How To Watch The Indy 500 Without A Cable Subscription

2023's Indianapolis 500 kicks-off in earnest on Sunday, May 28, at 12:45 p.m. ET. That's all well and good if you have cable and regular access to NBC. However, what can you do if you don't have cable? The good news is you might (emphasis on "might") still be able to watch it if you use an antenna, but there's no guarantee that NBC will be part of your local broadcast — and it won't matter anyway if you don't use an antenna in the first place.

Piecemeal coverage of the annual U.S. IndyCar race will likely be shared on social media, as well as NBC's own YouTube channel. However, if you don't have cable, there are still options to watch the whole race. Whatever method of watching the Indy 500 you choose will require some preparation — and possibly some upfront costs — but where there's a will, there's a (perfectly legal) way to watch the race, even if you wait until the day of.

If you don't use cable or a TV antenna, you're going to have to resort to using a streaming service. Specifically, Peacock (which is NBC's own platform), or one that offers NBC as part of its package. The good news is, if you already have Peacock, all you need to do is tune in at 9 a.m. ET — when the early coverage starts — or later on May 28.

Signing up for Peacock if you don't already have it is as straightforward as subscribing to any other streaming service, priced between $4.99 per month (ad-supported) and $9.99 per month (no ads). So you can sign up, watch the race, then either keep your Peacock subscription or cancel it before the month is up.

Another streaming option is FuboTV, which offers a free seven-day trial for new accounts, but also carries a $74.99 per month minimum subscription cost after said free trial is up. Or you can give Sling TV a try, which normally costs $45 per month for the "Blue" package (the lowest tier that includes NBC), but new accounts can get $10 off, so it'll cost $35 for the first month instead. 

NBC is also a part of Hulu + Live TV (which includes Disney+ and ESPN+ as well), but it's the most expensive of the options listed here, with a monthly cost of $82.99. If you already have one of these services, then you're all set to tune in.