The Short Answer
- Pokémon grading is the professional evaluation and certification of a card physical condition by a third-party company.
- Cards receive a numeric grade from 1 to 10 based on centering, corners, edges, and surface.
- Graded cards are sealed in tamper-evident plastic holders (slabs) with a certification label.
- A grade 10 (Gem Mint) can increase a card value by 2x to 50x compared to raw condition.
- Grading also authenticates the card as genuine and protects it from future damage.
Short Answer: What Is Pokémon Grading?
Pokémon grading is the process of sending a trading card to a professional third-party company that evaluates its physical condition, assigns a numeric grade from 1 to 10, authenticates it as genuine, and seals it in a protective plastic holder with a certification label. The grade certifies the card condition on a standardized scale so that buyers, sellers, and collectors share a common language for condition assessment.
When someone asks "what is grading Pokémon cards?" the simplest answer is: it is professional certification of a card condition and authenticity, permanently preserved in a tamper-evident slab.
What Does Grading Pokémon Cards Mean?
Grading Pokémon cards means having a recognized company inspect the card under magnification and lighting, compare it against published standards, and assign a final grade. The card is then sonically sealed in a rigid plastic case — commonly called a "slab" — with a label showing the company name, card identity, grade, and a unique certification number.
The term "graded" means the card has been through this process. An ungraded card is called "raw." The distinction matters because graded cards carry certified condition information that raw cards do not. A raw card listed as "mint condition" on eBay is a seller opinion. A PSA 10 is a professional certification.
What does grading Pokémon cards mean in practical terms? It means three things:
- Condition certification: An expert has inspected the card and assigned a standardized grade.
- Authentication: The company has verified the card is genuine, not a counterfeit or reproduction.
- Protection: The card is sealed in a hard plastic case that prevents future damage.
The Pokémon Grading System Explained
The Pokémon grading system uses a numeric scale from 1 to 10, where 10 is the highest grade. Each whole number represents a condition tier:
- Grade 10 (Gem Mint): Virtually flawless. Perfect or near-perfect centering, sharp corners, clean edges, and a pristine surface. Only about 8.88% of PSA submissions earn this grade.
- Grade 9 (Mint): One minor flaw — a slight centering issue, tiny corner touch, or light surface mark. Still excellent and commands strong value.
- Grade 8 (Near Mint–Mint): Minor wear visible on close inspection. Small corner touches, slight edge whitening, or minor surface issues. Value drops noticeably from grade 9.
- Grade 7 (Near Mint): Visible wear but no major damage. Acceptable for vintage cards where grade 10s are nearly unobtainable.
- Grade 6 (Excellent–Mint): Multiple visible flaws. Corner rounding, edge chipping, or surface scratches.
- Grade 5 (Excellent): Moderate wear throughout. Still collectible for rare cards.
- Grade 4 (Very Good–Excellent): Significant wear. Corners may be rounded, edges chipped, surface scratched.
- Grade 3 (Very Good): Heavy wear. Creases may be present. Only worth grading for extreme rarities.
- Grade 2 (Good): Major damage. Tears, heavy creasing, staining.
- Grade 1 (Poor): Severe damage. The card is authentic but in terrible condition.
What is the Pokémon grading system called? It is simply the 1–10 grading scale, used by all major companies. PSA calls grade 10 "Gem Mint." BGS uses "Pristine 10" for its top tier and "Black Label" for quad-10 subgrades. The scale is the same; the label names differ slightly.
The Four Grading Criteria
Every major grading company evaluates Pokémon cards across the same four criteria. Understanding these is essential for pre-screening cards before submission.
1. Centering
Centering measures how evenly the card art is positioned between the borders. A perfectly centered card has equal border widths on all sides. PSA requires 55/45 or better for grade 10. BGS is stricter, requiring approximately 50/50 for its top tier. Centering is a factory issue — it cannot be improved after the card is printed.
2. Corners
Corners are the most common grade killer. Graders inspect all four corners under magnification for whitening, fraying, dings, rounding, and creases. Even a microscopic touch of white on a corner edge can drop a card from grade 10 to grade 9. Pokémon holofoil cards show corner wear more visibly than non-holo cards.
3. Edges
Edges are checked for whitening, chipping, rough cuts, and compression marks. Some Pokémon print runs — particularly early Sword & Shield — are notorious for factory edge roughness. A card that looks mint at arm length may have edge issues visible under 5–10x magnification.
4. Surface
Surface is the most complex criterion. Graders look for scratches, print lines, holo swirl defects, clouding, fingerprints, dents, stains, and foil pitting. Pokémon holofoil and textured cards are especially vulnerable. A single factory print line can drop a grade 10 candidate to grade 9. Surface defects are often invisible in quick phone photos but clear under angled lighting.
How Do Pokémon Cards Get Graded?
The grading process follows these steps:
- Card selection: The collector identifies cards worth grading based on condition, value, and market demand.
