Chicago Local Channels: How to Watch Free & Without Cable
Last updated: September 21, 2026
Here is every local channel in the Chicago 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 Chicago
Chicago is about as easy as over-the-air TV gets. Almost every full-power station transmits from a single cluster downtown, most of it off the Willis Tower, and the land around the city is famously flat. Point a basic antenna toward the Loop and you will usually pull in the major networks without much trouble. The signal thins out as you push past the collar counties toward the Wisconsin and Indiana lines, where an amplified or outdoor antenna starts to matter.
| Channel | Antenna (Free) | Streaming services |
|---|---|---|
| Fox 32 WFLD · Ch 32 | YesStrong | DirecTV Stream (free trial) Fubo (free trial) Hulu + Live TV Sling TV YouTube TV (free trial) |
| Marquee MARQ | Nocable/stream only | Fubo (free trial) |
| Univision 66 WGBO · Ch 66 | YesGood | Fubo (free trial) |
| MyNetworkTV 50 WPWR | YesGood | Fubo (free trial) Hulu + Live TV YouTube TV (free trial) |
| UniMás WXFT | YesGood | Fubo (free trial) |
| The U WCIU · Ch 26 | YesGood | YouTube TV (free trial) |
| ABC 7 WLS · Ch 7 | YesStrong | Fubo (free trial) Hulu + Live TV Sling TV YouTube TV (free trial) |
| CBS 2 WBBM · Ch 2 | YesStrong | Fubo (free trial) Hulu + Live TV YouTube TV (free trial) |
| NBC 5 WMAQ · Ch 5 | YesStrong | Fubo (free trial) Hulu + Live TV Sling TV YouTube TV (free trial) |
| Telemundo 44 WSNS · Ch 44 | YesGood | Fubo (free trial) Hulu + Live 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 Chicago 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| WBBM-TV 2VHF | CBS | CBS News and Stations | 1946 |
| WMAQ-TV 5UHF | NBC | NBC Owned Television Stations | 1948 |
| WLS-TV 7UHF | ABC | ABC Owned Television Stations | 1948 |
| WGN-TV 9UHF | The CW | Nexstar Media Group | 1948 |
| WTTW 11UHF | PBS | Window to the World Communications, Inc. | 1955 |
| WCIU-TV 26UHF | Ind. | Weigel Broadcasting | 1964 |
| WFLD 32UHF | Fox | Fox Television Stations, LLC | 1966 |
| WWTO-TV 35UHF | TBN | Trinity Broadcasting Network | 1986 |
| WCPX-TV 38UHF | Ion Television | Ion Media | 1976 |
| WSNS-TV 44UHF | Telemundo | Telemundo Station Group | 1970 |
| WPWR-TV 50UHF | Independent/MyNetworkTV | Fox Television Stations, LLC | 1982 |
| WYIN 56UHF | PBS | Northwest Indiana Public Broadcasting, Inc. | 1987 |
| WTVK 59VHF | Infomercials | Venture Technologies Group | 1999 |
| WXFT-DT 60UHF | UniMás | TelevisaUnivision | 1982 |
| WJYS 62UHF | Ind. | Millennial Telecommunications, Inc. | 1991 |
| WGBO-DT 66UHF | Univision | TelevisaUnivision | 1981 |
Low-power
| Station | What it carries | Owner | On air since |
|---|---|---|---|
| WRME-LD 6VHF | Jewelry TV | Venture Technologies Group | 2003 |
| WOCK-CD 13VHF | — | KM Communications | — |
| WRJK-LD 22UHF | Diya TV | Major Market Broadcasting | — |
| WWME-CD 23UHF | MeTV | Weigel Broadcasting | 1989 |
| WPVN-CD 24UHF | — | Innovate Corp. | 1987 |
| W31EZ-D 25 | — | — | — |
| WLPD-CD 30UHF | TBN Inspire, YTA TV | Trinity Broadcasting Network | 1988 |
| WRME-LD 33VHF | Jewelry TV | Venture Technologies Group | 2003 |
| WEDE-CD 34UHF | — | First United, Inc. | 1989 |
| WESV-LD 40 | Estrella | — | — |
| WMEU-CD 48UHF | Ind. | Weigel Broadcasting | — |
| KPDS-LD 49 | — | — | — |
| WDCI-LD 57 | WILC-CD 8 | — | — |
Defunct
| Station | What it carries | Owner | On air since |
|---|---|---|---|
| WHNW-LD 18UHF | — | Family Broadcasting Corporation | 1974 |
| WYCC 20UHF | PBS | Window to the World Communications, Inc. | 1965 |
| WOCH-CD 41UHF | — | NRJ TV, LLC | 1989 |
| WCAE 50 | — | Lake Central School Corporation | 1967 |
| WLXT-TV 60 | — | South Kane-Kendall Broadcasting Corporation | 1969 |
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 Chicago
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 | 1 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 Chicago Transmitters?
