Akihabara is a major shopping area for electronic, computer, anime, and otaku goods, including new and used items. New items are mostly to be found on the main street, Chūōdōri, with many kinds of used items found in the back streets of Soto Kanda 3-chōme. New parts for PC-building are readily available from a variety of stores. Tools, electrical parts, wires, microsized cameras and similar items are found in the cramped passageways of Soto Kanda 1-chōme (near the station). Foreign tourists tend to visit the big name shops like Laox or other speciality shops near the station, though there is more variety and lower prices at locales a little further away. Akihabara gained some fame through being home to one of the first stores devoted to personal robots and robotics.
秋葉原是日本一個以秋葉原車站為中心，以大量電子電器賣場、商城與資訊產業企業聚集而聞名的電子商圈（電気街）。
目前秋葉原的商店數目相當多，大部份都賣電子產品、動畫遊戲和成人用品。有人認為秋葉原可能是地球上最大的販賣電子資訊產品地帶，在秋葉原的主要街道中央通已成為新推出電子產品的主要競爭舞台，包括軟體、硬體和二手物品等。而外神田三町目街上，則多販賣電子零件、如配線、工具等等。在外神田的窄街上，則是數位相機、數位攝影機等的主要販賣街道。此外也有一些大型的購物城如Laox，吸引了對小巷子迷糊的觀光客購物。另外在唐·吉坷德秋叶原店8层是女子组合AKB48的公演剧场。