San Antonio TV Stations: Every Local Channel and How to Watch Them

San Antonio TV stations list

These are the main full-power stations in the San Antonio TV market, from FCC records and the RabbitEars San Antonio market list, checked October 18, 2026. "Broadcasts on" is the real frequency your antenna needs, which is often not the number your TV shows.

Channel	Network	Call sign	Broadcasts on
2	MyNetworkTV	KCWX (Fredericksburg)	VHF 8
4	NBC	WOAI-TV	UHF 28
4.2	The CW ("CW 35")	WOAI-TV	UHF 28
5	CBS	KENS	UHF 29
9	PBS	KLRN	VHF 9
12	ABC	KSAT-TV	VHF 9 (on KLRN's signal)
17	UniMás	KNIC-DT (Blanco)	UHF 18
23	TBN	KHCE-TV	UHF 16
26	ION	KPXL-TV (Uvalde)	UHF 26
29	FOX	KABB	UHF 30
35	Roar	KMYS (Kerrville)	VHF 8 (on KCWX's signal)
41	Univision	KWEX-DT	UHF 24
60	Telemundo	KVDA	UHF 15

One name to know: CW 35 is no longer on channel 35. The CW moved to WOAI's subchannel 4.2 in September 2021 and kept the "CW 35" name, while KMYS on 35 now shows the Roar network. Several low-power stations add more, such as Estrella TV on 10.1 and TVSA on 16.1.

What channel is ABC, CBS, NBC and FOX in San Antonio?

• ABC is channel 12, KSAT.
• CBS is channel 5, KENS.
• NBC is channel 4, WOAI.
• FOX is channel 29, KABB.
• PBS is channel 9, KLRN.
• The CW is channel 4.2, still called CW 35.

For every subchannel, and the numbers that come from someone else's tower, see our full guide to San Antonio channel numbers.

Moving from Houston or Dallas? The numbers change completely. ABC is 13 in Houston and 8 in Dallas-Fort Worth, and CBS is 11 in both. Our guide to local channels in Texas has every market side by side.

San Antonio TV news stations

San Antonio has four English-language newsrooms on the main networks: KSAT 12 (ABC), KENS 5 (CBS), News 4 San Antonio on WOAI (NBC) and FOX San Antonio on KABB 29. Univision 41 and Telemundo 60 carry Spanish-language news. Spectrum News San Antonio adds a 24-hour local news channel.

Most of these stations also stream their newscasts free on their own websites and apps. That covers the news, but not the full channel. Network shows and most games are not part of those streams.

Free subchannels on San Antonio TV

A subchannel is an extra channel a station broadcasts next to its main one, numbered like 4.2. San Antonio has dozens, all free with an antenna:

Channel	Network
4.2, 4.3, 4.4	The CW, Antenna TV, Charge!
5.2 to 5.6	Quest, True Crime Network, Outlaw, Jewelry TV, KENS weather
9.2, 9.3, 9.4	World, PBS Kids, Create
12.2, 12.3, 12.4, 12.5	MeTV, Movies!, Heroes & Icons, Start TV
29.2, 29.3	Comet, Rewind TV
60.2 to 60.5	TeleXitos, Cozi TV, NBC True CRMZ, Oxygen

For example, KSAT's MeTV on 12.2 actually comes from Telemundo's KVDA signal, and Heroes & Icons on 12.4 rides on KENS. So if 12.2 comes in but 12.1 does not, your TV is not haunted. The two channels simply come from different transmitters.

Which area the San Antonio stations cover

The same stations serve the whole San Antonio TV market, not just the city. It is the 31st-largest TV market in the US, per Nielsen, as listed in Mass media in San Antonio. The market includes New Braunfels, Seguin, Schertz, Boerne and the Hill Country around Kerrville and Fredericksburg. Several stations are licensed to towns outside the city: KNIC 17 to Blanco, KPXL 26 to Uvalde, KMYS 35 to Kerrville and KCWX 2 to Fredericksburg.

San Marcos and everything north of it watch Austin stations instead, and Victoria has its own small market. Our Austin TV stations guide covers the market next door.

Why KSAT 12 drops out on San Antonio antennas

ABC 12 and PBS 9 are the San Antonio channels most likely to break up, because both now arrive on one VHF signal. VHF is the older TV band, channels 2 to 13. Small flat indoor antennas handle it poorly.

