moonstone Research

Research

241 notes · every number from live market data, every product linked to its page.

224 of 241 notes independently recomputed against production, most recently November 6, 2026.

Latest · Set value check

Five Cards Hold 58.1% of Surging Sparks, and the Top of the Set Sank This Month

One copy of every Surging Sparks card cost $1,199.97 on October 3 and $1,062.97 on November 1. Nearly two-thirds of the missing money came from five cards, and the chase Pikachu is one of them.

November 2, 2026 · 4 min read
Screener · live

Screen 50,475 priced cards yourself

Four questions collectors actually ask, answered off this morning's table. Open any of them in the screener and move the bar.

Largest move in either direction over the window, counting only cards whose prior median was $50 or more.Moves compare 7d vs 7d, October 23, 2026 to November 5, 2026, at least 3 recorded days per side.

#CardMove 7dPrice
1Zeraora - 103 (30th Celebration) card artZeraora - 103 (30th Celebration)ME: Mega Evolution Promo · #103Move 7d−80.3%Price$16.14
2Victini - 102 (30th Celebration) card artVictini - 102 (30th Celebration)ME: Mega Evolution Promo · #102Move 7d−76.3%Price$21.37
3Pikachu ex - 109 (30th Celebration) card artPikachu ex - 109 (30th Celebration)ME: Mega Evolution Promo · #109Move 7d−58.4%Price$68.06
4Pikachu ex - 107 (30th Celebration) card artPikachu ex - 107 (30th Celebration)ME: Mega Evolution Promo · #107Move 7d−53.5%Price$71.02
5Lugia card artLugia30th Classic Collection · #029Move 7d−22.8%Price$149
Open this screen · 1,216 cards clear it

Table built November 5, 2026. Build your own screen →

240 findings

November 2026

All 27 Chase Cards in Ascended Heroes Fell, and the Ten Worst Bled Out Slowly

November 2, 2026

October 2026

350

What Is the Strongest Pokemon Card Ever Printed?

biggest number in any printed damage boxOctober 12, 2026$100.00

Are Lv.X, LEGEND and BREAK Cards Worth Anything?

median Near Mint ask for a Lv.X cardOctober 12, 20263.9x

Does the Evolution Stage Change What a Pokemon Card Is Worth?

Stage 2 median Near Mint price divided by Basic, pooledOctober 12, 2026$1,700.00

Which Trainer and Supporter Cards Are Worth the Most?

dearest non-Pokemon card we carry a price forOctober 12, 2026$0.48

Are Pokemon Energy Cards Worth Anything?

median Near Mint ask for a basic energy cardOctober 12, 2026+4.61%

Is the Supply Drying Up? We Counted the Shelf Twice

median change in a card's active TCGplayer listings over 26 daysOctober 12, 20268.4%

What a PSA 10 Is Selling For Right Now, and When the Median Lies

of PSA 10 cards disagree with their own long-window median by more than 50%October 12, 2026$0.02

Are Fire Type Cards Worth More Than Water?

median gap between the Fire and the Water median, per bucketOctober 12, 20269.1 pt

Does the Artist Change a Card's Chance of a PSA 10?

the whole artist effect, top of the table to bottomOctober 12, 202624.2%

Why a Played Copy Is Sometimes Priced Above the Mint One

of condition ladders quote a played copy above the mint copyOctober 12, 202633x

A Retailer's Stamp Is Worth 33 Times the Card, and It Has Not Moved in Eleven Months

median stamp premium, foil against foilOctober 10, 202678.7%

Are Damaged Pokémon Cards Worth Anything? 78.7% Carry a Price, at a Median 39.7% of Mint

of English cards carry a damaged quoteOctober 10, 2026$7.95

The Market Price Says $39 and the Cheapest Copy Says $30

median saving on a card quoted $20 to $100October 10, 20261,272,923

How Many PSA 10 Charizards Are There?

