Pokémania gripped the world in 1999-2000. This cemented Pokémon in pop culture for the next decade, giving the franchise time to grow and its fans to grow as well. We didn’t see a large spike in the hobby’s popularity again until 2019-2020.
With 20+ years in North America, Pokémania took hold once again. It’s no surprise that this resulted in card prices skyrocketing. An original Charizard shot up 500% in some cases. So here we are in 2024, and you might be wondering how much is a Pokémon card collection worth now?
It depends on the size and condition of the collection. Vintage cards are generally valued higher than modern cards. The price of a collection can be anywhere from $50- $10,000 or even more.
How to value Pokémon cards
Whether you’re buying or selling a collection, it will be important to determine the value of the cards.
Of course, this could take a very long time if the collection contains a lot of cards. Sometimes it is easier to pick out the ‘heavy hitters’ and find values for just those cards. In this scenario, you’ll want to check the prices of any holofoil cards, any Charizards, first editions, or anything that stands out as unique.
For example, if someone were to be selling a completed Base set of cards, 80-90% of the total value would come from the Charizard. The remaining 101 cards aren’t worth as much.
If you’re selling a collection, it may be worth it to you to spend some time and value a lot of the cards individually. This could result in a better profit rather than selling it as a whole.
Selling the collection as a whole vs. selling individually
Selling the cards individually will yield more of a profit than selling the collection as a whole.
Buyers will expect a discount if purchasing an entire collection. It’s also easier for the seller to get rid of everything at once.
As a seller, the more work you put in, the more profit you’ll make. If you just want to make a quick buck, selling as a whole is the best way to do so.
How to sell your Pokémon cards
Whether you’ve decided to sell as a whole or sell the cards individually, the best place to sell is eBay.
eBay is the largest online card market in the world, so listing your cards will get lots of eyeballs. You can set a ‘Buy It Now’ price, or list it as an auction. An auction has the potential to go very high, or fall short of the price you’re looking for, so be cautious.
If you don’t want to ship your cards, selling locally is an option too. Since Pokémon cards are in such demand, they will probably sell fast if listed on Craigslist, Facebook Marketplace, Kijiji, Gumtree, or other buy n’ sell pages.
Also, consider local card/hobby shops. You may not get the best price for your collection, but you’ll be able to make a profit fast and know that your cards are going back into the community and also supporting a local business.
Buying someone else’s Pokémon collection
Maybe you are new to the hobby, maybe not. Buying a collection is one of the most exciting purchases a Pokémon card collector can make. The thought of bringing home multiple binders of cards ready to be sorted and sleeved and organized is just awesome. The potential of finding a hidden gem or two is exciting as well.
eBay is a great place to find a collection for sale, but there will be a lot of eyes on it and you’ll probably end up paying close to market value if it’s an auction.
If you want to snag a collection for a good deal, you’ll have to look locally. Thrift shops, online buy n’ sell pages, and yard sales are all good sources to find cards.
If you end up finding something, you’ll want to be educated before negotiating a price. It’ll benefit you to be able to recognize the expensive cards in the hobby. Anything 1st edition or shadowless should catch your eye. Any Charizards are going to heavily affect the price.
Is buying a Pokémon card collection a good investment?
Yes, probably.
Of course, it absolutely depends on the price you get it for. Although the card market can be volatile, Pokémon cards do tend to gain value over time. The most recent boom in the hobby brought card values up significantly.
This means that Pokémon cards can be a good long-term investment. We may never see prices soar like a Base set booster box (currently selling for over $20,000 USD), but prices do tend to increase over time.
Examples of sold collections
1.
This collection sold for $50 + $18 shipping for a total of $68.
How did they do?
Total cards: 72
Estimated value of front page: ~$45
Our opinion: The seller probably paid close to market value before the shipping cost. The most valuable card would be the Dark Blastoise and Machamp, both at ~$16 market value. The rest of the collection is in the $1-9 range.
2.
This collection sold for $5000 + $47 shipping for a total of $5047.
How did they do?
Total cards: Unknown
Estimated value of front page: ~$1500
Our opinion: Not all of the cards in the collection are shown in the listing, and we don’t know if any photos were exchanged through private messages, but from what we can see, the buyer likely overpaid on this one. The Charizard holds the highest value at ~$700, the Blastoise and Venusaur both come in around $200. Many of the cards on the other pages are in the $40-$80 range, but many are below $40.
Final thoughts
A Pokémon card collection can be worth anything, really. If you’re new to the hobby then recognizing high-value cards or sought-after cards may be a challenge, but worth the research.
Some people even buy collections and then sell the cards individually to make a profit. This can be done if you’re prepared to put in the hard work.
At the end of the day, it’s going to be best if you have a friend or family member who knows a little bit about Pokémon cards to help you spot high-price cards.
Oliver has been collecting Pokémon cards for over 25 years. He is an expert on Pokémon cards, but collects all trading cards. He created Sleeve No Card Behind to help others learn about cards. His favorite content to write are the deep dive articles where he looks at Pokémon cards under a microscope, both figuratively and literally.
By: Oliver Copeland
