San Francisco Local Channels: How to Watch Free & Without Cable
Last updated: October 13, 2026
Here is every local channel in the San Francisco market, whether you can pull it in free with an antenna, and which live TV streaming services carry it. Click any channel for the full free-and-without-cable rundown.
Antenna Reception in San Francisco
The Bay Area is one of the trickiest over-the-air markets in the country, and it is all about the hills. Most stations transmit from Sutro Tower in San Francisco and San Bruno Mountain just to the south, but the same hills that give the city its character block signals street by street. One side of a hill gets a clean picture, the other gets nothing. The South Bay and San Jose often lean on their own translators. If you are serious about antenna TV here, a rooftop or attic antenna with a clear shot toward Sutro Tower is usually the difference between a full lineup and a handful of channels.
| Channel | Antenna (Free) | Streaming services |
|---|---|---|
| CBS KPIX · Ch 5 | YesGood | Fubo (free trial) Hulu + Live TV YouTube TV (free trial) |
| FOX KTVU · Ch 2 | YesGood | DirecTV Stream (free trial) Fubo (free trial) Hulu + Live TV Sling TV YouTube TV (free trial) |
| NBC KNTV · Ch 11 | YesGood | DirecTV Stream (free trial) Fubo (free trial) Hulu + Live TV Sling TV YouTube TV (free trial) |
| Univision KDTV · Ch 14 | YesGood | Fubo (free trial) |
| Telemundo KSTS · Ch 48 | YesGood | Fubo (free trial) Hulu + Live TV YouTube TV (free trial) |
| KTVU Plus KICU | Nocable/stream only | Fubo (free trial) |
| The CW KBCW · Ch 44 | YesGood | DirecTV Stream (free trial) Fubo (free trial) Hulu + Live TV YouTube TV (free trial) |
| UniMás KFSF | YesGood | Fubo (free trial) |
| ABC KGO · Ch 7 | YesGood | Fubo (free trial) Hulu + Live TV Sling TV YouTube TV (free trial) |
Antenna reception is free with a one-time antenna purchase. Services tagged “free trial” let you watch at no cost during the trial window; the rest require a paid subscription from day one.
Every Station in the San Francisco Market
The streaming lineup above only covers the channels the live TV services carry. Over the air there is more: public television, independents, religious broadcasters and the low-power stations that carry the diginets. Here is the full market.
Full power
| Station | What it carries | Owner | On air since |
|---|---|---|---|
| KTVU 2UHF | Fox | Fox Television Stations, LLC | 1958 |
| KRON-TV 4VHF | The CW | Nexstar Media Group | 1949 |
| KPIX-TV 5UHF | CBS | CBS News and Stations | 1948 |
| KGO-TV 7VHF | ABC | ABC Owned Television Stations | 1949 |
| KQED 9 | PBS | KQED Inc. | — |
| KNTVVHF | 11.1 NBC, 48.2 Telemundo | NBC Owned Television Stations | 1955 |
| KDTV-DT 14UHF | Univision | TelevisaUnivision | 1975 |
| KOFY-TV 20UHF | Estrella TV | CNZ Communications, LLC | 1968 |
| KRCB 22VHF | PBS | Northern California Public Media | 1984 |
| KTSF 26UHF | Chinese Independent | Lincoln Broadcasting Company, a California LP | 1976 |
| KMTP-TV 32UHF | Noncommercial Independent | Minority Television Project | 1991 |
| KICU-TV 36UHF | Independent/MyNetworkTV | Fox Television Stations, LLC | 1967 |
| KCNS 38UHF | Shop LC | WRNN-TV Associates | 1986 |
| KTNC-TV 42UHF | TCT | Total Christian Television | 1983 |
| KPYX 44UHF | Independent | CBS News and Stations | 1968 |
| KSTSUHF | 48.1 Telemundo, 11.2 NBC | Telemundo Station Group | 1981 |
| KEMO-TV 50UHF | QVC+ Everyday Refresh | Innovate Corp. | 1981 |
| KQEH 54UHF | PBS | KQED Inc. | 1964 |
| KPJK 60UHF | Educational Independent | Northern California Public Media | 1964 |
| KKPX-TV 65UHF | Ion Television | Ion Media | 1986 |
| KFSF-DT 66UHF | UniMás | TelevisaUnivision | 1986 |
| KTLN-TV 68UHF | Heroes & Icons | Weigel Broadcasting | 1998 |
Low-power
| Station | What it carries | Owner | On air since |
|---|---|---|---|
| KAXT-CD 1UHF | Catchy Comedy, theDove | Weigel Broadcasting | 1989 |
| KBKF-LD 6VHF | Suno 87.7, News of the World, Jewelry TV | Venture Technologies Group, LLC | 2004 |
| KSCZ-LD 16 | Vietnamese, Jewelry TV, Diya TV | — | — |
| KCNZ-CD 28UHF | LATV, Estrella TV | CNZ Communications | 1994 |
| KQRO-LD 45 | Sports First TV | — | — |
| KDTS-LD 52 | Daystar | — | — |
Santa Rosa/<br>Sonoma County
| Station | What it carries | Owner | On air since |
|---|---|---|---|
| KDAS-LD | Jewelry TV, theDove | — | — |
| KDTV-CD 28UHF | Univision | TelevisaUnivision | 1975 |
| KFTY-LD 45 | Timeless TV | — | — |
Fort Bragg/Ukiah/<br>Mendocino County<br>Lakeport/Clearlake/<br>Lake County
| Station | What it carries | Owner | On air since |
|---|---|---|---|
| K17CG-D 3UHF | NBC | Hearst Television | 1955 |
| K27EE-D 5UHF | CBS, Religious Independent | CBS News and Stations | 1948 |
| K21CD-D 7VHF | ABC | ABC Owned Television Stations | 1949 |
| KQSL / K15FJ-D 8VHF | TLN West | One Ministries, Inc. | 1990 |
| K31GK-D 9 | PBS | KQED Inc. | — |
Defunct
| Station | What it carries | Owner | On air since |
|---|---|---|---|
| K51AQ-D 4VHF | — | Nexstar Media Group | 1949 |
| KEXT-CD 27 | — | — | — |
| KSAN-TV/KNEW-TV/KQEC 32 | Independent/PBS | — | — |
| KUDO/KVOF-TV 38 | — | Gene Scott | 1968 |
| KCFT-TV 42 | Independent | Jerry Bassett, Inc. | 1966 |
Transmission<br>facilities
| Station | What it carries | Owner | On air since |
|---|---|---|---|
| Monument Peak | — | — | — |
| Mt. Allison | — | — | — |
| San Bruno Mountain | — | — | — |
| Sutro Tower | — | Sutro Tower, Inc. | — |
Station details come from public FCC filings and each station’s own record. Subchannel lineups change more often than main channels do.
