Is it worth grading?
Grading costs money and not every card comes back a 10. Pick a card, set the PSA fee and your realistic grade odds, and see the expected profit per submission — weighted across every outcome, using real PSA market values. Grading costs reflect current tiers as of 2026-06-28.
Graded values use real PSA 9/10 figures where we have them, otherwise a typical taper off the PSA 10 price. Outcome odds default to a clean modern card — adjust them for the card's real condition. Estimates, not guarantees.
The PSA 10 premium over time
Across cards worth grading (raw ≥ $20), a PSA 10 now sells for about 11.8× the raw price — up from 9.3× in 2021. Median from real PriceCharting sales. Real auction sales agree: 7.7× median across 1,744 Fanatics Collect PSA 10 results.
Current grading turnaround times
How long each service tier takes right now — worth checking before you submit, since wait times swing with submission volume.
| Service | Tier | Max value | Fee | Turnaround |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| CGC | Bulk | $500 | $17 | 120 business days |
| CGC | Economy | $1,000 | $20 | 65 business days |
| CGC | Standard | $3,000 | $55 | 10 business days |
| CGC | Express | $10,000 | $100 | 5 business days |
| CGC | WalkThrough | $100,000 | $300 | 2 business days |
| CGC | UnlimitedValue | — | 300 + 1% FMV | 2 business days |
| CGC | JumboCard | — | $20 | 120 business days |
| CGC | Coin | — | $20 | 120 business days |
| BGS | Base | — | — | 75+ business days |
| BGS | Standard | — | — | 45 business days |
| BGS | Express | — | — | 15 business days |
| BGS | Priority | — | — | 5 business days |
CGC & BGS official tiers shown. PSA isn't published in a format we can pull automatically yet. Turnaround times are estimates and move with submission volume.
Grading ROI — FAQ
How much does it cost to grade a Pokémon card?
PSA's cheapest active tier is Value Plus at about $50/card (the ~$25 Value tier is paused as of 2026-06-28), plus roughly $20 round-trip insured shipping — so ~$70 all-in for a sub-$500 card. CGC starts around $18 and BGS around $20. Higher-value cards require pricier tiers with higher declared-value caps.
Is grading a Pokémon card worth it?
Grading pays off when the graded premium comfortably beats the all-in cost AND the card has a realistic shot at the target grade. The honest figure is the risk-adjusted return — the PSA 10 value weighted by the card's gem rate (how often copies actually hit PSA 10), not the best case. A high best-case profit with a 2% gem rate is a worse bet than a smaller premium at a 40% gem rate.
What's the difference between PSA, BGS and CGC grading?
PSA is the most liquid for Pokémon and usually commands the highest resale premium, but needs a membership and its cheapest tier is paused. CGC and BGS need no membership and are cheaper at entry; BGS includes sub-grades free. For Pokémon resale value, PSA 10 typically leads.