Here is what changed. On May 6, 2024, KSAT converted its own transmitter on VHF 12 to NextGen TV, the newer ATSC 3.0 standard. Its regular channels moved to other stations, per the KSAT-TV station record. Ordinary TVs now get ABC 12 from KLRN's VHF 9 signal. So if PBS 9 is weak at your house, ABC 12 will be weak too.

San Antonio viewers know this one well. During the Spurs' 2026 Finals run on ABC, a reply with 44 upvotes on r/sanantonio said ABC is "nearly impossible to pick up on an antenna here." Another viewer noted that the KSAT question "gets posted here every year once football season starts."

Living close to KSAT does not help, sadly. In that second thread, a viewer living a few miles from KSAT's St. Mary's Street studio still could not get it. The studio there makes the news. The tower that sends it stands about 18 miles southeast, near Calaveras Lake.

Our finding: We worked out the distance and direction of every main San Antonio tower from its coordinates. NBC, CBS, ABC, PBS, FOX, Univision and Telemundo all broadcast from 11 to 18 miles southeast of downtown, at a bearing of about 125 degrees. The exceptions are UniMás 17, about 19 miles north, and the NextGen signal on KMYS, about 27 miles west-northwest. So homes on the northwest side have the longest path to the main towers.

Three things fix most ABC 12 problems:

1. Use an antenna rated for VHF-high, not a flat UHF-only model. Many cheap indoor antennas are tuned for UHF.
2. Aim it southeast and put it as high as you can, ideally in an attic or on the roof.
3. Rescan your TV. If you last scanned before May 2024, your TV may still be looking for ABC on the old frequency.

That matches what works for locals. One viewer near the airport mounted an outdoor antenna high on a pole and aimed it southeast. The result, in their words: "I get Ksat/ABC most of the time." Before you buy anything, the FCC reception map shows the signal strength at your exact address.

NextGen TV in San Antonio

Yes, San Antonio has NextGen TV on two shared signals. KSAT on VHF 12 carries the ATSC 3.0 versions of CBS 5, PBS 9, ABC 12, Univision 41 and Telemundo 60. KMYS on UHF 32 carries MyNetworkTV 2, NBC 4, FOX 29 and Roar 35. You need a NextGen-capable TV or tuner to see them.

Some viewers have better luck with KSAT this way, because the NextGen signal comes from KSAT's own tower. One wrote that after adding a NextGen converter, "I now have no issues getting KSAT or NBC."

One catch: the NextGen versions of CBS 5, ABC 12 and Telemundo 60 are encrypted, a lock called DRM. Some NextGen tuners and network boxes can't play encrypted channels. In the same thread, a viewer with a network tuner box still could not get ABC. Older TVs keep showing the regular versions, so nothing breaks if you skip NextGen.

How to watch San Antonio local channels without cable

You have five options in San Antonio, and each trades price against convenience a little differently:

Option	What it costs	San Antonio locals	Watch out for
Antenna	One-time purchase	Every station you can receive	ABC 12 and PBS 9 on VHF indoors
Cable (Spectrum, Astound Grande and others)	Spectrum Stream TV Signature from $100 a month for the first year	All main locals	Broadcast TV surcharge, box fees, price after year one
Live-TV streaming (YouTube TV, DIRECTV streaming)	YouTube TV $82.99 a month; DIRECTV Entertainment $89.99	Main San Antonio locals	Lineups vary by ZIP code, so check yours first
Free station apps	Free	Local news streams from KSAT, KENS and others	News only, not the full channel
IPTVZ	From $29.99 for 3 months, $74.99 for 12	All nine main San Antonio stations	Needs a steady connection, about 15 Mbps per HD screen

Each option has a weak spot. The antenna is free but fights ABC 12. Cable is simple but adds a surcharge and box fees. Streaming and IPTV both depend on your internet, so a weak evening connection shows up as buffering, whatever the service.

Prices from spectrum.com, YouTube TV and DIRECTV, checked October 17, 2026. Spectrum is the main cable company in San Antonio. Our guide to leaving Spectrum in San Antonio breaks down a real bill, and the Dallas-Fort Worth Spectrum guide does the same for DFW.

For IPTVZ, we checked the San Antonio stations against our panel's channel lists in October 2026. All nine main stations are in the lineup: NBC 4, CBS 5, PBS 9, ABC 12, UniMás 17, FOX 29, CW 35, Univision 41 and Telemundo 60. So are Spectrum News San Antonio and a Spurs team channel. Search the full IPTVZ channel list for any other station. The 12-month plan works out to about $6.25 a month, and nobody has to climb into the attic. Our guide to IPTV in San Antonio covers the internet speed and devices you need.

