How to Ship Pokémon Cards Step By Step
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By: Oliver Copeland
- Published:
- Last Updated: January 24, 2024
Whether you’re shipping cards to a friend, for a giveaway, grading, or another reason, it can be a little nerve-wracking to trust the postal service. There’s no reason to expect that our package won’t be tossed around, so we have to package and ship the cards carefully. We have a lot of experience shipping cards so we put together a step-by-step guide to shipping Pokémon cards.
Shipping individual cards step by step
Step 1- Sleeve no card behind
1a: Place your card in a sleeve.
1b: Attach a post-it note to the sleeve (optional)
1c: Place the card inside a Card Saver. A top loader will work too, but a card saver is recommended.
Step 2- Make a sandwich
2a: If you’re hungry, go make a sandwich. Just kidding!
2b: Find a piece of cardboard and cut out two rectangles about an inch larger than the card saver/top loader.
2c: Secure the cardboard pieces together using tape with the card saver in the middle.
TIP: Use painter’s tape so it is easily removed by the recipient.
Step 3- Insert into a bubble mailer or envelope
If you’re shipping a single card and you’ve protected it as described above, it is probably ok to send it in an envelope. However, we highly recommend a bubble mailer as the minimum.
From here it’s as simple as writing the postage information on the mailer and dropping it off at your local post office or mailbox.
Shipping multiple cards or booster packs
You might be shipping multiple cards or even booster packs. In this case, the shipping process isn’t that much different.
Protect each card as described above by placing them in a sleeve, then a card saver/top loader. Now, you can stack the cards together before making the cardboard sandwich.
Booster packs will fit into card savers nicely, but you’ll want to cut the cardboard pieces even larger. Alternatively, there are plastic bags, kind of like card sleeves, that will fit booster packs. Place the booster into one of these, then use the cardboard trick and ship it in a bubble mailer.
How to ship cards for grading
Sending your cards away for grading can be nerve-wracking because they are probably cherished cards, especially if you’re sending off rare 1st edition vintage cards. So we need to take every precaution when sending these. However, each grading company will require that you ship the cards using their specific guidelines.
Shipping instructions for MNT (Canada)
Shipping instructions for TFG (United Kingdom)
Shipping insurance
You may be wondering if the shipping insurance is worth it.
Yes, it’s worth it.
To add insurance to your package doesn’t usually cost for than a few extra dollars. In the event that your package is lost or damaged, you’ll wish you had spent the extra couple bucks. In this awful scenario, your postal service should reimburse you for the value of the cards, which you should know beforehand in order to purchase the correct amount of insurance.
If you’re sending your cards in for grading, most grading services will require that you purchase insurance for the return shipping.
Final thoughts
Please, if you take anything away from this article let it be this: Protect and insure your cards. It will be worth your time to pick up a pack of card savers on Amazon since they are widely known among collectors to be one of the best methods to keep your cards safe. Other than that, most of the materials can be found in your household. Have fun!
