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Coachella 2026: Dates, Lineup, Tickets and Everything to Know Before You Go
Coachella returns to the Empire Polo Club in Indio, California for its 25th edition, spread across two nearly identical weekends in April 2026. Sabrina Carpenter, Justin Bieber, Karol G and Anyma headline a bill that also includes The xx, The Strokes, Young Thug, BIGBANG, Addison Rae and dozens more, and the whole thing sold out within about a week of tickets going on sale. Here’s what actually matters if you’re going, thinking abAout going, or just trying to follow along from home.
Coachella 2026 Dates
Coachella runs across two weekends this year:
- Weekend 1: April 10–12, 2026 (Friday through Sunday)
- Weekend 2: April 17–19, 2026 (Friday through Sunday)
Both weekends feature the same artist lineup, the same art installations, and the same food vendors, so the choice between them usually comes down to your schedule, your budget (pricing differs slightly between the two, more on that below), or simply which weekend you could still get a pass for before they sold out. Gates typically open around 11 a.m., and the festival runs until roughly 1 a.m. on Friday and Saturday and closer to midnight on Sunday, though exact set times vary by day.
Where Is Coachella Held?
Coachella takes place at the Empire Polo Club in Indio, California, in the Coachella Valley about two hours east of Los Angeles. The venue is a sprawling polo grounds turned festival campus, with multiple stages, art installations, camping areas, and vendor zones spread across the grounds. It’s the same site the festival has used since it launched in 1999.
Coachella 2026 Lineup
The 2026 lineup leans hard into pop and genre-crossing names at the top, with deep cuts for rock, electronic, and international fans further down the poster.
Headliners: Sabrina Carpenter, Justin Bieber, Karol G and Anyma. Karol G’s booking makes her the first Latina artist to headline the festival.
Also on the bill: The xx, The Strokes, Young Thug, BIGBANG, Addison Rae, David Byrne, Iggy Pop, Disclosure, Ethel Cain, Teddy Swims, KATSEYE, Devo, Sexyy Redd, Central Cee, Sombr, PinkPantheress, Kaskade, Laufey, FKA twigs, Moby, Major Lazer and Nine Inch Nails performing a one-off collaborative set with Boys Noize billed as Nine Inch Noize.
A few firsts stand out beyond the headliners: KATSEYE and BINI mark notable debuts for their respective scenes, with BINI becoming the first Filipino group to play the festival, and Noga Erez becoming the first Israeli artist on the Coachella stage. The poster also teased something called “The Bunker Debut of Radiohead Kid A Mnesia,” which fueled speculation among fans given Radiohead’s recently announced European tour dates, though Goldenvoice hadn’t clarified exactly what that slot involves as of the lineup announcement.
Because Coachella runs identical lineups both weekends, an artist you see on the poster is booked for both April 10–12 and April 17–19 (barring late cancellations, which do happen occasionally due to scheduling conflicts or health issues).
Coachella Tickets and Prices
Registration for 2026 passes opened on Friday, September 19, 2025, with early access on Thursday, September 18 for anyone who attended or bought passes in 2024 or 2025. Both weekends sold out within about a week, and the official waitlist has since closed too, though resale tickets remain available through Ticketmaster and other secondary marketplaces at a markup.
For reference, here’s what passes cost when they first went on sale (all prices include fees, and typically increase in later sales tiers as inventory sells down):
- General Admission: $649 for Weekend 1, $549 for Weekend 2
- GA + Shuttle Pass: $779 for Weekend 1, $679 for Weekend 2
- VIP: $1,299 for Weekend 1, $1,199 for Weekend 2
Camping is sold as a separate add-on. One notable change for 2026: the standard tent camping tier was dropped in favor of car camping options, which start around $420 per vehicle plus fees and range up into five-figure “Safari Camping” glamping packages that include guest passes and golf cart service. Other add-ons include preferred parking, gear lockers, and hospitality packages like the multi-course “Outstanding in the Field” dinner in the VIP Rose Garden.
If you missed out on passes, checking Coachella’s official channels for last-minute releases is worth doing before turning to resale sites, since prices there tend to run well above face value once a weekend is confirmed sold out.
How to Get to Coachella
Most out-of-town attendees fly into Palm Springs International Airport, which sits closest to the venue, or into Los Angeles or Ontario and drive the roughly two to three hours east depending on traffic. Coachella also runs official shuttle service from pickup points in Los Angeles and Palm Springs, sold as an add-on to a GA or VIP pass, which is generally the least stressful option if you don’t want to deal with festival parking or driving after a long day in the sun.
