How much pokemon card worth | 4 step guide

Pokemon Card Worth: how to find out the real value of your Pokemon card collection.

How to evaluate a Pokemon card:

Pokemon TGC game is a card-based stategy game and divides the word in two types of fans: the ones who manly collect them and the other who are interested in competitions (tournaments, ecc..). However, you must know that the combination of card rarity, set type and card condition are the principal factors determing the value of a card. BE CAREFUL: the same Pokemon (with an identical name) but reported in different sets/expansions may have dramatically different values! Here’s how to evaluate pokemon card TGC!

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How much Pokemon card are worth: get the price right

First of all, we need to have clear in mind a few things:

  1. The name of the Pokemon card
  2. The Set/Expansion to which the Pokemon card belongs
  3. The rarity of the card
  4. The condition of the card and the language

In the image shown the information requested to evaluate a Pokemon card are reported. In particular, two Italian cards are depicted in the image below. The language of the card DO NOT affect the anatomy of the card which remains the same for European and USA releases.

check the worth of your pokemon card

In most cases the value of Pokemon card is related to the edition.

Pokemon card worth price: Name and Pokemon Set of a card.

There’s not much to say about the Pokemon name as for the set/expansion. We highlight only the fact that in the oldest Pokemon card (left) the Set symbol is located near the picture on the right while the latest release have the symbol on the right bottom side. The two number appearing on the right bottom side determine the numbering of the card on the set. For example, Raikou (left) is the thirteenth of the total sixty-four card of the expansion (13/64). Once you’ve find out the set symbol you can check the symbol name here (pokemon-expansions-symbols) or search on the web.

How much a Pokemon card worth: The rarity of a Pokemon card.

Three main symbols denote the rarity of a card:

  • Circle: common card
  • Diamond: uncommon card
  • Star: rare card

Card rarity

Understanding the rarity of a card is important because common and uncommon card have very low value in general (we can talk of value below >0.005 $). However, thei are not useless since a complete set gain is worth when all the card are present (also the common and uncommon).

TOP 5 SITES TO EVALUATE YOUR POKEMON CARDS

The Holo cards – Pokemon card tgc

In case your card has the both the following characteristics: it’s a rare (* star symbol) and has a shiny/bright background you are in front of a Holo card. Holographic cards are among the most worth in a set, but NOT THE MOST. The Raikou card showed before is a Holo card, another example (Blissey) is reporte below.

Holo

Most Worth POKEMON CARDS:

Rarity SUPERIOR to Holo

In all years from 1999 the cards with rarity beyond holo caught different names with sets. Here below, there is not a comprehensive list of all that connotations but the most diffused.

Ultra rare Pokemon cards
  • Pokemon ex
  • Pokemon Star
  • Pokemon Liv. X
  • Pokemon Prime
  • Pokemon GX
  • Pokemon Full Art

An example of artwork of these cards is reported below in order to distinguish their appearance.

At this point, you miss only other two information needed to evaluate your Pokemon card collection: the language (which is easily deductible from the text present on the card) and the card condition. This is a crucial aspect since even the rarest card can see its value dropping to only few dollars/euros due to card condition. In general, the card condition definitions (according to cardmarket) are te following:

  • Mint & Near Mint
  • Excellent and Good
  • Played and Poor

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Card Pokemon condition: Mint (M)

A mint card is in perfect condition; no excuses. This means, that the front is in perfect condition, there are no scratches on the surface, and the surface is perfectly clean. For the back it means, that the card is indistinguishable from cards of a newly openend booster. If a card has a signature or a Grand Prix stamp it can never be graded Mint, even if the card stock is otherwise in Mint condition.

Card Pokemon condition: NEAR MINT (NM)

A Near Mint card looks like it has never been played without sleeves. Small allowances can be made, but the card generally shows no wear.

The border of NM card can have small white spots, but they must be very few and very small. When the card is inspected under bright daylight, the surface must generally appear clean. It can have a few minor spots, but scratches can never be allowed for NM cards.

Card Pokemon condition: Excellent (EX)

An Excellent cards look like it was used for a few games without sleeves. For Excellent cards it is almost always clearly visible upon first inspection that the card is not in perfect condition. However, although the damage is clearly visible it is only of minor severity.

Excellent cards usually have a couple of white spots at the corners or around the border. The surface may have minor scratches, that are visible upon closer inspection. However, the card cannot be graded Excellent if the creases are so deep that they are visible upon first sight.

An Excellent card is usually in a condition where it is not quite clear if the card would be considered marked or unmarked if it would be played in a tournament without sleeves.

Card Pokemon condition: GOOD (GD)

A Good card looks like it might have been used for a long tournament without sleeves.

Cards in Good condition usually show strong wear all around the card. The edges and corners have many white spots, the surface usually has scratches and the card usually has accumulated some dirt on its surface. However, the card still only has damage that stems from regular play. The card has no water damage or bends whatsoever.

Card Pokemon condition: PLAYED (PL)

A Played card looks as bad as you can get a card through regular use without sleeves.

