- FOX 7 Austin broadcasts on VHF channel 7; check that your antenna handles VHF.
- Univision 62 is licensed to Killeen and The CW Austin to Llano.
- Rescan whenever a channel disappears.
Central Texas has a full slate of free broadcast TV: the major networks, Austin PBS, Spanish-language stations and a handful of smaller channels, many with extra subchannels. What trips people up is not the number of stations but the numbers on the screen. Your TV shows one channel number while the station transmits on another, and a few of Austin’s stations are licensed to towns an hour away. Here is the line-up, checked against the FCC’s public files.
The stations
| You tune to | Call letters | How the station describes itself | RF channel | FCC license names |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 7 | KTBC | FOX 7 Austin | 7 (VHF) | Austin |
| 14 | KBVO | The CW Austin | 27 | Llano |
| 18 | KLRU | Austin PBS | 22 | Austin |
| 24 | KVUE | KVUE-TV | 33 | Austin |
| 31 | KTFO-CD | – | 36 | Austin |
| 36 | KXAN-TV | the Austin NBC affiliate | 21 | Austin |
| 42 | KEYE-TV | CBS Austin | 34 | Austin |
| 54 | KNVA | – | 23 | Austin |
| 62 | KAKW-DT | Univision 62 Austin | 13 (VHF) | Killeen |
Channel numbers, RF channels and license towns come from each station’s FCC Public Inspection File. The third column uses each station’s own wording on its website; a dash means the station’s site did not say, so we did not guess. KXAN’s website lists KBVO as The CW Austin among its sister stations.
Why the VHF stations matter
Two Austin stations transmit on VHF rather than UHF: KTBC on RF channel 7 and KAKW on RF channel 13. FOX 7 Austin spells this out on its own antenna help page: it broadcasts on channel 7, which runs on the VHF band, and it tells viewers to make sure an antenna is VHF-compatible before buying. Plenty of compact indoor antennas are tuned mainly for UHF, which is why FOX 7 is the station people most often lose. Our guide to The Best TV Antenna for Austin and the Hill Country covers what to look for.
Tip: If every station comes in except FOX 7 or Univision 62, the antenna is the first suspect, not the TV. Check that it is rated for VHF.
Stations licensed outside Austin
KAKW’s license names Killeen and KBVO’s names Llano, while KCWX, another station in the region, is licensed to Fredericksburg. A license town is a legal detail; what decides whether you receive a station is where its transmitter sits and the terrain between it and you. In the Hill Country west of town, hills can block a signal that comes in clearly on the flat land to the east.
A station with a long history
Some of these call letters go back a long way. FOX 7 says KTBC was the first TV station in Central Texas, signing on November 27, 1952. KXAN traces its own start to February 12, 1965, when it went on the air as KHFI-TV on channel 42, and KVUE says it signed on September 12, 1971. Read more in Public Radio and TV in Austin: KUT, KUTX, KMFA, KVRX and Austin PBS and the radio side in Austin Radio Stations by Frequency: The FM and AM Dial.
Subchannels
After a scan you will see decimal channels such as 7.1, 7.2 or 24.3. The first is the station’s main program; the others are extra services each station chooses to carry. They change more often than the main channels, so a rescan now and then is worth it even if nothing seems wrong.
How to scan
- Connect the antenna to the TV’s antenna input.
- Open the menu or setup option and find the channel scan.
- Choose antenna or air if asked, then start the scan; FOX 7 says it should take a couple of minutes.
- Write down which stations appear, so you notice if one disappears later.
Spanish-language channels
Univision 62 Austin is the station’s own name for KAKW, and KTFO-CD shares the same FCC licensee, KAKW License Partnership. FOX 7 also runs FOX 7 Español news segments. Our guide to Spanish-Language TV and Radio in Austin: Univision 62, KLQB and More has the Spanish-language radio side as well.
Without an antenna
Most of these stations also stream their newscasts for free. FOX 7, for example, offers a free 24/7 stream through its FOX LOCAL app, and KXAN promotes its own 24/7 stream, KXAN+. See How to Watch Austin Local News Without Cable for the details.
Licensed outside Austin, aimed at Austin
Several stations on this list have license towns outside the city, but their programming is aimed at the whole region. FOX 7, for example, says it serves Austin, Round Rock and San Marcos, and CBS Austin describes itself as covering the Texas Capitol Region, including Round Rock, Pflugerville, Georgetown, Belton, Killeen, Taylor, Lakeway, Buda and Kyle.
If you are new to Austin, start with a scan and this list side by side. Within a few minutes you will know which stations reach your home clearly, which need a better antenna and which you can simply stream instead.