PSA 10 Charizards on our tapeOctober 10, 2026$59.99

How Much Does It Cost to Grade a Pokémon Card?

cheapest PSA tier a submitter can buyOctober 10, 2026$21.07

How Much Is My Pokémon Card Collection Worth?

average ask across the English catalogOctober 10, 202631 of 34

In Ten Sets the Cards Fell and the Sealed Box Went Up

sets where the singles basket fellOctober 4, 202652.6%

A $500.00 Card Is Three Times More Likely to Be Nobody's Price

of round prices never moved a centOctober 4, 2026

September 2026

What a Dollar in a Booster Pack Buys Back

September 30, 2026294 of 840

Before You Buy Sealed, Count How Many Times the Price Changed

sealed gainers moved on two price changes or fewerSeptember 29, 2026104.75

Introducing the Moonstone Indices: Three Lists of 500 Cards, Three Weeks of Readings

Moonstone Vintage on September 29September 29, 2026$892,584

Where the Money Actually Is: 635 Sets, Two Different Answers

one of every card we price, on one daySeptember 29, 2026−15.6%

Thirty-Two Days After We Called the Mania: the Slab Lost 15.6%, the Card Lost 3.5%, and One Slab Now Has Five Prices

the recorded PSA 10 figureSeptember 29, 2026

September 2026

14 of 45

A $3,499.99 Pikachu Priced Off a Played Copy, and 13 More Like It

frozen four-figure prices that match a played copy's own quoteSeptember 29, 2026+4.52%

Never Buy the Small Dip: Cards Just Under Their Own High Made 4.52% Over Three Months, Cards At Their High Made 9.27%

median 13 week return buying 5 to 10% under the highSeptember 29, 202653 of 67

We Checked 67 Of Our Own Buy Calls. 53 Of Them Fell.

of our published buy calls fellSeptember 29, 20266

Six cards in Pitch Black have stopped falling, for now

cards flat or up in the last seven daysSeptember 29, 20262.65x

How Much More Is a 1st Edition Pokemon Card Worth? 2.65x at the Median

median 1st Edition against the same card UnlimitedSeptember 28, 202698.79%

Are Reverse Holo Pokémon Cards Worth More? Yes, and Usually by 35 Cents

of pairs where the reverse asks moreSeptember 28, 2026$11.99

Illustration Rare Pokemon Card Value: What an IR and an SIR Are Worth

median Illustration Rare askSeptember 28, 202682.9%

Pokémon Card Condition Price Guide: What LP, MP, HP and Damaged Actually Cost

lightly played, median share of Near MintSeptember 28, 2026$30,790

The Most Expensive PSA 10 Pokémon Cards, Ranked on Sold Prices

highest PSA 10 sold median, Gengar EXSeptember 28, 20269.4%

EX Era PSA 10 Gem Rates: 519 Cards Measured

median gem rate, 519 EX-era cardsSeptember 23, 202641.2%

Team Rocket Returns Card Prices: All 111

of the set in one cardSeptember 23, 2026$11,209.45

Unseen Forces Card Prices: All 117 Cards

summed ask across 117 cardsSeptember 23, 2026165 of 165

Expedition Base Set Card Prices: All 165

cards carrying a priceSeptember 23, 20261,694

EX Era Pokémon Cards Value: All 1,694 Cards

English cards in the sixteen EX-era setsSeptember 23, 2026$5,337.93

What Are POP Series Pokemon Cards Worth?

all nine POP Series sets, summed askSeptember 23, 2026$4,862.21

What Are McDonald's Pokemon Cards Worth?

every McDonald's card we price, summedSeptember 23, 2026$8.30

Are Pokemon Black Star Promos Worth Anything?

median Black Star Promo askSeptember 23, 2026$10,269.47

Which Neo Set Holds Its Value?

Neo Destiny, summed ask over 113 priced cardsSeptember 23, 202627

Cheapest Way to Own a Gold Star Pokemon Card

English Gold Star cardsSeptember 23, 20260.988

Vintage Japanese Pokemon Card Prices, Set by Set

Japanese Expansion Pack over English Base SetSeptember 23, 2026339 vs 7

Diamond & Pearl Era Card Prices: 20 Sets

cards with a PSA 9 sold median and no PSA 10, against the reverseSeptember 23, 2026$45,018.97

Sun & Moon Era Card Prices: All 17 Sets

summed ask across 2,659 priced cardsSeptember 23, 2026$72,051.63

Japanese Promo Card Prices: 21 Families Counted

summed ask across 1,244 priced promosSeptember 23, 2026193 of 207

Japanese 151 vs English 151: Prices Compared

English cards with a resolved Japanese twinSeptember 23, 2026

September 2026

32,405 to 37,948

Japanese vs English Pokemon Cards, By the Numbers

distinct Japanese rowsSeptember 23, 2026399

Who Draws Pokemon Cards? 399 Names, Counted

distinct illustrator creditsSeptember 23, 202634,433

How Many Printings Does a Pokemon Card Have?

