Antenna TV channels in Dayton
11 stations broadcast free TV around Dayton, carrying 21 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 Dayton
For the big networks (ABC, CBS, NBC, FOX and PBS) that reach each home, an indoor antenna is likely enough for about 85% of people in the Dayton market; about 14% need an attic or roof antenna, and for about 2% reception depends on the exact spot. A typical home gets about 48 free channels from 19 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 | 98% | 89% |
| CBS | 98% | 85% |
| NBC | 98% | 85% |
| FOX | 98% | 86% |
| PBS | 98% | 90% |
| The CW | 98% | 85% |
| Univision | <1% | 0% |
| Telemundo | 0% | 0% |
Share of the market's 1,625k people, across its 197 ZIP codes.
Town by town
| Town | Antenna | Point | Channels |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dayton ZIP 45405 | Indoor likely | south-southwest (205°) | 31 |
| Springfield ZIP 45505 | Indoor likely | west-southwest (243°) | 54 |
| Kettering ZIP 45429 | Indoor likely | west-northwest (297°) | 48 |
| Beavercreek ZIP 45432 | Indoor likely | west (262°) | 48 |
| Huber Heights ZIP 45424 | Indoor likely | southwest (221°) | 48 |
| Mason ZIP 45040 | Indoor likely | southwest (214°, most) | 48 |
| Fairborn ZIP 45324 | Indoor likely | west-southwest (247°) | 35 |
| Richmond ZIP 47374 | Attic or outdoor | east-southeast (102°, most) | 43 |
| Troy ZIP 45373 | Indoor likely | south (185°) | 33 |
| Xenia ZIP 45385 | Indoor likely | west (279°) | 66 |
| Centerville ZIP 45459 | Indoor likely | northwest (321°) | 48 |
| Riverside ZIP 45404 | Indoor likely | southwest (229°) | 48 |
| Trotwood ZIP 45426 | Indoor likely | south-southeast (158°) | 39 |
| Lebanon ZIP 45036 | Indoor likely | north (355°) | 48 |
| Piqua ZIP 45356 | Indoor likely | south (180°) | 26 |
For the ZIP nearest each town's centre. Tap a town for its full channel list.
What channel is each network on in Dayton?
| Network | Channel | Station |
|---|---|---|
 CBS | 7.1 | WHIO-TV |
 NBC | 2.1 | WDTN |
 ABC | 22.1 | WKEF |
 FOX | 22.2 | WKEF |
 PBS | 16.1 | WPTD |
 The CW | 26.1 | WBDT |
 ION | 43.1 | WKOI-TV |
The best TV antenna for Dayton
Get a UHF antenna. Across most of the area an indoor antenna is likely enough (about 85% of people, by our estimate); farther out, use an attic or roof antenna.
- Every channel reaches ordinary TVs on UHF, so a UHF antenna is enough.
- 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 Springfield, Kettering, Mason and nearby
Aim at the main tower site (WRGT-TV, WKEF, WPTD and others). From the largest towns around Dayton:
| From | Point | Distance |
|---|---|---|
| Springfield, OH | west-southwest (240°) | 28 mi |
| Kettering, OH | west-northwest (289°) | 6 mi |
| Mason, OH | north (5°) | 25 mi |
| Fairborn, OH | west-southwest (248°) | 14 mi |
| Richmond, IN | east-southeast (102°) | 35 mi |
| Troy, OH | south (184°) | 22 mi |
| Clayton, OH | south-southeast (159°) | 11 mi |
| Germantown, OH | northeast (43°) | 9 mi |
4 full-power stations transmit from elsewhere: WHIO-TV (1 mi away), WDTN (0 mi away), WKOI-TV (0 mi away), WBDT (0 mi away). If you live near one of them, it may need a separate aim.
Where the Dayton TV towers are
Map of 6 tower sites around Dayton. The list below has every site.
NextGen TV (ATSC 3.0) in Dayton
One station (WRGT-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 .
