2026 NBA Playoff Bracket: Printable & Current Format

Do you want the latest NBA Playoff bracket updates? You are in the right place. You will find the current scenarios from the East and West conferences. You can also download a free fillable NBA Playoff bracket here.

Our printable bracket helps you follow each round. Fill in the matchups and keep track as teams move closer to the NBA Finals.

When are the NBA Playoffs 2026?

The 2026 NBA Playoffs start right after the Play-In Tournament. The Play-In games are scheduled from April 14 to April 17. The First Round begins on Saturday, April 18, and runs through May 3. If games finish early, the next round may start on May 2 or May 3.

The Conference Semifinals will take place from May 4 to May 18. The Conference Finals are set to begin around May 19 and will run through June 3.

The last two teams will then face off in the NBA Finals. The series starts on June 4. If all seven games are needed, the final game will be played on June 21.

Each round follows a best-of-seven format. A team must win four games to move to the next round.

Current NBA Playoff Bracket

Here are the current and updated NBA Playoff bracket scenarios after the Play-In Tournament.

NBA Finals: West Champion vs. East Champion.
(Thursday, June 4 – Sunday, June 21)

Printable Blank NBA Playoff Bracket 2026

We’ve created a free, printer-friendly NBA Playoff bracket just for you! It’s available in 1920×1080 px with a colorful, landscape format, ensuring a clear and easy viewing experience. For the best print quality, use heavy paper to get sharper and more durable results.

You can download this bracket in three formats. Choose your preferred format and download it from below:

HD Quality Image: This format is best for those who want to keep it on their device and share it on social media or print.

Blank PDF Format: Ideal for filling in matchups by hand.

Fillable PDF Format: You can Enter team names digitally and download the completed bracket as a PDF. This format is perfect for projected or prediction brackets.

This bracket is 100% free for our readers. Download, print on heavy paper, and share it with your friends to give us thanks. You can also check the NBA Playoffs full schedule from here!

How the NBA Playoff Bracket Works in 2026

The NBA Playoffs use a bracket system. It shows how teams move forward and who they play next. It’s a knockout format. If a team loses a series, their season is over. If they win, they move on. Every round is best-of-seven. That means a team needs four wins to move ahead.

Play-In Tournament

Before the playoffs start, four teams in each conference play in the Play-In. These teams finished between 7th and 10th place in the standings. The 7th and 8th place teams get two chances to win and make the playoffs. The 9th and 10th place teams have to win two games in a row to qualify.

First Round

Once the Play-In is done, the playoffs really begin. There are eight teams in each conference. They are ranked from 1 to 8. The highest seed plays the lowest. So it goes 1 vs 8, 2 vs 7, 3 vs 6, and 4 vs 5. Again, each series is best-of-seven. The team that wins four games moves on.

Conference Semifinals

Only eight teams are left—four from the East and four from the West. The winners from the First Round play each other. Just like before, they play up to seven games. The team that wins four moves on to the next stage.

Conference Finals

This is the last round before the Finals. The two best teams in each conference face off. The winner from the East and the winner from the West both move on to play for the championship.

NBA Finals

This is the final round. The East champion plays the West champion. They play up to seven games. The team with the better regular season record gets more home games. The first team to win four games becomes the NBA Champion.

So don’t miss any postseason action. Download our printable and fillable bracket, share it with your friends and family, and bookmark this page to get current playoff stats.

Hope our bracket helps you to track the Journey to the championship! Thanks