With new ATSC 3.0 broadcast technologies, anyone can enjoy HD and UHD TV for free with a capable antenna, but those living in rural areas stand to benefit the most. If the internet is terrible and you don't want to give SpaceX money for Starlink -- for whatever reason -- then an antenna can be a great way to enjoy high resolution TV just like over streaming services. Better yet, it's free to watch!
Here are some of the best TV antennas for rural areas.
For a great all-round outdoor antenna with everything you need to get started, the Antennas Direct ClearStream 4MAX Kit is a great option. It's a powerful antenna with a multi-directional design, so it doesn't matter where you face it.
It's a little bulky compared to some antennas, and it's very much outdoor-only (you wouldn't want this sitting on your window sill in the living room). But that size gives it great coverage and it's not even the classic ugly-metal-style antenna, so it can fit in with modern rooftops without being an eyesore.
This kit comes with a sturdy mounting solution and a long 30-foot coaxial cable, so it'll connect easily to your various TVs in the house. There's also a built-in amplifier, so you can boost the signal if you need to extend the range, or increase clarity on a particular signal.
The RCA Yagi works perfectly well in both indoor and outdoor locations, though owing to its design this is definitely one to put in the attic. It offers excellent reception at up to 75 miles (and even a little further if you need it) and its mounting solution is very robust. Perfect for installing once and then never having to worry about it again.
Although it is multi-directional, so facing doesn't technically matter, you will get better reception if you mount it in the right orientation. To help you with that, you get a free application with the Yagi that will help you with placement and facing to really get the best picture possible.
The best bit? It's super affordable, too. At just under $40, this is one of the most cost-effective UHD antennas you can buy for high quality TV streaming.
If you live particularly remotely but don't want, or can't have a outdoor antenna, then the Oyned AN-3040 is the best option for you. It promises an extensive range of over 1,200 miles, using the latest technologies to really boost your signal so that wherever you are you'll be able to access some of the latest broadcast TV in HD and UHD resolutions.
Although designed as an indoor antenna, it does come with a waterproof casing, so if you want to mount it outside sometimes, or want to use it differently at different times of year, you can do so! It doesn't have any kind of mounting kit, so you'll need to provide that yourself if you want to put it somewhere outdoors permanently.
The overall design is compact and attractive, though, with no spikey or pointy bits that you need to be careful of. It still takes up a fair amount of room, so it'll need its own dedicated spot in your house, with with a 10m coaxial cable to connect it, you can tuck it away somewhere and still reach all your TVs.
Multi-directional antennas are great, but their signal isn't always as strong as those from uni-directional antennas. The downside of those, is you have to face them in the right direction to get a good signal, which can lock you out of channels from other towers. Not so with the PBD WA-2608, though. This outdoor antenna can be fitted to a remote-rotational mount, so you can use a remote control to adjust its facing. That lets you point it at one tower for a certain program or channel, and then swivel it around when needed to watch something else.
This does make the installation a little more involved, and its mono-directional design might mean that you are having to rotate it somewhat frequently as you jump around channels, but the option is there and if you tend to stick to one or two channels, it's unlikely to be something you do all the time.
Wherever you face it, though, this antenna will deliver a strong signal with a great range of up to 150 miles. It's weatherproof and can even be connected to multiple TVs at once without using a splitter.
Let's face it, most outdoor antennas look ugly. But they don't have to. Take a lookat the Winegard Elite 7550 antenna, with its black, svelte design, and unique fin configuration to help ensure you get a great signal from your outdoor antenna, without it looking like its from the 1950s. This design has a built-in LTE filter to ward off any phone signals, supports 1080p and 4K resolutions, and has a built-in amplifier for those of you in the most remote locations.
It comes with a sturdy mount that lets you place it almost anywhere outside your home -- no roof mounting required -- and it can connect to multiple TVs at once, so you don't need extra splitters.
If you don't mind paying a little more, there's even the Winegard Elite Pro model, which comes with a Bluetooth signal meter and a built-in channel finder to help get the content you most want to watch.
To find the best antennas for rural areas, we look at the top models from the top brands, and compared them on price, performance, range, channel support, and overall design. We tried to offer a balanced range of options covering different wants, needs, and budgets, and made sure that all antennas chosen were reviewed well by third-parties and users.
Where possible, we leveraged our own first-hand experience with some of the best antennas in the world, and spoke to colleagues for their own takes on what makes a great antenna for rural areas.
DigitalTrends is a longstanding technology review publication, with a combined 100+ years of experience among our dedicated editorial teams. We perform in-depth research, our-own lab testing where possible, and conduct in-depth interviews with the best experts to find the most accurate information we can for all our coverage.
John Alexander is a former ESL teacher, current writer and internet addict, and lacks the wisdom to know what the future holds. His writing has appeared in PopSci, HeadPhonesty, WIRED, and Digital Trends. When not working, he can be found playing board games, drinking too much tea, taking long walks, and attempting to read foreign language books.
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This post is brought to you in paid partnership with Best Buy.
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