separately priced printingsSeptember 23, 202637

Pokemon Card Rarity Chart: What Each Tier Is Worth

distinct values in the rarity fieldSeptember 23, 202663,600

How Many Pokemon Cards Are There? A Real Count

catalog rowsSeptember 23, 2026$72.00

Alakazam ex 201/165 Value: the PSA 9 Sells for Less

PSA 9 sold median, 285 verified salesSeptember 23, 2026$882.13

Magikarp & Wailord GX 161/181: $882 and 77 Comps

raw ask, third dearest of 196 Team Up cardsSeptember 23, 2026$617.50

M Charizard EX 101/108 Evolutions: Price and Pop

PSA 10 sold median, 356 verified salesSeptember 23, 202613.96%

Special Delivery Charizard Value: a 14% Gem Rate

lifetime gem rate, 4,546 tens of 32,567September 23, 2026$2,125.00

Mewtwo & Mew GX SM191 Value: 638 PSA 10 Sales

PSA 10 sold median, 638 verified salesSeptember 23, 2026605

Banned Pokémon Card Art: What Censorship Cost

name-matched English and Japanese pairsSeptember 23, 202627

Banned Pokémon Cards: Does a Ban Change the Price?

cards on the Play! Pokémon banned listSeptember 23, 20261.13x

What a Reprint Does to the Original Card

median original over same-tier reprintSeptember 22, 202657.2%

Is a Pokémon Set Index Just Its Chase Cards?

median share of set value held by the top five cardsSeptember 22, 2026−0.402

Does Set Size Change What a Pokémon Set Is Worth?

rank correlation, printed size against median card priceSeptember 22, 2026$2,357

Pokémon Set Value by Era: 142 Sets Measured

median set value, WotC era 1999 to 2003September 22, 2026+190.3%

Do Pokémon Sets Gain Value With Age? 100 Sets

median move, sets aged 10 to 15 yearsSeptember 22, 202631 of 110

Pokemon Pull Rates by Set: What Is Published

English booster-selling sets with published pull ratesSeptember 22, 202613.6%

Sealed vs Singles: Which Price Moves More?

median share of day-to-day steps that moved, on both tapesSeptember 22, 20260.824

Do Sealed Pokemon Boxes Go Up in Value?

rank correlation, years since release against box askSeptember 22, 20260.380

Booster Box Expected Value Has Error Bars

median contents value as a share of the box askSeptember 22, 2026271

The Cheapest Way to Buy Pokemon Packs, Measured

of 2,358 sealed SKUs can be priced per packSeptember 22, 202614.94%

How Long Do You Have to Hold a Pokemon Card?

gross move needed to break evenSeptember 22, 20269.72

Four Ways to Index the Same Pokemon Cards

index points of spreadSeptember 22, 2026

September 2026

22.48%

How Far Do Pokemon Cards Fall? A Drawdown Census

median maximum drawdownSeptember 22, 20262.14%

How Concentrated Is the Pokemon Card Market?

of priced cards hold half the market's valueSeptember 22, 202641,359

What Predicts a Pokemon Card's Return?

cards in the broad cross-sectionSeptember 22, 202642

Which Set Has the Most $100 Pokémon Cards?

Skyridge, the most of 129 setsSeptember 22, 202610,381

14,466 Cards With a Price and No Sale

cards asking $1 or more, every one of them probedSeptember 22, 2026120.98x

The PSA 10 Premium, Ranked Across 90 Sets

Fossil, the highest median multiple of 90 setsSeptember 22, 202660.6%

One Card, 60% of a Set: Chase Share in 129 Sets

Giratina V's share of Lost OriginSeptember 22, 202682.6%

Which Pokémon Sets Are Mostly Bulk? 129 Ranked

Journey Together, the most bulk-heavy of 129 setsSeptember 22, 202633.41%

Above $1,000, the PSA 9 Is the Grade That Trades

cards with more recorded PSA 9 sales than PSA 10 salesSeptember 22, 202695 of 95

The Chase Card Is a Secret Rare 61% of the Time

sets where the median card past the total out-asks the median card inside itSeptember 22, 2026$44.43 vs $3.84

Hard-to-Grade Cards Cost More, Until 2020

median raw ask, sub-10% gem rate against the 25% to 40% bandSeptember 22, 202642.50%

