🏀 March Madness Bracket Guide 2026: NCAA Tournament Bracket Tips & Strategy

We're back with our annual March Madness guide to help you fill in your 2026 March Madness bracket. This year's tournament is expected to be as unpredictable as ever, and fans are itching to fill out their March Madness brackets once again.

You will probably have aspirations of a perfect bracket, but you'll need to nail all the March Madness upset predictions. We'll be here to help you win your pool with a few tips and tricks for completing your 2026 March Madness bracket.

🏀 March Madness bracket

Check out our FREE March Madness bracket now! Download, print, and distribute to everyone you know.

Download our free printable 2026 March Madness bracket!

💡 Expert tips for filling out your bracket

Pick some upsets early

It's called March Madness for a reason. There are usually plenty of upsets during the opening weekend, at least from the perspective of seeding. By paying attention to the March Madness odds and Final Four odds, we can locate the best spots for a lower seed to win during the first round.

If a spread is within a couple of possessions, that means oddsmakers believe it will be a competitive game. Spreads of six-plus points tend to shade closer to blowout territory, so avoid those contests when trying to identify your favorite upset picks.

A No. 12 seed has advanced to the second round in 34 of the last 40 NCAA Tournaments, while a No. 13 seed has won at least one game in 11 of the previous 16 years. Here's a look at the No. 12 and 13 seeds from last year, along with their first-round opponents.

Familiarize yourself with the mid-majors, and take a look at the college basketball odds to help locate those key upsets this year.

Go with chalk late

All four No. 1 seeds made it to the Final Four just twice in tournament history, which happened in 2008 and last season. That means you shouldn't be completely chalky with your Final Four picks, but the team cutting down the nets will still likely be a favorite.

A No. 1 seed has claimed 15 of the last 20 titles, including in seven of the last eight seasons. A No. 1 seed has won it all 65% of the time in the NCAA Tournament. A No. 2 seed has won five championships, while a No. 3 seed has secured four crowns. Teams seeded between No. 4 and No. 8 are responsible for five combined championships.

Considering how much the scoring is weighted for the final weekend, just make sure you aren't being too unique with those key selections to close out your bracket.

Don't be afraid to be a contrarian 

A key strategy when trying to figure out how to bet on March Madness is to be a little different with your bracket. You aren't going to win your pool while picking the same champion or Final Four teams as the rest of your friends or coworkers.

Think about how many times Gonzaga has been the No. 1 overall seed and failed to cut down the nets despite being a betting favorite.

In 2022, only 9.6% of ESPN brackets correctly predicted that No. 2 seed Villanova would reach the Final Four. Only 1.1% of brackets were riding No. 8 seed North Carolina to also go that far. Correctly picking one of those two teams likely improved your chances of winning a pool, and this information is available to the public as soon as brackets start getting submitted.

Here's a list of the most notable sites that carry March Madness bracket data:

• ESPN
• Yahoo!
• CBS Sports

Before you finish your bracket, we suggest taking a look at the numbers and seeing where you can differentiate yourself from the masses, all while riding with some higher seeds in the end.

📝 How to fill out a March Madness bracket

1. Join a March Madness pool
2. Start with a clean bracket (or even download one, if you'd like)
3. Study our experts' March Madness bracket predictions
4. Pick winners for the opening round by advancing them to the Round of 32
5. Select your 16 winners in the Round of 32
6. Choose your winners in the eight respective Sweet 16 matchups
7. Nail down your Final Four teams with a selection for each Elite Eight showdown
8. Advance two teams to the national championship game
9. Pick your winner in the national title game, with a projected final score in case of a tiebreaker
10. Submit your bracket

📅 March Madness key dates

• Selection Sunday: Sunday, March 15 (6 p.m. ET)
• First Four: Tuesday, March 17 & Wednesday, March 18
• First round: Thursday, March 19 & Friday, March 20
• Second round: Saturday, March 21 & Sunday, March 22
• Sweet 16: Thursday, March 26 & Friday, March 27
• Elite Eight: Saturday, March 28 & Sunday, March 29
• Final Four: Saturday, April 4
• National championship game: Monday, April 6