- Pre-screening: The collector inspects centering, corners, edges, and surface. Many use AI pre-grading tools to estimate a likely grade range before paying professional fees.
- Submission form: The collector creates an account with the grading company, fills out a submission form listing each card, and selects a service tier based on declared value and desired turnaround.
- Packaging and shipping: Cards are sleeved, placed in semi-rigid holders, packed with the submission form, and shipped via trackable, insured mail.
- Professional grading: The company receives the cards, logs them into the system, and a grader inspects each card under magnification and controlled lighting. The grader evaluates all four criteria and assigns a final grade.
- Encapsulation: The card is sonically sealed in a tamper-evident plastic holder with a printed label showing the company, card identity, grade, and certification number.
- Return shipping: The graded cards are shipped back to the collector via trackable, insured mail.
The entire process typically takes 20–65 days depending on the company and service tier. Express options can reduce this to 5–15 days at higher cost.
What Is a Graded Pokémon Card Slab?
A "slab" is the colloquial term for the tamper-evident plastic holder that a grading company uses to encapsulate a graded card. Each company has its own holder design:
- PSA: White label, clear plastic, card visible front and back. The most recognized holder in the hobby.
- BGS: Blue label (or black for Black Label), clear plastic with a distinctive inner well. Subgrades printed on the label.
- CGC: Blue and gold label, clear plastic. Modern, clean design.
- SGC: Black-bordered holder with a distinctive look. Popular with vintage collectors.
The slab serves three purposes: it protects the card from physical damage, it prevents tampering with the card after grading, and it displays the certification information clearly. Each slab has a unique certification number that can be verified on the grading company website.
Why Does Grading Increase Value?
Graded Pokémon cards sell for more than raw (ungraded) cards for several reasons:
- Certified condition: Buyers know exactly what they are getting. A PSA 10 is a professional certification, not a seller opinion.
- Authentication: The grading company has verified the card is genuine. This eliminates counterfeit risk for the buyer.
- Protection: The slab prevents future damage, preserving the condition indefinitely.
- Liquidity: Graded cards are easier to sell. Marketplaces like eBay have dedicated graded-card categories, and auction houses primarily deal in graded cards.
- Population scarcity: The population report shows how many copies exist at each grade. A PSA 10 with a population of 50 is scarce and commands a premium.
The value increase depends on the card and the grade. A PSA 10 can sell for 2x to 50x the raw price. A PSA 8 might sell for 1.2x to 2x. The highest multipliers go to vintage cards with low populations and modern chase cards with high demand.
Authentication and Counterfeit Protection
Counterfeit Pokémon cards are a significant problem, especially for high-value vintage cards. Grading companies authenticate every card they receive. If a card is deemed counterfeit, altered, or reproduced, it is returned ungraded (or in some cases confiscated and destroyed).
This authentication service is one of the most valuable aspects of grading. A raw card sold online carries counterfeit risk. A graded card in a PSA, BGS, CGC, or SGC holder has been authenticated by a professional. For expensive cards, this alone can justify the grading fee.
What are Pokémon grading companies doing about fakes? All four major companies use a combination of visual inspection, blacklight testing, microscopic examination, and comparison against known genuine examples. PSA and BGS have the most extensive reference databases due to their longer history.
Is Pokémon Grading Free?
No, Pokémon grading is not free. Professional grading costs range from $15 per card (CGC Economy) to $300+ per card (PSA Super Express). The most commonly used tier is PSA Regular at $79.99 per card. Some AI pre-grading tools offer a free first scan, but professional certification always costs money.
Free options exist only as pre-screening tools. PreGradeCards offers a free first AI scan that estimates condition from photos, but this is not a professional grade or certification. It helps you decide whether to pay for professional grading.
Should You Grade Your Pokémon Cards?
Grading is worth it when three conditions are met:
- The card raw value is high enough. As a rule of thumb, the card should be worth at least $50 raw. If the grading fee is $79.99 and the card is worth $20, grading is not worth it.
- The card appears to be in excellent condition. Cards with visible damage, heavy wear, or poor centering are unlikely to earn a high enough grade to justify the fee.
- The card has market demand. A grade 10 of a card nobody wants is still worth very little. Check completed sales before submitting.
Use an AI pre-grade to screen your cards before paying professional fees. This helps you identify which cards are worth the investment and which should stay raw in your binder.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is Pokémon grading?
What does grading Pokémon cards mean?
What is the Pokémon grading system?
What is grading Pokémon cards called?
What are Pokémon grading?
Sources & Further Reading
Sarah Williams leads PreGradeCards educational content and collector onboarding. She has been a full-time collector and dealer for 12 years, specializing in modern sports cards and Pokémon TCG, and has written grading guides read by over 300,000 collectors.
With submission floors rising, pre-screening is no longer optional. Use our AI Pre-Grade Calculator to score a card's PSA 10 odds before you pay, and the Submission Planner to pick the right tier.