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How To Know If Your Pokemon Card Is Rare

Ozark Missouri Population 2021

How to Tell if your Pokémon Cards are Rare or Expensive!

Ozark is a city located in Christian CountyMissouri. It is also the county seat of Christian County. With a 2020 population of 21,060, it is the 33rdlargest city in Missouri and the 1780th largest city in the United States. Ozark is currently growing at a rate of 1.39% annually and its population has increased by 18.18% since the most recent census, which recorded a population of 17,820 in 2010. Ozark reached it’s highest population of 21,060 in 2021. Spanning over 11 miles, Ozark has a population density of 1,881 people per square mile.

The average household income in Ozark is $65,075 with a poverty rate of 11.18%. The median rental costs in recent years comes to $836 per month, and the median house value is $154,000. The median age in Ozark is 32.3 years, 31.4 years for males, and 33 years for females.

Pokmon Blastoise #009/165r Commissioned Presentation Galaxy Star Hologram

A two-of-a-kind card that suddenly became one of the most valuable Pokémon cards of all time

Sold for $360,000 in January 2021


One of only two such Pokémon cards in existence – making it extremely rare – this Blastoise suddenly became one of the most valuable Pokémon cards of all time after it sold at auction in January 2021 for a whopping $360,000 .

The ultra-rare Pokémon card was created in 1998 as a presentation piece by Magic: The Gathering maker Wizards of the Coast to convince Nintendo of Japan executives to allow it to handle the TCGs English-language release. The game would eventually make its international debut one year later in 1999.

While two Blastoise Presentation cards were produced, this is the only one that has been seen publicly. Even more impressively, it has been graded at a NM/Mint+ 8.5 level by certification website CGC, meaning that the 20-plus-year-old card is in near-perfect condition. The location and state of the other Presentation card remains unknown – meaning that this may well be the only such card of its type left.

Whether The Card Is A Promotional Item

Some Pokemon cards were not released as regular cards that you can find in Pokemon booster packs in shops. Instead, they were given away as promo cards, for example to Pokemon TCG tournament winners, or to people going to see a Pokemon movie in cinemas.

Some Pokemon promo cards are worth a lot of money, but many arent.


Often, promo cards are completely unique, which makes it easy to find their value. However, some promo Pokemon cards look the exact same to their non-promo version.

To see if you have a promo card, look for a big black star on the card next to the card number. This is why promo cards are often known as black star promos.

This Charizard card has a large black star in the corner, demonstrating that it’s a promo card.

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Rare Pokmon Cards Given As Prizes Or At Events

The most valuable cards arent in a typical card collectors binder. The truly valuable cards were given to tournament winners or convention attendees. Unless you were competing in Japan or attending parent/offspring games with your parents, you probably dont have any of these cards. Even if you attended or competed, theres no guarantee that any of these have wound up in your collection, as they were often only handed out at random or to big winners.


How Much Is A Complete Set Of Pokemon Cards Worth

How to Tell if a Pokemon Card Is Rare and How to Sell It

If youre holding a complete set of Pokemon cards , then you definitely have an asset collectors will be interested in.

For some, gotta catch em all literally means owning every card, from every set ever produced!

Now the actual value of your complete set will be determined by its age, condition and set popularity.

But whats interesting is that even newer full sets can be worth quite a lot of money. Sometimes as much as the older ones!

This is because, the regular introduction of reverse holographic cards, and secret rares, means full/master sets can contain over 300 cards.


The cost of pulling all of these cards naturally could cost £1000s in booster boxes. So for some, buying a full set outright simply works out cheaper.

Ultimately though, whether your complete set is old or new, is absolutely has value, and most likely, a market of interested buyers.

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Value Of Collectible Trading Cards Has Soared In Recent Years With The Most Expensive Sold For 45000

Pokemon began in 1995, the creation of Satoshi Tajiri, who dreamt up a Nintendo video game series in which fictional creatures are trained by humans to battle each other.

It spawned numerous spin-offs and tie-ins, including films, television shows and an incredibly popular trading card game.


The franchise is one of the most lucrative in the world, with its smartphone game Pokemon Go capturing a new generation of fans last year, while rare versions of the collectible trading cards sell for large amounts of money on eBay and other marketplaces.

So how can you tell if your collection is worth something?

How did the collecting phenomenon begin?

Nearly 15 billion Pokemon cards have been produced since they were launched in October 1996, reports the Daily Telegraph.

“For most Brits in their 20s, part of their childhood will most likely have been spent collecting Pokemon cards and pestering parents for packs,” says the Daily Mirror, but “since it has been almost 15 years since the huge popularity of Pokemon started to dwindle, you have probably ended up throwing your collection out or losing them”.

How can you tell if a Pokemon card is valuable?

It’s all about the rarity symbol, says Our Pastimes


What are the most expensive Pokemon cards?

The most expensive cards are the extremely rare “Pokemon Illustrator Cards”, of which only 39 were made, says Mashable. Last year, a buyer from Hong Kong purchased one for just under £45,000.