A CGC 10 Sells for 42.50% of a PSA 10

median CGC 10 sold median over PSA 10 sold medianSeptember 22, 202624.54%

Is a PSA 9 Half a PSA 10? On 85% of Cards, No

median PSA 9 sold median over PSA 10 sold medianSeptember 22, 20265.14x

Starter Pokemon Cards, Nine Generations Ranked

Kanto starters and finals against their own cohortsSeptember 22, 202682

Every Charizard's PSA 10 Premium, Ranked

Charizard printings with both a raw ask and a PSA 10 sold medianSeptember 22, 2026$73.03

Every Eeveelution Ranked, Raw and Graded

median Umbreon ask, highest of the eight EeveelutionsSeptember 22, 2026+0.425

Does Reprinting a Pokemon Cost It Anything?

rank correlation, printings against cohort premiumSeptember 22, 2026302

The Species Premium: What a Pokemon Name Is Worth

species ranked against their own cohortsSeptember 22, 20265.77x

Why Pokémon Card Prices Differ by Source

typical gap between the highest and lowest honest priceSeptember 22, 202678.5%

How to Tell a Pokémon Card Price Is Stale

of quote moves had no new verified sale behind themSeptember 22, 202673.5%

How Many Pokémon Cards Have a Real Market?

of priced entries carry no recorded saleSeptember 22, 20261.39x

Pokémon Card Ask vs Sold Price, Measured

typical raw sold median over the quoted askSeptember 22, 20268

How Many Sales Does a Pokémon Card Price Need?

verified sales behind the median sold medianSeptember 22, 202649.97%

What Share of Cards Get a PSA 10?

of all 22,274,556 slabs are tensSeptember 22, 2026

September 2026

24.93%

How Fast Do PSA Populations Actually Grow?

of 2,916 registries added nothingSeptember 22, 2026−0.46

Does a Big PSA Population Lower the Price?

registry size against the PSA 10 premiumSeptember 22, 202690.7%

Is Grading Pokémon Cards Worth It? 2,633 Answers

of 2,633 cards carry a positive expected valueSeptember 22, 202612.2x

How Much a PSA 10 Adds, Across 8,676 Cards

median PSA 10 sold median over raw askSeptember 22, 2026$4,500.00

The Most Expensive Pokémon Cards Right Now

dearest raw ask in the English catalogSeptember 22, 20261,025

Which Pokémon Has the Most Valuable Cards?

Pokémon with at least one priced English cardSeptember 22, 2026+90.1%

Are Pokémon Cards a Good Investment?

median 20-month change, deepest tapeSeptember 22, 2026$2,218.19

Base Set Pokémon Card Price Guide: All 102 Cards

one near-mint copy of every priced cardSeptember 22, 2026114

How Much Is a Charizard Card Worth?

English Charizard printings we price dailySeptember 22, 20267 of 10

Ten Sets, Measured From the Day They Actually Went On Sale

sets that peaked within ten days of releaseSeptember 21, 202683.5%

Five Cards in Six Trade on a Single Listing

of priced lines where market equals the cheapest listing exactlySeptember 21, 20262.42x

The Same Card, Two Slabs: a PSA 10 Is Worth 2.42 Times a CGC 10

median PSA 10 against CGC 10September 21, 20260.08%

Fifteen Tens From 12,323 Tries: the Cards PSA Almost Never Gems

gem rate of the hardest English card we priceSeptember 21, 2026

If You Had to Buy One Set Right Now

September 20, 20263.66x

Destined Rivals Costs 3.7x Journey Together, and It Is Not Because It Is More Top-Heavy

Destined Rivals against Journey Together, whole setSeptember 20, 2026−7.8%

Destined Rivals Is 7.8% Below Its Release Price, and It Was 10% Cheaper in January

set value against its release priceSeptember 20, 2026+0.248

Played in 91% of Decks, Worth 24 Cents

rank correlation, play rate vs cheapest printSeptember 19, 2026994,132

The Frozen Catalog: 7,795 Cards Held Exactly One Price for Twenty-One Straight Days

daily price readings recordedSeptember 19, 202625,471

The Refusal Census: We Scored 25,471 Cards and Declined to Rate 22,039 of Them

cards scored on September 19, 2026September 19, 20261,373

Japanese Cards Are Cheaper, and Also Dearer. Which One Depends Entirely on the Price

