A collectible card game (CCG), also called a trading card game (TCG) among other names, is a type of card game that mixes strategic deck building elements with features of trading cards. Cards in CCGs are specially designed sets of playing cards. Each card represents an element of the theme and rules of the game, and each can fall in categories such as creatures, enhancements, events, resources, and locations. All cards within the CCG typically share the same common backside art, while the front has a combination of proprietary artwork or images to embellish the card along with instructions for the game and flavor text. CCGs are typically themed around fantasy or science fiction genres, and have also included horror themes, cartoons, and sports, and may include licensed intellectual properties.
The value of a CCG card depends on a combination of the popularity of the game, the popularity of the intellectual property on which the card is based, the card's condition, the scarcity of the card, whether the card has an artist's signature, and the gameplay value (power or efficiency) of the card. In some cases, the cards have become collector's items of considerable value. Most of the priciest cards come from the first CCG, Magic: The Gathering, or from some of the other most popular CCGs such as Pokémon or Yu-Gi-Oh!.
List of highest prices (US$300,000+) paid This list only contains cards actually sold, not estimated prices of unsold cards, at a price of US$300,000 or more.
The list is ordered by default by original sale price but can be re-sorted by consumer price index inflation-adjusted value (in bold) in United States dollars in .
Cards are evaluated by third-party services, most often Professional Sports Authenticator (PSA), Certified Guaranty Company (CGC), Beckett Grading Services (BGS), or Sportscard Guaranty Corporation (SGC), and given a grade on a 10-point scale based on condition.
The population column is the number of copies of the card in the original print run, not the number of known surviving copies in the present or of the graded quality.
Original price Inflation-adjusted price Date of sale Card name Year printed or released Set Game Grade Auction house Seller Buyer Population in original print run Notes References $16,492,000 $ Pikachu Illustrator 1998 none (contest promo) Pokémon Trading Card Game PSA 10 Goldin Auctions Logan Paul AJ Scaramucci 41 $5,275,000 $ Pikachu Illustrator 1998 none (contest promo) Pokémon Trading Card Game PSA 10 private sale Marwan Dubsy Logan Paul 41 purchased with combination of $1.275 million PSA 9 Pikachu Illustrator and $4 million cash $3,000,000 $ Black Lotus 1993 Alpha Magic: The Gathering CGC Pristine 10 private sale Adam Cai Benjamin Be 1,100 purchased with bitcoin; unlike most of the other most expensive Black Lotuses, not signed by artist Christopher Rush $2,000,000 $ The One Ring 2023 The Lord of the Rings: Tales of Middle-earth Magic: The Gathering PSA 9 private sale Brook Trafton Post Malone 1 one-of-a-kind printing (only copy of this version of the card ever printed) with unique art and Tengwar instead of English text $1,275,000 $ Pikachu Illustrator 1998 none (contest promo) Pokémon Trading Card Game PSA 9 private sale Matt Allen Logan Paul 41 $900,000 $ Pikachu Illustrator 1998 none (contest promo) Pokémon Trading Card Game PSA 7 Goldin Auctions private seller private buyer 41 $800,000 $ Black Lotus (artist proof) 1993 Alpha Magic: The Gathering private sale private seller Post Malone artist proof signed by artist Christopher Rush $672,000 $ Pikachu Illustrator 1998 none (contest promo) Pokémon Trading Card Game CGC 9.5 Goldin Auctions Blake Martinez private buyer 41 $615,000 $ Black Lotus (artist proof) 1993 Alpha Magic: The Gathering CGC 8.5 Heritage Auctions Jeff Ferreira private buyer artist proof signed by artist Christopher Rush $540,000 $ Black Lotus 1993 Alpha Magic: The Gathering PSA 10 PWCC Marketplace private seller private buyer 1,100 signed by artist Christopher Rush $511,100 $ Black Lotus 1993 Alpha Magic: The Gathering PSA 10 eBay private seller private buyer 1,100 signed by artist Christopher Rush $493,230 $ Charizard (Topsun blue back) 1997 Topsun chewing gum promos Pokémon Trading Card Game PSA 10 Goldin Auctions private seller private buyer $444,000 $ Silver No. 2 Pikachu Trainer (1997-1998 Lizardon Tournament version) 1997 none (tournament trophy promo) Pokémon Trading Card Game PSA 10 Goldin Auctions private seller private buyer 14 originally awarded as a trophy/prize to 2nd-place finishers in the 1997-1998 Lizardon (Charizard) Mega Battle Tournament series $420,000 $ Charizard (English holographic shadowless) 1999 English Base Set 1st Edition Pokémon Trading Card Game PSA 10 PWCC Marketplace private seller private buyer 4,000+ $369,000 $ Charizard (English holographic shadowless) 1999 English Base Set 1st Edition Pokémon Trading Card Game SGC 10 Goldin Auctions private seller private buyer 4,000+ one of two Charizard cards sold for similar prices ($350,100 and $369,000) on different auction websites on the same day $360,000 $ Blastoise (commissioned presentation galaxy star holo) 1998 none (test print card) Pokémon Trading Card Game CGC 8.5 Heritage Auctions private seller private buyer 2 one of only 2 test printings of this card, created by Wizards of the Coast to convince Nintendo to let them publish the English release of the Pokémon TCG, and the whereabouts or survival of the other copy is unknown $350,100 $ Charizard (English holographic shadowless) 1999 English Base Set 1st Edition Pokémon Trading Card Game PSA 10 eBay private seller private buyer 4,000+ one of two Charizard cards sold for similar prices ($350,100 and $369,000) on different auction websites on the same day $336,000 $ Charizard (English holographic shadowless) 1999 English Base Set 1st Edition Pokémon Trading Card Game PSA 10 Heritage Auctions private seller private buyer 4,000+ $324,000 $ Charizard (Japanese holographic) 1996 Japanese Base Set 1st Edition Pokémon Trading Card Game PSA 10 PWCC Marketplace private seller private buyer signed by artist Mitsuhiro Arita $311,800 $ Charizard (English holographic shadowless) 1999 English Base Set 1st Edition Pokémon Trading Card Game PSA 10 eBay private seller private buyer 4,000+ $311,211 $ Tyler the Great Warrior 2005 none (Make-A-Wish Foundation promo) Yu-Gi-Oh! Trading Card Game BGS 7 eBay Tyler Gressle private buyer 1 only one copy of card printed, as a Make-A-Wish Foundation gift to seller, whom the card is named after $300,000 $ Charizard (English holographic shadowless) 1999 English Base Set 1st Edition Pokémon Trading Card Game PSA 10 Heritage Auctions private seller private buyer 4,000+ $300,000 $ Bronze No. 3 Pikachu Trainer (1997 1st Official Tournament version) 1997 none (tournament trophy promo) Pokémon Trading Card Game PSA 8 Heritage Auctions private seller private buyer 4 originally awarded as a trophy/prize to 3rd-place finishers in the 1997 1st Official Pokémon Card Game Tournament series
See also Collectible card game List of collectible card games List of most expensive books and manuscripts List of most expensive coins List of most expensive philatelic items List of most expensive sports cards Magic: The Gathering finance
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