Pokemon investing, explained

Elite Trainer Boxes can be worth buying, but the answer depends on your goal. Here's how ETB product structure, pricing, and set type all affect the decision.

A card's value comes from rarity, print run size, age, condition, playability, and cultural relevance. Here's how each factor works.

Learn how to spot counterfeit Pokemon cards using physical tests and visual checks for raw singles, booster packs, and graded slabs.

Learn the right way to store Pokemon cards, from penny sleeves to top loaders, binders, and long-term boxes, matched to each card type.

Grading can significantly increase a card's value and protect it long-term, but it only makes financial sense for cards worth more than the grading fee.

Back after a long break? Here's what's changed in Pokémon cards, what to collect first, and how to avoid costly beginner mistakes.

Comping means using recent comparable sales to estimate a card's market value. Learn where to look, what to match, and the mistakes to avoid.

Simplified Chinese Pokémon cards are 100% official, licensed products. Learn what makes them unique, which are most sought-after, and how collectors treat them.

Connecting cards are Pokemon TCG cards whose artwork lines up side by side to form one large panoramic image. Learn the history, key examples, and collecting tips.

Evolving Skies is nicknamed 'Evolving Cries' because collectors get emotional over its iconic alt-art Eeveelutions and the legendary Umbreon VMAX (Moonbreon).

Pokemon holos shine differently because each era uses a distinct foil pattern stamped into the card stock. Here's how to identify every major type.

Out-of-print Pokémon cards rise in price because supply is fixed while demand grows. Once The Pokémon Company stops printing a set, no new copies enter the market.

ex, GX, V, VMAX, VSTAR and more are special Pokemon card types, each from a different era, with unique rules, art styles, and collector appeal.

Pokemon collectors use shorthand nicknames for popular cards. Learn what Moonbreon, Bubble Mew, and other community terms actually refer to.

Every symbol at the bottom of a Pokemon card indicates its rarity tier, affecting how often it appears in packs and influencing its market value.

Edge whitening on Pokemon cards is physical damage to the card's core layer, caused by handling, shuffling, or storage. It cannot be reversed.

Most Pokemon coins are worth under a few dollars, but rare event coins and fan-favourite designs can sell for $20–$100+. Here's how to tell the difference.

A plain-English guide to the acronyms Pokemon collectors and investors use every day, from card rarities like SIR and IR to products like ETB and UPC and market terms like comp and pop.

Pokemon trophy cards are ultra-rare prizes awarded at official tournaments. Learn what makes them so scarce and why some sell for hundreds of thousands.

Set rotation removes cards from Standard play but rarely makes them worthless. Learn why rotation affects competitive players and collectors very differently.

Vintage Pokemon cards are generally those from the original 1996–2003 era, covering Base Set through the e-Card sets. Here's how collectors draw the lines.

Black Star promos are Pokemon TCG cards outside regular sets, marked by a black star and 'PROMO' where the rarity symbol sits. Here's what to know.

Gold Star Pokemon cards are ultra-rare EX era cards featuring a gold star symbol and full-art character illustrations. Here's why they command high prices.

A master set means owning every card in a set including all variants like reverse holos, illustration rares, and holo pattern differences. Here's what counts.

A Timmy is Pokemon investing slang for a weak-handed, short-term seller who buys high, panic-sells the dip, and dumps product cheap. A teasing insult for the opposite of a patient investor.