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

How to aim your TV antenna in Falls Church, VA

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

Transmitter directions from Falls Church, VA N E S W WMPB — 29° NNE, 46 mi WDDN — 38° NE, 12 mi WMJF — 40° NE, 49 mi WUTB — 42° NE, 44 mi WBFF — 42° NE, 44 mi WNUV — 42° NE, 44 mi WMAR — 42° NE, 44 mi WBAL — 42° NE, 44 mi WJZ — 42° NE, 44 mi WTTG — 43° NE, 9 mi WDCA — 43° NE, 9 mi WETA — 46° NE, 9 mi WJLA — 46° NE, 9 mi WUSA — 46° NE, 9 mi WHUT — 46° NE, 9 mi WPXW — 46° NE, 9 mi WWDD — 48° NE, 68 mi WWTD — 49° NE, 8 mi WFDC — 49° NE, 8 mi WZDC — 49° NE, 8 mi WIAV — 49° NE, 8 mi WDCO — 49° NE, 8 mi WDME — 49° NE, 8 mi WRZB — 49° NE, 8 mi WRC — 49° NE, 8 mi WDCW — 53° NE, 11 mi WQAW — 72° ENE, 33 mi WMPT — 72° ENE, 33 mi WNVT — 219° SW, 21 mi WDWA — 234° SW, 9 mi WDVM — 278° W, 45 mi WNVC — 293° WNW, 2 mi WDCN — 294° WNW, 2 mi WWPX — 312° NW, 62 mi WWPB — 323° NW, 68 mi WFPT — 347° NNW, 28 mi Falls Church

Point Northeast 43° on a compass — 68 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 (289°). 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 Falls Church, VA

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

StationNetworkChannel BearingDirectionDistanceSubchannels
WMPB PBS 67 29° NNE 46 mi 5
WDDN Daystar 23 38° NE 12 mi 2
WMJF MeTV Toons 39 40° NE 49 mi 7
WUTB Roar 24 42° NE 44 mi 1
WBFF FOX 45 42° NE 44 mi 3
WNUV CW 54 42° NE 44 mi 4
WMAR ABC 2 42° NE 44 mi 9
WBAL NBC 11 42° NE 44 mi 7
WJZ CBS 13 42° NE 44 mi 6
WTTG FOX 5 43° NE 9 mi 3
WDCA MyNetworkTV 20 43° NE 9 mi 4
WETA PBS 26 46° NE 9 mi 5
WJLA ABC 7 46° NE 9 mi 6
WUSA CBS 9 46° NE 9 mi 5
WHUT PBS 32 46° NE 9 mi 2
WPXW Ion 66 46° NE 9 mi 8
WWDD Daystar 49 48° NE 68 mi 1
WWTD HSN2 49 49° NE 8 mi 5
WFDC Univision 14 49° NE 8 mi 4
WZDC Telemundo 44 49° NE 8 mi 2
WIAV Roar 58 49° NE 8 mi 2
WDCO Roar 10 49° NE 8 mi 1
WDME MeTV 48 49° NE 8 mi 8
WRZB HSN2 31 49° NE 8 mi 4
WRC NBC 4 49° NE 8 mi 4
WDCW CW 50 53° NE 11 mi 3
WQAW Jewelry TV 69 72° ENE 33 mi 12
WMPT PBS 22 72° ENE 33 mi 5
WNVT World 23 219° SW 21 mi 1
WDWA Daystar 23 234° SW 9 mi 2
WDVM Independent 25 278° W 45 mi 4
WNVC World 41 293° WNW 2 mi 1
WDCN The Country Network 6 294° WNW 2 mi 1
WWPX Ion 60 312° NW 62 mi 8
WWPB PBS 31 323° NW 68 mi 4
WFPT PBS 62 347° NNW 28 mi 4

Marked rows fall inside the recommended beam.

What antenna do you need in Falls Church, VA?

How far the transmitters are, and which way they sit

The nearest transmitter is 1.7 miles away, and most of the lineup sits within 9 miles.

For Falls Church 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 Falls Church are spread across 213° 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 Falls Church. 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 Falls Church, 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.