The 2026 WNBA Playoff bracket is locked in, with eight teams fighting for a season title.
The first round, a best-of-three series, begins on Sunday, Sept. 27. The quarterfinals (best-of-five) will start Oct. 4 and the finals (best-of-seven) are slated to begin Oct. 17. This is the second season where the finals will be a best-of-seven series.
2026 WNBA Playoffs first round matchups, preview
The first round of the 2026 WNBA playoffs begins on Sunday, Sept. 24, just three days after the regular season ended on Thursday.
The four matchups for the first round are:
- Minnesota Lynx (1) vs. New York Liberty (8)
- Golden State Valkyries (2) vs. Dallas Wings (7)
- Las Vegas Aces (3) vs. Indiana Fever (6)
- Atlanta Dream (4) vs. Washington Mystics (5)
The top four teams in the playoffs receive home-court advantage in first round. The Lynx, Valkyries, Dream and Aces have clinched home-court advantage in the first round.
2026 WNBA Playoffs bracket
Click here to view the full playoffs bracket.
The bracket is set! Who will bring home the 2026 WNBA Finals trophy? 🏆 pic.twitter.com/B1alXoPQ2s
— WNBA on NBC and Peacock (@WNBAonNBC) September 25, 2026
When does the WNBA Playoffs start and end?
The WNBA playoffs begin with the first round on Sunday, Sept. 27. The last possible date for the end of the playoffs is Saturday, Oct. 31, which would be Game 7 of the finals.
2026 WNBA Playoffs full schedule
First Round:
Sunday, Sept. 27
- Game 1: New York Liberty vs. Minnesota Lynx, 2 p.m. ET (ABC)
- Game 1: Indiana Fever vs. Las Vegas, 4 p.m. ET (ABC)
- Game 1: Washington Mystics vs. Atlanta Dream, 7 p.m. ET (Prime)
- Game 1: Dallas Wings vs. Golden State Valkyries, 9 p.m. ET (USA)
Tuesday, Sept. 29
- Game 2: Aces vs Fever, 6:30pm ET (Prime)
- Game 2: Lynx vs Liberty, 8:30 p.m. ET (USA/CNBC)
Wednesday, Sept. 30
- Game 2: Dream vs. Mystics, 7 p.m ET (ESPN)
- Game 2: Valkyries vs. Wings, 9 p.m. ET (ESPN)
Thursday, Oct. 1
- Game 3*: Liberty vs. Lynx, TBD
- Game 3*: Fever vs. Aces, TBD
Friday, Oct. 2
- Game 3*: Mystics vs. Dream, TBD
- Game 3*: Wings vs. Valkyries, TBD
Semifinals:
Sunday, Oct. 4
- Game 1: TBD, ABC
- Game 1: TBD, NBC/Peacock
Wednesday, Oct. 7
- Game 2: TBD, ESPN
- Game 2: TBD, Peacock/NBCSN
Friday, Oct. 9
- Game 3: TBD, ESPN2
- Game 3: TBD, Peacock/NBCSN
Sunday, Oct. 11
- Game 4*: TBD, ABC
- Game 4*: TBD, NBC, Peacock
Wednesday, Oct. 14
- Game 5*: TBD, ESPN
- Game 5*: TBD, Peacock/NBCSN
WNBA Finals:
Saturday, Oct. 17
- Game 1: 3:30 p.m. ET, NBC/Peacock
Monday, Oct. 19
- Game 2: 8 p.m. ET, USA/Peacock
Thursday, Oct. 22
- Game 3: 8 p.m. ET, USA/Peacock
Saturday, Oct. 24
- Game 4: 3:30 p.m. ET, NBC/Peacock
Monday, Oct. 26
- Game 5*: 8 p.m. ET, USA/Peacock
Thursday, Oct. 29
- Game 6*: 8 p.m. ET, USA/Peacock
Saturday, Oct. 31
- Game 7*: 8 p.m. ET, USA/Peacock
How to watch 2026 WNBA Playoffs on NBC and Peacock?
NBC and Peacock will stream multiple games during the Semifinals and Finals series.
Additionally, for Games 2-3 and 5-7 of the Finals, Peacock will simulstream USA’s network coverage produced by Versant’s USA Sports.
| Game | Date | Time | Network |
| Semifinals Game 1 | 10/4/26 | TBD | NBC, Peacock |
| Semifinals Game 2 | 10/7/26 | TBD | Peacock, NBCSN |
| Semifinals Game 3 | 10/9/26 | TBD | Peacock, NBCSN |
| Semifinals Game 4 | 10/11/26 | TBD | NBC, Peacock |
| Semifinals Game 5 | 10/14/26 | TBD | Peacock, NBCSN |
| Finals Game 1 | 10/17/26 | 3:30pm ET | NBC, Peacock |
| Finals Game 4 | 10/24/26 | 3:30pm ET | NBC, Peacock |
