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

How to aim your TV antenna in Frederick, MD

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

Transmitter directions from Frederick, MD N E S W WHTM — 25° NNE, 64 mi WXBU — 27° NNE, 67 mi WHP — 27° NNE, 67 mi WITF — 27° NNE, 67 mi WPMT — 27° NNE, 67 mi WGAL — 49° NE, 59 mi WLYH — 57° ENE, 55 mi WMPB — 93° E, 36 mi WMJF — 96° E, 46 mi WUTB — 103° ESE, 44 mi WBFF — 103° ESE, 44 mi WNUV — 103° ESE, 44 mi WMAR — 103° ESE, 44 mi WBAL — 103° ESE, 44 mi WJZ — 103° ESE, 44 mi WQAW — 125° SE, 56 mi WMPT — 125° SE, 56 mi WDDN — 147° SSE, 40 mi WDCW — 147° SSE, 43 mi WTTG — 151° SSE, 41 mi WDCA — 151° SSE, 41 mi WETA — 151° SSE, 42 mi WJLA — 151° SSE, 42 mi WUSA — 151° SSE, 42 mi WHUT — 151° SSE, 42 mi WPXW — 151° SSE, 42 mi WIAV — 151° SSE, 42 mi WDCO — 151° SSE, 42 mi WDME — 151° SSE, 42 mi WRZB — 152° SSE, 42 mi WRC — 152° SSE, 42 mi WFDC — 152° SSE, 42 mi WZDC — 152° SSE, 42 mi WWTD — 152° SSE, 42 mi WFPT — 153° SSE, 17 mi WNVC — 163° SSE, 44 mi WDCN — 163° SSE, 44 mi WDWA — 172° S, 48 mi WNVT — 179° S, 59 mi WDVM — 220° SW, 47 mi WWPX — 267° W, 32 mi WWPB — 294° WNW, 30 mi WJAL — 316° NW, 39 mi W30FH-D — 338° NNW, 42 mi Frederick

Point East-Southeast 123° on a compass — 67 miles of range covers this whole market

28/44stations in the beam
131/183free channels
72%of what's available
The other 16 stations sit north-northeast of you (18°). A rotator, or a second antenna facing that way, is what it takes to add them.
10 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 Frederick, MD

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

StationNetworkChannel BearingDirectionDistanceSubchannels
WHTM ABC 27 25° NNE 64 mi 4
WXBU Univision 15 27° NNE 67 mi 1
WHP CBS 21 27° NNE 67 mi 4
WITF PBS 33 27° NNE 67 mi 2
WPMT FOX 43 27° NNE 67 mi 2
WGAL NBC 8 49° NE 59 mi 6
WLYH Independent 49 57° ENE 55 mi 1
WMPB PBS 67 93° E 36 mi 5
WMJF MeTV Toons 39 96° E 46 mi 7
WUTB Roar 24 103° ESE 44 mi 1
WBFF FOX 45 103° ESE 44 mi 3
WNUV CW 54 103° ESE 44 mi 4
WMAR ABC 2 103° ESE 44 mi 9
WBAL NBC 11 103° ESE 44 mi 7
WJZ CBS 13 103° ESE 44 mi 6
WQAW Jewelry TV 69 125° SE 56 mi 12
WMPT PBS 22 125° SE 56 mi 5
WDDN Daystar 23 147° SSE 40 mi 2
WDCW CW 50 147° SSE 43 mi 3
WTTG FOX 5 151° SSE 41 mi 3
WDCA MyNetworkTV 20 151° SSE 41 mi 4
WETA PBS 26 151° SSE 42 mi 5
WJLA ABC 7 151° SSE 42 mi 6
WUSA CBS 9 151° SSE 42 mi 5
WHUT PBS 32 151° SSE 42 mi 2
WPXW Ion 66 151° SSE 42 mi 8
WIAV Roar 58 151° SSE 42 mi 2
WDCO Roar 10 151° SSE 42 mi 1
WDME MeTV 48 151° SSE 42 mi 8
WRZB HSN2 31 152° SSE 42 mi 4
WRC NBC 4 152° SSE 42 mi 4
WFDC Univision 14 152° SSE 42 mi 4
WZDC Telemundo 44 152° SSE 42 mi 2
WWTD HSN2 49 152° SSE 42 mi 5
WFPT PBS 62 153° SSE 17 mi 4
WNVC World 41 163° SSE 44 mi 1
WDCN The Country Network 6 163° SSE 44 mi 1
WDWA Daystar 23 172° S 48 mi 2
WNVT World 23 179° S 59 mi 1
WDVM Independent 25 220° SW 47 mi 4
WWPX Ion 60 267° W 32 mi 8
WWPB PBS 31 294° WNW 30 mi 4
WJAL Altavision 68 316° NW 39 mi 2
W30FH-D Bounce TV 35 338° NNW 42 mi 9

Marked rows fall inside the recommended beam.

What antenna do you need in Frederick, MD?

How far the transmitters are, and which way they sit

The nearest transmitter is 17.1 miles away, and most of the lineup sits within 42 miles.

For Frederick 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 Frederick are spread across 313° 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 Frederick. 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 Frederick, 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.