TV channels & antenna towers in Lancaster, New York

Lancaster is a town of about 10,300 people in New York. There are 26 licensed TV transmitters within 70 miles: 15 full-power, 4 Class A and 7 low-power. Based on each transmitter's power, antenna height and distance, 14 are likely to arrive at fair strength or better, and 9 at good or strong strength.

14 of them are within 25 miles of Lancaster, 0 sit 25 to 45 miles away and 12 are more than 45 miles out. Five of the 11 network stations in range are licensed to Buffalo, so most of the network channels you will find here come from Buffalo's stations.

For the networks, the best local options are ABC on channel 7 (WKBW-TV), CBS on channel 4 (WIVB-TV), NBC on channel 2 (WGRZ), Fox on channel 29 (WUTV), CW on channel 23 (WNLO), ION on channel 51 (WPXJ-TV) and MeTV on channel 67.3 (WBBZ-TV). 4 full-power stations in range have no network listed in our data; these are typically public television, religious, shopping or independent stations.

The main network towers around Lancaster are in different directions: ABC 172° S (18 mi), CBS 172° S (17 mi), NBC 157° SSE (14 mi) and Fox 304° WNW (16 mi). Aim at the farthest one you want first, or use a multi-directional antenna.

Three network stations, WIVB-TV, WNLO and WKBW-TV, transmit from the same tower site about 17 miles south of Lancaster (172° S). That one direction covers every station on the site.

Of the 7 full-power and Class A network signals that reach Lancaster at fair strength or better, 57% arrive from the south; the rest are spread across two other directions.

All of the main network towers are within their radio horizon as seen from Lancaster, so signals arrive fairly directly and a well-placed antenna should hold them steadily.

The farthest main network tower for Lancaster is WKBW-TV (ABC), 18 miles away with a strong estimated signal. That is why we suggest an indoor antenna here. Viewers who do not need that station can often manage with less.

WPXJ-TV is only 14 miles away with a strong signal. Signals that strong can overload an amplifier, so start without one and add it only if distant channels are missing. Read when an amplifier helps.

With 14 stations at fair strength or better, Lancaster ranks 797th of 1,012 places in New York: fewer than the typical New York town (23). Its nearest major network tower is 14 miles away, against a state median of 22 miles.

34% of New York's cities and towns get the same recommendation: an indoor antenna. The nearest larger city is Cheektowaga, 4.3 miles away.