Best Pokémon cards to grade
Ranked by expected profit per submission — every grade outcome weighted by how often the card actually receives it in the PSA population — after current grading fees. The PSA 10 best case is on every row, but it no longer decides the order: a card that gems one time in twenty is not a better bet than one that gems one time in three. Top pick: Mega Lucario ex at an expected +$35.
Ranked by expected profit12 matching
| # | Card | Raw | PSA 9 | PSA 10 | Cost | Best case | Gem rate | Expected | Sample |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Expected +$35 per submission: 64.1% of 16,540 graded copies came back PSA 10 ($381), and only a PSA 10 covers the $273 you have in it — a 9 loses money. Confidence high on that sample. | $199 | $178 | $381 | $74 | +$108 | 64.1% | +$35 | 16,540 high |
| 2 | Expected +$31 per submission: 62.5% of 15,173 graded copies came back PSA 10 ($375), and only a PSA 10 covers the $265 you have in it — a 9 loses money. Confidence high on that sample. | $191 | $165 | $375 | $74 | +$110 | 62.5% | +$31 | 15,173 high |
| 3 | Expected +$27 per submission: 28.3% of 8,807 graded copies came back PSA 10 ($740), and only a PSA 10 covers the $363 you have in it — a 9 loses money. Confidence high on that sample. | $256 | $226 | $740 | $107 | +$376 | 28.3% | +$27 | 8,807 high |
| 4 | Expected +$12 per submission: 65.5% of 12,663 graded copies came back PSA 10 ($215), and only a PSA 10 covers the $155 you have in it — a 9 loses money. Confidence high on that sample. | $83 | $79 | $215 | $72 | +$60 | 65.5% | +$12 | 12,663 high |
| 5 | Expected +$2 per submission: 23.7% of 7,109 graded copies came back PSA 10 ($600), and only a PSA 10 covers the $318 you have in it — a 9 loses money. Confidence high on that sample. | $212 | $220 | $600 | $106 | +$282 | 23.7% | +$2 | 7,109 high |
| 6 | Expected loss −$14 per submission: 62.1% of 19,249 graded copies came back PSA 10 ($100), and only a PSA 10 covers the $86 you have in it — a 9 loses money. Confidence high on that sample. | $15 | $27 | $100 | $71 | +$14 | 62.1% | −$14 | 19,249 high |
| 7 | Expected loss −$15 per submission: 63.8% of 11,256 graded copies came back PSA 10 ($103), and only a PSA 10 covers the $90 you have in it — a 9 loses money. Confidence high on that sample. | $19 | $25 | $103 | $71 | +$13 | 63.8% | −$15 | 11,256 high |
| 8 | Expected loss −$19 per submission: 64.5% of 12,302 graded copies came back PSA 10 ($238), and only a PSA 10 covers the $218 you have in it — a 9 loses money. Confidence high on that sample. | $146 | $129 | $238 | $72 | +$19 | 64.5% | −$19 | 12,302 high |
| 9 | Expected loss −$20 per submission: 66.4% of 9,999 graded copies came back PSA 10 ($149), and only a PSA 10 covers the $136 you have in it — a 9 loses money. Confidence high on that sample. | $65 | $53 | $149 | $71 | +$12 | 66.4% | −$20 | 9,999 high |
| 10 | Expected loss −$20 per submission: 60.6% of 15,719 graded copies came back PSA 10 ($94), and only a PSA 10 covers the $91 you have in it — a 9 loses money. Confidence high on that sample. | $20 | $38 | $94 | $71 | +$3 | 60.6% | −$20 | 15,719 high |
| 11 | Expected loss −$28 per submission: 54.1% of 10,217 graded copies came back PSA 10 ($85), and only a PSA 10 covers the $85 you have in it — a 9 loses money. Confidence high on that sample. | $14 | $26 | $85 | $71 | +$0 | 54.1% | −$28 | 10,217 high |
| 12 | Expected loss −$41 per submission: 49.2% of 9,873 graded copies came back PSA 10 ($138), and only a PSA 10 covers the $136 you have in it — a 9 loses money. Confidence high on that sample. | $65 | $55 | $138 | $71 | +$1 | 49.2% | −$41 | 9,873 high |
Best case only — no gem-rate evidence 1
Fewer than 10 graded copies in the PSA and CGC population reports, so nothing can be said about how often these gem. They clear the cost if they do — that is all the numbers support.
| # | Card | Raw | PSA 9 | PSA 10 | Cost | Best case | Gem rate | Expected | Sample |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 13 | $24 | — | $120 | $71 | +$25 | — | — | none <10 |
How the ranking works — and where it can mislead
Expected profit = (gem rate × PSA 10) + (PSA 9 rate × PSA 9) + (sub-9 rate × the card's own sub-9 prices) − raw price − grading cost. Best case is the PSA 10 leg alone. Grading cost is the PSA tier fee for the graded value plus roughly $20 round-trip shipping, at fees as of 2026-08-26; the paused PSA Value tier is excluded and membership is not included.
Population selection bias. Gem rates are the share of the graded population at PSA 10 (PSA population report; CGC's when PSA has fewer than 10 copies). That population is self-selected: collectors grade their cleanest copies, and near misses get cracked and resubmitted, so it overstates what a random raw copy would achieve. Read a gem rate as an upper bound, and read it against its sample — confidence is high from 100, medium from 30, low from 10 graded copies; under 10, the card is shown as best-case only rather than ranked.
