The roots
Austin City Limits goes on air
The PBS concert series built a worldwide stage for Austin music. Its name and live-music spirit later inspired the festival.
A fan-built history of ACL Fest
25 years
in Zilker.
From the first weekend in 2002 to the 25th edition in 2026—see the posters, artists, stages, and turning points.
The moments that changed ACL
How Zilker became
the place to be.
This is the festival story—not a list of every year. The complete posters and artists live in the archive below.
The first weekend
ACL Fest opens in Zilker
Charles Attal and Charlie Jones assembled the debut in months: two days, six stages, and Texas music at its center. Austin Parks Foundation presented the event, with the team that became C3 Presents producing it.
Growing fast
Two days become three
The second festival expanded to Friday, Saturday, and Sunday—the three-day shape ACL still uses today.
A bigger footprint
The first two-weekend ACL
ACL doubled to two consecutive weekends. Then Austin weather wrote its own ending: flooding canceled the second Sunday.
Pause and return
One silent year in Zilker
The pandemic canceled ACL in 2020, the archive's only year without a lineup. Music returned to the park in 2021.
ACL at scale
75,000 fans a day
More than 120 artists played for 75,000 attendees per day. Since 2006, the festival partnership has directed more than $71 million to Austin parks.
The 25th edition
A quarter-century in Zilker
Twenty-five festival editions, nine stages, two weekends, and another meeting beneath the flags.
The lineup poster archive
Every year,
a new bill.
Scroll or use the arrows. Select a poster to see the major acts and the smaller names that became big later.
Finding your way
Zilker,
mapped.
Hover, focus, or tap a stage marker to match its place on the 2025 map with a real stage photo.
Open the full map ↗
From the photo archive
Proof we
were there.
Historical photographs put the faces, dust, stages, sunsets, and scale back into the timeline.
Latest complete layout · 2025
Meet me
at the stage.
Nine performance spaces filled Zilker Park, from the two main stages to smaller discovery spots.
American Express
East-side main stage for many of ACL's biggest headliners.
+Photo wanted · T-Mobile
T-Mobile
West-end main stage, formerly known as the Honda stage.
+Photo wanted · Tito's
Tito's
North-field tent stage with a long-running place on the ACL map.
+Photo wanted · Miller Lite
Miller Lite
Northwest stage close to the Lady Bird entrance.
+Photo wanted · Lady Bird
Lady Bird
The stage previously carrying the T-Mobile name.
+Photo wanted · BMI
BMI
Known for developing artists and early discoveries.
+Photo wanted · Austin Kiddie Limits
Austin Kiddie Limits
A family-focused stage with music and programming for younger festival fans.
+Photo wanted · BeatBox
BeatBox
Compact southwest stage near Barton Springs.
+Photo wanted · Bonus Tracks
Bonus Tracks
East-side space for performances and programming.
Stage names are from the 2025 map; 2026 sponsor names may change. Honda remains part of ACL history, but it was no longer a stage name in 2025.
By the numbers
Big numbers.
Bigger weekends.
- 25
- Festival editions through 2026
- 7M
- Estimated admissions from 2002–2025, including repeat visits
- 75K
- Attendees per day in 2025
- 120+
- Artists on the 2025 bill
- $71M+
- Directed to Austin parks since 2006
- ∞
- “Meet me at the flags” texts