Best Magikarp Cards to Grade
The Magikarp cards worth grading, ranked by expected profit per submission — every grade outcome weighted by how often the card actually receives it — after current grading fees. The PSA 10 best case is shown on every row but does not decide the order. Top pick: Magikarp & Wailord-GX (Team Up) at an expected +$1,391.
Ranked by expected profit 16
| # | Card | Raw | PSA 9 | PSA 10 | Cost | Best case | Gem rate | Expected | Sample |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Expected +$1,391 per submission: 51.7% of 4,186 graded copies came back PSA 10 ($3,720), and a PSA 9 ($1,400) still clears the $1,233 you have in it. Confidence high on that sample. | $827 | $1,400 | $3,720 | $406 | +$2,487 | 51.7% | +$1,391 | 4,186 high |
| 2 | Expected +$582 per submission: 42.9% of 91 graded copies came back PSA 10 ($1,500), and a PSA 9 ($90) still clears the $123 you have in it. Confidence medium on that sample. | $8 | $90 | $1,500 | $115 | +$1,377 | 42.9% | +$582 | 91 medium |
| 3 | Expected +$494 per submission: 15.9% of 24,778 graded copies came back PSA 10 ($4,080), and only a PSA 10 covers the $768 you have in it — a 9 loses money. Confidence high on that sample. | $358 | $440 | $4,080 | $410 | +$3,313 | 15.9% | +$494 | 24,778 high |
| 4 | Expected +$359 per submission: 53.9% of 1,498 graded copies came back PSA 10 ($975), and only a PSA 10 covers the $235 you have in it — a 9 loses money. Confidence high on that sample. | $145 | $164 | $975 | $90 | +$741 | 53.9% | +$359 | 1,498 high |
| 5 | Expected +$316 per submission: 25.9% of 352 graded copies came back PSA 10 ($1,400), and a PSA 9 ($140) still clears the $147 you have in it. Confidence high on that sample. | $33 | $140 | $1,400 | $114 | +$1,253 | 25.9% | +$316 | 352 high |
| 6 | Expected +$236 per submission: 9.6% of 5,941 graded copies came back PSA 10 ($3,000), and a PSA 9 ($241) still clears the $500 you have in it. Confidence high on that sample. | $101 | $241 | $3,000 | $399 | +$2,500 | 9.6% | +$236 | 5,941 high |
| 7 | Expected +$142 per submission: 1% of 6,842 graded copies came back PSA 10 ($27,000), and a PSA 9 ($2,355) still clears the $3,084 you have in it. Confidence high on that sample. | $795 | $2,355 | $27,000 | $2,289 | +$23,916 | 1% | +$142 | 6,842 high |
| 8 | Expected +$125 per submission: 32.1% of 262 graded copies came back PSA 10 ($560), and a PSA 9 ($238) still clears the $167 you have in it. Confidence high on that sample. | $81 | $238 | $560 | $86 | +$393 | 32.1% | +$125 | 262 high |
| 9 | Expected +$121 per submission: 43.8% of 1,368 graded copies came back PSA 10 ($555), and only a PSA 10 covers the $197 you have in it — a 9 loses money. Confidence high on that sample. | $111 | $144 | $555 | $86 | +$359 | 43.8% | +$121 | 1,368 high |
| 10 | Expected +$103 per submission: 29.6% of 125 graded copies came back PSA 10 ($599), and only a PSA 10 covers the $97 you have in it — a 9 loses money. Confidence high on that sample. | $11 | $40 | $599 | $86 | +$502 | 29.6% | +$103 | 125 high |
| 11 | Expected +$39 per submission: 40% of 120 graded copies came back PSA 10 ($275), and only a PSA 10 covers the $92 you have in it — a 9 loses money. Confidence high on that sample. | $9 | $40 | $275 | $83 | +$183 | 40% | +$39 | 120 high |
| 12 | Expected loss −$1 per submission: 57.2% of 694 graded copies came back PSA 10 ($133), and only a PSA 10 covers the $92 you have in it — a 9 loses money. Confidence high on that sample. | $11 | $35 | $133 | $81 | +$41 | 57.2% | −$1 | 694 high |
| 13 | Expected loss −$9 per submission: 65.9% of 16,215 graded copies came back PSA 10 ($144), and only a PSA 10 covers the $121 you have in it — a 9 loses money. Confidence high on that sample. | $40 | $50 | $144 | $81 | +$23 | 65.9% | −$9 | 16,215 high |
