ Online for Free
In order to watch SNL, you’ll need to have access to NBC. There are a few ways to watch online for free.
A subscription to DirecTV’s “Choice” package — which comes with NBC for SNL — gets you access to live TV, local and cable channels, which goes for $84.99 per month for the first 24 months of service ($94.99 per month afterwards). The service even offers a five-day free trial to watch for free, if you sign up now. You can watch local networks such as CBS, ABC and FOX, while you can watch many cable networks.
Sling TV
Please note: Prices and channel availability depends on your local TV market. You can learn more about Sling TV here.
A subscription to Sling Blue, which comes with NBC for SNL, gets you access to live TV, local and cable channels. You can watch local networks such as ABC and FOX (in select markets), while you can watch many cable networks too. Please note: Pricing and channel availability varies on TV market. Learn more about Sling TV here.
Another great option is to subscribe to Peacock Premium plan, which goes for $10.99 per month and gives you access to watch SNL live and on-demand. Unfortunately, there is no free trial for the streaming platform. However, you can stream Peacock for as low as $1 for 30 days with Walmart+. Learn more about Walmart+ and Peacock here.
In addition, you can watch SNL through Hulu + Live TV, which includes NBC and starts at $89.99 per month. It also gives you access to the entire Hulu, Disney+ and ESPN Unlimited libraries on top of hundreds of live TV channels.
Ferrell is promoting his new comedy TV series The Hawk, which drops on Thursday (July 16) on Netflix. Meanwhile, McCartney releases his latest album, The Boys of Dungeon Lane, on Friday (May 29).
In the meantime, watch a promo for Saturday’s episode below:
Want more? For more product recommendations, check out our roundups of the best Xbox deals, studio headphones and Nintendo Switch accessories.







