This, is American Idol 2024!: How to tune in and all you need to know about the new season

** Be sure to bookmark this page as we'll be updating it with relevant information throughout the season!

It’s no secret that competition shows like The Voice, The Masked Singer, America’s Got Talent, and more are popular amongst viewers. We love to find someone worth cheering on, and seeing the journeys of the contestants during their run on a series. One that definitely fits that bill is American Idol, and we can’t wait for American Idol season 22!

The show has been a staple on our television screens since 2002. First, it started out on FOX from 2002 to 2016. Then ABC decided to take over and bring it back starting in 2018. And boy are we grateful the network did that! Are you ready for the new season? We can’t wait! Here’s everything we know about American Idol 2024.

American Idol 2024 release date and time (how to watch)

The good news is that there will be an American Idol season 22! ABC shared the news just five days before the season 21 finale. So the new season is confirmed. Yay! And while the competition didnot come back in 2023, that’s not out of the ordinary. Season 21 came to an end on May 21, 2023 and new seasons don’t usually air until January-March of the following year.

And now, we have the release date! American Idol 2024 premieres Sunday, Feb. 18, 2024 at 8 p.m. ET on ABC. The two-hour episode, as well as new episodes the rest of the season, will also be available to stream on Hulu the next day. Unfortunately, previous seasons aren’t available to stream on any platform for some reason at this time.

Release time by time zone

• Eastern: 8 p.m. ET
• Central: 7 p.m. CT
• Pacific: 5 p.m. PT
• Mountain: 6 p.m. MT

Episodes are released weekly on Sunday nights only during the Auditions and Hollywood Week. However, American Idol season 22 will not be new on Sunday, March 10, 2024 for the Oscars. Starting from the Showstopper rounds, which should start around the beginning of April, and onwards the competition series moves to two nights with new episodes on Sunday and Monday each week. Stay tuned to this page as we update it with the new release time on Mondays.

How to watch on TV

How to watch on streaming

If you don't want to go through Hulu + Live TV and don't mind waiting an extra day, new episodes of American Idol will be streaming on Hulu the next day they air. For the premiere episode, that would be on Mondays. Though eventually later in the season, new episodes will air live on Sundays and Mondays. That means later on you'll stream new episodes on Hulu Mondays and Tuesdays.

If you purchase a Hulu + Live TV package from above (except the Live TV only option), the streamer is already included in that subscription. However if you're just interested in Hulu, here are two plans: with ads for $7.99/month or no ads for $17.99/month.

How to sign up for Hulu

• Visit the Hulu sign up page
• Choose Hulu (with ads) or Hulu (no ads)
• Create an account by entering a username and a password
• Enter your chosen payment method
• Login to stream!

The premiere date in February is very welcome news! ABC had previously announced a spring 2024 premiere date, so we thought the show was coming back in March. Even though the past few seasons have regularly returned in February. Thankfully though, we get to see the singing series once again in just over a month!

While the writers strike (resolved) and the actors strike (resolved) have caused multiple movie and television productions to pause filming and/or delay release dates, the strikes had no affect on the 2024 season of American Idol. Reality, game, and competition series work differently. Even if an actor did appear on a celebrity version of it like Celebrity Wheel of Fortune for example, they were still allowed to do that while on strike. They just couldn’t speak about or promote most of their projects. But American Idol season 22 didn’t have any problems and even if it did come back during the strikes, it would have been able to do so with no issues.

Who are this season's judges and host?

Our favorite American Idol judges will all be back for season 22! Katy Perry, Lionel Richie, and Luke Bryan will once again be on the hunt for the next singing sensation. The trio have all been judges on the show since it relaunched on ABC in 2018 (For a full list of all the judges throughout the years, click here!).

However we have some bittersweet news. On Feb. 12, 2024, Perry announced that American Idol 2024 will be her last season as a judge as the singer is hoping to get back to music and explore other ventures.

Let’s face it. It really wouldn’t be American Idol without Ryan Seacrest. Thankfully, the iconic host isn’t going anywhere either! He will be back in the new season as well. The emcee has been with the competition series since it first started in 2002. Though Seacrest has signed on to be the new host of Wheel of Fortune, his episodes of the game show won’t air until September 2024. So there’s no conflicting schedules there.