Spurs and San Antonio sports on TV

The Spurs moved to DAZN for the 2026-27 season, after their old regional sports network deal ended. DAZN costs $19.99 a month or $119.99 for the season. It carries every game that is not on national TV, per News 4 San Antonio. The team also promised 22 games free over the air on a local partner, which had not been formally named by mid-October.

• National games air on NBC, Peacock, ESPN, ABC and Prime Video. The Spurs play Oklahoma City on NBA opening night, October 20, on NBC 4 and Peacock, per the Sports Media Watch Spurs TV schedule.
• Texas Longhorns and Texas A&M play in the SEC, mostly on ESPN, ABC 12 and SEC Network.
• UTSA football plays in the American Conference, mostly on ESPN networks.

IPTVZ carries a San Antonio Spurs team channel, ESPN, SEC Network and the local network stations. Our guide to watching the Spurs in 2026-27 prices every option.

Spanish-language TV in San Antonio

San Antonio has three big Spanish-language stations: Univision on 41 (KWEX), Telemundo on 60 (KVDA) and UniMás on 17 (KNIC). Estrella TV is on low-power channel 10.1, and TeleXitos on 60.2. Univision 41 also appears as 17.2 on KNIC's signal, which helps north of the city, closer to KNIC's tower.

IPTVZ includes Univision San Antonio, Telemundo San Antonio and UniMás, plus Galavisión and Spanish sports on FOX Deportes, ESPN Deportes and TUDN. Our guide to Spanish-language TV in San Antonio compares the options, like our guide to Spanish-language TV in Houston.

San Antonio local TV FAQ

What channel is ABC in San Antonio?

ABC is channel 12, KSAT. For regular TVs it now broadcasts on KLRN's VHF 9 signal, so an antenna that receives PBS 9 also gets ABC 12.

What channel is CBS in San Antonio?

CBS is channel 5, KENS. It broadcasts on UHF 29 from the tower farm southeast of the city.

What channel is NBC in San Antonio?

NBC is channel 4, WOAI. The CW is on its subchannel 4.2, still branded CW 35.

What channel is FOX in San Antonio?

FOX is channel 29, KABB, on UHF 30.

What channels are on KSAT 12?

KSAT's main channel is ABC on 12.1. Its subchannels are MeTV on 12.2, Movies! on 12.3, Heroes & Icons on 12.4 and Start TV on 12.5. They come from different transmitters around the market.

How can I watch KENS 5 without cable?

KENS 5 is on UHF 29, which most antennas receive more easily than KSAT. You can also watch it on live-TV streaming services and on IPTVZ, and KENS streams its newscasts on its own website.

What news stations are in San Antonio?

In English: KSAT 12 (ABC), KENS 5 (CBS), News 4 San Antonio on WOAI (NBC) and FOX San Antonio on KABB 29. Univision 41 and Telemundo 60 carry Spanish-language news, and Spectrum News San Antonio runs around the clock.

Why did I lose KSAT 12 on my antenna?

KSAT switched its own VHF 12 tower to NextGen TV on May 6, 2024. Regular ABC 12 moved to KLRN's VHF 9 signal. Rescan your TV, and use an antenna rated for VHF aimed southeast.

Which way should I point my antenna in San Antonio?

Southeast. Most main towers are 11 to 18 miles southeast of downtown. UniMás 17 is the exception, about 19 miles north.

How can I watch the Spurs without cable in 2026-27?

Local games stream on DAZN for $19.99 a month or $119.99 for the season. National games air on NBC, ESPN, ABC and Prime Video, and 22 games will air free on a local station.

Can I watch San Antonio channels outside San Antonio?

Not with an antenna. Over the internet you can: IPTVZ carries the main San Antonio stations wherever you have a connection.

The easiest way to get every San Antonio channel

• ABC 12, CBS 5, NBC 4, PBS 9 and FOX 29 are San Antonio's main networks.
• Regular ABC 12 now comes from KLRN's VHF 9 signal, so use a VHF antenna aimed southeast.
• The Spurs stream on DAZN in 2026-27, with 22 free games on local TV.
• IPTVZ carries all nine main San Antonio stations for $74.99 a year.

Try it with your own channels first. A free 24-hour IPTVZ trial takes a couple of minutes, and plans start at $29.99 for 3 months.