Best Great Encounters Cards to Grade
The Great Encounters 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: Cresselia LV.X at an expected +$3,326.
Ranked by expected profit 22
| # | Card | Raw | PSA 9 | PSA 10 | Cost | Best case | Gem rate | Expected | Sample |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Expected +$3,326 per submission: 4.5% of 840 graded copies came back PSA 10 ($70,287), and a PSA 9 ($1,350) still clears the $3,792 you have in it. Confidence high on that sample. | $70 | $1,350 | $70,287 | $3,722 | +$66,495 | 4.5% | +$3,326 | 840 high |
| 2 | Expected +$3,026 per submission: 3.5% of 1,184 graded copies came back PSA 10 ($80,000), and a PSA 9 ($3,000) still clears the $4,033 you have in it. Confidence high on that sample. | $214 | $3,000 | $80,000 | $3,819 | +$75,967 | 3.5% | +$3,026 | 1,184 high |
| 3 | Expected +$1,700 per submission: 21.9% of 401 graded copies came back PSA 10 ($8,000), and a PSA 9 ($399) still clears the $712 you have in it. Confidence high on that sample. | $13 | $399 | $8,000 | $699 | +$7,288 | 21.9% | +$1,700 | 401 high |
| 4 | Expected +$1,663 per submission: 19.5% of 231 graded copies came back PSA 10 ($9,000), and a PSA 9 ($225) still clears the $721 you have in it. Confidence high on that sample. | $12 | $225 | $9,000 | $709 | +$8,279 | 19.5% | +$1,663 | 231 high |
| 5 | Expected +$1,360 per submission: 32.3% of 288 graded copies came back PSA 10 ($4,500), and a PSA 9 ($300) still clears the $441 you have in it. Confidence high on that sample. | $27 | $300 | $4,500 | $414 | +$4,059 | 32.3% | +$1,360 | 288 high |
| 6 | Expected +$1,288 per submission: 24.9% of 317 graded copies came back PSA 10 ($5,500), and a PSA 9 ($399) still clears the $714 you have in it. Confidence high on that sample. | $40 | $399 | $5,500 | $674 | +$4,786 | 24.9% | +$1,288 | 317 high |
| 7 | Expected +$783 per submission: 24% of 304 graded copies came back PSA 10 ($3,650), and a PSA 9 ($175) still clears the $426 you have in it. Confidence high on that sample. | $20 | $175 | $3,650 | $406 | +$3,225 | 24% | +$783 | 304 high |
| 8 | Expected +$619 per submission: 15.2% of 211 graded copies came back PSA 10 ($4,500), and a PSA 9 ($179) still clears the $441 you have in it. Confidence high on that sample. | $27 | $179 | $4,500 | $414 | +$4,059 | 15.2% | +$619 | 211 high |
| 9 | Expected +$532 per submission: 25% of 176 graded copies came back PSA 10 ($2,280), and a PSA 9 ($195) still clears the $254 you have in it. Confidence high on that sample. | $12 | $195 | $2,280 | $242 | +$2,026 | 25% | +$532 | 176 high |
| 10 | Expected +$499 per submission: 26.7% of 303 graded copies came back PSA 10 ($2,010), and a PSA 9 ($220) still clears the $261 you have in it. Confidence high on that sample. | $22 | $220 | $2,010 | $239 | +$1,749 | 26.7% | +$499 | 303 high |
| 11 | Expected +$471 per submission: 23.8% of 202 graded copies came back PSA 10 ($2,200), and a PSA 9 ($151) still clears the $259 you have in it. Confidence high on that sample. | $18 | $151 | $2,200 | $241 | +$1,941 | 23.8% | +$471 | 202 high |
| 12 | Expected +$351 per submission: 39.4% of 109 graded copies came back PSA 10 ($1,050), and only a PSA 10 covers the $115 you have in it — a 9 loses money. Confidence high on that sample. | $5 | $72 | $1,050 | $110 | +$934 | 39.4% | +$351 | 109 high |
| 13 | Expected +$256 per submission: 22.8% of 193 graded copies came back PSA 10 ($1,200), and a PSA 9 ($150) still clears the $123 you have in it. Confidence high on that sample. | $11 | $150 | $1,200 | $112 | +$1,077 | 22.8% | +$256 | 193 high |