cards priced on both sides of the language lineSeptember 17, 20263,228

We Put a Price Target on the Whole Book. It Refused Four Cards in Five

cards the model will put a number onSeptember 17, 202624.7x

Easy Grades Are Cheap Grades: the PSA 10 Premium Falls From 25x to 4x

median PSA 10 multiple in the under-10% gem bandSeptember 17, 2026191

A 191-Card Set Nobody Printed: the Delta Species Run

English delta species cards we priceSeptember 17, 202624,200

The Numbers We Do Not Print: 4,250 Withheld Populations

registry lines we trackSeptember 17, 2026

September 2026

0

Three Weeks of 30th Celebration Prices, and Not One Recorded Sale

recorded sales across the whole setSeptember 17, 2026$1,158.37

A Mew That Went On Sale Today Has Had Six Prices, and None of Them Is a Sale

Mew ex 158/128, the provider's latest readingSeptember 16, 20260

Nobody Has Published Odds for 30th Celebration, and the Numbers Filling the Gap Disagree by 63% on the Only Tier That Matters

official odds published for this setSeptember 16, 202695

The Float: 1.1 Million Copies on the Shelf, a $17.5 Million Shelf Price, and the $3,500 Card With Nobody Selling It

median active listings per cardSeptember 15, 2026339,436

Where the New Slabs Go: 339,436 PSA Submissions in a Month, 42% of Them Japanese, and the Cards Being Graded Fastest Are Gemming Less

PSA slabs added across 3,248 tracked linesSeptember 15, 202637.7% / 25.5%

Breadth: The Index Rose 4.8% in Sixteen Days, 120 of 156 Sets Rose With It, and the 300 Most Valuable Cards Did Not Move

English cards up more than 2% / down more than 2%September 15, 2026+135%

Will the Pokémon Market Crash? Eight Readings From Our Own Tape, and the One Thing It Cannot Tell You

moonstone Index since March 17, 2025September 15, 2026$0.24

The Commons That Are Not Bulk: 315 Set Commons Are Worth $5 or More, and Every Skyridge Common Is One of Them

median English set commonSeptember 14, 202612,980

The Least Graded Cards in Pokemon: Thin Registries Outran Deep Ones in Every Price Band Above $5 This Year

priced registry lines under 100 PSA slabsSeptember 13, 202649.5%

Hard to Gem: 22.8 Million PSA Slabs Say the Decade Decides, Texture Helps, and the PSA 10 Premium Runs the Other Way

of all 22.8 million slabs are PSA 10sSeptember 13, 202622.6%

The Drawdown Book: Among $5 Cards, Two in Three Sit Within 5% of Their 18-Month High, and Buying the Dip Trailed Buying Anything for a Quarter

median deepest drawdown, all 2,417 cardsSeptember 13, 202629,412,136

The Most Graded Cards in Pokemon: a Japanese Promo Pikachu Has 329,337 PSA Slabs and Nothing Else Is Close

PSA slabs across the provider lines we snapshotSeptember 12, 2026838

We Remeasured First Edition With Four Times the Data. The Premium Held. The Fine Print Did Not.

same-day pairs, up from 195September 7, 20261.21x

The Reverse Holo Beats the Holo on Penny Cards and Loses Where the Money Is

median reverse against the holoSeptember 7, 202618

The $0.69 Dark Ampharos and the $899.99 Zapdos: Two Lies on One Shelf

holo-only cards carrying a plain Normal rowSeptember 7, 2026−55.5%

Launch, Mania, Markdown: the Mega Era on Our Own Tape

Mega Hyper Rare Darkrai ex since its July 15 debutSeptember 7, 20261 in 32

The Big Hit Went From One Per Box to One Every Third Box

SIR rate, 2023 setsSeptember 7, 20266.3x

Pulling the Chase Costs 6x to 86x More Than Buying It

the cheapest rip tax on the boardSeptember 7, 202615,708,231

The Gem Rate Curve: 15.7 Million PSA Submissions, and the Era Nobody Expects to Be Hardest

PSA submissions in the datasetSeptember 7, 202665,685

Momentum Does Not Persist in Pokemon Cards: 65,685 Observations Say So

point-in-time observationsSeptember 7, 20260.39x

The Trainer Box That Costs More Than Its Booster Box

median ETB price, against its set's booster boxSeptember 6, 202628,288

Does Momentum Work in Pokémon Cards? 28,288 Observations Say Yes, With a Catch

point-in-time observationsSeptember 6, 20261.40x

The Same Pack Costs 40% More If You Buy Six of Them

median bundle cost per pack, against a boxSeptember 5, 202641 of 48

In 41 of 48 Sets, the Best Card Costs Less Than the Box You Would Open to Find It

sets where the chase card costs less than the boxSeptember 4, 2026

September 2026

Japanese Registries Are Twice as Deep, Their Slabs Trade a Third as Often, and the Gem Premium Is Flatter

