Stack up the sports cards graded in the first six months of 2025 and you'd have a pile that reaches into the stratosphere. Tack on the gaming and non-sports cards and you're taking a plastic powered ride into the mesosphere. Over five million baseball, basketball, football, hockey, soccer and other sports cards have been processed by the major grading services … [Read more...] about Over 5 Million Sports Cards Were Graded in the 1st Six Months of 2025
Gem Rate
10 Most Graded Iconic Sports Cards Last Month
Some popular 1980s rookie cards and a couple of familiar issues from the junk wax era were among the hobby's most recognizable cards seen most often by graders last month. GemRate's Iconic Tracker, which compiles data for 100 of the most popular sports cards ever made shows the 1989 Upper Deck Ken Griffey Jr. as the most graded card on that list last month. The four major … [Read more...] about 10 Most Graded Iconic Sports Cards Last Month
Notes: May Grading Numbers; Debut Patch Projections; Expo Packs ‘Em In; Beach Town Shop; NHL Player Surprises Kids
Sports card grading in May was a bit of a mixed bag. While overall numbers of sports, TCG and non-sports cards grew for the fourth consecutive month, sports grading numbers were down compared to the same month a year ago. Data compiled by GemRate shows 2.4 million cards in all were graded in May. That’s up 300,000 from April. PSA graded 1.6 million of those—602,000 of which … [Read more...] about Notes: May Grading Numbers; Debut Patch Projections; Expo Packs ‘Em In; Beach Town Shop; NHL Player Surprises Kids
1980s Cards, Nolan Ryan Rookie Top Most Graded “Iconic 100” Cards Graded in April
Some of collecting’s most popular 1980s cards continue to set the pace at grading companies. Of the ten most graded cards on Fanatics Collect’s Iconic 100 in April, nine date to that decade. According to Gem Rate, graders at PSA, SGC, Beckett and CGC processed 1,136 submissions of 1989 Upper Deck Ken Griffey Jr. cards in April, followed by 898 1980 Topps Rickey Henderson … [Read more...] about 1980s Cards, Nolan Ryan Rookie Top Most Graded “Iconic 100” Cards Graded in April
Overall Card Grading Numbers Jump Again but Sports a Mixed Bag
April was another record month for the card grading industry, with an 8% rise in the number of cards graded since March. That marks the third consecutive month that a record has been set, according to GemRate. Cards of Washington Commanders quarterback Jayden Daniels remained popular among collectors. Last month’s total card submissions, including sports, gaming and … [Read more...] about Overall Card Grading Numbers Jump Again but Sports a Mixed Bag
These 6 Baseball Sets from 2022-24 Now Have Over 100,000 Graded Cards Each
It's no secret that cards of recent vintage are what's driving grading submissions but with the 2024 Major League Baseball season upon us, six products stand atop the list that produced the biggest number of slabbing sessions. Over 950,000 cards from those six Topps and Bowman baseball sets issued between 2022 and 2024 have now been encapsulated by the four major grading … [Read more...] about These 6 Baseball Sets from 2022-24 Now Have Over 100,000 Graded Cards Each
Notes: Shop Employee Charged with Theft; Fanatics’ Big Ticket Ohtani Autos; Mac McClung Signs; Pop Report Additions
A former employee for a popular hobby shop in the Atlanta area has been charged with theft after police say he was caught stealing more than $20,000 worth of sports cards. Cobb County Police arrested Stephen Christopher Adams, 40, last week. He was formerly an employee with Cards HQ, which has a large physical shop. According to the Cobb County Police … [Read more...] about Notes: Shop Employee Charged with Theft; Fanatics’ Big Ticket Ohtani Autos; Mac McClung Signs; Pop Report Additions
January Card Grading Numbers Tick Up
After a slight slowdown in December, card grading numbers bounced back in January, with about 922,000 sports cards encapsulated during the first 31 days of 2025. Add in TCG and non-sports and the total number of cards passing through the four major grading firms hit 1.85 million. All four companies graded more cards in January than they did in December, according to data … [Read more...] about January Card Grading Numbers Tick Up
Notes: Iconic Cards Graded Most Often in ’24; Panini Signs Downs; Collector Collects Himself; Big $ for Medal
How often were some of sports collecting's most popular cards graded last year? Here's the list of cards that are on Gem Rate's Iconic Tracker that were graded most often last year by PSA, SGC, Beckett and CGC. ----- Just ahead of Monday night’s national championship game, Ohio State safety Caleb Downs signed an exclusive deal with Panini America for autographed … [Read more...] about Notes: Iconic Cards Graded Most Often in ’24; Panini Signs Downs; Collector Collects Himself; Big $ for Medal
Trading Card Graders Enter 2025 on Record Pace
The sports card grading machine hummed along at a record pace in 2024, with an average of over 31,000 of them graded per day between PSA, SGC, CGC and Beckett. In all, between sports, non-sports and collectible gaming cards, more than 20 million were graded last year, an increase of three million over 2023. According to figures compiled by Gem Rate, over 11.4 … [Read more...] about Trading Card Graders Enter 2025 on Record Pace