How is radio advertising priced in India?
Radio airtime is sold in units of 10 seconds. The rate for one unit depends on the station, the city and the time band. You multiply that rate by the length of your ad and by how many times it plays.
The basic sum: rate per 10 seconds × (ad length ÷ 10) × number of plays = airtime cost.
Example: a 20-second ad on a station charging ₹300 per 10 seconds costs ₹600 per play. Ten plays a day for 28 days is 280 plays, so ₹1,68,000 of airtime before GST.
Stations also sell things that are not on any rate card: RJ mentions (the presenter talks about your brand), sponsored segments, contests and on-ground events. These are priced by the station case by case.
What do private FM stations charge in Kolkata?
Kolkata has seven private FM stations on CBC's rate card. Here are their rates per 10 seconds for each time band, as listed on 4 October 2026.
| Station (Kolkata) | 7 to 11 am | 11 am to 6 pm | 6 to 11 pm |
|---|---|---|---|
| Radio Mirchi | ₹429 | ₹438 | ₹352 |
| Big 92.7 FM | ₹314 | ₹265 | ₹264 |
| Red FM | ₹312 | ₹300 | ₹283 |
| Fever 104 FM | ₹226 | ₹194 | ₹216 |
| Radio One 94.3 | ₹202 | ₹182 | ₹182 |
| Friends 91.9 FM | ₹200 | ₹153 | ₹182 |
| Ishq FM | ₹137 | ₹128 | ₹121 |
Akashvani's Kolkata channels are on a separate rate card. FM Rainbow and FM Gold cost ₹770 per 10 seconds in prime time. Vividh Bharati costs ₹500, and the Kolkata primary channel ₹830. If you're planning radio in the city, our radio advertising in Kolkata page explains how we plan station mix and timing.
What does Akashvani (All India Radio) charge?
Akashvani, run by Prasar Bharati, publishes gross rates for every station. The current card has rates in force since 1 June 2017. It is published by CBC (file dated November 2025). Rates are per 10 seconds and split into categories by time.
| Akashvani channel | Category I (prime) | Category II | Category III |
|---|---|---|---|
| FM Rainbow Kolkata | ₹770 | ₹550 | ₹330 |
| FM Gold Kolkata | ₹770 | ₹550 | ₹330 |
| Vividh Bharati Kolkata | ₹500 | ₹440 | ₹330 |
| Kolkata primary channel | ₹830 | ₹550 | not listed |
| Siliguri primary channel | ₹330 | ₹220 | not listed |
| FM Rainbow / FM Gold Delhi | ₹1,100 | ₹770 | ₹440 |
For FM Rainbow and FM Gold, prime time (Category I) is 7 to 11 am and 5 to 11 pm. Category II is 11 am to 5 pm, and Category III is 11 pm to 7 am. Ads around news bulletins cost more: Regional News for West Bengal is ₹1,850 per 10 seconds before or after the bulletin and ₹3,700 in the middle.
Akashvani's strength is reach outside big cities. Its local stations cover many districts that have no private FM station at all.
Sample radio budgets: what a campaign really costs
Here are worked examples using the rates above. Each assumes a 20-second ad played 10 times a day for 4 weeks (280 plays), all in one time band. Media cost only, before GST and production.
| Example campaign | Rate per 10 s | Cost per play (20 s) | Airtime for 280 plays |
|---|---|---|---|
| Radio Mirchi Kolkata, 7 to 11 am | ₹429 | ₹858 | ₹2,40,240 |
| Red FM Kolkata, 7 to 11 am | ₹312 | ₹624 | ₹1,74,720 |
| Ishq FM Kolkata, 6 to 11 pm | ₹121 | ₹242 | ₹67,760 |
| FM Rainbow Kolkata (Akashvani), prime time | ₹770 | ₹1,540 | ₹4,31,200 |
| Big FM Ranchi, 11 am to 6 pm | ₹204 | ₹408 | ₹1,14,240 |
| Radio Choklate Bhubaneswar, 7 to 11 am | ₹150 | ₹300 | ₹84,000 |
| Radio Mirchi Patna, 6 to 11 pm | ₹369 | ₹738 | ₹2,06,640 |
| Radio Mirchi Mumbai, 6 to 11 pm | ₹1,568 | ₹3,136 | ₹8,78,080 |
A real plan usually uses two or three stations, so people who listen to different stations all hear you. Two Kolkata stations in the example above would come to roughly ₹4 lakh of airtime for 4 weeks.
What makes a radio ad cost more or less?
- City size. Metro stations charge many times more than stations in smaller cities, because more people listen.
- Station popularity. CBC's formula uses listenership, and in the same city the costliest station can charge over three times the cheapest (Kolkata: ₹438 against ₹121).
- Time of day. Rates differ by time band, and the costliest band varies by station. On Akashvani, late night (Category III) is the cheapest.
- Ad length. You pay per 10 seconds, so a tight 20-second ad costs a third less per play than a 30-second one.
- How often it plays. Frequency is what makes radio work, and it is also the biggest cost multiplier.
- Season. Festive periods such as Durga Puja and Diwali are the busiest. Book early, because the best slots fill up.
- Extras. RJ mentions, contests and sponsored shows are priced separately by each station.
- Production. Script, voice artist, music and studio time are a separate cost from airtime.
How many plays does a radio campaign need?
People forget an ad they hear once. Radio works through repetition, so plan enough plays for each listener to hear your ad several times. This is called frequency. Reach is how many different people hear it.
There is no single right number. A short offer, such as a weekend sale, needs many plays in a few days. A brand message can run fewer plays over more weeks. Deciding the station mix, timing and number of plays for your budget is media planning.
How do agencies charge for radio, and how do you compare quotes?
We don't publish our fees, but here is how radio is usually billed in India, so you can compare any quote, including ours.
- Media cost. The airtime itself, at the station's rate for your slots. Ask for the rate per 10 seconds for each station and time band, in writing.
- Agency fee or commission. Some agencies take a percentage of the media cost; others charge a fixed fee for planning and buying. Ask which, and how much.
- Production. Script, voice, music and recording, quoted separately.
- Taxes. GST is added on top. Ask whether a quote includes it.
When you compare quotes, ask each agency for the same details. These are the stations, time bands, number of plays, ad length, rate per 10 seconds and total, with GST shown separately. Ask for the station's play log (the record of when each ad aired) after the campaign. A good media buying partner gives you all of this without being asked.
Is radio advertising worth it for your business?
Radio suits businesses that sell to a whole city or region: retail, real estate, education, healthcare, automobiles, packaged consumer goods and events. It is quick to produce and change, cheaper than TV, and reaches people in cars, shops and homes.
It is weaker when your buyers are a small, specific group, such as procurement heads at steel plants. There, trade media, LinkedIn or direct contact usually work better.
To know if it worked, give the radio ad its own phone or WhatsApp number, or a short offer code. Then watch searches for your brand name during the campaign. Our radio advertising service plans, buys and tracks campaigns this way.
