You're stuck in traffic on the Kennedy. Or maybe you're sitting in a cubicle in the suburbs, and the boss is hovering nearby. You just need to hear Pat Hughes describe the ivy, the shadows creeping across the infield, and the crack of the bat. You need the game. But you don't want to pay for another subscription service you'll forget to cancel in October. Finding a way to listen to cubs game online free is kind of a rite of passage for fans in the 21st century.
It’s harder than it used to be. Back in the day, you just pulled the antenna out on your transistor radio and hoped the weather was clear enough to catch 670 The Score. Now, digital rights management (DRM) makes it feel like you need a law degree just to hear a leadoff single. If you try to stream the local radio station through their website or a standard app like TuneIn, you’ll often hit a "blackout" wall. Instead of the game, you get a looped recording of some talk show host or a generic national news feed. It’s frustrating.
Honestly, the "free" part of the internet is shrinking. Major League Baseball guards its radio rights like the crown jewels. But there are still legit ways to navigate this without ending up on a sketchy site that gives your laptop a virus.
The 670 The Score Reality Check
Let’s talk about the flagship. WSCR-AM 670 The Score is the home of the North Siders. If you are physically in Chicago and have a literal radio, you’re golden. It’s free. But you’re here because you want to listen online.
The Audacy app is the official digital home for The Score. Here is the catch: it’s usually geo-fenced. If your phone’s GPS says you are in the Chicago market, you can often get the stream for free through the app. If you’re in Des Moines or Indianapolis, even though those are "Cubs country," the digital rights might kick you out.
Why? Because MLB wants you to pay for the MLB At Bat app. It’s all about the money. However, if you're within the local broadcast radius, the Audacy app is your first and best bet. Just download it, search for 670 The Score, and pray the geo-locator is feeling generous today. Sometimes toggling your Wi-Fi off and using cellular data tricks the system into recognizing your local status more accurately.
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Using MLB's Own Loopholes
Believe it or not, the league itself occasionally gives it away. Throughout the season, the MLB app features a "Free Game of the Day." While this is usually a video feed, they sometimes offer free audio previews.
Also, keep an eye on YouTube. No, not the pirate streams that get taken down in three innings. The official MLB YouTube channel and some broadcast partners run promotional windows. It’s not a reliable every-day strategy, but if it’s a high-profile matchup—say, Cubs vs. Cardinals on a holiday—the accessibility barriers sometimes drop for marketing reasons.
Then there's the trial strategy. This is the "semi-free" route. SiriusXM and MLB.tv almost always offer a 7-day or even a 30-day free trial. If you’re just trying to listen to cubs game online free for a specific series or a week-long road trip, you can sign up and cancel immediately. Just make sure you actually hit the cancel button, or that "free" game will cost you twenty bucks next month.
The Secret World of Low-Power FM and Affiliates
The Cubs Radio Network is massive. It’s not just one station in Chicago. There are dozens of affiliates across Illinois, Iowa, Indiana, and even Nebraska.
Stations like WSOY in Decatur or KMA in Shenandoah, Iowa, carry the games. Sometimes—not always, but sometimes—these smaller market stations don't have the sophisticated "kill switches" on their web streams that the big Chicago stations use.
If you go to the official Cubs website and look for the "Radio Affiliates" list, you’ll see a map of every station on the network. Start clicking. Go to the website of a small AM station in rural Illinois. Look for their "Listen Live" button. Often, these smaller stations haven't updated their streaming tech to block out-of-market listeners for baseball games. It’s a bit of a scavenger hunt, but it’s a tried-and-true method for die-hards who refuse to pay the "baseball tax."
Does the Old "Radio in the Window" Trick Work Online?
Not really. You might see people on Reddit or X (formerly Twitter) posting links to "free streams." Be careful. Most of these are "aggregator" sites. They are packed with pop-up ads, malware, and lag that puts you three hitters behind the actual action. You’ll hear a "Go, Cubs, Go!" on social media before the pitcher has even wound up on your screen.
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If you really want a clean experience, stick to the affiliate hunt.
Smart Speakers and the "Skills" Hack
If you have an Alexa or a Google Home, you might have noticed that asking it to "Play 670 The Score" results in a "This program is not available for online streaming" message during game time.
There is a workaround. Sometimes, asking the speaker to play a specific affiliate station (like one from that list we talked about) bypasses the block. Try saying, "Alexa, play [Station Call Letters] on TuneIn." If that station hasn't properly implemented their sports blackout, the game will come through your speaker perfectly.
Why is it so hard to just listen to a game?
It feels greedy, doesn't it? Baseball is supposed to be the "National Pastime," yet they make it feel like you're trying to break into Fort Knox just to hear the play-by-play.
The reality is that radio rights are bundled into massive multi-million dollar contracts. Advertisers pay for those spots on the airwaves, and they want to know exactly who is listening. Digital streaming complicates that. If someone in Japan is listening to a Chicago Chevy dealer's ad, that ad isn't "working." This is why the geo-fencing is so aggressive.
Furthermore, MLB Advanced Media (the tech arm of the league) is one of the most powerful streaming entities in the world. They actually handle the backend for many other companies. They know every trick in the book, which is why the old-school pirate radio streams are basically extinct.
Actionable Steps to Hear the Cubs Today
If the game is starting in five minutes and you need a fix, follow this order of operations:
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- Check the Audacy App first: If you are in or near Chicago, this is the highest quality and most likely to work.
- The Affiliate Scavenger Hunt: Open the Cubs Radio Network affiliate list. Check the "Listen Live" links for stations in smaller markets like Peoria, Rockford, or Quad Cities.
- The SiriusXM "Burner" Trial: If you have 60 seconds, sign up for a free trial with a secondary email address. You get the home and away feeds, plus post-game coverage.
- Social Media Audio Rooms: Occasionally, fans on platforms like X or YouTube will host "watch alongs" where they provide commentary. While not the official Pat Hughes broadcast, it keeps you in the loop for free.
- The "Old School" Backup: If you're at home, find that dusty clock radio in the garage. Physics doesn't have a subscription fee. AM 670 travels a long way at night due to signal bounce in the atmosphere.
Basically, you have to be a little bit scrappy. The days of clicking one link and getting a high-def stream for zero dollars are mostly gone, but with a little affiliate hopping, you can still hear the North Siders without opening your wallet.
Get the Cubs Radio Network affiliate list from the official MLB site and bookmark the "Listen Live" pages for at least five different stations. One of them will eventually forget to turn on their blackout filter, and that is your golden ticket to a free season.