Sell or trade · Carlsbad, CA
Sell or trade your Pokémon cards
We buy Pokémon single cards, binders, whole collections, graded slabs and sealed product, for cash or trade credit. Start by texting photos to (760) 453-6389.
Offers are based on recent sold prices for the exact printing and condition of each card. Like any shop, we pay below that market price, because we have to resell what we buy — and at most card shops, a trade-credit offer is higher than a cash offer.
- Cash or trade credit
- Offers from sold prices, not asking prices
- No obligation to sell
What we buy
What we look for, and what's usually worth little
If you're not sure which pile a card belongs in, photograph it anyway. Here's how a collection usually sorts out.
| Category | What we look for | Usually not worth much |
|---|---|---|
| Single cards (raw) | Holo rares; ex, EX, GX, V, VMAX and VSTAR cards; full arts; Illustration Rares, Special Illustration Rares and gold Hyper Rares. Near Mint copies get the best offers. | Commons, uncommons and non-holo rares from recent sets, and heavily played copies of modern cards. |
| Binders and whole collections | The whole lot, as it is. Sorted by set or era is faster; pulling the shiny cards and anything with a star rarity to the front is fastest. | The bulk in it — it's bought by count, not card by card (see below). |
| Graded slabs | PSA, CGC, Beckett and TAG slabs with an intact holder and a certification number that checks out on the grader's own site. | Cracked or tampered holders, and low grades on common cards. |
| Sealed product | Booster boxes, Elite Trainer Boxes, booster bundles, collection boxes and blisters in their factory wrap. | Opened or resealed product, crushed boxes, and loose packs whose history nobody can vouch for. |
| Vintage (1999–2003) | Wizards of the Coast era cards — 1st Edition, Shadowless and Unlimited Base Set, holo rares, Neo and e-Card sets. Worth photographing in any condition. | Heavily played commons and uncommons. |
| Japanese cards | Chase cards (AR, SAR, SR, UR), promos, and sealed Japanese boxes. | Japanese bulk commons. |
| Bulk | Commons, uncommons, reverse holos and non-chase holos — bought by count. Separate the holos and reverse holos from the rest if you can. | Basic Energy cards, code cards (the online-game codes from packs) and damaged cards are usually worth very little. |
Funko Pops or Ninja Turtles collectibles? We sell both — text a photo and ask.
How it works
Four steps, starting with a text
- Step 01
Text us photos
One photo of the whole lot, then the front and back of the best cards, to (760) 453-6389.
- Step 02
We price it on sold data
Each card worth pricing on its own is checked against recent sold prices for its exact printing and condition.
- Step 03
Cash or trade credit
You get an offer. Take the cash, take trade credit toward the case, or keep your cards — no obligation to sell.
- Step 04
Hand them over
If you accept, we arrange the handoff and payment by text. A photo offer is based on what the photos show, so it's confirmed with the cards in hand.
How offers are figured
Sold prices, for the exact printing and condition
Every card that’s worth pricing on its own is looked up against what copies have actually sold for recently — TCGplayer’s market price and completed eBay sales — not what people are asking. An asking price is a wish; a sold price is what the market paid.
The exact printing matters. The same Pokémon can appear in dozens of sets, and within one set as a regular card, a reverse holo, a full art and a gold rare. The set code and card number in the bottom corner say which one you have; on vintage cards, so do the 1st Edition stamp and the shadow beside the art box.
So does condition. A Lightly Played copy of a chase card usually sells well below a Near Mint one, and a graded card sells by its grade — which is why a slab is priced against sales of the same card at the same grade from the same grading company.
Why a shop pays below market. A shop buys to resell: it has to sort, list and store the card, pay the costs of selling it, and carry the risk that the price drops before it sells. That’s why a sale to a shop is fast and certain but pays less than selling each card yourself.
Cash or trade credit. At most card shops a trade-credit offer is higher than a cash offer, because the shop pays you in its own stock. You can take either — we’ll give you both numbers.
Bulk — commons, uncommons and non-chase cards — is bought by count, not card by card, and whether we can take it depends on what we already have.
For a fast offer
How to photograph your cards
A phone camera is plenty. What slows an offer down is not being able to read the card or see its corners.
- One photo of everything first — binder pages open, or the cards spread out in rows — so we can see the size of the collection before the details.
- Then front and back of every card you think matters. The back shows edge and corner wear that the front hides, and wear is what moves a price most.
- Bright, even light, no flash. Daylight by a window works. Flash glare hides scratches and whitening, and so does the shine off a thick binder page.
- Straight on, card filling the frame, set code and number readable. The code and number in the bottom corner identify the exact printing — the same Pokémon appears in dozens of sets.
- Graded slabs: front and back of the holder, with the label and certification number sharp enough to read.
- Sealed product: every side of the box, the wrap seams and any dents or tears.
- Bulk: a rough count is enough (“about two shoeboxes”, “around 1,000 cards”), with the holos and reverse holos pulled out.
When the booth opens
What to bring
Our pop-up booth in Carlsbad, CA isn’t open yet — see the Visit page. Until it is, start with a text. When you can bring cards in person:
- The cards, sorted by set or era if you can — it makes the count faster.
- Anything valuable in a penny sleeve and a toploader, so nothing gets dinged on the way.
- Bulk in a box, with a rough count and the holos pulled out.
- A list of the key cards, if you've already made one.
- Graded slabs in a box or a slab case — a cracked holder costs value.
FAQ
Selling questions
Do you buy Pokémon cards?
Yes — single cards, binders, whole collections, graded slabs and sealed product, for cash or trade credit. Text us photos or bring them to the booth once it opens. Offers are based on what the cards actually sell for.
How do you decide what to offer?
We look up each card's recent sold prices — TCGplayer's market price and completed sales on eBay — for the exact printing and condition, then make an offer below that, because a shop has to resell what it buys. At most shops a trade-credit offer is higher than a cash offer.
What's the fastest way to get an offer?
Text photos. For a collection, one photo of the whole lot plus close-ups of the best cards (front and back) is usually enough for a first number. Sorting by set and pulling out anything shiny or with gold stars before you send them speeds things up.
Do you buy bulk (commons and uncommons)?
Ask us. Bulk is usually bought by count rather than card by card, and whether we can take it depends on what we already have. Energy cards and code cards are usually worth very little.
Not answered here? Ask us — a photo of the card helps.
Sell or trade
Tell us what you've got.
A short description gets the conversation started; photos get you an offer. We'll reply by text or email.
- Offers are based on what cards actually sell for, not asking prices
- Cash or trade credit — your choice
- No obligation to sell