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

How to aim your TV antenna in Silver Spring, MD

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

Transmitter directions from Silver Spring, MD N E S W WGAL — 19° NNE, 69 mi WLYH — 24° NNE, 62 mi WMPB — 31° NNE, 29 mi WMJF — 48° NE, 33 mi WUTB — 52° NE, 28 mi WBFF — 52° NE, 28 mi WNUV — 52° NE, 28 mi WMAR — 52° NE, 28 mi WBAL — 52° NE, 28 mi WJZ — 52° NE, 28 mi WWDD — 56° NE, 53 mi WQAW — 103° ESE, 25 mi WMPT — 103° ESE, 25 mi WDCW — 170° S, 9 mi WDDN — 181° S, 6 mi WETA — 188° S, 10 mi WJLA — 188° S, 10 mi WUSA — 188° S, 10 mi WHUT — 188° S, 10 mi WPXW — 188° S, 10 mi WIAV — 188° S, 10 mi WDCO — 188° S, 10 mi WDME — 188° S, 10 mi WRC — 188° S, 10 mi WRZB — 188° S, 10 mi WFDC — 188° S, 10 mi WZDC — 188° S, 10 mi WWTD — 188° S, 10 mi WTTG — 189° S, 9 mi WDCA — 189° S, 9 mi WNVC — 211° SSW, 17 mi WDCN — 211° SSW, 17 mi WNVT — 213° SSW, 38 mi WDWA — 215° SW, 25 mi WDVM — 260° W, 53 mi WWPB — 309° NW, 62 mi WFPT — 311° NW, 18 mi WJAL — 319° NW, 74 mi W30FH-D — 331° NNW, 76 mi Silver Spring

Point South 186° on a compass — 76 miles of range covers this whole market

21/39stations in the beam
73/163free channels
45%of what's available
The other 18 stations sit north-northeast of you (30°). A rotator, or a second antenna facing that way, is what it takes to add them.
8 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 Silver Spring, MD

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

StationNetworkChannel BearingDirectionDistanceSubchannels
WGAL NBC 8 19° NNE 69 mi 6
WLYH Independent 49 24° NNE 62 mi 1
WMPB PBS 67 31° NNE 29 mi 5
WMJF MeTV Toons 39 48° NE 33 mi 7
WUTB Roar 24 52° NE 28 mi 1
WBFF FOX 45 52° NE 28 mi 3
WNUV CW 54 52° NE 28 mi 4
WMAR ABC 2 52° NE 28 mi 9
WBAL NBC 11 52° NE 28 mi 7
WJZ CBS 13 52° NE 28 mi 6
WWDD Daystar 49 56° NE 53 mi 1
WQAW Jewelry TV 69 103° ESE 25 mi 12
WMPT PBS 22 103° ESE 25 mi 5
WDCW CW 50 170° S 9 mi 3
WDDN Daystar 23 181° S 6 mi 2
WETA PBS 26 188° S 10 mi 5
WJLA ABC 7 188° S 10 mi 6
WUSA CBS 9 188° S 10 mi 5
WHUT PBS 32 188° S 10 mi 2
WPXW Ion 66 188° S 10 mi 8
WIAV Roar 58 188° S 10 mi 2
WDCO Roar 10 188° S 10 mi 1
WDME MeTV 48 188° S 10 mi 8
WRC NBC 4 188° S 10 mi 4
WRZB HSN2 31 188° S 10 mi 4
WFDC Univision 14 188° S 10 mi 4
WZDC Telemundo 44 188° S 10 mi 2
WWTD HSN2 49 188° S 10 mi 5
WTTG FOX 5 189° S 9 mi 3
WDCA MyNetworkTV 20 189° S 9 mi 4
WNVC World 41 211° SSW 17 mi 1
WDCN The Country Network 6 211° SSW 17 mi 1
WNVT World 23 213° SSW 38 mi 1
WDWA Daystar 23 215° SW 25 mi 2
WDVM Independent 25 260° W 53 mi 4
WWPB PBS 31 309° NW 62 mi 4
WFPT PBS 62 311° NW 18 mi 4
WJAL Altavision 68 319° NW 74 mi 2
W30FH-D Bounce TV 35 331° NNW 76 mi 9

Marked rows fall inside the recommended beam.

What antenna do you need in Silver Spring, MD?

How far the transmitters are, and which way they sit

The nearest transmitter is 6.1 miles away, and most of the lineup sits within 11 miles.

For Silver Spring 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 Silver Spring are spread across 293° 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 Silver Spring. 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 Silver Spring, 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.