Antenna TV channels in Buffalo
16 stations broadcast free TV around Buffalo, carrying 48 channels including Subchannel An extra channel a station sends alongside its main one, like 2.2 or 2.3. More in the glossary . The full-power stations transmit from several sites, so the direction to aim depends on where you live.
Updated from FCC data
How well antenna TV works around Buffalo
For the big networks (ABC, CBS, NBC, FOX and PBS) that reach each home, an indoor antenna is likely enough for about 72% of people in the Buffalo market; about 15% need an attic or roof antenna, and for about 13% reception depends on the exact spot. A typical home gets about 46 free channels from 15 stations, some from neighbouring markets.
Estimates from our terrain predictions for an antenna about 30 ft up, adjusted for indoor use. They are not yet checked against real channel scans; VHF channels never count as indoor. How we work it out
Each network's reach
| Network | Reaches | Indoor likely |
|---|---|---|
| ABC | 86% | 76% |
| CBS | 86% | 80% |
| NBC | 86% | 75% |
| FOX | 84% | 81% |
| PBS | 84% | 79% |
| The CW | 86% | 76% |
Share of the market's 1,620k people, across its 252 ZIP codes.
Town by town
| Town | Antenna | Point | Channels |
|---|---|---|---|
| Buffalo ZIP 14203 | Indoor likely | southeast (138°, most) | 55 |
| Niagara Falls ZIP 14303 | Indoor likely | southeast (136°) | 46 |
| North Tonawanda ZIP 14120 | Indoor likely | south-southeast (153°, most) | 46 |
| Jamestown ZIP 14701 | Spotty | – | 8 |
| Lockport ZIP 14094 | Indoor likely | south (173°, most) | 46 |
| Lackawanna ZIP 14218 | Indoor likely | southeast (132°, most) | 46 |
| Batavia ZIP 14020 | Indoor likely | southwest (223°, most) | 68 |
| Tonawanda ZIP 14150 | Indoor likely | south-southeast (150°, most) | 46 |
| Kenmore ZIP 14217 | Indoor likely | southeast (146°, most) | 52 |
| Depew ZIP 14043 | Indoor likely | south-southeast (162°, most) | 46 |
| Olean ZIP 14760 | Spotty | – | 8 |
| Dunkirk ZIP 14048 | Indoor likely | east-northeast (70°, most) | 59 |
| Lancaster ZIP 14086 | Indoor likely | south-southeast (168°, most) | 46 |
| Hamburg ZIP 14075 | Indoor likely | east-southeast (112°, most) | 46 |
| Fredonia ZIP 14063 | Indoor likely | east-northeast (67°, most) | 40 |
For the ZIP nearest each town's centre. Tap a town for its full channel list.
What channel is each network on in Buffalo?
| Network | Channel | Station |
|---|---|---|
 CBS | 4.1 | WIVB-TV |
 NBC | 2.1 | WGRZ |
 ABC | 7.1 | WKBW-TV |
 FOX | 29.1 | WUTV |
 PBS | 17.1 | WNED-TV |
 The CW | 23.1 | WNLO |
 MyNetworkTV | 49.1 | WNYO-TV |
 ION | 51.1 | WPXJ-TV |
The best TV antenna for Buffalo
Get an antenna rated for both VHF and UHF. Across most of the area an indoor antenna is likely enough (about 72% of people, by our estimate); farther out, use an attic or roof antenna.
- 17 channels reach ordinary TVs only on VHF (WNYB, WBBZ-TV), and many flat indoor antennas are weak on VHF.
- The towers are spread out, so a wide-beam (multi-directional) antenna is safer than a narrow directional one.
Not sure about VHF Lower frequencies (RF 2–13). Needs an antenna with longer elements; many flat indoor antennas are weak here. More in the glossary and UHF Higher frequencies (RF 14–36). Most stations are here; almost any antenna picks it up. More in the glossary ? See the glossary. Any brand of the right type will do.
Which way to point your antenna from Niagara Falls, North Tonawanda, Jamestown and nearby
Aim at the main tower site (WUTV, WNYO-TV and others). From the largest towns around Buffalo:
| From | Point | Distance |
|---|---|---|
| Niagara Falls, NY | southeast (137°) | 6 mi |
| North Tonawanda, NY | west-southwest (241°) | 3 mi |
| Jamestown, NY | north-northeast (14°) | 66 mi |
| Lockport, NY | southwest (230°) | 15 mi |
| Batavia, NY | west (273°) | 38 mi |
| Dunkirk, NY | north-northeast (28°) | 43 mi |
| East Aurora, NY | northwest (319°) | 24 mi |
8 full-power stations transmit from elsewhere: WNED-TV (0 mi away), WGRZ (28 mi away), WIVB-TV (30 mi away), WNLO (30 mi away), WKBW-TV (31 mi away), WPXJ-TV (29 mi away), WBBZ-TV (33 mi away), WNYB (46 mi away). If you live near one of them, it may need a separate aim.
