College Football Playoff Bracket Maker & Simulator
Build your own 12-team College Football Playoff bracket, then hit simulate to play every game out to a national champion. A free CFP bracket maker and playoff predictor for the 2026 season — start from the projected Top 12 or pick your own field.
Build and simulate the entire 12-team College Football Playoff in seconds. Add any FBS team to your field, drag and drop to set the seeding, then simulate every round, from the first-round games through the quarterfinals, semifinals and National Championship, to crown your champion. The top four seeds earn a first-round bye, seeds 5 through 12 open on the road, and every matchup plays out with a live, play-by-play scoreboard. Use the projected Top 12, generate a random field, or build the exact bracket you want to see.
How the 12-team College Football Playoff works
The College Football Playoff expanded to a 12-team bracket, giving more programs a real shot at the national title. The field is made up of the highest-ranked conference champions and the best at-large teams. The four highest seeds earn a first-round bye straight into the quarterfinals, while seeds 5 through 12 meet in first-round games: 5 vs 12, 6 vs 11, 7 vs 10 and 8 vs 9. First-round winners advance to face the top four seeds in the quarterfinals, the four quarterfinal winners meet in the semifinals, and the two survivors play for the national championship.
How to use the CFP simulator
Start from the projected Top 12, hit Random 12 for a surprise field, or clear the board and add teams yourself from the full list of FBS programs. Your 12 teams snap into a seeded bracket automatically. Drag any team to reorder the seeds, or click a team to remove it. When your field is full, press Simulate Playoff and watch each game run play-by-play, from the first round all the way to the National Championship, complete with your champion's road to the title.
How games are decided
Each matchup is simulated using team seeding and rankings, with a dose of the upset-friendly randomness that makes the real playoff so unpredictable. Higher seeds are favored, but lower seeds can and do pull off upsets, just like the real thing, so no two simulations are exactly alike. Run it as many times as you like to see how the bracket could break.