| 14 | Expected loss −$21 per submission: 26.7% of 101 graded copies came back PSA 10 ($179), and only a PSA 10 covers the $87 you have in it — a 9 loses money. Confidence high on that sample. | $5 | $26 | $179 | $82 | +$92 | 26.7% | −$21 | 101 high |
| 15 | Expected loss −$29 per submission: 7.7% of 13 graded copies came back PSA 10 ($756), and a PSA 9 ($252) still clears the $245 you have in it. Confidence low on that sample. | $157 | $252 | $756 | $88 | +$511 | 7.7% | −$29 | 13 low |
| 16 | Expected loss −$41 per submission: 33.3% of 42 graded copies came back PSA 10 ($105), and only a PSA 10 covers the $91 you have in it — a 9 loses money. Confidence medium on that sample. | $10 | $27 | $105 | $81 | +$14 | 33.3% | −$41 | 42 medium |
Best case only — no gem-rate evidence 2
Fewer than 10 graded copies in the PSA and CGC population reports. They clear the grading cost if they gem — that is all the numbers support.
| # | Card | Raw | PSA 9 | PSA 10 | Cost | Best case | Gem rate | Expected | Sample |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 17 | $140 | — | $56,105 | $3,580 | +$52,385 | — | — | none <10 | |
| 18 | $110 | — | $380 | $84 | +$186 | — | — | none <10 |
Expected = every grade outcome weighted by its share of the card's graded population, minus the raw price and the grading cost (PSA tier fee for the graded value plus ~$20 round-trip shipping, fees as of 2026-09-26). Best case is the PSA 10 leg alone. Gem rates come from a self-selected population — collectors grade their cleanest copies — so read them as an upper bound. Raw is a blended market price, not a sale of your copy. Full method and filters on the grading index.
How to read the Magikarp ranking
Every Magikarp card listed here clears one bar: its PSA 10 price beats its raw price by more than the cost of grading it. 18 Magikarp printings pass. 16 of them (89%) have a gem-rate sample of at least ten graded copies in the population reports, and 11 of those keep a positive expected value once every grade outcome is weighted by how often the card actually receives it.
The order is expected profit, not the PSA 10 best case, which rewards the widest raw-to-gem gap whether the card gems one time in two or one in fifty. Here the top row, the Magikarp & Wailord-GX from Team Up, gems 51.7% of the time across 4,186 graded copies: +$1,391 is what a long run of submissions would average, $2,487 is what one lucky copy returns.
The median gem rate across the sampled Magikarp cards is 33.3%. Roughly one submitted copy in 3 came back PSA 10, and most rows here need that PSA 10 to cover raw price plus fee, so the gem rate decides whether a submission pays. Of the 16 ranked cards, 7 still cover raw price plus fee at PSA 9, 9 need a 10 to break even and 5 lose money on expectation. 13 rest on a hundred or more graded copies.
2 cards sit below the ranking with a best case only, fewer than ten graded copies. The largest best case among them is the Magikarp from 30th Celebration: Classic Collection at +$186.
Before you submit a Magikarp card
Grading pays on condition. The four things every grader scores — centering, corners, edges and surface — can be checked at home before paying a fee, and a copy that is visibly off-centre or has a whitened corner will not gem whatever the population says. Those gem rates come from a self-selected population of clean copies, so a random copy does worse.
The cost column assumes a PSA submission at the tier covering the card's PSA 10 value, fees as of 2026-09-26, and raw is CardTrack's blended near-mint price, not a sale of your copy: pay more, or hold a lighter copy, and the break-even moves against you. Test a card with your own numbers in the ROI calculator, see the printings that fail the bar on the Magikarp card list, or see how gem-mint premiums run across the whole catalogue on the PSA premium index.