Editorial
Collector guides
Practical guides to buying, grading, storing and authenticating Pokémon cards. Each one opens with a direct answer.
What is an Elite Trainer Box?
An Elite Trainer Box (ETB) combines booster packs — usually nine — with sleeves, damage counters, dice, Energy cards, a player guide and a storage box. It costs more per pack than a booster box; you are paying that premium for the accessories.
Booster bundle vs booster box
A booster box is 36 packs from one expansion. A booster bundle is a smaller sealed pack of packs (often six). The box is the lower cost per pack; the bundle is the smaller outlay.
How Pokémon card condition works
Every single on this site is graded by hand against a five-step scale: Near Mint, Lightly Played, Moderately Played, Heavily Played and Damaged. The grade is a description of wear, not a prediction of value.
Raw vs graded cards
A raw card is unslabbed and described on our condition scale. A graded card is encapsulated by a third-party grader with a numeric grade and a certification number you can check.
How to store trading cards
Sleeve immediately, top-load anything you care about, keep cards dry and out of sun, and avoid PVC. Penny sleeves plus a top loader is enough for most singles.
Spotting counterfeit Pokémon cards
Check the print rosette, the light test, the dark core on the edge, fonts and energy symbols, foil texture, and the back swirl. If a card you buy here is not genuine we refund it with no time limit.
Singles vs sealed: which should you buy?
Buy the single if you want a specific card. Buy sealed if the opening experience, or an unsearched product, is the point. Singles are almost always cheaper for a named chase card.
Collecting Base Set
Wizards of the Coast Base Set (1999) is the first English Pokémon TCG expansion. Unlimited is the common print; 1st Edition and Shadowless are scarcer and priced accordingly. Condition on vintage holos is rarely Near Mint.