Prices. Raw is CardTrack's blended near-mint price for the exact printing; PSA 9 and PSA 10 come from the card's graded price ladder, with a PSA 9 estimated at 0.4× the 10 when the ladder has no 9. Where the ladder has no price for a lower grade, that leg is valued at raw. None of this is a sold price for your copy — it is a model of what the market has paid, and grading outcomes are not guaranteed.
PSA grading standards
Centering is the one criterion PSA publishes as a hard number, so it is the only part of a grade you can check yourself before paying. The ratios below are the widest border PSA allows at each grade — a card is judged on its worse axis, and the reverse is graded too. Meeting the centering limit does not earn the grade: corners, edges and surface all still have to hold up.
| Grade | Front | Back | What the card looks like |
|---|---|---|---|
| PSA 10 GEM-MT | 55/45 | 75/25 | Effectively flawless to the naked eye. Four sharp corners, clean edges, full original gloss and no staining. A minor printing flaw can survive if it does not hurt the card's overall look, but wear cannot — this is the grade where centering is tightest and most 10 attempts fail. |
| PSA 9 MINT | 60/40 | 90/10 | Mint to the eye, with one small permitted flaw: a faint surface imperfection, a tiny printing blemish, or slightly off-white borders. Corners and edges still look sharp. The usual difference between a 9 and a 10 is centering or a single point of very light wear. |
| PSA 8 NM-MT | 65/35 | 90/10 | Very light wear that needs looking for. Typically one slightly fuzzy corner, a minor surface mark, or minimally off-white borders. Still presents as a clean card at arm's length. |
| PSA 7 NM | 70/30 | 90/10 | Light wear that is visible without hunting for it — slight fraying at a corner or two, minor surface wear, or a small loss of gloss. No creasing. |
| PSA 6 EX-MT | 80/20 | 90/10 | Obvious but modest handling. Corners show visible rounding, edges show wear, and the surface may have lost some gloss. Colour is still strong and the card is free of creases. |
| PSA 5 EX | 85/15 | 90/10 | Clearly played. Rounded corners, noticeable edge wear and some surface scuffing, with colour beginning to dull. Still whole and presentable. |
| PSA 4 VG-EX | 85/15 | 90/10 | Well handled. Corner rounding is pronounced, surface wear is easy to see, and a very light crease may be present without dropping the card further. |
| PSA 3 VG | 90/10 | 90/10 | Heavy handling. Rounded corners, dulled colour, scuffing or scratching, and light creasing. The card reads as used rather than collected. |
| PSA 2 GOOD | 90/10 | 90/10 | Substantial wear throughout — heavy corner rounding, creasing, surface damage or writing. Intact and identifiable, but plainly worn. |
| PSA 1.5 FR | 90/10 | 90/10 | Severe wear, stopping short of destroyed. Heavy creasing, major surface loss or damage, but the card is complete with no missing pieces. |
| PSA 1 PR | — | — | The floor. Extreme damage — major creasing, staining, tears, missing paper or pieces. Graded so the card can be authenticated and slabbed at all, not because condition is being certified. |
Qualifiers
When a single defect is the only thing holding a card back, PSA can grade it with a qualifier — a slab reading PSA 8 (OC) rather than dropping to a 6. Qualified cards usually trade below an unqualified card of the same number, so the letters matter when you are pricing one.
- OC — Off-Centre: Centering is outside the tolerance for the grade the card would otherwise earn.
- ST — Staining: A stain the card is otherwise clean enough to have avoided.
- PD — Print Defect: A flaw introduced when the card was printed, not by handling.
- OF — Out of Focus: The image itself was printed soft — a manufacturing fault, not wear.
- MK — Marks: Ink or pencil marks on the card.
- MC — Miscut: Cut outside the intended borders at the factory.
Grade criteria and centering tolerances are published by PSA. Summaries here are ours. See the official PSA grading standards for the authoritative text.
Grading FAQ
Which Pokémon cards are worth grading?
The cards whose expected graded value — PSA 10, PSA 9 and lower grades each weighted by how often that card actually receives them — beats the raw price plus the grading fee. Right now that is led by Mega Lucario ex (Mega Evolution) at an expected +$35 per submission.
How is expected grading profit calculated?
Expected value = (gem rate × PSA 10 price) + (PSA 9 rate × PSA 9 price) + (sub-9 rate × the card's own sub-9 prices) − raw price − grading cost. Rates come from the PSA population report (CGC when PSA has fewer than 10 copies); the grading cost is the PSA tier fee for the graded value plus roughly $20 round-trip shipping, at fees as of 2026-08-26.
Why is a card with a huge PSA 10 price not at the top?
Because a PSA 10 price only matters as often as the card gems. A card with fewer than 10 graded copies has no measurable gem rate, so it is listed separately as best-case only rather than ranked above cards with evidence.
Are gem rates reliable?
They are the share of the graded population at PSA 10, and that population is self-selected: people grade their cleanest copies and crack-and-resubmit near misses. Treat the gem rate as an upper bound for a random raw copy, and weight the sample size — the confidence label on each row reflects it.