Local news is the thing cord-cutters miss most — and the easiest to replace. While national cable news splinters into subscription tiers, your local stations are still broadcasting free over the air, streaming free on their apps, and increasingly available on free streaming platforms. You just need to know where to look.
Here’s how to watch local news without a cable subscription: the free methods that cost nothing, the cheap streaming options, and how to set each one up. Most people can be watching their local evening news tonight, free, with about 20 minutes of setup.
The Free Methods to Watch Local News Without Cable
An over-the-air antenna is the best option, full stop. A $25 indoor antenna pulls in your local ABC, CBS, NBC, and Fox affiliates in full HD — free forever, no subscription, no app, no login. That covers the morning shows, the evening newscasts, and breaking-news cut-ins. Picture quality is often better than cable’s, since it’s uncompressed. Check a signal-finder site with your address to confirm reception, mount the antenna near a window, run a channel scan, and you’re done.
Station apps and websites are the second free pillar. Nearly every local station now streams its newscasts live on its app or website — search your station’s call letters in your app store. Most also post segments and full broadcasts on YouTube. And free streaming platforms (the Roku Channel, Tubi, Pluto TV, Samsung TV Plus, and dedicated local-news apps like NewsON and Haystack News) aggregate local newscasts from hundreds of markets. NewsON in particular streams live and on-demand newscasts from 275+ stations nationwide — genuinely free, no catch.
Cheap Streaming Options
If you want local channels integrated with everything else, the live TV streamers (YouTube TV, Hulu + Live TV, Fubo) all include local affiliates in most markets — $40 to $85 a month, which is overkill if news is all you want, but reasonable as a full cable replacement. Paramount+ ($6–$12/month) includes your local CBS station’s live feed; Peacock’s premium tiers include local NBC. These are the cheapest ways to get a specific network’s local news within a broader subscription.
Don’t overlook your library. Many public libraries lend streaming devices, offer free access to news databases, and host community information resources. And for cord-cutters who mainly want weather and headlines, the station apps plus a weather app cover 90% of the ‘glance at the news’ use case for zero dollars. Match the solution to your actual habits — most people overbuy here.
Reference: FCC antenna and reception guide.
Reference: NewsON free local news streaming.
Local News Without Cable: Setup Checklist
Get it running tonight:
- Buy a $25 indoor antenna, place near a window, run a channel scan — free local channels in HD.
- Download your local stations’ apps (search call letters) for live streams and on-demand segments.
- Install NewsON or Haystack News for aggregated free local newscasts from hundreds of markets.
- Check free platforms you already have: Roku Channel, Tubi, Pluto TV, and Samsung TV Plus carry local news.
- Consider Paramount+ or Peacock premium if you specifically want live local CBS or NBC feeds.
- Bookmark station websites for breaking news streams — most stream major events live free.
- Set up a digital antenna DVR (like Tablo) if you want to record newscasts like the old days.
Staying Informed Beyond the Broadcast
The 6 p.m. newscast is only one way to follow local news. Most stations now run text and email newsletters — morning briefings that summarize the day’s local stories in five minutes of reading. Local news podcasts are growing fast in major markets. And following your stations and local reporters on social media gives you breaking news faster than any broadcast — just verify before sharing, since social media is also where local misinformation spreads fastest.
A quick note on supporting local journalism: it’s in crisis, with news deserts expanding as papers close. If you value local news, the free methods above are great — but consider a digital subscription to your local paper too. It’s often $1 to $2 a week, and it’s the single most direct way to keep local reporting alive in your community. Free access and financial support aren’t mutually exclusive; the healthiest news diet includes both.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is an antenna really enough for local news?
For most people, yes — a $25 indoor antenna delivers your local ABC, CBS, NBC, and Fox affiliates in full HD, free forever, covering morning shows, evening newscasts, and breaking-news cut-ins. Picture quality often beats cable’s since it’s uncompressed. Check a signal-finder site with your address first; most urban and suburban locations get excellent reception.
What’s NewsON?
A free app streaming live and on-demand newscasts from 275+ local stations nationwide — no subscription, no catch. It’s the easiest way to watch local news on a phone or streaming device without an antenna, and it also lets you watch newscasts from other cities. For cord-cutters, it’s essential.
Can I record local news without cable?
Yes — networked antenna DVRs (like Tablo) record over-the-air broadcasts to watch later, replicating the old cable-DVR experience for a one-time hardware cost. Many also stream to your phones and devices around the house. It’s the complete cord-cutter news setup: antenna + DVR + free apps.
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To watch local news without cable, start free: a $25 antenna for live HD broadcasts, station apps and NewsON for streaming, and the free tiers of Roku Channel, Tubi, and Pluto TV. Add Paramount+ or Peacock only if you want a specific network’s feed integrated. Twenty minutes of setup, zero monthly cost, and you’ll never miss the evening news again — no cable required.
Set it up tonight: order the $25 antenna, download your stations’ apps while you wait for delivery, and install NewsON on your streaming device. By the weekend you’ll have free local news on every screen in the house — and you’ll wonder why you ever paid for the privilege of watching your own city’s newscast.
