Antenna aiming / Derwood, MD
Which way do I point it?

How to aim your TV antenna in Derwood, MD

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

Transmitter directions from Derwood, MD N E S W WGAL — 24° NNE, 68 mi WLYH — 29° NNE, 61 mi WMPB — 41° NE, 29 mi WMJF — 57° ENE, 34 mi WWDD — 61° ENE, 54 mi WUTB — 62° ENE, 29 mi WBFF — 62° ENE, 29 mi WNUV — 62° ENE, 29 mi WMAR — 62° ENE, 29 mi WBAL — 62° ENE, 29 mi WJZ — 62° ENE, 29 mi WQAW — 107° ESE, 29 mi WMPT — 107° ESE, 29 mi WDCW — 155° SSE, 13 mi WDDN — 157° SSE, 10 mi WETA — 168° SSE, 13 mi WJLA — 168° SSE, 13 mi WUSA — 168° SSE, 13 mi WHUT — 168° SSE, 13 mi WPXW — 168° SSE, 13 mi WTTG — 168° SSE, 13 mi WDCA — 168° SSE, 13 mi WIAV — 169° SSE, 14 mi WDCO — 169° SSE, 14 mi WDME — 169° SSE, 14 mi WRZB — 169° SSE, 14 mi WRC — 169° SSE, 14 mi WFDC — 169° SSE, 14 mi WZDC — 169° SSE, 14 mi WWTD — 169° S, 14 mi WNVC — 195° SSW, 19 mi WDCN — 195° SSW, 19 mi WDWA — 204° SSW, 26 mi WNVT — 205° SSW, 39 mi WDVM — 256° WSW, 50 mi WWPX — 294° WNW, 55 mi WWPB — 309° NW, 57 mi WFPT — 312° NW, 13 mi WJAL — 320° NW, 69 mi W30FH-D — 332° NNW, 71 mi Derwood

Point South 176° on a compass — 71 miles of range covers this whole market

21/40stations in the beam
73/171free channels
43%of what's available
The other 19 stations sit north-northeast of you (34°). A rotator, or a second antenna facing that way, is what it takes to add them.
9 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 Derwood, MD

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

StationNetworkChannel BearingDirectionDistanceSubchannels
WGAL NBC 8 24° NNE 68 mi 6
WLYH Independent 49 29° NNE 61 mi 1
WMPB PBS 67 41° NE 29 mi 5
WMJF MeTV Toons 39 57° ENE 34 mi 7
WWDD Daystar 49 61° ENE 54 mi 1
WUTB Roar 24 62° ENE 29 mi 1
WBFF FOX 45 62° ENE 29 mi 3
WNUV CW 54 62° ENE 29 mi 4
WMAR ABC 2 62° ENE 29 mi 9
WBAL NBC 11 62° ENE 29 mi 7
WJZ CBS 13 62° ENE 29 mi 6
WQAW Jewelry TV 69 107° ESE 29 mi 12
WMPT PBS 22 107° ESE 29 mi 5
WDCW CW 50 155° SSE 13 mi 3
WDDN Daystar 23 157° SSE 10 mi 2
WETA PBS 26 168° SSE 13 mi 5
WJLA ABC 7 168° SSE 13 mi 6
WUSA CBS 9 168° SSE 13 mi 5
WHUT PBS 32 168° SSE 13 mi 2
WPXW Ion 66 168° SSE 13 mi 8
WTTG FOX 5 168° SSE 13 mi 3
WDCA MyNetworkTV 20 168° SSE 13 mi 4
WIAV Roar 58 169° SSE 14 mi 2
WDCO Roar 10 169° SSE 14 mi 1
WDME MeTV 48 169° SSE 14 mi 8
WRZB HSN2 31 169° SSE 14 mi 4
WRC NBC 4 169° SSE 14 mi 4
WFDC Univision 14 169° SSE 14 mi 4
WZDC Telemundo 44 169° SSE 14 mi 2
WWTD HSN2 49 169° S 14 mi 5
WNVC World 41 195° SSW 19 mi 1
WDCN The Country Network 6 195° SSW 19 mi 1
WDWA Daystar 23 204° SSW 26 mi 2
WNVT World 23 205° SSW 39 mi 1
WDVM Independent 25 256° WSW 50 mi 4
WWPX Ion 60 294° WNW 55 mi 8
WWPB PBS 31 309° NW 57 mi 4
WFPT PBS 62 312° NW 13 mi 4
WJAL Altavision 68 320° NW 69 mi 2
W30FH-D Bounce TV 35 332° NNW 71 mi 9

Marked rows fall inside the recommended beam.

What antenna do you need in Derwood, MD?

How far the transmitters are, and which way they sit

The nearest transmitter is 10.3 miles away, and most of the lineup sits within 14 miles.

For Derwood 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 Derwood are spread across 309° 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 Derwood. 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 Derwood, MD, 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.