Sell Your Pokémon Cards

If you've outgrown playing with Pokémon games and Pokémon cards, and remember where you have the collection stowed away, dig them out! Pokémon cards, as useless as they may seem to you, can be sold online for a lot of money. In about an hour or so, you can make easy money!

Steps

Selling Individual Cards

  1. Sort the cards by sets. The most accurate sellers will learn about the sets their cards belong in, so the buyer knows exactly which ones they're buying.
    • A set is identified by a small symbol that is either in the bottom right-hand corner of the Pokémon illustration (old sets), or on the bottom right-hand corner of the whole card (new sets).
    • To learn which symbols stand for which sets, look up the Pokémon on eBay and match the illustrations with ones you see—the set should be listed.
  2. Sort them numerically. Use the numbers at the bottom right-hand corner of the card (all sets).
    • There should be two numbers: one for the number of the actual card, a slash (/) and then one for the number of cards in the entire set (i.e. a Charizard with 5/102 is number 5 out of 102 cards).
    • There are a few exceptions to these: Base set cards, which were one of the first three sets released in America, do not have a symbol on the card. They are the only ones like this; and Promos, which only have one number denoting what number the card is (Ivy Pikachu, for example, is number 1 out of the first released series of Black Star Promos).
  3. Put all of your cards in protective soft sleeves (also called 'Penny Sleeves'). This will protect them from UV light.
    • After you've put them in sleeves, it's a good idea to put them either in "top loaders" (hard plastic cases to prevent bending) or in 9-pocket card sleeves that are held in binders.you can also use Ultra Pro deck Protector Sleeves which come in red, blue, green, etc. And both are fairly Cheap. Use plastic Binders and page Sleeves for easy storage.
    • All of these things can be purchased at a Walmart store or a card collecting store, and the best brands to get are Ultra-Pro or Dragon Shield.
  4. Make a list of all the cards you have (again, by their set). You'll notice that some cards have stars in the bottom right-hand corners, some have diamonds, and some have circles.
    • Once your cards are organized by number, you'll see the stars first, the diamonds next, and the circles last. Then you see the trainers, and the cycle repeats, and if there are any Secret Rares, there will be a Pokémon at the end of your set with stars. If not, that's fine too. Stars mean a Pokémon is Rare, diamonds mean it is Uncommon, and circles mean Common. Rare cards sell, of course, for much more than the others.
    • Note: If your cards are Japanese, and the star/diamond/circle symbol is white instead of black, it denotes an ultra rare card. Also, with Japanese cards, if the symbol is that of three stars, it is an ultra rare premium card—the hardest cards to find!
  5. Price them! Card prices fluctuate all the time, and to save you money buying a guide that may not be accurate, just go on Ebay and look up completed listings of the card(s) you want to sell!
    • Most of the time cards sell for more than they are listed as they're worth in magazines, though some times they sell for less. The only way to tell is to see what's going on with the actual buyers.
  6. Set up a description page. This is how you will draw people into buying them. Be sure to list what set it belongs to, the number (i.e. "This card is from Dragon Frontiers and is x/104"), it's rarity (Rare, uncommon, common, secret rare, etc.), and condition (Mint, Near-Mint, Fair, Played with, Poor, etc).
    • Describe them down to every detail so the buyer knows for sure what they're getting! Of course, make sure to tell them if the card has any bends or scratches—it'll hurt the value if it does, but it's better for the price to go down a few pennies than you to get bad feedback and lose buyers.
  7. List them on eBay or another reputable selling site. Most only take a very small amount for profit, so it's very cheap to use them! If you'd rather sell them in real life, then you can do that also!

Selling the Collection

  1. Sort the cards into four piles: Pokémon, trainer, energy, and miscellaneous.
    • Sort your Pokémon out into piles of each type, eg.: Pikachu, Ratatta.
    • Sort Trainer out into each type, eg.: Switch, Potion.
    • Sort Energy out into piles of each eg.: Lightning, Grass.
  2. Count the cards in each pile. Write the number of cards on a Post-It, and stick one on each pile.
  3. Figure out the individual cost of each of your cards. To do so, search websites that have pricing guides for your cards. You can also search eBay for the current trading value of your cards.
  4. Make a table. The columns should include: card name, quantity, individual value and total value (quantity multiplied times the individual value). You may want to do this in Excel or a similar spreadsheet program.
  5. Figure out the total value of your Pokémon card collection. Do this by getting a total at the bottom of your quantity and total cost columns.
  6. Use eBay or a similar site to sell. You can do this by packaging the whole set, selling individual cards, or putting them in packs of ten. Alternatively, you can sell them to people in your area. Check with your younger brother's/sister's friends because your "junk" can become their "special treasure."'

Tips

  • Try to keep everything in good condition, as bending/folding/tearing the cards devalues them.
  • See if you can get an auction going. If you ask for a straight price people might think it's cheap and buy it quickly. If you have an auction, people who really want them will pay more than they are worth so you earn a larger profit!
  • Try to spread it out; if you face book or eBay post it so you will get more money.
  • Don't be annoyed if your cards don't sell for very much—just remember how much fun you had playing with them!
  • When sorting you cards, use a large, clutter free table or area.
  • Do your research on your cards before you sell them! In addition to rarity, you should check to see whether it is first edition, second edition, or unlimited (in older cards). And do research on "shadowless" cards. Shadowless cards are worth more than regular cards.
  • When you've made your finalized piles, wrap and fix a paper band around each pile or use a rubber band. Now you can easily pick it up, and know how many you hold in your hand (with a Post-It or note on the paper band).
  • Make sure to do research before trading your Pokémon cards.

Warnings

  • Make sure that all the cards you are selling are authentic Pokémon cards. If you have any fake/counterfeit cards, do not try selling them. This could get you into trouble and will give you a bad rep. Some fakes are obvious, others are more difficult to detect. Check the edge, if there is only one layer of paper, it's fake, real cards have 2 layers and there's a thin black line around the middle of the edge.
  • Other ways to look for fake cards are:
    • Picture. Some fakes are fairly obvious with the picture, for they may have a printed image on it that is not actually in the picture (such as a pattern similar to holofoil print).
    • Holofoil. Some fakes are made to look holographic, but these can be easily spotted with a well-trained eye. Most holofoils have a specific kind of pattern that shows up either in the image itself or on everything but the image (the latter known as a reverse holofoil). Fake cards will often try for typical holofoil, but will lack the holographic image quality (some looking simply like a shiny metal sheen).
    • The "feel" of the card. Real cards have a special coating on their cards that make them feel smooth, which is even noticeable on older cards. Fakes are often made with a cheap, similar material, but will have a noticeably different texture.
    • Font face. Many fake cards will have a font that is slightly skewed. if you have a real card to compare with a possible fake, you can tell for certain if the font is incorrect. However, some of the older cards will have a slight off-type font (such as Base set Vulpix)

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