Most of the dial transmits from within 0 miles, so a flat indoor antenna in a window facing the towers is usually enough. 1 station transmit from farther out, up to 39 miles, and those are the ones you lose first in bad weather. The towers sit in 3 different directions (southwest, north, south), so either point at the cluster you care about most or use a rotor. WBBM-TV broadcasts 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| WXFT-DT UniMás | 0 miles | southwest | UHF |
| WCPX-TV Ion Television | 0 miles | southwest | UHF |
| WLS-TV ABC | 0 miles | southwest | UHF |
| WBBM-TV CBS | 0 miles | southwest | VHF |
| WEDE-CDlow power | 0 miles | southwest | UHF |
| WMEU-CD Ind.low power | 0 miles | southwest | UHF |
| WMAQ-TV NBC | 0 miles | southwest | UHF |
| WYCC PBSlow power | 0 miles | southwest | UHF |
| WPWR-TV Independent/MyNetworkTV | 0 miles | southwest | UHF |
| WSNS-TV Telemundo | 0 miles | southwest | UHF |
| WFLD Fox | 0 miles | southwest | UHF |
| WCIU-TV Ind. | 0 miles | southwest | UHF |
| WTTW PBS | 0 miles | southwest | UHF |
| WWME-CD MeTVlow power | 0 miles | southwest | UHF |
| WGN-TV The CW | 0 miles | southwest | UHF |
| WGBO-DT Univision | 1 miles | north | UHF |
| WOCH-CDlow power | 1 miles | north | UHF |
| WRME-LD Jewelry TVlow power | 1 miles | north | VHF |
| WRJK-LD Diya TVlow power | 1 miles | north | UHF |
| WRME-LD Jewelry TVlow power | 1 miles | north | VHF |
| WLPD-CD TBN Inspirelow power | 1 miles | north | UHF |
| WCAElow power | 17 miles | south | — |
| WLXT-TVlow power | 27 miles | west | — |
| WYIN PBS | 39 miles | south | UHF |
| WHNW-LDlow power | 78 miles | east | UHF |
Measured from downtown Chicago in a straight line. Hills, buildings and how high your antenna sits matter as much as the distance.
Sports in the Chicago Market
Teams that call this market home, with the full breakdown of where each game airs:
- Chicago Cubs (MLB)
- Chicago White Sox (MLB)
- Chicago Bulls (NBA)
- Chicago Sky (WNBA)
Regional sports networks carried here, which is where most local games actually live:
| Network | Services confirmed to carry it |
|---|---|
| Marquee Sports Network | Fubo |
| NBC Sports Chicago | Fubo and Hulu + Live TV |
| NBC Sports Chicago Plus | Fubo |
| NBC Sports Chicago Plus 2 | Fubo |
Chicago Market at a Glance
| Market rank | #3 of 210 US TV markets |
| Stations on the air | 34 |
| Networks carried over the air | 21, including CBS, NBC, ABC, The CW, PBS, Ind., Fox, TBN |
| Station groups | CBS News and Stations, NBC Owned Television Stations, ABC Owned Television Stations, Nexstar Media Group, Window to the World Communications, Inc., Weigel Broadcasting |
| Oldest station | on air since 1946 |