Beckett Pokemon Card Grading Scale

Beckett has a more in-depth process, giving subgrades for the four key factors mentioned above. Their range runs from a Poor 1 to a Pristine 10.

Interestingly, they also have an elite level above that called a Black Label Pristine 10 for cards that score 10 for all the subgrades. As you can imagine, these cards are highly sought-after and valuable.

See here for more info on grading your Pokemon cards with Beckett.

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Building Your Own Deck

What if you want to build own customized deck? While some people like the ease and convenience of pre-constructed decks, countless others prefer a more personal touch.

This Reddit Wiki is a great resource for building a beginner deck. It offers specific recommendations on the cards that should form the core of your deck, and outlines how you can develop a strong theme .

Part of building a good deck means finding balance among players. For an enjoyable game, two opposing beginner decks should be relatively well balanced and evenly matched. One should not have the clear upper hand all the time. This is something to think about if you tend to play against the same opponents regularly.

The Rarity Of The Pokemon Card

How to Tell the Rarity of a Pokémon Card – Fastest Method

Pokemon cards come in a number of different rarities. Different Pokemon card rarities can be seen from the rarity symbol, which is normally displayed in the bottom left or bottom right corner of the card.

Common: the card has a circle symbol.


Uncommon: the card has a diamond symbol.

Rare: the card has a star symbol.

Ultra rare: the card has a holographic star symbol, possibly gold or silver in colour.

There are many different types of ultra rare Pokemon cards, including EX, GX, Prime, Level X, and V cards. Normally these types of Pokemon cards will have this distinction next to their name.

As a general rule, most common/uncommon Pokemon cards arent worth much typically less than $0.10 each. As a result, theyre normally sold in bulk. There are exceptions to this rule though, especially with very old first gen Pokemon cards.


Rare and ultra rare Pokemon cards can vary in what theyre worth quite dramatically. For example, a typical non-holo rare from the latest set will normally be worth $0.50 – $1.00 or so. But a holographic Base Set Charizard could be worth $500 or more.

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Tropical Mega Battle Trainer Number 1 Card

There was a tournament that was held in Hawaii from 1999-2001, which was replaced by the world championships. These cards were given out at the first tournament, making them some of the rarer cards that you can find out there.

These cards are valued at anywhere around $5,000 but have been known to sell for more depending on the card. So if your Pokémon seems to be wearing a sunhat or a lei wreath, you just might have a valuable card.

Alternatives For Grading Pokemon Cards

As demand for PSA, Beckett and CGC shot up massively this past year, the desire for alternative Pokemon card grading services increased.

People wanted their graded encapsulated quickly, cost-effectively and locally.

Now I want to take this opportunity to say a massive shout-out to their entrepreneurs who took a risk, started their own grading companies and have a strong desire to serve the Pokemon community.

But, the big players have taken years to build their reputation among collectors, so this begs the question

Should you wait for the likes of PSA, Beckett & CGC to reopen and speed up or should you try these new grading companies that have sprouted up?

Heres my take

When to Hold Out For The Bigger Companies to Open

  • You have vintage Pokemon cards in near mint or better condition even more so if Holographic, 1st Edition, Error Cards, or rare Promos.
  • Previous cards have sold for a considerable amount of money the same card graded by a lesser known company wont be as valuable.
  • You have a valuable card and youre not looking for flip it quickly.

When to Try a New Grading Company

Ultimately, it comes down to you as a collector. If you like the idea of simply having your cards graded, protected and scored, then absolutely go for it and try these new companies.

But if you have cards that have high potential value, then Id probably wait.

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Common Uncommon And Rare

First, we need to show you how to find out a cards rarity just by looking at it. This is represented by a symbol located in the bottom right corner of every card. There should be a shape that indicates what rarity the card is.

Common cards are marked with a black circle, uncommon cards have a black diamond, and rare cards always have a black star. This is the basic way to tell the rarity of a card.

Rare cards, for instance, are split into multiple different kinds of rarities. There are the standard rare plain-looking cards, but theres so much more after that.

Look For The Black Line

How to find out if your Pokemon card is rare!

The plastic layer we mentioned earlier -on which the two faces of a Pokemon card are pressed- has a distinct black color.

When youre trying to spot fake pokemon cards, this is something that you should ALWAYS look for.

If turn a genuine Pokemon card sideways, you can spot this black line in the middle of the material. In case of a fake Pokemon card, this layer isnt and as a result, the side of the card will be completely white.

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How Do I Find The Most Valuable Pokemon Cards In My Collection

As we just mentioned, even if youre selling your Pokemon cards in bulk, its important to identify the most valuable cards so you can get the most money when you sell them.

Heres how to do this.

First, look for old holographic Pokemon cards, especially from the Base Set. They have a slightly darker yellow border than newer Pokemon cards do. Base Set cards will have the number #/102 on the bottom right, but other old sets such as Jungle and Fossil also have some valuable cards, so pull these out as well if you find any that are holographic.

This is the style of the first gen Pokemon cards from the 90s.

If you have new Pokemon cards in your collection, you will want to look for ultra rare cards as theyre often quite popular. Look for cards with a holographic border , with EX, GX, Lv. X, V or a gold star symbol after the Pokemons name at the top of the card.