For those staying locally in the Coachella Valley, driving and using the venue’s parking lots (including paid preferred parking near the north entrance) is common, though traffic in and out of the grounds can be slow at peak times.
Where to Stay for Coachella
Indio puts you closest to the action, often within 15 minutes of the Empire Polo Club and occasionally walking distance if you book early enough. Palm Springs, about 30 to 35 minutes away, is a popular alternative with more hotel inventory and a livelier off-festival scene, and it’s connected by the official shuttle route. Palm Desert, La Quinta, Rancho Mirage and Indian Wells are all reasonable options too if the closer towns are booked up or priced out of range, which happens fast once the lineup drops.
On-site camping is the other major option and comes in several tiers, from basic car camping to fully furnished glamping. It’s popular with first-timers and groups who want to skip the daily commute entirely, though note that camping areas require guests to be 18 or older.
What to Expect at Coachella 2026
Coachella isn’t just a concert, it’s closer to a small city built for a weekend. Recent editions have featured well over 150 artists across seven stages, alongside large-scale art installations, a Ferris wheel and other fairground rides, and a wide range of food vendors. Attendance runs around 125,000 people per weekend, and the crowd skews younger but is genuinely more mixed in age than the festival’s Instagram reputation suggests.
The festival is all-ages, with no minimum age to attend and free entry for children 5 and under. Outside food and drink (aside from water) generally isn’t allowed in, alcohol is confined to designated bar areas, and tampering with or removing your wristband voids your access for the rest of the weekend. Always check Coachella’s official site closer to the date for the current prohibited items list, since it’s updated annually.
April in Indio runs warm during the day, typically in the 80s to low 90s Fahrenheit, and drops into the 50s after dark, so layering is worth planning for regardless of how the daytime heat feels when you’re packing.
Coachella History
Coachella launched in 1999 as a single-weekend event at the Empire Polo Club, born partly out of promoter Goldenvoice’s frustration with venue restrictions after a Pearl Jam show years earlier. It struggled financially in its early years before rebounding in the mid-2000s and growing into the dominant American festival brand it is today. The festival expanded to two identical weekends starting in 2012 to meet demand without simply cramming more people into a single weekend, a format it has kept ever since.
Over the past two and a half decades, Coachella has built a reputation for high-profile reunions and one-off sets, most famously Daft Punk’s 2006 return and Guns N’ Roses’ 2016 reunion with Slash and Duff McKagan, alongside a steady stream of surprise guest appearances that have become part of its identity. Its neighboring event, Stagecoach, a country festival held on the same grounds the week after Coachella wraps, is also run by Goldenvoice.
Previous Coachella Lineups
Recent years give a sense of how the festival’s headliner slots have evolved:
- 2025: Lady Gaga, Green Day and Post Malone headlined, with Travis Scott performing a special after-hours “Desert” set.
- 2024: Lana Del Rey, Tyler, The Creator and Doja Cat headlined.
- 2023: Bad Bunny, Blackpink and Frank Ocean headlined (Frank Ocean’s set drew significant attention after technical and staging issues).
The shift toward pop-forward headliners in 2026, with Sabrina Carpenter and Justin Bieber leading the bill, continues a trend of the festival mixing established rock and dance acts with the biggest streaming-era pop stars rather than leaning on legacy rock headliners the way it often did in its first decade.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is there a minimum age to attend Coachella? No. Coachella is all-ages, and children 5 and under get in free with a ticketed adult. Onsite camping does require guests to be 18 or older.
Are Coachella 2026 tickets still available? Both weekends sold out roughly a week after passes went on sale, and the official waitlist has since closed. Resale marketplaces like Ticketmaster are the main remaining option, typically at a premium over face value.
Does Coachella offer single-day tickets? No. Coachella sells three-day passes only; there’s no option to buy entry for just one day of a weekend.
What’s the difference between Weekend 1 and Weekend 2? The lineup, art, and vendors are identical. The main differences are price (Weekend 2 has historically run slightly cheaper) and availability, since Weekend 2 sometimes has more tickets left after Weekend 1 sells out.
How far is Coachella from Los Angeles? About two to three hours by car depending on traffic, or you can fly into Palm Springs, which is much closer to the venue.
Will Coachella 2026 be livestreamed? Yes. YouTube returns as the festival’s exclusive livestream partner for both weekends.
Can I bring outside food or drinks? Outside food and drink other than water generally isn’t permitted, and alcohol is limited to designated bar areas inside the venue. Check the official prohibited items list on coachella.com closer to the event for the full rules.
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