Toys from Japan

What counts as a "toy" on Japanese sites, and how is the category split?

Into product lines that Japanese sellers and shops treat as separate hobbies, each with its own vocabulary and its own condition rules. プラモデル (plastic model kits, above all Bandai's Gunpla), 超合金 (Chogokin die-cast robots, a Bandai-group line since 1974), S.H.Figuarts and other Tamashii Nations action figures, トミカ die-cast cars and プラレール trains from Takara Tomy, リカちゃん dolls, ガチャ capsule toys, 食玩 (shokugan, toys sold with a token piece of candy) and たまごっち are all listed under different words, so searching おもちゃ (toy) alone reaches almost none of them. The Japanese market also has retail channels that never export: the Japanese Premium Bandai site and the Tamashii web shop sell online-exclusive items to Japanese addresses only, which is where a proxy comes in. OneMall gives you the Japanese address, pays in yen and forwards from our Japan warehouse.

What do HG, MG, RG and PG mean on a Gunpla listing?

The kit grade, which sets the scale, the part count and the size of the box. HG (High Grade) is 1/144, MG (Master Grade) is 1/100, RG (Real Grade) is 1/144 with more detail, and PG (Perfect Grade) is 1/60; Japanese listings put the grade before the mobile suit name. For a used kit the notes that matter are 未組立 (unassembled), 内袋未開封 (inner bags still sealed) and 組立済 (assembled), and for assembled kits whether it is 塗装済 (painted) and whether any ランナー (runner) or part is 欠品 (missing).

• HG / RG / MG / PG — 1/144, 1/144 detailed, 1/100, 1/60
• 未組立 / 内袋未開封 — unassembled / inner bags sealed
• 組立済 / 塗装済 / 素組み — assembled / painted / built without paint
• 欠品 / ランナー欠け — missing part / missing runner
• プレバン限定 — Premium Bandai exclusive kit

How do I read the condition of a boxed Japanese toy?

Separately for the toy and the box, because Japanese sellers describe both and collectors pay for the box. 未開封 means the seal is intact, 開封済 that it was opened, 開封済み未使用 that it was opened but never played with; 箱潰れ and 箱傷み describe the box. Die-cast lines get 塗装剥げ (paint chipping) and トミカ gets 箱付き or ルース (loose, no box). Shop-graded stock from Suruga-ya and Mandarake carries the shop's rank; private listings carry the seller's notes.

• 未開封 / 開封済 / 開封済み未使用 — sealed / opened / opened but unused
• 箱潰れ / 箱傷み / 箱なし — box crushed / box damaged / no box
• 塗装剥げ — paint chipping on die-cast
• ルース — loose, no packaging
• 欠品なし / 付属品完備 — nothing missing / all accessories

Where are Japanese toys sold, new and secondhand?

New from Amazon Japan, Rakuten and the manufacturers' own Japanese online shops; secondhand and sold-out items from Mercari, Yahoo Auctions, Suruga-ya and Mandarake. Premium Bandai exclusives and event items reach the resale sites after each release, and capsule toys and shokugan are sold there as complete sets (コンプ or 全種) that were never available as a set at retail.

What does shipping toys from Japan cost?

It depends on the box, because most toys are light and their boxes are not. A Master Grade kit box is large and almost weightless, so it is priced on volume; a Tomica car is negligible; a Chogokin figure is dense and heavy. At order time you pay the yen price, OneMall's service fee, shown before you confirm, and the seller's domestic shipping if charged; after the items reach our Japan warehouse you choose an international shipping method and pay for it. Consolidating several purchases into one carton is how toy buyers use a proxy. Import duty, if your country charges it, is collected on delivery.

Estimate shipping with the OneMall calculator →

Which Japanese words find toy listings that "toy" never reaches?

The line name, because Japanese sellers list by line and rarely use the general word. Search ガンプラ, 超合金, トミカ, ガチャ or 食玩 with the series name in katakana, and add 未開封 or コンプ to narrow.

• ガンプラ / プラモデル + grade — model kits
• 超合金魂 / フィギュアーツ / ロボット魂 — Bandai collector lines
• トミカ / プラレール / リカちゃん — Takara Tomy lines
• ガチャ コンプ / 食玩 全種 — complete capsule or candy-toy sets
• プレバン限定 / 魂ウェブ限定 — web exclusives
• 未開封 / 箱付き — sealed / with box