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

How to aim your TV antenna in Germantown, MD

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

Transmitter directions from Germantown, MD N E S W WGAL — 30° NNE, 72 mi WLYH — 35° NE, 66 mi WMPB — 51° NE, 35 mi WMJF — 63° ENE, 42 mi WUTB — 67° ENE, 38 mi WBFF — 67° ENE, 38 mi WNUV — 67° ENE, 38 mi WMAR — 67° ENE, 37 mi WBAL — 67° ENE, 37 mi WJZ — 67° ENE, 37 mi WQAW — 102° ESE, 38 mi WMPT — 102° ESE, 38 mi WDDN — 125° SE, 16 mi WDCW — 128° SE, 19 mi WTTG — 136° SE, 17 mi WDCA — 136° SE, 17 mi WETA — 137° SE, 17 mi WJLA — 137° SE, 17 mi WUSA — 137° SE, 17 mi WHUT — 137° SE, 17 mi WPXW — 137° SE, 17 mi WIAV — 138° SE, 17 mi WDCO — 138° SE, 17 mi WDME — 138° SE, 17 mi WRZB — 138° SE, 17 mi WFDC — 138° SE, 17 mi WZDC — 138° SE, 17 mi WRC — 138° SE, 17 mi WWTD — 138° SE, 17 mi WNVC — 167° SSE, 18 mi WDCN — 167° SSE, 18 mi WDWA — 184° S, 24 mi WNVT — 192° SSW, 35 mi WDVM — 253° WSW, 41 mi WWPX — 299° WNW, 47 mi WWPB — 315° NW, 51 mi WJAL — 326° NW, 64 mi W30FH-D — 339° NNW, 68 mi WFPT — 355° N, 9 mi Germantown

Point East-Southeast 109° on a compass — 72 miles of range covers this whole market

19/39stations in the beam
85/170free channels
50%of what's available
The other 20 stations sit northeast of you (46°). 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 Germantown, MD

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

StationNetworkChannel BearingDirectionDistanceSubchannels
WGAL NBC 8 30° NNE 72 mi 6
WLYH Independent 49 35° NE 66 mi 1
WMPB PBS 67 51° NE 35 mi 5
WMJF MeTV Toons 39 63° ENE 42 mi 7
WUTB Roar 24 67° ENE 38 mi 1
WBFF FOX 45 67° ENE 38 mi 3
WNUV CW 54 67° ENE 38 mi 4
WMAR ABC 2 67° ENE 37 mi 9
WBAL NBC 11 67° ENE 37 mi 7
WJZ CBS 13 67° ENE 37 mi 6
WQAW Jewelry TV 69 102° ESE 38 mi 12
WMPT PBS 22 102° ESE 38 mi 5
WDDN Daystar 23 125° SE 16 mi 2
WDCW CW 50 128° SE 19 mi 3
WTTG FOX 5 136° SE 17 mi 3
WDCA MyNetworkTV 20 136° SE 17 mi 4
WETA PBS 26 137° SE 17 mi 5
WJLA ABC 7 137° SE 17 mi 6
WUSA CBS 9 137° SE 17 mi 5
WHUT PBS 32 137° SE 17 mi 2
WPXW Ion 66 137° SE 17 mi 8
WIAV Roar 58 138° SE 17 mi 2
WDCO Roar 10 138° SE 17 mi 1
WDME MeTV 48 138° SE 17 mi 8
WRZB HSN2 31 138° SE 17 mi 4
WFDC Univision 14 138° SE 17 mi 4
WZDC Telemundo 44 138° SE 17 mi 2
WRC NBC 4 138° SE 17 mi 4
WWTD HSN2 49 138° SE 17 mi 5
WNVC World 41 167° SSE 18 mi 1
WDCN The Country Network 6 167° SSE 18 mi 1
WDWA Daystar 23 184° S 24 mi 2
WNVT World 23 192° SSW 35 mi 1
WDVM Independent 25 253° WSW 41 mi 4
WWPX Ion 60 299° WNW 47 mi 8
WWPB PBS 31 315° NW 51 mi 4
WJAL Altavision 68 326° NW 64 mi 2
W30FH-D Bounce TV 35 339° NNW 68 mi 9
WFPT PBS 62 355° N 9 mi 4

Marked rows fall inside the recommended beam.

What antenna do you need in Germantown, MD?

How far the transmitters are, and which way they sit

The nearest transmitter is 9.1 miles away, and most of the lineup sits within 18 miles.

For Germantown 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 Germantown are spread across 299° 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 Germantown. 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 Germantown, 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.