Guide · Akihabara

Part of: Things to Do in Akihabara: Local Guide's List

Radio Kaikan, Akihabara: A Floor-by-Floor Guide, Its History, and the Steins;Gate Satellite

Radio Kaikan is the ten-floor building facing Akihabara Station's Electric Town Exit, and it is the single best building for a first visit: trading cards on 1F, 2F, 5F, 7F and 9F, figures and toys on 3F to 7F, dolls on 5F, 7F and 8F, Kaiyodo's own shop on 5F and Volks on 8F. It is also the building where a satellite crashes in Steins;Gate. I run private anime tours here most weeks, and this is often the first building we go up.

Most of Akihabara is many buildings with one theme each. Radio Kaikan is the reverse: one building with nearly every theme, stacked. If you only have an hour, this is the hour.

What is on each floor of Radio Kaikan?

Cards at the bottom and top, figures and toys in the middle, dolls and scale models higher up, a beer hall in the basement and an event space on 10F. The table below is taken from the building's own shop pages, checked on 4 October 2026. Shops change, so treat it as this season's map.

This is the order I walk guests through on my Akihabara anime tour: lift to the top, then down by the stairs, one floor at a time.

Two of these are worth knowing by name. Kaiyodo Hobby Lobby Tokyo on 5F is the figure maker Kaiyodo's own shop. Volks on 8F is the scale-model and Dollfie Dream maker, and the building's listing calls its doll floor the largest DD floor in the world.

Is Radio Kaikan the building from Steins;Gate?

It is the building, but not the same structure. Steins;Gate opens with a satellite crashing into Radio Kaikan's roof. The building in the game was the old Radio Kaikan, which closed in August 2011 and was replaced by the current one in July 2014. In October 2011, just before demolition, a satellite model was mounted on the old building's top floor to recreate the scene.

This is the honest section for Steins;Gate fans. You can stand outside the Electric Town Exit, look up, and see the same name on the same corner. The old facade is gone. AKIBA PC Hotline! reported the 2011 installation: a satellite with solar panels, cracked glass and scorch marks, put up overnight by crane for an autumn festival with Steins;Gate goods and stage events. The new building has hosted Steins;Gate collaboration events too, including one in October 2023, so check the official Radio Kaikan news page before a visit in case one is running.

More Akihabara-set anime locations are in anime pilgrimage in Japan.

Why is Radio Kaikan important in Akihabara's history?

Because the district's story is written into it. According to the building's own history, Radio Kaikan opened in 1950, built Electric Town's first high-rise in 1962, hosted NEC's Bit-INN computer showroom from 1976, and in 1998 brought in K-BOOKS, Kaiyodo and Volks, which it calls the start of Akihabara becoming a figure town.

That timeline is Akihabara in miniature: radios, then computers, then figures. There was even a plaque: in 2001 the old building put up a sign on its 7th floor calling it the birthplace of the personal computer, after the Bit-INN showroom that started the microcomputer boom. How the whole district changed is in what is Akihabara famous for.

How long do you need in Radio Kaikan?

An hour for a look at every floor, two or more if you are shopping seriously. The trick is to take the lift to the top and work your way down, one floor at a time. In my experience weekend afternoons are the busiest time.

The building is small per floor, and the shops are packed tight, so large bags make it harder. If you are carrying luggage, drop it first; luggage storage in Akihabara covers where. And remember the rule on every floor: no photos of the shop interiors or merchandise unless the shop says otherwise. Akihabara etiquette explains why.

Where is Radio Kaikan?

At 1-15-16 Sotokanda, directly across from JR Akihabara's Electric Town Exit. Come out of that exit, look up, and the building is in front of you. If you came out of any other exit, you are on the wrong side of the tracks.

Which exit to use, and how to get there from the airports, is in getting to Akihabara. The building's shops follow its own opening hours, with the basement restaurant on different hours; check the official access page on the day.

Frequently asked questions

How many floors does Radio Kaikan have? Ten floors above ground plus a basement. The 10th floor is an event space and the basement is a beer hall.

Is the Radio Kaikan in Steins;Gate the same building? Same name and site, different building. The old Radio Kaikan from the game closed in 2011, and the current building opened in July 2014.

Is Radio Kaikan good for figures? Yes. Kaiyodo, Volks, AmiAmi, Yellow Submarine, Lashinbang, Jungle and others are all in the one building.

Does Radio Kaikan have trading card shops? Several. Card Labo, BIG MAGIC and Fullcomp are on 9F, Treca Park on 7F, magi on 5F, and more on 1F and 2F.

Can I take photos inside Radio Kaikan? Outside the building, yes. Inside the shops, assume no unless the shop says otherwise.

Start at the top, work down

Radio Kaikan is where many of my tours start. If you would like the floors after it chosen around the anime you watch, Adventure in Akihabara with Anime is my private half-day walk, three to four hours, never shared with other guests. The price is on the tour page.

About the author. I am Yuuki, a Japanese teacher and Akihabara anime tour guide based in Tokyo. I run private anime tours here most weeks, rated 4.96★ on Airbnb across 171 reviews. I have watched over 1,500 anime series, which is either a qualification or a warning depending on your point of view.

See the Akihabara anime tour →

Sources: Akihabara Radio Kaikan Co., Ltd., Floor guide and individual shop pages (floor of every tenant, shop descriptions including Volks Doll Point and Kaiyodo Hobby Lobby Tokyo), Access (1-15-16 Sotokanda; building and basement hours), About Radio Kaikan (1950 opening, 1962 first high-rise, 1976 Bit-INN, 1998 K-BOOKS/Kaiyodo/Volks, 2001 plaque, old building closed 4 August 2011, new building opened 20 July 2014); AKIBA PC Hotline!, "Satellite" embedded in the old Radio Kaikan (29 October 2011; installed overnight 27–28 October; Steins;Gate prologue scene); Inside, Steins;Gate collaboration event at Radio Kaikan (17 October 2023). All checked 4 October 2026. Opening hours are deliberately not given.