Where the Buffalo TV towers are
Map of 11 tower sites around Buffalo. The list below has every site.
-
3 stations · 10 mi north-northwest of the centre
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3 stations · 19 mi southeast of the centre
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2 stations · 20 mi southeast of the centre
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1 station · 10 mi north-northwest of the centre
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1 station · 21 mi southeast of the centre
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1 station · 22 mi east-southeast of the centre
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1 station · 23 mi south-southeast of the centre
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1 station · 39 mi south-southwest of the centre
NextGen TV (ATSC 3.0) in Buffalo
One station (WNYO-TV) now sends the newer NextGen TV (ATSC 3.0) A newer broadcast format. Older TVs can't decode it, so stations also send the old format from a partner station. More in the glossary format. Older TVs can't decode it, so stations share: each channel that moved is also sent in the old format by a partner station (a Lighthouse (channel sharing) One station switches to NextGen TV and carries other stations' 3.0 versions; partners carry its old-format version. More in the glossary arrangement). Your TV shows the same number; at most you need a Rescan Asking your TV to search for channels again. Fixes most missing channels. More in the glossary .
WNYO-TV sends NextGen TV on RF 16
- 49.1 MyNetworkTV: ordinary TVs get it from no partner in our data
- 49.2 network unknown: ordinary TVs get it from no partner in our data
- 49.3 network unknown: ordinary TVs get it from no partner in our data
- 49.4 network unknown: ordinary TVs get it from no partner in our data
Every Buffalo station and subchannel
Including Class A and low-power stations Smaller stations with a shorter range than full-power ones. More in the glossary stations. 4 subchannels have no confirmed network; we show them as "network unknown" rather than guess.
Full power (10)
- WGRZ Buffalo, NY · UHF
- 2.1 NBC
- 2.2 Antenna TV
- 2.3 True Crime Network
- 2.4 Quest
- 2.5 Oxygen
- WIVB-TV Buffalo, NY · UHF
- 4.1 CBS
- WKBW-TV Buffalo, NY · UHF
- 7.1 ABC
- 7.2 Bounce TV
- 7.3 Grit
- 7.4 Ion Mystery
- 7.5 HSN
- 7.6 MovieSphere Gold
- WNED-TV Buffalo, NY · UHF
- 17.1 PBS
- 17.2 Create
- 17.3 PBS Kids
- 17.10 WNED-FM simulcast
- WNLO Buffalo, NY · UHF
- 23.1 The CW
- WNYB Jamestown, NY · VHF
- 26.1 TCT
- 26.2 Sonlife
- 26.3 MeTV Toons
- 26.4 Great
- 26.5 Shop LC
- 26.6 Buzzr
- 26.7 OnTV4U
- 26.8 Infomercials
- 26.9 network unknown
- WUTV Buffalo, NY · UHF
- 29.1 Fox
- WNYO-TV Buffalo, NY · UHF · NextGen TV
- 49.1 MyNetworkTV
- 49.2 network unknown
- 49.3 network unknown
- 49.4 network unknown
- WPXJ-TV Batavia, NY · UHF
- 51.1 Ion Television
- 51.2 Court TV
- 51.3 Defy
- 51.4 Laff
- 51.5 Ion Plus
- 51.6 Busted
- 51.7 Game Show Central
- 51.8 QVC
- 51.9 Shop LC
- WBBZ-TV Springville, NY · VHF
- 67.1 Independent/MeTV
- 67.2 Heroes & Icons
- 67.3 Story Television
- 67.4 Daystar
- 67.5 Dabl
- 67.6 Start TV
- 67.7 Catchy Comedy
- 67.8 Movies!
Class A (2)
Low power (4)
- W17ED-D Hornell, Alfred, NY · UHF
No channel lineup in our data for this station yet.
- WBUO-LD Buffalo, NY · UHF
No channel lineup in our data for this station yet.
- WBXZ-LD Buffalo, NY · UHF
No channel lineup in our data for this station yet.
- WWHC-LD Olean, NY · UHF
No channel lineup in our data for this station yet.
Questions about antenna TV in Buffalo
What channels are CBS, NBC, ABC and FOX on antenna in Buffalo?
What local channels can I get with an antenna in Buffalo?
What is the best TV antenna for Buffalo?
Which way should I point my antenna in Buffalo?
