WFMU Record Fair 2026: New York, 6–8 November

The WFMU Record Fair returns to the Metropolitan Pavilion, 125 West 18th Street in Manhattan, from Friday 6 to Sunday 8 November 2026. According to WFMU's fair page, early admission runs from noon to 3pm on the Friday, followed by regular hours from 3pm to 8pm, and the doors are open from 10am to 7pm on Saturday and Sunday.

The fair is the annual fundraiser of WFMU, the listener-supported freeform station on 91.1 FM in Jersey City, and this year it is back to three days after two-day editions in 2024 and 2025. A pre-sale pass is already on sale; single-day prices, the dealer list and the live programme have not been announced.

For collectors who follow the fair calendar on both sides of the Atlantic, it falls the weekend before the Mega Record & CD Fair in Den Bosch on 14–15 November.

Dates, hours and venue

The 2026 WFMU Record Fair runs:

• Friday 6 November 2026: early admission noon–3pm, regular hours 3pm–8pm
• Saturday 7 November 2026: 10am–7pm
• Sunday 8 November 2026: 10am–7pm

at the Metropolitan Pavilion in Chelsea, on West 18th Street between Sixth and Seventh Avenues. It is the fair's third year running in the building, which also hosted the 2010 edition and was booked for 2012. WFMU's page names Matt Warwick as Record Fair Director, the contact for prospective dealers and for anyone who wants to donate records or CDs to the station.

Tickets: one pass on sale, the rest to come

WFMU's fair page doesn't list admission prices. The station's Eventbrite listing has been selling a pre-sale "Three Day Pass + Friday Early Admission" since 22 September, at a listed $35.99. It covers all three days plus the noon–3pm early hours, and WFMU says pre-sale holders will get a separate line when early admission opens. The listing is marked all ages, with no refunds.

Single-day passes and door prices haven't been published. As a reference point only, BrooklynVegan reported $10 daily passes and a $30 two-day early-admission pass for 2024, when the fair ran over two days rather than three. In 2025, the 10am early entry on the Saturday came with a weekend pass.

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A fundraiser for freeform radio

WFMU describes itself as the longest-running freeform radio station in the United States, and says it accepts no underwriting or corporate sponsorship. Its "primary source of support", in its own words, is listener contributions during its annual on-air fundraising marathon "and revenue generated from our annual Record Fair". Donated records help as well: the station's homepage says record and CD donations can make money at the fair and at sales in Monty Hall, its own venue.

The 2012 edition showed how much rides on the weekend. It was due at the Metropolitan Pavilion on 2–4 November, according to BrooklynVegan. After Superstorm Sandy damaged WFMU's studio and transmitters, Current reported that the fair, "one of its biggest money-making events of the year", had been cancelled because of the storm.

From a Hoboken Elks Lodge to Chelsea

WFMU held its first fair at a Hoboken Elks Lodge in 1993, according to the Brooklyn Paper. Coverage of later editions shows how much it has moved since:

The spread of stock is the other constant. Reporting from the 2015 fair for AnalogPlanet, Michael Fremer wrote that a wealthy collector could have bought "thousands of sought after records at the expected high asking prices", while he went looking for bargains and found them on $2 and $5 tables. There is usually a programme around the dealers too: in 2025 there were live WFMU broadcasts on the Saturday, and live performances and film screenings on both days.

What hasn't been announced yet

As of early October 2026, neither WFMU's fair page nor the Eventbrite listing gives:

• Single-day and door prices. Only the three-day pre-sale pass is on sale.
• A dealer list or table count. WFMU is still taking table reservations and looking for new dealers, including sellers of comics, zines, jewellery, art and clothes. BrooklynVegan counted over 100 tables in 2025; there is no figure for 2026.
• The live programme. The Eventbrite listing says the live music, A/V Lounge and broadcast schedule is "coming soon".

Until those details are out, the fair page and the Eventbrite listing are the two places to watch.

Planning your dig

Early admission is what the pre-sale pass really buys: three hours on the Friday before regular entry at 3pm, while the dealers' stock has had the fewest hands through it. If you're coming for a single day, Saturday and Sunday run nine hours each, which leaves time for a full lap before you buy.

A few habits pay off at a fair with three days of dealers:

• Walk the room first. Note which tables specialise in what, and roughly how they price, before committing to anything.
• Check the copy, not just the title. Pull the record from its sleeve under good light and grade vinyl and sleeve separately; our guide to the Goldmine grading scale explains what each grade means.
• Know what you already own. A wantlist with price ceilings and a quick way to check your collection are the simplest guards against buying a duplicate.
• Bring more than one way to pay. WFMU's page doesn't say how dealers take payment.
• Records to give away. WFMU accepts record and CD donations for the fair; the contact on its page is [email protected].

Our guide to record fairs goes further on timing, haggling and inspecting condition on the day.

Chelsea also works as a base for a longer day of digging. A record store map shows the shops within reach of West 18th Street if you want to fill the hours around early admission, and our crate-digging guide covers planning a route through several of them. Sleevewise also lists upcoming record fairs, which helps when you're looking for the next one after New York.

Frequently asked questions

01When and where is the WFMU Record Fair 2026?

From Friday 6 to Sunday 8 November 2026 at the Metropolitan Pavilion, 125 West 18th Street, in Chelsea, Manhattan. Friday has early admission from noon to 3pm and regular hours from 3pm to 8pm; Saturday and Sunday run from 10am to 7pm.

02How much are tickets for the WFMU Record Fair 2026?

WFMU's Eventbrite page sells a pre-sale three-day pass with Friday early admission, listed at $35.99, with no refunds. Single-day and door prices had not been announced in early October 2026; for the 2024 fair, daily passes were $10.

03How do I get a dealer table at the WFMU Record Fair?

Email Record Fair Director Matt Warwick at [email protected]. WFMU says it is taking table reservations for the 2026 fair and is looking for new dealers, including non-vinyl sellers of comics, zines, jewellery, art and clothes.

Sources

• WFMU Record Fair — WFMU, accessed 5 October 2026
• WFMU homepage (dealer call for the 2026 fair) — WFMU, accessed 5 October 2026
• About WFMU and FAQ — WFMU, accessed 5 October 2026
• WFMU Record Fair Three Day Pass + Friday Early Admission — WFMU on Eventbrite, accessed 5 October 2026
• WFMU Record Fair 2025 is this weekend: dates, live performances, film screenings, more — BrooklynVegan, 6 November 2025
• WFMU Record Fair Tomorrow (Friday, November 1st) and Saturday—Meet Me There! — Tracking Angle, 31 October 2024
• WFMU Record Fair 2024: dates, live performances, film screenings, more — BrooklynVegan, 1 October 2024
• Vinyl destination! WFMU record fair draws thousands to Greenpoint — Brooklyn Paper, 4 May 2015
• New Venue, New Time, Yet FMU Record Fair Packed With Vinyl Enthusiasts — AnalogPlanet, 4 May 2015
• WFMU's Jersey City transmitter is back on-air — Current, 6 November 2012
• WFMU Record Fair hits NYC next week — BrooklynVegan, 22 October 2012
• WFMU Record Fair Returns this Weekend — NBC New York, 20 October 2010