| 14 | Expected loss −$3 per submission: 47.6% of 63 graded copies came back PSA 10 ($167), and only a PSA 10 covers the $90 you have in it — a 9 loses money. Confidence medium on that sample. | $8 | $35 | $167 | $82 | +$77 | 47.6% | −$3 | 63 medium |
| 15 | Expected loss −$29 per submission: 15.4% of 13 graded copies came back PSA 10 ($122), and only a PSA 10 covers the $89 you have in it — a 9 loses money. Confidence low on that sample. | $8 | $66 | $122 | $81 | +$32 | 15.4% | −$29 | 13 low |
| 16 | Expected loss −$31 per submission: 34.8% of 23 graded copies came back PSA 10 ($128), and only a PSA 10 covers the $90 you have in it — a 9 loses money. Confidence low on that sample. | $9 | $51 | $128 | $81 | +$38 | 34.8% | −$31 | 23 low |
| 17 | Expected loss −$36 per submission: 13.6% of 44 graded copies came back PSA 10 ($156), and only a PSA 10 covers the $90 you have in it — a 9 loses money. Confidence medium on that sample. | $8 | $79 | $156 | $82 | +$66 | 13.6% | −$36 | 44 medium |
| 18 | Expected loss −$46 per submission: 9.1% of 11 graded copies came back PSA 10 ($306), and only a PSA 10 covers the $92 you have in it — a 9 loses money. Confidence low on that sample. | $9 | $22 | $306 | $83 | +$214 | 9.1% | −$46 | 11 low |
| 19 | Expected loss −$51 per submission: 25.5% of 94 graded copies came back PSA 10 ($104), and only a PSA 10 covers the $89 you have in it — a 9 loses money. Confidence medium on that sample. | $8 | $20 | $104 | $81 | +$16 | 25.5% | −$51 | 94 medium |
| 20 | Expected loss −$53 per submission: 4.3% of 116 graded copies came back PSA 10 ($248), and a PSA 9 ($99) still clears the $96 you have in it. Confidence high on that sample. | $14 | $99 | $248 | $82 | +$152 | 4.3% | −$53 | 116 high |
| 21 | Expected loss −$64 per submission: 5.6% of 18 graded copies came back PSA 10 ($112), and only a PSA 10 covers the $91 you have in it — a 9 loses money. Confidence low on that sample. | $10 | $40 | $112 | $81 | +$21 | 5.6% | −$64 | 18 low |
| 22 | Expected loss −$67 per submission: 0% of 24 graded copies came back PSA 10 ($100), and only a PSA 10 covers the $86 you have in it — a 9 loses money. Confidence low on that sample. | $5 | $24 | $100 | $81 | +$14 | 0% | −$67 | 24 low |
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 Great Encounters ranking
Every Great Encounters card listed here clears one bar: its PSA 10 price beats its raw price by more than the cost of grading it. 22 cards from the set pass. 22 of them (100%) have a gem-rate sample of at least ten graded copies in the population reports, and 13 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 Cresselia LV.X from Great Encounters, gems 4.5% of the time across 840 graded copies: +$3,326 is what a long run of submissions would average, $66,495 is what one lucky copy returns.
The median gem rate across the sampled Great Encounters cards is 22.8%. Roughly one submitted copy in 4 came back PSA 10, and most rows here still cover raw price plus fee at PSA 9, so the PSA 9 price does most of the work. Of the 22 ranked cards, 13 still cover raw price plus fee at PSA 9, 9 need a 10 to break even and 9 lose money on expectation. 14 rest on a hundred or more graded copies.
Before you submit a Great Encounters 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 Great Encounters card list, or see how gem-mint premiums run across the whole catalogue on the PSA premium index.