A method for tuning a television receiver in which an optimum local oscillator frequency is selected for offset stations. A local oscillator frequency of the receiver is incremented in steps of a first predetermined frequency interval beginning with a frequency at the bottom of an offset band around the center frequency of the local oscillator. As the local oscillator frequency is scanned, when both an up signal, indicative that the tuning frequency is above a predetermined range around the actual frequency of the received signal, and a down signal, indicative that the tuning frequency is below the predetermined range around the center frequency, the local oscillator is decremented by the first frequency interval and then incremented in a second, smaller frequency interval until the up and down signals are both lost. The local oscillator frequency is then increased and decreased by the first predetermined frequency interval, wherein, if both the up and down signals toggle states, the frequency at which both the up and down signals were lost when scanning with the second frequency interval is accepted as the best tuning frequency.