MTV VMAs 2018 live-stream: How to watch the video music awards online without cable

It’s that time of year again when MTV celebrates the short-form genre that put it on the map. Music videos may be the domain of YouTube nowadays, but guys, MTV has been doing this for a long time!

Tonight, the annual MTV Video Music Awards will return to New York’s Radio City Music Hall, the venue that first hosted the event in 1984. (The awards took place in Los Angeles last year.) The telecast is set to begin tonight (Monday, August 20) at 9 p.m. ET with an opening performance from Cardi B. A pre-show is slated to begin at 8 p.m. ET. Weirdly, MTV has kept the host secret.

Cardi B leads the list of nominees with 10, including Video of the Year for her collaboration with Bruno Mars on “Finesse.” The Carters (aka, Beyoncé and Jay-Z) have eight nominations, while Childish Gambino and Drake each have seven. Pitchfork has the full list here.

If you’re a cord-cutter looking to watch the VMAs on your computer, phone, or smart TV, we’re here to help. MTV is owned by Viacom, which doesn’t always make it easy to stream its content without cable, but you do have a few options. I’ve rounded up the best choices below:

Standalone streaming services: Viacom-owned channels are not available on some of the top streaming services, including YouTube TV, Hulu’s live service, and PlayStation Vue. Fortunately, you can find MTV on SlingTV, DirecTV Now, and Philo TV. Some of those services may be offering free trials, and they’re easy to cancel if you’re not feeling the love after a few days.
MTV live online: If you have pay-TV credentials from a cable or satellite company, you can access a feed of MTV’s live stream directly from its website. More on that here.
MTV mobile apps: MTV offers live TV on its mobile apps for iOS and Android. Again, you’ll need pay-TV credentials to take advantage of these options.