How to Watch the BET Awards Live Stream (2024)

Every year BET (Black Entertainment Television) puts on the BET Awards to "celebrate African Americans and other American minorities in music, acting, sports, and other fields of entertainment over the past year," according to the channel. Whether you tune in for the host, the stars, or the musical performances, it's a great night. Here's how to stream the BET Awards live.

How to Watch the BET Awards Live Stream

There are a number of ways to watch the BET Awards live. Whether you're a cord cutter or get your TV with traditional cable, you've got options.

Watch the BET Awards on the BET Website

BET live streams the BET Awards from its website. This is your best bet for watching the awards for free. That's because this option doesn't require that you have a subscription to any other streaming service or app (all of the other options on this list do).

Just point your web browser at the BET site when the awards are set to start, click the Live TV link in the top corner, and you'll be streaming the BET Awards live.

Watch the BET Awards on Streaming TV Services

If you don't subscribe to traditional cable, but do get TV from one of the streaming TV services, you should be able to watch the BET Awards live there. The kinds of streaming services that offer BET include (but isn't limited to):

• DirecTV Stream: Formerly known as AT&T TV Now, this is AT&T's cable replacement. It delivers local broadcast network channels, basic cable favorites (including BET), and premium options. BET is in the basic package.
• Hulu + Live TV: This combines live broadcast and cable channels with on-demand viewing of old shows, new shows that recently aired, and Hulu originals like The Handmaid's Tale.
• Sling TV: One of the original TV streaming services, Sling offers BET in all of its plans.
• YouTube TV: YouTube TV gives you access to all of YouTube's videos, plus premium content from YouTube creators, original series, and live TV and cable channels. BET is part of the standard package, so you won't have any problems watching the Awards.

If you subscribe to one of these services, check to see if BET is part of your package—and, if it's not, whether you can add it. If you have it, just fire up your app and got to BET at the day and time of the awards.

Watch the BET Awards on the BET Now App

You can also watch the BET Awards through the BET Now app, which is available for:

If you prefer to watch the BET Awards on one of those devices, download the app for your device and install it. Be aware, though, that you might have to prove that you subscribe to BET through a cable company or streaming TV provider (like the ones listed in the last section).

If asked, log into your cable or streaming account from within the BET Now app (a prompt will pop up onscreen) and, if your account is valid, you'll be able to start watching right away.

Watch the BET Awards on Paramount+

If you don't subscribe to cable or any of the other streaming TV services, but do subscribe to Paramount+, you should be able to watch the BET Awards live there. In the past, CBS All Access—the network's subscription-based platform for streaming original and exclusive content that has since become Paramount+—has offered the BET Awards and the same should be true this year.

BET Awards Red Carpet Pre-Show Live Stream

If the outfits and fashions and red carpet glamor are your favorite thing about awards shows, the BET Awards won't disappoint. The BET website livestreams the red carpet pre-show starting three hours before the official beginning of the awards.