Guides for Pokémon card collectors
What grading costs, what a 10 takes, how to spot a fake and what your card is worth. Sourced, dated and kept current.
- How to tell if a Pokémon card is fakeTen checks you can do at home, from the é in Pokémon to the light test, plus gold cards and buying safely on eBay and Amazon.Updated 21 October 2026 · 9 min read
- How much does PSA grading cost in 2026?Every PSA service level with its price, value cap and wait, the extras on top of the fee, a worked all-in example and the cheapest tier at CGC, TAG and SGC.Updated 21 October 2026 · 8 min read
- Is it worth grading Pokémon cards? How to work it out for your cardThe break-even formula for grading, worked through on two real cards with October 2026 sold prices, plus which cards pay and a pre-grading checklist.Updated 21 October 2026 · 9 min read
- The PSA grading scale: what every grade from 1 to 10 allowsEvery PSA grade from 1 to 10 with its centering limit, what a 10 needs that a 9 doesn’t, qualifiers like OC, and how to measure centering yourself.Updated 21 October 2026 · 9 min read
- How much is my Pokémon card worth? A four-step way to price any cardIdentify the exact printing, judge its condition, then match it to sold prices, not asking prices, with the free tools compared.Updated 21 October 2026 · 8 min read
- What’s the best grading company for Pokémon cards? PSA, CGC, BGS, TAG and SGC comparedPSA, CGC, Beckett, TAG and SGC side by side: cheapest tier, turnaround, top grades, centering for a 10 and what each 10 actually sells for.Updated 21 October 2026 · 8 min read
- TAG grading explained: how the 1000-point Score works, what it costs and how it compares to PSAHow TAG’s imaging and 1000-point Score turn into a grade, its centering rules, every 2026 service tier, and when a TAG slab beats a PSA one.Updated 21 October 2026 · 9 min read
- SGC grading explained: what it costs in 2026, how the scale works and whether it’s right for your Pokémon cardsWhat SGC is, its new 2026 prices and turnaround, the full 1 to 10 scale with centering, the black slab, and when an SGC grade makes sense for a Pokémon card.Updated 21 October 2026 · 9 min read
- How to submit cards to PSA in 2026, step by stepPick the right cards, choose a tier, fill in the online order, pack it the way PSA asks and know what each order stage means.Updated 21 October 2026 · 10 min read
- The most valuable Pokémon cards ever sold, and the ones you might actually ownFifteen record public sales, from the $16.49 million Pikachu Illustrator down, plus today’s prices for modern chase cards and every PSA 10 Charizard.Updated 21 October 2026 · 8 min read