Do I need a new TV for NextGen TV (ATSC 3.0) in Buffalo?
For the curious: tower and licence details
- WBXZ-LD · facility 14317 · RF 23 (UHF) · ERP (effective radiated power) Transmitter power after the antenna's gain, in kilowatts. More in the glossary 15 kW · HAAT not filed · licensed 2020-06-23
- WUTV · facility 415 · RF 32 (UHF) · ERP (effective radiated power) Transmitter power after the antenna's gain, in kilowatts. More in the glossary 1000 kW · HAAT 329 m · licensed 2021-03-05
- WBNF-CD · facility 14326 · RF 15 (UHF) · ERP (effective radiated power) Transmitter power after the antenna's gain, in kilowatts. More in the glossary 15 kW · HAAT not filed · licensed 2012-01-12
- WNYO-TV · facility 67784 · RF 16 (UHF) · ERP (effective radiated power) Transmitter power after the antenna's gain, in kilowatts. More in the glossary 575 kW · HAAT 329 m · licensed 2024-07-18
- WNED-TV · facility 71928 · RF 31 (UHF) · ERP (effective radiated power) Transmitter power after the antenna's gain, in kilowatts. More in the glossary 175 kW · HAAT 332 m · licensed 2020-03-19
- WBUO-LD · facility 68012 · RF 26 (UHF) · ERP (effective radiated power) Transmitter power after the antenna's gain, in kilowatts. More in the glossary 15 kW · HAAT not filed · licensed 2025-09-08
- WWHC-LD · facility 10868 · RF 20 (UHF) · ERP (effective radiated power) Transmitter power after the antenna's gain, in kilowatts. More in the glossary 3 kW · HAAT not filed · licensed 2021-09-21 · newer construction permit granted
- WVTT-CD · facility 10869 · RF 11 (VHF-high) · ERP (effective radiated power) Transmitter power after the antenna's gain, in kilowatts. More in the glossary 3 kW · HAAT not filed · licensed 2020-12-29 · reduced power
- WGRZ · facility 64547 · RF 33 (UHF) · ERP (effective radiated power) Transmitter power after the antenna's gain, in kilowatts. More in the glossary 716 kW · HAAT 308.4 m · licensed 2025-05-15
- WIVB-TV · facility 7780 · RF 36 (UHF) · ERP (effective radiated power) Transmitter power after the antenna's gain, in kilowatts. More in the glossary 800 kW · HAAT 415 m · licensed 2021-03-11 · newer construction permit granted
- WNLO · facility 71905 · RF 36 (UHF) · ERP (effective radiated power) Transmitter power after the antenna's gain, in kilowatts. More in the glossary 800 kW · HAAT 415 m · licensed 2021-03-05
- WKBW-TV · facility 54176 · RF 34 (UHF) · ERP (effective radiated power) Transmitter power after the antenna's gain, in kilowatts. More in the glossary 660 kW · HAAT 432 m · licensed 2021-03-05 · newer construction permit granted
- WPXJ-TV · facility 2325 · RF 24 (UHF) · ERP (effective radiated power) Transmitter power after the antenna's gain, in kilowatts. More in the glossary 500 kW · HAAT 372.53 m · licensed 2020-02-20
- WBBZ-TV · facility 9088 · RF 7 (VHF-high) · ERP (effective radiated power) Transmitter power after the antenna's gain, in kilowatts. More in the glossary 26.9 kW · HAAT 176 m · licensed 2011-05-10
- WNYB · facility 30303 · RF 5 (VHF-low) · ERP (effective radiated power) Transmitter power after the antenna's gain, in kilowatts. More in the glossary 4 kW · HAAT 463 m · licensed 2019-08-30 · newer construction permit granted
- W17ED-D · facility 43451 · RF 17 (UHF) · ERP (effective radiated power) Transmitter power after the antenna's gain, in kilowatts. More in the glossary 1 kW · HAAT not filed · licensed 2021-11-10
Where this comes from
- Stations, towers, channels and power: FCC Licensing and Management System (LMS) public database, data of .
- Networks and subchannels: our affiliations dataset, built from Wikipedia (used under CC BY-SA 4.0), the network field stations file with the FCC, and station websites; checked . Credits.
- Towns and distances: US Census Bureau: Vintage 2025 city population estimates (SUB-EST2025) and 2026 Gazetteer place coordinates; distances are straight-line from each town's Census centre point.
- Reception: Reception predictions over USGS terrain for every ZIP, FCC data 2026-11-03 00:00:00 (model 2026-11-11.4)
- Market area: Market area: counties assigned by FCC service-contour coverage of each market's full-power stations (FCC LMS market list, Census 2020).
Updated How we work this out