“Saturday Night Live” (SNL) is a weekly live sketch show that airs on Saturday nights at 11:30 p.m. Eastern / 8:30 p.m. Pacific on NBC in the U.S.

Basic airtime

  • SNL airs live on Saturdays at 11:30 p.m. ET on NBC, running for about 90 minutes.
  • In most U.S. markets, it’s also available at the same time on Peacock or local NBC streaming apps.

Upcoming January 2026 dates

For January 2026, new Season 51 episodes are scheduled on:

  • January 17 – hosted by Finn Wolfhard with musical guest A$AP Rocky.
  • January 24 – hosted by Teyana Taylor with musical guest Geese.
  • January 31 – hosted by Alexander Skarsgård with musical guest Cardi B, which is also the 1,000th SNL episode.

How to remember “when is SNL”

  • Think: late-night Saturdays, 11:30 p.m. ET; if it’s Saturday and mid-to-late evening in the U.S., SNL is likely either live or about to start.
  • When the show is on a holiday or summer break, NBC and entertainment news sites usually announce the return date and upcoming hosts a week or two in advance.

Information gathered from public forums or data available on the internet and portrayed here.