Antenna aiming / Alexandria, VA
Which way do I point it?

How to aim your TV antenna in Alexandria, VA

Every transmitter near Alexandria, with the compass direction and distance from town, and the one direction that picks up the most channels.

Transmitter directions from Alexandria, VA N E S W WTTG — 10° N, 10 mi WDCA — 10° N, 10 mi WETA — 11° NNE, 10 mi WJLA — 11° NNE, 10 mi WUSA — 11° NNE, 10 mi WHUT — 11° NNE, 10 mi WPXW — 11° NNE, 10 mi WWTD — 12° NNE, 9 mi WFDC — 12° NNE, 9 mi WZDC — 12° NNE, 9 mi WRZB — 12° NNE, 9 mi WRC — 12° NNE, 9 mi WIAV — 12° NNE, 9 mi WDCO — 12° NNE, 9 mi WDME — 12° NNE, 9 mi WDDN — 14° NNE, 13 mi WMPB — 22° NNE, 47 mi WDCW — 25° NNE, 11 mi WMJF — 34° NE, 49 mi WUTB — 35° NE, 44 mi WBFF — 35° NE, 44 mi WNUV — 35° NE, 44 mi WMAR — 35° NE, 44 mi WBAL — 35° NE, 44 mi WJZ — 35° NE, 44 mi WWDD — 44° NE, 67 mi WQAW — 63° ENE, 30 mi WMPT — 63° ENE, 30 mi WNVT — 234° SW, 22 mi WDWA — 261° W, 12 mi WDVM — 282° WNW, 50 mi WDCN — 306° NW, 7 mi WNVC — 306° NW, 7 mi WWPX — 311° NW, 68 mi WWPB — 322° NW, 74 mi WFPT — 341° NNW, 33 mi Alexandria

Point Northeast 34° on a compass — 74 miles of range covers this whole market

28/36stations in the beam
128/153free channels
84%of what's available
The other 8 stations sit west-northwest of you (296°). A rotator, or a second antenna facing that way, is what it takes to add them.
6 of these stations broadcast on VHF frequencies. Many antennas sold as "HDTV" or "4K" are UHF-only and will miss them entirely, whichever way you point.

Every transmitter near Alexandria, VA

Sorted by compass bearing, so neighbouring rows are neighbouring towers.

StationNetworkChannel BearingDirectionDistanceSubchannels
WTTG FOX 5 10° N 10 mi 3
WDCA MyNetworkTV 20 10° N 10 mi 4
WETA PBS 26 11° NNE 10 mi 5
WJLA ABC 7 11° NNE 10 mi 6
WUSA CBS 9 11° NNE 10 mi 5
WHUT PBS 32 11° NNE 10 mi 2
WPXW Ion 66 11° NNE 10 mi 8
WWTD HSN2 49 12° NNE 9 mi 5
WFDC Univision 14 12° NNE 9 mi 4
WZDC Telemundo 44 12° NNE 9 mi 2
WRZB HSN2 31 12° NNE 9 mi 4
WRC NBC 4 12° NNE 9 mi 4
WIAV Roar 58 12° NNE 9 mi 2
WDCO Roar 10 12° NNE 9 mi 1
WDME MeTV 48 12° NNE 9 mi 8
WDDN Daystar 23 14° NNE 13 mi 2
WMPB PBS 67 22° NNE 47 mi 5
WDCW CW 50 25° NNE 11 mi 3
WMJF MeTV Toons 39 34° NE 49 mi 7
WUTB Roar 24 35° NE 44 mi 1
WBFF FOX 45 35° NE 44 mi 3
WNUV CW 54 35° NE 44 mi 4
WMAR ABC 2 35° NE 44 mi 9
WBAL NBC 11 35° NE 44 mi 7
WJZ CBS 13 35° NE 44 mi 6
WWDD Daystar 49 44° NE 67 mi 1
WQAW Jewelry TV 69 63° ENE 30 mi 12
WMPT PBS 22 63° ENE 30 mi 5
WNVT World 23 234° SW 22 mi 1
WDWA Daystar 23 261° W 12 mi 2
WDVM Independent 25 282° WNW 50 mi 4
WDCN The Country Network 6 306° NW 7 mi 1
WNVC World 41 306° NW 7 mi 1
WWPX Ion 60 311° NW 68 mi 8
WWPB PBS 31 322° NW 74 mi 4
WFPT PBS 62 341° NNW 33 mi 4

Marked rows fall inside the recommended beam.

What antenna do you need in Alexandria, VA?

How far the transmitters are, and which way they sit

The nearest transmitter is 7.2 miles away, and most of the lineup sits within 9 miles.

For Alexandria we would start with a basic indoor antenna. Most of the lineup is transmitting from close by, so a flat indoor antenna in a window facing the towers should be enough.

The towers around Alexandria are spread across 189° of the compass, so no single directional antenna will reach all of them. An omnidirectional antenna picks up every direction at once but with less reach, and a rotator lets a directional antenna turn toward whichever station you want.

Learn more about choosing an antenna

Before you climb the ladder

The limits of these numbers, and how to work around them

These are true bearings, not magnetic. A compass app on your phone usually reads magnetic north, which differs from true north by a few degrees depending on where you are in the country. For antenna aiming that difference is small, but if you are lining up a long-range directional antenna it is worth checking your local declination.

Bearings are measured from the centre of Alexandria. Over the distances involved, a few miles in any direction barely moves the angle, but your own address is what ultimately matters.

Hills and buildings are not in these numbers. A transmitter 20 miles away behind a ridge can be harder to receive than one 40 miles away across flat ground. Point at the recommended bearing first, then adjust a few degrees either way while watching your TV's signal meter.

See every channel available in Alexandria, VA, including what each station carries.

Calendar

What’s on, and when

Big games, races and live events coming up on free over-the-air TV, and the channel to find each one on. Full-season schedules show which games an antenna gets you for free.

Guides

Free TV explained

Guides, reviews and explainers on getting the most out of free over-the-air TV.