Image Credit: David Gonzales-Imagn Images

When do the WNBA Playoffs Start? – Date, Schedule, TV Details, and More for Revamped 2025 WNBA Postseason

The 2025 WNBA regular season will come to an end on September 11.

Image Credit: David Gonzales-Imagn Images

The 2025 WNBA regular season is racing toward its thrilling finale. With just a few days left before the postseason showdown begins, action has gotten more intense. Almost all the teams, including the table-toppers Minnesota Lynx, Las Vegas Aces, and Caitlin Clark-less Indiana Fever—have clinched playoff berths. However, the fight between the Los Angeles Sparks and Seattle Storm for the final spot is still on. Fans are buzzing with anticipation as their favorite WNBA stars gear up for a historic playoff run, featuring a new best-of-seven Finals. When do the 2025 WNBA Playoffs start? What’s the schedule for the anticipated postseason?

Read on to find.

When do the WNBA Playoffs Start?

The regular season will come to an end on September 11 with the Los Angeles Sparks’ home game against the Las Vegas Aces. The WNBA postseason tips off on September 14, and is scheduled to come to an end on October 19.

What is the Format for the 2025 WNBA Playoffs?

According to the WNBA, the top eight of the 13 teams qualify for the postseason. Each team’s record in the regular season will decide its seeding. Talking about the format, the bracket-style postseason will have three rounds of series- the First Round, the Semifinals, and the Finals. The opening round will be 1-1-1 format, with the higher seed getting home advantage to Game 1 and Game 3, if needed.

The Semifinals pan out in the best-of-five format, 2-2-1, where the higher seed hosts Games 1, 2 and 5. What makes the upcoming playoffs different is the format of the 2025 WNBA Finals. This season, the Finals will expand to a best-of-seven series and roll out in the 2-2-1-1-1 structure. It means that the higher seed will host games 1, 2, 5 and 7.

What is the Schedule for the 2025 WNBA Playoffs?

Below given is the complete schedule for the 2025 WNBA playoffs.

First Round’s Schedule

Date	Game	Time (ET)	Network
September 14, 2025	Game 1	1 p.m.	ESPN
September 14, 2025	Game 1	3 p.m.	ABC
September 14, 2025	Game 1	5 p.m.	ESPN
September 14, 2025	Game 1	10 p.m.	ESPN
September 16, 2025	Game 2	7:30 p.m.	ESPN
September 16, 2025	Game 2	9:30 p.m.	ESPN
September 17, 2025	Game 2	7:30 p.m.	ESPN
September 17, 2025	Game 2	9:30 p.m.	ESPN
September 18, 2025	Game 3*	7:30 p.m.	ESPN2
September 18, 2025	Game 3*	9:30 p.m.	ESPN2
September 19, 2025	Game 3*	7:30 p.m.	ESPN2
September 19, 2025	Game 3*	9:30 p.m.	ESPN2

Semifinals’ Schedule

Date	Game	Time (ET)	Network
September 21, 2025	Game 1	3 p.m. ET	ABC
September 21, 2025	Game 1	5 p.m. ET	ESPN
September 23, 2025	Game 2	7:30 p.m. ET	ESPN
September 23, 2025	Game 2	9:30 p.m. ET	ESPN
September 26, 2025	Game 3	7:30 p.m. ET	ESPN2
September 26, 2025	Game 3	9:30 p.m. ET	ESPN2
September 28, 2025	Game 4*	1 or 5 p.m. ET	ESPN
September 28, 2025	Game 4*	3 p.m. ET	ABC
September 30, 2025	Game 5*	TBD	TBD
September 30, 2025	Game 5*	TBD	TBD

Finals’ Schedule

Date	Game	Time (ET)	Network
October 3, 2025	Game 1	8 p.m. ET	ESPN
October 5, 2025	Game 2	3 p.m. ET	ABC
October 8, 2025	Game 3	8 p.m. ET	ESPN
October 10, 2025	Game 4	8 p.m. ET	ESPN
October 12, 2025	Game 5*	3 p.m. ET	ABC
October 15, 2025	Game 6*	8 p.m. ET	ESPN
October 17, 2025	Game 7*	8 p.m. ET	ESPN

2025 WNBA Playoffs

Garima Ranawat

Garima is a sports writer with around two years of experience in Indian sports and a newfound interest in the NBA. Inspired by the leadership of cricketing legend MS Dhoni, she wishes to bring in newer perspectives to the NBA fanatics with her writing.