September 4, 202612.07%

Twelve Percent of the Sold Record Is Thrown Away, and the Worst of It Is Where the Cheap Slabs Live

of all candidate comps rejectedSeptember 4, 2026

The Set Inside the Set: a 70-Card Annex Holding 90% of the Release's Value

September 4, 20262.63x

First Edition Is Worth 2.63x, and One English Card in Twelve Is Published at the Wrong Printing

median 1st Edition against UnlimitedSeptember 4, 20262.03x

The Reverse Holo Is Worth Double the Card It Copies, and 48x in Legendary Collection

median reverse holo against its base printingSeptember 4, 20260.14

Painter or Pokemon: the Artist Predicts 14% of a Card's Rank, the Creature Predicts 40%

artist out-of-sample R2, on the shared test rowsSeptember 4, 2026

TAG Now Out-Trades Beckett, Its 10 Prices at PSA Parity, and a BGS 10 Beats Both

September 4, 202610.89x

The Basement of the Registry: at PSA 7, the Slab Stops Being Worth More Than the Card

median PSA 10 against the raw priceSeptember 4, 202637.5%

The Frozen Tape: 38% of Card Prices Are Last Week's Price

of week-apart observations are identicalSeptember 3, 20260.026

Nothing Moves Together: A Year of Weekly Prices Finds No Pokémon Market Factor

average pairwise weekly correlationSeptember 3, 20262.03x

The Fee Is a Fixed Cost: A PSA 9 Pays the Grading Bill on One Card in Three

median PSA 9 median over raw priceSeptember 3, 20264.00x

The Same Card, the Same Grade, Four Times the Price

median high-to-low ratio, PSA 10September 3, 202610,872

The 10,872 Cards That Look Like Other Cards

cards sharing a name with a set-mateSeptember 3, 20260.732

Japan Prices the Same Cards on a Flatter Ladder

elasticity of the JP price to the EN priceSeptember 3, 2026$909,227

What Completing a Set Actually Costs, and Why It Is Two Purchases

one of every priced row in the dumpSeptember 3, 202626 / 0

260,000 Simulated Boxes: Not One Set Pays for Its Own Box

sets simulated / sets that clear their box priceSeptember 3, 202690.1%

Ninety Percent of Decks, Twenty-Six Cents: The Game and the Market Are Different Economies

of decks ran Boss's OrdersSeptember 3, 202635.4%

The Casting Premium: A Charizard's Advantage Is Decided Before the Card Is Printed

of ordinary-league rank explained by species aloneSeptember 3, 2026−2.70%

The Book at Thirty Days: Every Position We Own, Marked, Including the Pair We Had to Suspend

mean return, 16 live marksSeptember 2, 2026−0.754

The Gate Is the Market: 316 Desk Notes and a 62-Call Machine Converge on One Number

correlation, gem rate vs machine upsideSeptember 2, 202653.6%

The Half Point: A BGS 9.5 Is Worth More Than a CGC 10, and the Tape Now Proves It

BGS 9.5 as a share of PSA 10September 2, 2026306

The Multiple Ladder: A Gem Premium Is Mostly a Statement About the Price Tag

cards priced on both sidesSeptember 2, 2026

August 2026

466

Ninety Days to Our Own Grave or Trophy: 466 Dated Calls Are Now on the Books

dated calls on the booksAugust 30, 20267

Seven Cards We Refused to Rate

refusals collected hereAugust 30, 2026

August 2026

31

The First Negative Stamp: The Card You Lose Money Grading Even When It Works

PSA 10s in existenceAugust 30, 202655 of 152

The Ask Is Lying to You: What Raw Listing Prices Get Wrong by Construction

deep-tape cards where the nine sells under the raw askAugust 30, 20268.07x

The Eight-to-One Stamp: What a CGC 10 Is Actually Worth in PSA Terms

Entei PSA 10 vs CGC 10August 30, 2026Sep 16

The Thirtieth Anniversary Slate: What the 25th Already Priced In

30th Celebration, worldwideAugust 28, 2026

Bulk's Hidden Floor: A Quarter Century Later, the Worst WotC Cards Are Worth 33x the Worst Modern Ones