WRGT-TV sends NextGen TV on RF 36
- 45.1 Dabl: ordinary TVs get it from no partner in our data
- 45.2 Charge!: ordinary TVs get it from no partner in our data
- 45.3 network unknown: ordinary TVs get it from no partner in our data
- 45.4 network unknown: ordinary TVs get it from no partner in our data
- 45.5 network unknown: ordinary TVs get it from no partner in our data
Every Dayton 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. 3 subchannels have no confirmed network; we show them as "network unknown" rather than guess.
Full power (7)
- WDTN Dayton, OH · UHF
- 2.1 NBC
- 2.2 Ion Mystery
- WHIO-TV Dayton, OH · UHF
- 7.1 CBS
- 7.2 MeTV
- 7.3 Laff
- 7.4 MeTV Toons
- WPTD Dayton, OH · UHF
- 16.1 PBS
- 16.2 ThinkTV 16 Journey
- 16.3 World Channel
- 16.4 The Ohio Channel
- 16.5 PBS Kids
- WKEF Dayton, OH · UHF
- 22.1 ABC
- 22.2 Fox
- 22.3 MyNetworkTV/The Nest
- WBDT Springfield, OH · UHF
- 26.1 The CW
- WKOI-TV Richmond, IN · UHF
- 43.1 Ion Television
- WRGT-TV Dayton, OH · UHF · NextGen TV
- 45.1 Dabl
- 45.2 Charge!
- 45.3 network unknown
- 45.4 network unknown
- 45.5 network unknown
Low power (3)
Translator (1)
- W25FI-D Maplewood, OH · UHF
No channel lineup in our data for this station yet.
Questions about antenna TV in Dayton
What channels are CBS, NBC, ABC and FOX on antenna in Dayton?
What local channels can I get with an antenna in Dayton?
What is the best TV antenna for Dayton?
Which way should I point my antenna in Dayton?
Do I need a new TV for NextGen TV (ATSC 3.0) in Dayton?
For the curious: tower and licence details
- WHIO-TV · facility 41458 · RF 33 (UHF) · ERP (effective radiated power) Transmitter power after the antenna's gain, in kilowatts. More in the glossary 854 kW · HAAT 348 m · licensed 2022-12-07
- WRGT-TV · facility 411 · RF 36 (UHF) · ERP (effective radiated power) Transmitter power after the antenna's gain, in kilowatts. More in the glossary 1000 kW · HAAT 351 m · licensed 2023-12-21
- WLWD-LD · facility 68026 · RF 24 (UHF) · ERP (effective radiated power) Transmitter power after the antenna's gain, in kilowatts. More in the glossary 6.5 kW · HAAT not filed · licensed 2022-05-02
- WKEF · facility 73155 · RF 34 (UHF) · ERP (effective radiated power) Transmitter power after the antenna's gain, in kilowatts. More in the glossary 950 kW · HAAT 351 m · licensed 2022-12-07
- WZCD-LD · facility 187440 · RF 32 (UHF) · ERP (effective radiated power) Transmitter power after the antenna's gain, in kilowatts. More in the glossary 14.3 kW · HAAT not filed · licensed 2025-07-30
- WRCX-LD · facility 69535 · RF 9 (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 2021-01-12
- WPTD · facility 25067 · RF 35 (UHF) · ERP (effective radiated power) Transmitter power after the antenna's gain, in kilowatts. More in the glossary 250 kW · HAAT 345 m · licensed 2022-12-07
- WDTN · facility 65690 · RF 31 (UHF) · ERP (effective radiated power) Transmitter power after the antenna's gain, in kilowatts. More in the glossary 1000 kW · HAAT 330 m · licensed 2022-12-07
- WKOI-TV · facility 67869 · RF 31 (UHF) · ERP (effective radiated power) Transmitter power after the antenna's gain, in kilowatts. More in the glossary 1000 kW · HAAT 330 m · licensed 2020-11-24
- WBDT · facility 70138 · RF 31 (UHF) · ERP (effective radiated power) Transmitter power after the antenna's gain, in kilowatts. More in the glossary 1000 kW · HAAT 330 m · licensed 2020-11-24
- W25FI-D · facility 25069 · RF 25 (UHF) · ERP (effective radiated power) Transmitter power after the antenna's gain, in kilowatts. More in the glossary 6.7 kW · HAAT not filed · licensed 2021-02-16
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