This is an example of a Pokemon GX card.

You should also look for promo cards, especially old ones, as these can be worth decent money. Look for a big black star symbol on the right side of the card. This symbol is a lot bigger than the typical black star used to signify that a card is rare.

If you find any unusual-looking cards that are not common or uncommon rarity, its best to pull them out and check their value online, just in case.

St Edition And Unlimited Edition:

The first print run of a set would have a special Edition 1 logo on the left side of the card, just below the card art. An enlarged example of this logo is shown here. The 1st edition print run would typically be very limited, and once sold out, would no longer be available for sale. In fact, the first print runs of a set were officially called Limited Edition.

To meet super-high demand from the public, an Unlimited edition version would then be printed. Unlimited edition cards dont have the Edition 1 logo on the left side. Typically, a 1st edition card will be worth more than an unlimited edition card. Often this price difference can be quite significant.

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Why Collect Pokmon Cards

If youre here, you probably dont need reminding, but lets do it anyway:

  • Theyre frigging cool and you know it!
  • Theyre the ultimate nostalgic hobby
  • They can be worth a fortune
  • Values of sought after cards are only going to increase over time
  • You can get into it no matter what your budget is
  • They are so many options for collectors (vintage cards, error cards, PSA graded cards, specific Pokémon, Japanese cards, booster packs, the list goes on!
  • Theres a great online community of people willing to help and answer questions
  • But if you need further convincing, PokeRev, a big player in community and prolific YouTuber recently opened up a sealed 1st Edition Base Set Booster Box thats valued around $90k! The excitement this box opening generated was off the scale! Credit to him for putting together such entertainment.

    **Be sure to watch all the way through pack 20 belongs to Hobby Help, where he pulled a holo for us!**

    Cost By Pokemon Card Type

    How to find out if your Pokemon card is rare!

    There are several types of Pokemon cards and different Pokemon. While the Pokemon does have a factor in price, its the type of card that makes it valuable.

    Were no Pokemon card expert, but here is how we filtered our extracted data:

    Uncommon
    $3238.61 $231.33

    To no surprise, at the bottom, you had common Pokemon cards that had the lowest average sold at $3.47.

    The highest priced common Pokemon card was a “POKEMON CHARMANDER 50/82 TEAM ROCKET SQUIRTLE PIKACHU COMMON CARD NM/MINT LOT sold for $23.46

    2nd lowest was uncommon Pokemon cards with an average cost of $15.86

    At the top, we got Secret rare Pokemon cards with an average cost of $231.30.

    The lowest secret rare Pokemon card was sold at $6.58 which was Pokemon Card Champions Path Drednaw V 069/073 Secret Rare Holo Full Art NM/M

    The highest secret rare Pokemon card was sold at $1,120.92 which was PSA 10 Pokemon Champions Path Secret Rare Shiny Charizard V Card 79/73 079/073

    Coming in 2nd and 3rd are shadowless / 1st edition Pokémon cards with an average of $135.05 and Pokémon legend cards with an average of $130.79

    1st edition cards had both the lowest and highest item sold which was the 1st Ed English Venonat 63/64 Jungle Set Nintendo WOTC Card Pokemon 1999 sold at $0.01 and a 1st Edition Dark Charizard Holo Team Rocket Pokemon Card #4/82 – PSA 10 sold at $2,084.14

    The highest Pokemon legend card was a 2004 EX Hidden Legends Kyogre ex GEM MINT PSA 10 Holo Card Ultra Rare for $782.03

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    Find The Set Number Of The Pokemon Card

    Look at the bottom right or bottom left corner of the card for a number, typically in the format ###/###.

    In this case, the set number is RC21/RC25. Note that the set number does not normally contain letters, but it can sometimes. As long as theres a / symbol, or a number on its own, then thats the set symbol.

    Identifying Valuable Pokmon Cards

  • 1Check card rarity. Each Pokémon card has a rarity that determines how likely you are to open it in a booster pack. While this isn’t the only thing that determines a card’s a value, it’s probably the biggest. Look in the bottom right corner of the card to find the rarity symbol, next to the card number:
  • A circle means the card is common, while a diamond marks uncommon cards. These are easy to find, and not usually worth much unless the card was printed in 1999 or 2000.
  • A star means the card is rare, while a star H or three stars are special, extra-rare cards.XResearch source These rarities have the highest potential to be valuable, so separate them from the rest of your collection.
  • Other symbols typically mean the card was sold as part of a special product, not a booster pack. Try looking up the card as a “Promo”, “Deck Kit”, or “Boxtopper” version to check the price. These can range in price from a few cents to over $100, depending on the product.
  • 2Investigate early cards closely. Cards printed soon after the game was released are especially valuable, and even commons and uncommons might be worth $5 each or more.XResearch source Any card that says “Wizards of the Coast” at the bottom of the card is from 1999 or early 2000, and is worth investigating closely. If one or both of the following features are present, and the card is a rare, it could potentially sell for $100 or more:
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