This year is coming to a close, and it’s on to 2024! This article will cover how to watch all the big televised New Year’s celebrations live and celebrate the arrival of 2024. We even cover what to do about the pesky streaming delay we experience with streaming live TV.
About the Live Streaming Delay
Yes, there is a slight delay with streaming live TV. I figured it’s best to cover this issue before getting into how to watch the ball drop for 2024. There is a slight delay to most live streams. The delay with streaming averages about 30 seconds, which isn’t much, but if one wants to know the exact second the ball drops, the problem isn’t streaming. It’s physics.
There is a slight delay vs. over-the-air signals you receive with a TV antenna, even with cable TV. You can experience this at a sports bar when the game on cable TV is slightly behind that same game airing on a TV using an antenna. If the delay bothers you, you will want to use a TV antenna to watch 2023 come to an end on ABC, NBC, or Fox.
How To Watch The New Year 2024 on TV
There are several televised specials that will ring in the New Year. The most popular are:
- ABC’s Dick Clark’s New Year’s Rockin’ Eve With Ryan Seacrest
- CBS’s New Year’s Eve Live: Nashville’s Big Bash
- CNN’s New Year’s Eve Live with Anderson Cooper and Andy Cohen. See how to watch CNN without cable to learn how to watch live.
- Fox News’s A New Year With Tyrus will have guests like Michelle Tafoya, Sean Duffy, Tyler Fischer, Ric Flair, and Zach Greig. See How to Watch Fox News without cable to learn how to watch live.
NBC aired a Miley Cyrus New Year’s Bash last year, but with New Year’s Eve falling on a Sunday this year, the network is sticking with Sunday Night Football instead of having a live New Year’s Eve special.
Let’s look at how to watch each without cable
Watch New Years Rockin’ Eve
New Year’s Rockin’ Eve will air on ABC live on December 31 starting at 8 pm ET on ABC. For all your options, you can see our guide to watching ABC without cable. However, the options with a free trial are:
- DIRECTV STREAM – has ABC and offers a 5-day free trial
- fuboTV – has ABC and offers a 1-week free trial
- YouTube TV – has ABC and offers a 1-week free trial
The celebration will be hosted by Ryan Seacrest in Times Square with performances from Megan Thee Stallion, Post Malone, Jelly Roll, Sabrina Carpenter, and Tyla. Check out How to Watch Dick Clark’s New Year’s Rockin’ Eve for all the details.
Watch CNN New Year’s Eve Live
CNN New Year Live will be starting on December 31 at 8 pm ET. We provide all the details on how to watch CNN live in our guide on how to watch CNN without cable. Briefly, you can watch CNN through the following services:
- DIRECTV STREAM – has CNN and offers a 5-day free trial
- YouTube TV – has CNN and offers a 1-week free trial
- Sling TV – You can watch CNN, and the 1st month is 50% off.
CNN’s New Year’s Eve Live will be hosted by Anderson Cooper and Andy Cohen in New York with performances by Enrique Iglesias, Maroon 5, Jonas Brothers, Flo Rida, Miranda Lambert, Darius Rucker, and Rod Stewart.
A New Year With Tyrus on Fox News
After a 1 hour look back at 2023, Gutfeld! co-host (and pro wrestler) Tyrus will host a one-hour New Year’s special with guests like wrestling legend Ric Flair. Both of these 1-hour specials are pre-taped. You can learn more in our article How to watch Fox News or just watch the special using a free trial to any of the services below that carry Fox News.
- DIRECTV STREAM – has Fox News and offers a 5-day free trial
- YouTube TV – has Fox News and offers a 1-week free trial
- Sling TV – You can watch Fox News, and the 1st month is 50% off.
Watch CBS’s Nashville’s Big Bash
The CBS New Year’s countdown is in Music City on Sunday, December 31, beginning at 8:00 p.m. ET. The hottest superstars of country music return to Nashville to rock out for five hours across multiple downtown locations. Performers this year include Brooks & Dunn, Kelsea Ballerini, Little Big Town, and Zac Brown Band, just to name a few. The show will air in two segments 7:30–10 ET/PT and 10:30 PM – 1:05 AM ET/PT. You can watch Nashville’s Big Bash on CBS live for free with a trial to any of the following streaming services.
- Paramount+’s + Showtime plan – 7-day free trial.
- DIRECTV STREAM – has CBS and offers a 5-day free trial
- fuboTV – has CBS and offers a 1-week free trial
- YouTube TV – has CBS and offers a 1-week free trial
See How to Watch New Year’s Eve Live: Nashville’s Big Bash for all the details on watching this special live.
Watch the Ball Drop Free
Of Course, you can watch the 2024 ball drop for free with a TV antenna or using a streaming service that carries a free trial to the channels you need. However, you can also watch the commercial-free live stream of The 2024 Times Square New Year’s Eve ball drop on the web or your mobile device at any of the sources below:
- TimesSquareNYC.org
- TimesSquareBall.net
- on Twitter @TimesSquareNYC
- on Facebook at Time Square’s NYC page