A Played card looks extremely bad, and it is doubtful if the card is tournament legal even in a sleeved deck. However, the card has not been tampered with otherwise (inked border, random scribblings on the card etc.).

Card Pokemon condition: POOR

A Poor card has damage that cannot normally have stemmed from regular use of the card.

A card in Poor condition is literally destroyed. It is either obviously illegal for tournament play or has been tampered with in ways that destroy its worth almost completely (inked border, random scribblings on the card etc.).

TOP 5 SITES TO EVALUATE YOUR POKEMON CARDS

Determing the condition of your Pokemon card collection. Is it important for card worth evaluation?

Determining the right condition of the card is in most cases not so easy: it’s likely that the buyer tends to consider the card he is buying of a rank of condition which is less than the real in order to pay less. On the other hand, the vendor would say that the card on sell is in better condition than the real one. However, the above description may help you defining a rank for your card.

The impact of card condition/appearance is so important that grading process (for example PSA) are spreading out. But this part will be covered in another article: How much is worth my Pokemon collection.

With the information we gave you in this article, you’re now ready to understand the value and the kind of card you gathered when you when a kid or if your son has a spoils of Pokemon card collection under his/her bed!

Pokemon card worth: the real prices can range from $1 to over $1000

The average price of Pokémon cards is $1.20. Most “Rare” Pokémon cards are valued under $10 and cards that are classified as “uncommon” or below are often worth less than $1. Older and promotional Pokémon cards have a much higher value on average, with some cards being worth over $300,000.

The artwork and centering of a Pokemon card.

sually, the artwork of the Pokémon on your card is centered right inside the borders of the card.

Pokémon cards pulled straight from a booster pack will look like they have their artwork perfectly centered, but it’s actually not that uncommon for the art of a Pokémon card to be slightly misaligned.

Sometimes these cards are classified as “Misprints” and there are Pokémon card collectors that are willing to pay for cards with printing errors from the factory.

However, if you are looking to get your Pokémon cards professionally graded and valued, then artwork being off-centered will deduct points from the final evaluation score of your cards – decreasing its general market value.

Off-centered printings can also occur on the back art of a card as well as the front. The Poke Ball art and logo that are present on the back of the card can also sometimes sit too far left or right of the card’s center.

So it’s best to double-check these factors if you do happen to find a card that you might think is worth some cash!

Pokemon card worth misprint example card

How to secure your Pokemon card worth.

Protect your Pokemon cards from wearing.

Since Pokémon card quality is so important to their value, it’s important to keep each card protected. You should always store Pokémon cards inside individual sleeves if you want them to remain in their best condition. There are two main types of card sleeves:

  • Penny sleeves—These thin, flexible, translucent sleeves mainly protect cards from dirt, stains, and oils. They are cheap (hence their name) and won’t guard against folding or creases.
  • Toploaders—Constructed from rigid, translucent plastic, these sleeves protect against both dirt and grime as well as folds and creases.

For maximum Pokémon card protection, use both a penny sleeve and a toploader for each card. There are other kinds of card sleeves, too, such as matte card sleeves that cover the back of each trading card. However, penny sleeves and toploaders are the workhorses of trading card protection.

Pokémon Card Storage Box.

Once you’ve put your Pokémon cards in their sleeves, you’ll need to put them in a box for easy safekeeping. One option is clear plastic boxes, which provide great protection and make it easy to see what kind of card you have inside. Another option is the classic 9-pocket page for three ring binders.

Looking for something a little less fancy? There are a wide variety of other options available on online storefronts, and there’s always cardboard boxes. Whichever Pokémon card storage box you decide on, make sure that it is elevated—either on a pallet or on a shelf—to guard against spills or other types of moisture on the ground.

Climate storage pokemon card sleeve

Climate Controlled Storage.

Pokémon cards, just like other trading cards, are made of cardstock, which is just a fancier and more durable kind of paper. As a result, Pokémon cards are susceptible to the types of things that can damage cardboard and paper—namely, extreme or rapidly changing temperatures as well as high humidity.

When storing your Pokémon cards—even if you’ve protected them in sleeves and in a box—you should do so in a climate controlled environment. At home, that means not storing them in the attic, your garage, or your shed out back if you’ve got one. You can store your Pokémon cards in the basement, but consider putting in a dehumidifier if it is particularly moist.

Another storage option is to find a climate controlled storage unit near you. These storage units can come in 5×5 or even locker sizes, meaning you don’t have to rent a giant unit just for a few items. Climate controlled storage units are kept at a consistent temperature range all year round, and while most aren’t specifically humidity controlled, indoor climate controlled units are usually well within the range of acceptable humidity for Pokémon card storage.

Increase the worth of your Pokemon card: grade your collection.

As we wrote in our related article How and why to get your Pokemon card graded (PSA and Beckett) another way the get a certification and increase the price worth of a Pokemon card is to grade it. However, not all the cards are suitable to be graded ad the process may be expensive and long. For this reason, only the rarest and the oldest Pokemon cards may increase their value when graded.

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