Auditions for the new season and upcoming rounds

Auditions for the 2024 season began on Wednesday, Aug. 2, 2023 and ended on Sept. 8, 2023. Known as “Idol Across America,” those 15 years and older had the chance to show off their talent in the virtual auditions to a show producer for the chance to move on and audition in front of the judges. While auditions are now closed, we’ve shared the virtual audition dates and locations below, where Idol hopefuls had the chance to audition under a specific genre as well:

• First 700 VIP Event (Aug. 2)
• Georgia, North Carolina, South Carolina (Aug. 4)
• Florida, Michigan, Virginia, West Virginia (Aug. 7)
• Kansas, Nebraska, North Dakota, Oklahoma, South Dakota, Texas (Aug. 9)
• Open Call: Singer-Songwriters (Aug. 11)
• Alaska, California, Hawaii, Nevada, Washington (Aug. 14)
• Alabama, Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi (Aug. 16)
• Indiana, Kentucky, Tennessee, Maine, New Hampshire (Aug. 18)
• Arizona, Colorado, Idaho, Montana, New Mexico, Oregon, Utah, Wyoming (Aug. 21)
• Connecticut, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania (Aug. 23)
• Open Call: Country & Rock (Aug. 25)
• Illinois, Iowa, Minnesota, Missouri, Wisconsin (Aug. 28)
• The South: Open Call Pt. 1 (Aug. 30)
• Delaware, Maryland, Ohio, Washington D.C. , Rhode Island, Vermont, Massachusetts (Sept. 6)
• Open Call: Pop, R&B & Soul (Sept. 8)

What's fun about the auditions this season is that the show stopped by each of the judges' hometowns to see what kind of talent could come out there. And it was nice for each of them to show their fellow judges where they come from. Bryan will be taking us all back to Leesburg, Georgia, Richie to Tuskegee, Alabama, and Perry to Santa Barbara, California.

Some of this season's standout auditions have been Platinum Ticket recipients Odell Bunton Jr. and Abi Carter, as well as Kaibrienne Richins.

Last year, we spent about the first six weeks seeing the various auditions before moving on to Hollywood Week and the Showstopper/Final Judgement rounds. Then it's the exciting Top 26 round in Hawaii, before the Top 20 make it back to Hollywood. This is when voting opens up and we get to pick who we want to see move on in the competition and becomes the ultimate American Idol winner.

2023 American Idol winner Iam Tongi and past winners

Iam Tongi pulled on our heartstrings from the very first time we met him during his audition, and he continued to do so all season. It’s really no surprise that the Hawaii native won American Idol 2023! The 18-year-old is staying busy in the next few months performing live shows, which you can grab tickets for! On July 1, 2023, Iam had the chance to go back home to his hometown (Kahuku, HI) to perform in honor of Ohana Day. Runner-ups last season were Megan Danielle and Colin Stough. Plus, you can catch him performing on April 7, 2024 when this season's Top 24 head to Hawaii!

We shared the list of winners from past seasons below, but click here for a more in-depth look at the winners and runner-ups or if you're interested to know the American Idol winners by state, you can find that here. I know many of you are interested in the fact that season 11 winner Phillip Phillips is from Leesburg, Georgia. Just like American Idol judge Luke Bryan! And, we can't forget about those famous contestants like Jennifer Hudson and Adam Lambert who didn't win their seasons, but have still found success in music today!

• Season 1: Kelly Clarkson
• Season 2: Ruben Studdard
• Season 3: Fantasia Barrino
• Season 4: Carrie Underwood
• Season 5: Taylor Hicks
• Season 6: Jordin Sparks
• Season 7: David Cook
• Season 8: Kris Allen
• Season 9: Lee DeWyze
• Season 10: Scotty McCreery
• Season 11: Phillip Phillips
• Season 12: Candice Glover
• Season 13: Caleb Johnson
• Season 14: Nick Fradiani
• Season 15: Trent Harmon
• Season 16: Maddie Poppe
• Season 17: Laine Hardy
• Season 18: Just Sam
• Season 19: Chayce Beckham
• Season 20: Noah Thompson
• Season 21: Iam Tongi

Dedication: Debra Byrd and Ernie Fields Jr.

On the March 17, 2024 episode, the final moments featured a dedication to two people: Debra Byrd and Ernie Fields Jr. The two unfortunatley passed away in early March this year. Byrd was a vocal coach on the show, while Fields Jr. worked as a music contractor. For more details about them, head over to our dedication post.

American Idol season 22 premieres Sunday, Feb. 18, 2024 at 8 p.m. ET on ABC! Stream episodes the next day on Hulu.