The Toolbox — Frequencies

Marine

VHF marine channels, Coast Guard frequencies, port operations, commercial fishing, NOAA weather, MF/HF distress, NAVTEX, and DSC channels.

VHF Marine Channels

Channel	Frequency (MHz)	Use
01A	156.050	Port operations / VTS
06	156.300	Intership safety
07A	156.350	Commercial
08	156.400	Commercial intership
09	156.450	Boater calling (commercial and non-commercial)
10	156.500	Commercial
11	156.550	VTS / port operations
12	156.600	Port operations
13	156.650	Bridge-to-bridge navigation (1W limit)
14	156.700	Port operations / VTS
16	156.800	International distress, safety, and calling — monitor always
17	156.850	State control
18A	156.900	Commercial
19A	156.950	Commercial
20A	157.000	Port operations
21A	157.050	US Coast Guard
22A	157.100	US Coast Guard liaison
23A	157.150	US Coast Guard
24	157.200	Public correspondence
25	157.250	Public correspondence
26	157.300	Public correspondence
27	157.350	Public correspondence
28	157.400	Public correspondence
63A	156.175	Port operations / VTS
65A	156.275	Port operations
66A	156.325	Port operations
67	156.375	Commercial / US Coast Guard
68	156.425	Non-commercial
69	156.475	Non-commercial
70	156.525	DSC only — voice prohibited
71	156.575	Non-commercial
72	156.625	Non-commercial intership only
73	156.675	Port operations
74	156.725	Port operations
77	156.875	Port operations / intership
78A	156.925	Non-commercial
79A	156.975	Commercial
80A	157.025	Commercial
81A	157.075	US Government
82A	157.125	US Government
83A	157.175	US Coast Guard
84	157.225	Public correspondence
85	157.275	Public correspondence
86	157.325	Public correspondence
87	157.375	Public correspondence
88A	157.425	Commercial intership
WX1	162.550	NOAA Weather Radio
WX2	162.400	NOAA Weather Radio
WX3	162.475	NOAA Weather Radio
WX4	162.425	NOAA Weather Radio
WX5	162.450	NOAA Weather Radio
WX6	162.500	NOAA Weather Radio
WX7	162.525	NOAA Weather Radio

US Coast Guard Channels

Channel 22A is the primary liaison channel for vessel communications with the US Coast Guard. Always establish contact on Channel 16 first, then switch to 22A when instructed.

Channel	Frequency	Use
16	156.800 MHz	Primary watch channel — distress, safety, and calling
21A	157.050 MHz	USCG primary working channel
22A	157.100 MHz	USCG liaison — primary channel for vessel communications with USCG
23A	157.150 MHz	USCG working channel
83A	157.175 MHz	USCG working channel
67	156.375 MHz	USCG / bridge-to-bridge in some areas
70	156.525 MHz	DSC distress and safety — USCG monitors continuously
MF	2.182 MHz	USCG MF watch — silent periods at :00 and :30 past each hour
MF	2.670 MHz	USCG primary MF working frequency

Port Operations Channels

Specific port operations channels vary by port. Check local notices to mariners or the USCG district for the correct VTS frequency at your port.

Channel	Frequency (MHz)	Region	Use
01A	156.050	Most US ports	Port operations / Vessel Traffic Service
11	156.550	Most US ports	VTS — major ports
12	156.600	Most US ports	Port operations
14	156.700	Most US ports	Port operations / VTS
20A	157.000	Most US ports	Port operations
63A	156.175	Selected ports	VTS
73	156.675	Most US ports	Port operations
74	156.725	Most US ports	Port operations
13	156.650	All navigable waters	Bridge-to-bridge — 1 watt maximum power

Commercial Fishing Channels

Commercial fishing vessels primarily use intership commercial channels. Channel 08 is the most widely used for commercial intership communications in the US fishing industry.

Channel	Frequency (MHz)	Use
07A	156.350	Commercial fishing — intership
08	156.400	Commercial intership — fishing industry primary
10	156.500	Commercial — fishing industry
18A	156.900	Commercial — fishing industry
19A	156.950	Commercial — fishing industry
67	156.375	Commercial — fishing and Coast Guard
79A	156.975	Commercial — fishing industry
80A	157.025	Commercial — fishing industry
88A	157.425	Commercial intership — fishing

NOAA Weather Radio Frequencies

NOAA Weather Radio broadcasts continuous weather information 24/7. WX1 (162.550 MHz) has the highest transmitter power and widest coverage in most areas. All modern marine VHF radios receive WX channels.

Channel	Frequency	Coverage
WX1	162.550 MHz	Primary — highest power, widest coverage
WX2	162.400 MHz	Secondary
WX3	162.475 MHz	Secondary
WX4	162.425 MHz	Secondary
WX5	162.450 MHz	Secondary
WX6	162.500 MHz	Secondary
WX7	162.525 MHz	Secondary

MF/HF Distress & Working Frequencies

Frequency	Use
2.182 MHz	International MF radiotelephone distress and calling
2.187.5 kHz	MF DSC distress and calling (Channel 70 equivalent)
2.670 MHz	US Coast Guard working frequency
4.125 MHz	Maritime mobile distress and calling (HF)
4.207.5 kHz	HF DSC distress
6.215 MHz	Maritime mobile distress and calling
6.312 kHz	HF DSC distress
8.291 MHz	Maritime mobile distress and calling
8.414.5 kHz	HF DSC distress
12.290 MHz	Maritime mobile distress and calling
12.577 kHz	HF DSC distress
16.420 MHz	Maritime mobile distress and calling
16.804.5 kHz	HF DSC distress
22.000 MHz	Maritime mobile
26.100 MHz	Maritime mobile (tropical)

NAVTEX

Frequency	Use
518 kHz	NAVTEX international broadcasts — English language
490 kHz	NAVTEX national language broadcasts
4.209.5 kHz	NAVTEX HF (some regions)
12.579 kHz	NAVTEX HF (some regions)