2026 US Open Tennis Championship Tickets

There are sporting events you watch, and others you experience. The US Open clearly belongs to the second group. New York isn’t just home to one of the year’s four Grand Slams: a small tennis town springs up in Queens, with day and night sessions, secondary courts where you might suddenly stumble upon a cracking match, and an atmosphere that blends major sport, late summer and that quintessentially New York energy of ‘something’s happening here’.

If you’re thinking of going, the first piece of good news is that you don’t need to be an expert to enjoy it. The second is that it’s worth understanding exactly how it works: which tickets to buy, which dates to look out for, what’s on each week and which sessions tend to be the most appealing. Because the US Open has many facets, and choosing wisely makes a huge difference to the experience.

The simplest way is to buy your tickets by session. At the US Open, they don’t sell ‘a generic day’, but rather a specific combination of date + time slot + round. That allows you to be quite precise: a first-round night match at Arthur Ashe isn’t the same as a semi-final or a final.

If you’re looking for a straightforward and easy-to-manage experience, the most practical option is to check the Hellotickets calendar and select tickets for the US Open Tennis Championships directly. There, you can compare match days, see which rounds are being played each day, and decide whether you prefer the start of the tournament – when there’s plenty of tennis and matches happening all over the place – or the big days, when the focus is on just a few matches but everything feels like a major event.

In terms of ticket types, the tournament usually offers three main formats: grounds passes, which grant access to the grounds and the secondary courts; tickets for the Grandstand; and reserved-seat tickets for Arthur Ashe Stadium, the main stadium.

The latter are usually the most sought-after, as they also allow access – on a first-come, first-served basis – to Louis Armstrong Stadium, the Grandstand and the outdoor courts. At Hellotickets, moreover, the tickets available are specifically for sessions at Arthur Ashe Stadium. If you want to be sure of a great match and not leave it to chance, this is usually the most reliable option.

The tournament is held at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Centre, within Flushing Meadows–Corona Park, in the borough of Queens. It’s a huge complex, designed almost like a sports campus, with Arthur Ashe Stadium as its main icon, but also featuring Louis Armstrong Stadium, the Grandstand and a good handful of outdoor courts where much of the tournament’s magic is often to be found.

The best thing about the US Open is that it isn’t confined to the main stadium. In fact, many regular visitors will tell you that one of the keys is to wander around the grounds, popping in and out of the secondary courts and letting the day take you by surprise. In the space of a short while, you might watch a top favourite practising, catch a closely fought match on a small court and then sit down at Arthur Ashe for one of those evening sessions that end with the crowd completely caught up in the match.

Getting there is quite straightforward if you use public transport. The most convenient option is to take the 7 subway line or the Long Island Rail Road (LIRR) to Mets–Willets Point, which is just a short walk from the venue. If you’re staying in Manhattan, it’s a perfectly manageable day trip there and back without too much hassle.

You can also get there by car, but given that this is New York and a major event, public transport is usually the most practical option. If you’re going for the first time, this is one of those occasions when it’s worth choosing the easiest route and saving your energy for what really matters: hours of tennis.

The 2026 edition will take place from 23 August to 13 September. That timeframe may seem long, but it makes sense because the US Open is no longer just the main draw: it also includes the qualifiers, Fan Week, special events and, of course, the full programme of sessions that make the tournament a much broader experience than a simple two-week draw.

If you’re interested in the ‘main’ tournament, the singles main draw gets underway on 30 August. The first few days are fantastic for anyone who wants to watch plenty of tennis and make the most of the entire venue. From then on, the action really hots up: the round of 16, the quarter-finals, the semi-finals and the finals. The night sessions at Arthur Ashe, moreover, have a reputation all of their own. There’s no need to exaggerate: they’re simply different. More tense, more theatrical, more New York.

If you’ve already decided you want to experience it live, it’s best to start checking as soon as possible which US Open sessions are available.

What is Stars of the Open and when does it take place?

Stars of the Open is one of the major events of Fan Week, the week leading up to the start of the main draw when the venue opens to the public with training sessions, exhibitions and special activities. In 2026, it will take place on Thursday 27 August at 6.00 pm at Arthur Ashe Stadium.

It’s a much more light-hearted and festive affair than an official match, but that’s precisely why it’s so popular: you get to see the stars, the atmosphere is more relaxed, and it helps you get into the spirit of things before the tournament proper begins. For many fans, it’s a brilliant way to add a different kind of evening to the US Open experience.

There’s an important detail here, and it’s worth explaining clearly: Roger Federer isn’t returning to the US Open as a main draw player, but he is returning to New York as the star of Fan Week. In 2026, he will take part in a special event billed as “Roger Federer: An Icon Returns to New York”.

Specifically, the event will take place on Tuesday 25 August at 7.00 pm at Arthur Ashe Stadium

The appeal of this return lies in its symbolism. Federer won five consecutive US Opens and has a very strong connection to Arthur Ashe Stadium, so his return carries obvious emotional significance. What’s more, he won’t be doing it alone: he’ll be sharing the court with the likes of Andy Roddick, Andre Agassi and John McEnroe, turning the event into a mini-reunion of legends. For anyone who lived through the golden age of tennis in the 2000s, it’s one of those events that instantly brings back memories.

Whilst we’re still waiting for the final draw to put everyone in their place, there are several players arriving as serious contenders. On the men’s circuit, the clearest battle remains at the top between Jannik Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz, who dominate the conversation thanks to their rankings, level of play and ability to change the pace of any match. Behind them, Alexander Zverev emerges as the closest challenger and, a step below, extremely dangerous players such as Ben Shelton, Daniil Medvedev and Novak Djokovic, who are never simply ‘just another name’ at a Grand Slam.

In the women’s draw, the player to watch right now is Aryna Sabalenka, the world number one, with Elena Rybakina and Iga Swiatek as two of the main contenders for the title if they make it to New York in top form. It’s also worth keeping a close eye on Jessica Pegula and Mirra Andreeva, and not losing sight of Coco Gauff, who always seems to have that little bit extra when the tournament is on American soil. That’s the thing about the US Open: there are favourites, yes, but the tournament rarely goes off without a hitch.

The US Open was founded in 1881, making it one of the oldest tournaments in world tennis. Throughout its history, it has changed its name, surface and venue, but there are two milestones that help explain why it remains so important.

The first came in 1973, when it became the first Grand Slam to offer equal prize money for men and women. This is no minor detail: it is one of those decisions that truly changed the history of the sport. The second milestone came in 1978, when the tournament moved to Flushing Meadows and adopted hard courts as its surface. Since then, that blend of elite tennis, concrete and the New York atmosphere has become part of its identity.

Perhaps that is why the US Open has such a distinctive character. It doesn’t try to be like Wimbledon, or Roland Garros, or even Melbourne. It goes its own way: noisier, more open, more of a spectacle. And that’s precisely part of its charm. If you’re thinking of buying tickets, you’re not really just buying a match. You’re buying the chance to spend a day – or a night – inside one of the liveliest settings in world tennis.