August 28, 202662.0%

The Gem Rate Drift: PSA Is Getting Stricter, and We Can Prove It Card by Card

average lifetime gem rateAugust 28, 2026+0.35%/wk

The Registry Is Closed: Dark Charizard and What Happens When Demand Meets a Finished Population

registry growthAugust 28, 2026

The $7,500 Card That Never Trades: Crystal Kingdra and the Illusion of the Trophy Price

August 28, 202642.9%

PSA Changed Its Mind About the Felt Hat: The Van Gogh Pikachu's Gem Rate Fell by Half

lifetime gem rateAugust 28, 2026+730/wk

Anatomy of a Mania, Recorded Live: Mega Charizard X ex Is the Fastest Tape We Have Ever Tracked

registry growthAugust 28, 2026

The Umbreon Standard: One Card, Six Datasets, and Everything the Modern Market Believes

August 28, 2026

Same Picture, Ten Times the Price: A Buyer's Guide to the Twins Our Scanner Untangles

August 28, 2026

Everyone Grades the Freebies: MEP Black Star Promos and the Deepest Registries in the Game

August 28, 2026

The Handout Grails: Wizards Black Star Promos and the Cards Nobody Paid For

August 28, 202621,003

Prismatic Evolutions vs Its Own Arithmetic: The Most Hyped Set of the Era Is Losing to Its Registry

Umbreon ex PSA popAugust 28, 2026

151 Proved the 90-Day Rule Twice: The Set That Crashed, Doubled, and Got Harder to Gem

August 28, 2026$2,445

The Set That Ate the Modern Market: Evolving Skies, Five Years On

booster box, liveAugust 28, 2026every pick

The Autopsy: Every Weekly Buys Pick That Went Wrong

still visible in the ledgerAugust 27, 2026

The Same Card, Two Oceans Apart: JP vs EN Pricing

August 27, 2026

The Twin Problem: The Cards That Fool Every Scanner

August 27, 2026

The Lottery Ticket Index: Where a $4.73 Pack Chases a $288 Card

August 27, 2026

Print-Run Archaeology: What Registry Depth Says About How Much Was Actually Printed

August 27, 202682,723

The Grading Throughput Index: 44,000 New Slabs a Week, and Half of Them Are Tens

new slabs recordedAugust 27, 2026175

The Liquidity Ledger: The Market's Hottest Slabs Trade 40 Times a Week. Its Trophies Trade Four Times a Year.

card-grade pairs in the ledgerAugust 27, 2026

August 2026

Buy This, Not That: Grail Cards and Their High-Growth Understudies

August 26, 2026

Reading a Display Case: A Field Guide to Shop Prices

August 26, 2026

We Grade Our Own Homework: Inside the Weekly Buys Ledger

August 26, 2026

What 56,000 Cards Say About How Sets Hold Value

August 26, 2026651

The Sealed Freeze of 2026: 651 Products, Six Gainers

sealed products with a 30d change, $100-$550August 26, 202694

How Many Sales Is a Price? A Census of Our Own Numbers

PSA 10 price series publishedAugust 26, 2026

Which Market Price? The Same Card Has Three Honest Numbers

August 26, 2026~1,350

Sellers Say, Pixels Decide: What 1,350 Listings Taught Us

listings adjudicated by handAugust 26, 2026$479.50

The $479 Lie: How Mixed Printings Corrupt Vintage Prices

Zapdos PSA 9, mixed medianAugust 26, 202666.7%

What the Scanner Sees: How We Taught a Camera to Outvote the Seller

binder-page accuracy when we started the loopAugust 26, 202676.5%

The Condition Tax: LP Costs You a Quarter, Damaged Costs You Two-Thirds

LP, median share of NM priceAugust 26, 2026

Does Pokémon Have a Season? Nineteen Months of Index Tape Says: Not Yet

August 26, 202645.4%

Where the Money Sleeps: 1% of Cards Hold 45% of the Market's Value

of value in the top 1% of cardsAugust 26, 2026

Grading ROI, Computed Honestly: The Registry Already Ran Your Experiment

August 26, 2026

The PSA 9 Discount Curve: Vintage 9s Cost 18 Cents on the Dollar, Modern 9s Cost 38

August 26, 2026+6.9% pop

The Population Growth Tax: Watching the Registry Eat the Premium in Real Time

fast growers, avg registry growthAugust 26, 2026104.83

Japan-Only: We Built an Index for Japanese-Exclusive Cards. Here Is What It Says.

