Short answer: sometimes, and the reason it's so inconsistent is a licensing system most viewers never hear about. Local stations — your ABC, CBS, FOX and NBC affiliates in the US — negotiate carriage separately with each distributor, market by market. So one streaming service carries your locals and another doesn't, even at similar prices. In the US, YouTube TV and Hulu + Live TV carry locals in most markets; cheaper services like Philo and Frndly carry none. The most reliable way to get local channels remains the oldest: an antenna, which gets them free, with better picture quality than any stream.
Why local channels are different
National cable channels like ESPN or HGTV sign one deal with a distributor and appear everywhere. Local broadcast stations don't work that way.
In the US, each local affiliate is owned by a station group and licensed to a specific television market. Under retransmission consent, any service that wants to carry a station's signal must negotiate with that station's owner, and those deals are struck separately. A streaming service can have a national deal with a network and still lack the right to carry your local affiliate.
That produces three consequences viewers notice:
Coverage varies by ZIP code. The same service carries locals in one city and not the next.
Services check your location. Local channels are only shown inside their licensed market, so live TV apps verify where you are.
Channels disappear in disputes. When a carriage deal lapses, the station goes dark on that service until it's renewed — typically timed around big events for leverage.
Which US services carry locals
| Service | Local channels |
|---|---|
| YouTube TV | ABC, CBS, FOX, NBC in most markets |
| Hulu + Live TV | ABC, CBS, FOX, NBC in most markets |
| DirecTV Stream | Most markets |
| Sling Blue | FOX and NBC in select markets only |
| Philo, Frndly TV | None |
A few single-network routes exist too. Paramount+'s higher tier has included live local CBS, and Peacock's top tier has included live local NBC in many markets. Plan contents change, so confirm on the provider's site.
Before paying for any live TV service, enter your ZIP code in its lineup checker. It's the only reliable answer.
The free options
An antenna receives ABC, CBS, FOX, NBC, PBS and more for free, with no subscription and no ZIP code lottery. It's also uncompressed broadcast, so the picture is typically better than a stream, and it's close to real time — streams run 30–60 seconds behind. An indoor antenna costs around $30–40. Check reception for your address on the FCC's DTV reception maps before buying.
Free local news apps. Some local news is available free through The Roku Channel, Local Now and stations' own apps. Not the full channel, but often enough for news. Roku's free apps are covered here.
Station websites and apps. Many stations stream their newscasts on their own sites.
Getting antenna channels on every screen
The drawback of an antenna is that it feeds one TV. A network tuner fixes that.
An HDHomeRun plugs into the antenna and your router, and makes the local channels available as streams across your home network — phones, tablets, streaming boxes and every TV, with a programme guide and optional recording. It's free local channels delivered as IPTV on your own network. Setting it up with a home server.
Some Roku TVs and other smart TVs have a tuner built in and show antenna channels alongside apps in the same guide.
Outside the US
The picture differs by country, but the principle holds: free-to-air broadcasters are usually easiest to get free, directly.
UK: Freeview through an aerial, or Freely over broadband, with BBC, ITV, Channel 4 and Channel 5. UK guide.
Canada: an antenna gets CBC, CTV, Global and Citytv in most cities. Canada guide.
Germany and France: ARD and ZDF Mediatheken, and the TNT in France, cover public broadcasters free. Germany, France.
About services promising every local channel
Services that advertise locals from every US city — or a full set of local channels at a price well below YouTube TV — are claiming carriage rights that don't exist. Retransmission consent is negotiated station by station, and there's no licensed service that offers every market's locals everywhere.
Quick answers
Does IPTV include local channels? Depends on the service and your ZIP code. YouTube TV and Hulu + Live TV usually do; Philo and Frndly don't.
Why does my service carry locals in one city but not another? Carriage is negotiated station by station, market by market.
What's the cheapest way to get local channels? An antenna — free after the one-off purchase.
Can I watch locals from another city? Not through licensed services; they're restricted to their market.
Why did my local channel disappear? Usually a carriage dispute between the station owner and the service.
Can I stream antenna channels around the house? Yes, with a network tuner like HDHomeRun.
Sources: US retransmission consent rules as administered by the FCC; published local-channel availability for major live TV services. Coverage and plan contents change — check the provider's ZIP code lookup before subscribing.