The Battlefield 6 beta is almost here, kicking off in just a day, and tons of folks—over 20,000—are already lined up in server queues.

It’s dropping soon, ahead of the full game’s release on October 10. Over two weekends in August, you’ll get to jump into multiplayer action across different maps and modes, plus score some exclusive rewards like soldier skins and weapon packs that’ll carry over to the full game. The first weekend gives you three maps and five modes to mess around with, while the second weekend adds another map and three more modes. You can play with or without crossplay, whatever suits you.

Here’s the lowdown on how to join the Battlefield 6 beta, plus what’s up with both weekends and early access.

How to Play the Battlefield 6 Beta

There are two open beta weekends everyone can jump into, starting Saturday, August 9, and Thursday, August 14. You can preload the beta now on your platform of choice.

Want to get in early? There’s an early access beta starting Thursday, August 7. To get in, you needed to do a couple of things before July 31, like signing up for Battlefield Labs or watching certain Twitch streamers. Missed that boat? No worries, you can still snag early access keys in a few ways:

  • Watch a qualifying Twitch streamer play Battlefield 6 for 30 minutes once early access starts. Make sure their stream has drops enabled, or you won’t get a code. Redeem those codes on the Battlefield 6 website.
  • Hop into the Battlefield Discord and grab a key from the code drop room.
  • Subscribe to EA Play Pro.

Heads-up: Preordering Battlefield 6 doesn’t get you early access.

Just so you know, you only need an early access key for August 7-8. After that, the beta weekends are open to everyone.

What Time Does Battlefield 6's Beta Start in Early Access?

If you’ve got early access sorted, you can start playing at 4 a.m. EDT on Thursday, August 7. Here’s when it goes live in your time zone:

  • 1 a.m. PDT (West Coast, North America)
  • 4 a.m. EDT (East Coast, North America)
  • 5 a.m. BRT (Brazil)
  • 9 a.m. BST (U.K.)
  • 10 a.m. CEST (Western Europe)
  • 5 p.m. JST (Japan)
  • 6 p.m. AEST (East Coast, Australia)

Early access runs until August 9, flowing right into the first beta weekend.

When Does the Battlefield 6 First Beta Weekend Start?

The first weekend lets you play Conquest, Closed Weapon Conquest, Breakthrough, Domination, and King of the Hill on three maps: Iberian Offensive, Liberation Peak, and Siege of Cairo.

It kicks off Saturday, August 9, at 4 a.m. EDT. Here’s the start time for your region:

  • 1 a.m. PDT (West Coast, North America)
  • 4 a.m. EDT (East Coast, North America)
  • 5 a.m. BRT (Brazil)
  • 9 a.m. BST (U.K.)
  • 10 a.m. CEST (Western Europe)
  • 5 p.m. JST (Japan)
  • 6 p.m. AEST (East Coast, Australia)

This weekend wraps up on Monday, August 11, at 4 a.m. EDT.

When Does the Battlefield 6 Second Beta Weekend Start?

The second weekend includes everything from the first weekend, plus the Empire State map and Rush and Squad Deathmatch modes.

It starts Thursday, August 14, at 4 a.m. EDT. Here’s when it goes live:

  • 1 a.m. PDT (West Coast, North America)
  • 4 a.m. EDT (East Coast, North America)
  • 5 a.m. BRT (Brazil)
  • 9 a.m. BST (U.K.)
  • 10 a.m. CEST (Western Europe)
  • 5 p.m. JST (Japan)
  • 6 p.m. AEST (East Coast, Australia)

This weekend ends on Sunday, August 17, at 4 a.m. EDT.