Antenna aiming / Charles Town, WV
Which way do I point it?

How to aim your TV antenna in Charles Town, WV

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

Transmitter directions from Charles Town, WV N E S W W30FH-D — 6° N, 55 mi WFPT — 89° E, 30 mi WDDN — 112° ESE, 47 mi WDCW — 114° ESE, 50 mi WTTG — 116° ESE, 47 mi WDCA — 116° ESE, 47 mi WETA — 116° ESE, 47 mi WJLA — 116° ESE, 47 mi WUSA — 116° ESE, 47 mi WHUT — 116° ESE, 47 mi WPXW — 116° ESE, 47 mi WIAV — 117° ESE, 48 mi WDCO — 117° ESE, 48 mi WDME — 117° ESE, 48 mi WRZB — 117° ESE, 48 mi WFDC — 117° ESE, 48 mi WZDC — 117° ESE, 48 mi WRC — 117° ESE, 48 mi WWTD — 117° ESE, 48 mi WNVC — 127° SE, 43 mi WDCN — 127° SE, 43 mi WDWA — 138° SE, 43 mi WNVT — 152° SSE, 49 mi WDVM — 202° SSW, 22 mi WSVW — 219° SW, 77 mi WSVF — 219° SW, 77 mi WHSV — 223° SW, 61 mi WWPX — 324° NW, 18 mi WWPB — 349° N, 28 mi WJAL — 353° N, 44 mi Charles Town

Point East-Southeast 108° on a compass — 77 miles of range covers this whole market

21/30stations in the beam
76/118free channels
64%of what's available
The other 9 stations sit west of you (263°). A rotator, or a second antenna facing that way, is what it takes to add them.
5 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 Charles Town, WV

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

StationNetworkChannel BearingDirectionDistanceSubchannels
W30FH-D Bounce TV 35 6° N 55 mi 9
WFPT PBS 62 89° E 30 mi 4
WDDN Daystar 23 112° ESE 47 mi 2
WDCW CW 50 114° ESE 50 mi 3
WTTG FOX 5 116° ESE 47 mi 3
WDCA MyNetworkTV 20 116° ESE 47 mi 4
WETA PBS 26 116° ESE 47 mi 5
WJLA ABC 7 116° ESE 47 mi 6
WUSA CBS 9 116° ESE 47 mi 5
WHUT PBS 32 116° ESE 47 mi 2
WPXW Ion 66 116° ESE 47 mi 8
WIAV Roar 58 117° ESE 48 mi 2
WDCO Roar 10 117° ESE 48 mi 1
WDME MeTV 48 117° ESE 48 mi 8
WRZB HSN2 31 117° ESE 48 mi 4
WFDC Univision 14 117° ESE 48 mi 4
WZDC Telemundo 44 117° ESE 48 mi 2
WRC NBC 4 117° ESE 48 mi 4
WWTD HSN2 49 117° ESE 48 mi 5
WNVC World 41 127° SE 43 mi 1
WDCN The Country Network 6 127° SE 43 mi 1
WDWA Daystar 23 138° SE 43 mi 2
WNVT World 23 152° SSE 49 mi 1
WDVM Independent 25 202° SSW 22 mi 4
WSVW NBC 30 219° SW 77 mi 6
WSVF FOX 43 219° SW 77 mi 2
WHSV ABC 3 223° SW 61 mi 6
WWPX Ion 60 324° NW 18 mi 8
WWPB PBS 31 349° N 28 mi 4
WJAL Altavision 68 353° N 44 mi 2

Marked rows fall inside the recommended beam.

What antenna do you need in Charles Town, WV?

How far the transmitters are, and which way they sit

The nearest transmitter is 17.5 miles away, and most of the lineup sits within 47 miles.

For Charles Town we would start with an outdoor or roof-mounted antenna. The transmitters are a long way from town. An outdoor antenna mounted as high as possible, pointed toward the towers, is what it takes to receive the full lineup reliably.

The towers around Charles Town are spread across 259° 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 Charles Town. 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 Charles Town, WV, 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.