2025 WNBA Playoffs: Start date, schedule, how to watch, format

The 2025 WNBA Playoffs are expected to be the biggest yet.

Can the New York Liberty repeat as champions? Will Napheesa Collier and the Minnesota Lynx go one step further after falling short in 2024? Do the Caitlin Clark-led Indiana Fever have a real shot at the title?

All of those questions and more will be answered this fall during the 2025 WNBA Playoffs.

Continue reading below for all you need to know ahead of the action.

2025 WNBA Playoffs start date

The 2025 WNBA Playoffs are scheduled to begin on Sunday, September 14, 2025.

2025 WNBA Playoffs schedule

Sunday, September 14: First round begins

Sunday, October 19: Last possible WNBA Finals date

The above will be updated throughout the playoffs as each series concludes. The exact start dates of each round of the playoffs is dependent on series length.

How to watch the WNBA Playoffs, TV channel and streaming

The entire 2025 WNBA Playoffs will be broadcast on Disney-owned networks, including ABC and ESPN.

Starting in 2026, the WNBA Playoffs will be broadcast on ABC, ESPN, Amazon Prime Video and NBC.

WNBA Playoffs format

The WNBA Playoffs feature an eight-team bracket and are played over three rounds.

The top-eight teams in the final WNBA regular season standings, regardless of conference, qualify for the playoffs. First round matchups are based on seeding (1-seed vs. 8-seed, 2 vs. 7, 3 vs. 6, 4 vs. 5). There is no re-seeding, meaning the winner of 1 vs. 8 faces the winner of 4 vs. 5, and the winner of 2 vs. 7 faces the winner of 3 vs. 6 in the second round.

The higher-seeded team in each series earns home-court advantage.

The first round is a best-of-three series, with the higher seed hosting games 1 and 3, and the lower seed hosting game 2.

The second round is a best-of-five, with the higher seed hosting games 1, 2 and 5 (if necessary), and the lower seed hosting games 3 and 4.

For the first time in 2025, the WNBA Finals will be a best-of-seven series, following a 2-2-1-1-1 pattern, meaning the higher seed will host games 1, 2, 5 and 7, and the lower seed will host games 3, 4 and 6.