The Cheapest Way to Get All Four Networks in San Francisco
An antenna is the only free answer, and in this market it gets you all of them. If you want them streamed instead, Fubo at $79.99 a month is the cheapest service that carries every one of the 4 network stations here.
| Service | Price | Carries all 4 |
|---|---|---|
| Sling TV | $45.99/mo | 3 of 4 |
| DirecTV Stream | $59.99/mo | 2 of 4 |
| Fubo | $79.99/mo | Yes |
| Hulu + Live TV | $82.99/mo | Yes |
| YouTube TV | $82.99/mo | Yes |
Prices are the current base plans and change often. Local carriage is checked at signup by ZIP code.
How Far Are the San Francisco Transmitters?
Most of the dial transmits from within 6 miles, so a flat indoor antenna in a window facing the towers is usually enough. 4 stations transmit from farther out, up to 36 miles, and those are the ones you lose first in bad weather. The towers sit in 3 different directions (southwest, south, southeast), so either point at the cluster you care about most or use a rotor. KGO-TV, KRON-TV, KRCB, KNTV broadcast on VHF, which the small flat antennas sold as "HDTV antennas" are bad at. Check the box says VHF and UHF.
| Station | Distance | Direction | Band |
|---|---|---|---|
| KGO-TV ABC | 3 miles | southwest | VHF |
| KPIX-TV CBS | 3 miles | southwest | UHF |
| KEMO-TV QVC+ Everyday Refresh | 3 miles | southwest | UHF |
| KTVU Fox | 3 miles | southwest | UHF |
| KQEH PBS | 3 miles | southwest | UHF |
| K27EE-D CBSlow power | 3 miles | southwest | UHF |
| KRON-TV The CW | 3 miles | southwest | VHF |
| KTNC-TV TCT | 3 miles | southwest | UHF |
| KPYX Independent | 3 miles | southwest | UHF |
| K21CD-D ABClow power | 3 miles | southwest | VHF |
| KCNS Shop LC | 3 miles | southwest | UHF |
| KMTP-TV Noncommercial Independent | 3 miles | southwest | UHF |
| KRCB PBS | 3 miles | southwest | VHF |
| K51AQ-Dlow power | 3 miles | southwest | VHF |
| KFSF-DT UniMás | 3 miles | southwest | UHF |
| KPJK Educational Independent | 3 miles | southwest | UHF |
| KUDO/KVOF-TV 38low power | 6 miles | south | — |
| KCNZ-CD LATVlow power | 6 miles | south | UHF |
| KOFY-TV Estrella TV | 6 miles | south | UHF |
| KKPX-TV Ion Television | 6 miles | south | UHF |
| KNTV 11.1 NBC | 6 miles | south | VHF |
| KSTS 48.1 Telemundo | 35 miles | southeast | UHF |
| KDTV-CD Univisionlow power | 35 miles | southeast | UHF |
| KAXT-CD Catchy Comedylow power | 35 miles | southeast | UHF |
| KTLN-TV Heroes & Icons | 35 miles | southeast | UHF |
| KDTV-DT Univision | 35 miles | southeast | UHF |
| KICU-TV Independent/MyNetworkTV | 36 miles | southeast | UHF |
| KBKF-LD Suno 87.7low power | 56 miles | southeast | VHF |
| K17CG-D NBClow power | 61 miles | northeast | UHF |
Measured from downtown San Francisco in a straight line. Hills, buildings and how high your antenna sits matter as much as the distance.
Sports in the San Francisco Market
Teams that call this market home, with the full breakdown of where each game airs:
- San Francisco Giants (MLB)
- Golden State Warriors (NBA)
- California Redwoods (PLL)
- Golden State Valkyries (WNBA)
Regional sports networks carried here, which is where most local games actually live:
| Network | Services confirmed to carry it |
|---|---|
| NBC Sports Bay Area | Fubo and Hulu + Live TV |
| NBC Sports California | Fubo and Hulu + Live TV |
| NBC Sports California Plus | Fubo |
| NBC Sports California Plus 3 | Fubo |
San Francisco Market at a Glance
| Market rank | #9 of 210 US TV markets |
| Stations on the air | 45 |
| Networks carried over the air | 34, including Fox, The CW, CBS, ABC, PBS, NBC, Telemundo, Univision |
| Station groups | Fox Television Stations, LLC, Nexstar Media Group, CBS News and Stations, ABC Owned Television Stations, KQED Inc., NBC Owned Television Stations |
| Oldest station | on air since 1948 |