What is card grading and when is it worth it (PSA, BGS, CGC, SGC)

Poke Invest Editorial · 6. august 2026 · read in 4 min

Grading is professional evaluation of a card's condition by an independent company. You send the card, an expert examines it under magnification, assigns a grade, and seals it in a protective holder (slab) with a certification number that can be verified online. The result: buyers don't have to trust your description of "near mint" — they trust the grade. This is why graded cards sell for more and faster than raw cards.

How grading works

You select cards and service (speed, insurance value — this determines the cost).
You send the cards in protective sleeves (penny sleeve + card saver, not a toploader, unless the company specifies otherwise).
The company grades the card, seals it in a slab with a label and certification number.
Anyone can verify the number in the company's online database — this is the main protection against counterfeit slabs.

PSA — the most well-known and most liquid

PSA (Professional Sports Authenticator) uses a 1–10 scale with half-point grades starting at 8.5. The highest grade is PSA 10 Gem Mint, below that PSA 9 Mint. PSA has nothing above ten — no "pristine" grade. PSA's strength is liquidity: PSA 10 sells easiest and price charts (for example on eBay) are most abundant for PSA. Weaker cards (8 and below) in a PSA slab often don't outprice a nice raw copy.

Beckett (BGS) — subgrades and Black Label

Beckett grades four criteria separately: centering, corners, edges, and surface (subgrades). The overall grade is composed from these:

BGS 9.5 Gem Mint — gold label, the common "top" result.
BGS 10 Pristine — gold label, significantly stricter criteria.
BGS 10 Black Label — black label: all four subgrades must be 10. Fewer than half a percent of submitted cards receive this, and the market pays a large premium for it.

Subgrades are both an advantage and disadvantage: you see exactly why the card didn't score higher — but buyers see the same thing, so an "ugly" subgrade pulls the price down.

CGC — watch out for the difference between Gem Mint 10 vs. Pristine 10

CGC has two different tens at the top of its scale — and this confuses most people, exactly as you noted in the store: "I have a CGC 10" and nobody knows which one:

CGC 10 Gem Mint — a card at the ten level, but fails one Pristine requirement; centering can be approximately 55/45.
CGC 10 Pristine — a card with no flaws even under 10× magnification, centering 50/50. It's significantly rarer and on desirable cards can command double the price of Gem Mint 10.

When buying a CGC slab, always check which ten it is — it's written on the label. "CGC 10" without a qualifier says nothing.

SGC — black border, strong in vintage

SGC uses a 1–10 scale with half-point grades and an iconic black border on the label. In the Pokémon scene it's smaller than PSA, but for old (vintage) cards it has respect and tends to be faster and cheaper. Liquidity is lower — factor that in when selling.

Quick comparison of top grades

PSA: 10 Gem Mint (nothing higher exists)
BGS: 9.5 Gem Mint → 10 Pristine → 10 Black Label
CGC: 10 Gem Mint → 10 Pristine
SGC: 10

Rough market rule: PSA 10 ≈ BGS 9.5 ≈ CGC 10 Gem Mint trade in similar price ranges (PSA tends to be priciest due to liquidity); BGS Black Label and CGC Pristine 10 are in a league of their own.

When grading is worth it

Always calculate the same equation: expected price in grade − raw price − fees. The fee for standard service is typically €20–30 per card, plus shipping and insurance (from CZ/SK it's most often sent through collection services — middlemen — who gather cards from multiple people and split costs). Wait times vary, expect weeks to months.

Worth it: desirable cards in top condition (modern hits, vintage holos), where PSA 10/BGS 9.5 commands multiples of raw price.
Not worth it: cheap cards (fee eats the profit), cards with visible flaws (a 7–8 grade won't boost the price) and cards you want to open in a year — a slab is a permanent enclosure.

What to watch out for

Counterfeit slabs exist. Always verify the certification number in the company's database and compare the photo if available.
The grade isn't everything. Two PSA 10s of the same card can look different (centering!) — check photos of the specific copy.
Before sending, assess the card soberly. A magnifier and good home lighting will save the fee for a card that clearly doesn't deserve a ten.

Sources

Official grading standards and rules: PSA Grading Standards · Beckett Grading · CGC Grading Scale · SGC