JP-Exclusives 25, August 19, 2026August 19, 2026+78.3%

The Five Grails of 2031: What the Market Will Chase Five Years From Now

Umbreon VMAX alt, 12-month moveAugust 18, 202621

The Best Pikachu Cards to Buy Right Now

recent sales of the SIRAugust 17, 2026$342

The Best Snorlax Cards to Buy Right Now

Jungle holo, 1st Edition askAugust 17, 20266,041

The Daily Tape: Which Pokémon Cards Actually Sell Every Single Day

recorded sales in 30 daysAugust 11, 2026+167%

The Nickname Premium: Do Cards Like Moonbreon Actually Outperform?

Rayquaza V Alt, the best alt art of the windowAugust 8, 2026−41.6%

The Summer Dip Is Real. Your Index Says Otherwise. Both Are True.

Chaos Rising, June 1 to its July 18 readingAugust 8, 2026Day 40-90

The First 90 Days: When to Buy Into a New Set

where the bottom lands in every dipping setAugust 6, 2026

August 2026

9 of 11

The Grading Tax: When a PSA 10 Is Worth It, and When Grading Destroys Value

modern chase cards whose PSA 9 median sits BELOW the raw priceAugust 6, 2026+77%

The Art Floor: What 480 Price Histories Say About Every Foil and Rarity Tier

IR median over 18 months, best of every tierAugust 6, 2026$107M

The $100 Million Card: Ranking Pokémon's Biggest PSA Market Caps

Umbreon VMAX Alt graded cap, the largest of the fourteen we measuredAugust 6, 2026+76%

The Scarcity Tax: Three Years of SIR vs IR Returns

median IR return over the measured windowAugust 5, 2026+6.6%

The Summer Dip on Trial: What the Data Actually Shows

median tracked-card move, summer 2026August 5, 2026

Ten Rules for the New Pokémon Investor

August 5, 2026234

The $15 Flood: Anatomy of a Fake Market

identical $15 "sales"August 4, 2026106 / 219

The Grading Frontier: The 10 Pays, the 9 Decides

cards where a NINE loses moneyAugust 4, 2026$1.25

Rip or Hold? 400 Simulated Packs Settle the Sealed Debate

the median pack, pricedAugust 4, 202677,674

Population Giants: What 77,674 PSA 10s Do to a Price

largest PSA 10 population trackedAugust 4, 2026249.8

State of the Pokémon Market: August 2026

Market index · Aug 2, 2026August 3, 2026

July 2026

+26%

The Chase-Card Halo: Does a New Set Lift the Old Prints of Its Star?

Old Zekrom/Reshiram prints, announce → releaseJuly 30, 20263.3×

The Waifu Tax: Is Pokémon's Most Whispered-About Premium Actually Real?

female ÷ male median: SM-era full artsJuly 29, 202610.2×

The Stamp Tax: What a Pokémon Center Logo Is Actually Worth

median stamped ÷ plain priceJuly 29, 2026$22,952

Illustrator Spotlight: Mitsuhiro Arita, the Man Who Painted the Hobby

Arita index (top 25 cards)July 29, 2026−15% / −32% / −44%

The Launch Curve: What Chase Cards Actually Do After Release Day

cohort median at day 30 / 180 / troughJuly 28, 2026~10B/yr

The Print Clock: When Pokémon Sets Stop Printing, and How to Read It

cards printed at stated max capacityJuly 28, 2026$15,502

Ash's Original Team as an Investment Portfolio

the team in PSA 10July 27, 2026155k vs 109k

Cute vs. Strong: Which Pokémon Actually Pay?

recorded eBay sales, strong vs cuteJuly 27, 20269,261

The Velocity Report: What Actually Sells, and Why the Most-Traded Cards Made the Least Money

cards with recorded eBay salesJuly 26, 2026−91%

Where Money Went to Die: The Worst Pokémon Investments

worst peak-to-now singleJuly 26, 2026+2.4%

The Month in Pokémon: Where the Money Went in July 2026

median raw singleJuly 25, 2026520

The Grade Ladder: What PSA Populations Actually Say About Price

cards pricedJuly 25, 202636.7%

The Best Pokémon Investments of the Past 30 Years

CAGR: Base Set pack (shadowless 1st Ed.)July 25, 2026