Antenna aiming / Downingtown, PA
Which way do I point it?

How to aim your TV antenna in Downingtown, PA

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

Transmitter directions from Downingtown, PA N E S W WPPT — 21° NNE, 40 mi WLVT — 21° NNE, 40 mi WFMZ — 21° NNE, 40 mi WBPH — 22° NNE, 41 mi WPHY — 83° E, 28 mi KYW — 87° E, 25 mi WPVI — 87° E, 25 mi WDPN — 87° E, 25 mi WPHL — 87° E, 25 mi WHYY — 87° E, 25 mi WCAU — 87° E, 26 mi WPSG — 87° E, 26 mi WUVP — 87° E, 26 mi WGTW — 87° E, 26 mi WPPX — 87° E, 26 mi WPHA — 87° E, 26 mi WFPA — 87° E, 26 mi WTVE — 87° E, 26 mi WZPA — 87° E, 26 mi WTXF — 87° E, 26 mi WELL — 87° E, 26 mi WACP — 113° ESE, 51 mi WNJS — 113° ESE, 51 mi WMCN — 113° ESE, 51 mi WSJT — 113° ESE, 51 mi WPSJ — 113° ESE, 51 mi WMGM — 140° SE, 80 mi WWDD — 218° SW, 45 mi WMAR — 226° SW, 69 mi WBAL — 226° SW, 69 mi WJZ — 226° SW, 69 mi WBFF — 226° SW, 68 mi WNUV — 226° SW, 68 mi WUTB — 226° SW, 68 mi WMJF — 228° SW, 64 mi WLYH — 260° W, 46 mi WGAL — 271° W, 48 mi WYLN — 349° N, 67 mi Downingtown

Point East-Southeast 111° on a compass — 80 miles of range covers this whole market

23/38stations in the beam
116/170free channels
68%of what's available
The other 15 stations sit west of you (261°). A rotator, or a second antenna facing that way, is what it takes to add them.
14 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 Downingtown, PA

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

StationNetworkChannel BearingDirectionDistanceSubchannels
WPPT PBS 35 21° NNE 40 mi 1
WLVT PBS 39 21° NNE 40 mi 2
WFMZ Independent 69 21° NNE 40 mi 3
WBPH Independent 60 22° NNE 41 mi 2
WPHY Infomercials 25 83° E 28 mi 4
KYW CBS 3 87° E 25 mi 5
WPVI ABC 6 87° E 25 mi 6
WDPN MeTV 2 87° E 25 mi 11
WPHL MyNetworkTV 17 87° E 25 mi 4
WHYY PBS 12 87° E 25 mi 3
WCAU NBC 10 87° E 26 mi 4
WPSG Independent 57 87° E 26 mi 5
WUVP Univision 65 87° E 26 mi 3
WGTW TBN 48 87° E 26 mi 4
WPPX Ion 61 87° E 26 mi 8
WPHA Infomercials 24 87° E 26 mi 4
WFPA UniMas 28 87° E 26 mi 5
WTVE Shop LC 51 87° E 26 mi 4
WZPA NTD America 33 87° E 26 mi 7
WTXF FOX 29 87° E 26 mi 7
WELL Daystar 45 87° E 26 mi 1
WACP TCT 4 113° ESE 51 mi 9
WNJS PBS 23 113° ESE 51 mi 1
WMCN Infomercials 44 113° ESE 51 mi 3
WSJT Classic Shows 15 113° ESE 51 mi 8
WPSJ Infomercials 8 113° ESE 51 mi 7
WMGM True Crime Network 40 140° SE 80 mi 3
WWDD Daystar 49 218° SW 45 mi 1
WMAR ABC 2 226° SW 69 mi 9
WBAL NBC 11 226° SW 69 mi 7
WJZ CBS 13 226° SW 69 mi 6
WBFF FOX 45 226° SW 68 mi 3
WNUV CW 54 226° SW 68 mi 4
WUTB Roar 24 226° SW 68 mi 1
WMJF MeTV Toons 39 228° SW 64 mi 7
WLYH Independent 49 260° W 46 mi 1
WGAL NBC 8 271° W 48 mi 6
WYLN YTA TV 35 349° N 67 mi 1

Marked rows fall inside the recommended beam.

What antenna do you need in Downingtown, PA?

How far the transmitters are, and which way they sit

The nearest transmitter is 25.3 miles away, and most of the lineup sits within 26 miles.

For Downingtown we would start with an amplified indoor or attic antenna. The towers are far enough out that an amplified indoor antenna, or one mounted in the attic, will pull in far more of the lineup than a basic flat antenna.

The towers around Downingtown are spread across 282° 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 Downingtown. 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 Downingtown, PA, 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.