Pokémon Card Grading Fees: The “$50” That Magically Becomes $110

Grading Pokémon cards can be a glow up. Like: “Hello, yes, this Charizard just became a down payment.”

But it can also be a slow motion wallet leak where you start at a cute little advertised price and end up paying double because surprise! shipping, insurance, supplies, memberships, add ons, and the dreaded “upcharge” all showed up to the party.

If you’re about to send in your first card (or you’ve graded before and still somehow end up shocked every time), here’s the real world breakdown I wish someone had shoved into my hands sooner.

Before you do anything: set a budget (aka don’t raw dog the checkout page)

If you only take one thing from this post, let it be this: don’t pick a grading tier until you know your all in cost. The base fee is just the cover charge. The drinks inside are overpriced.

Here’s my quick “don’t regret this later” framework:

1. Figure out raw value + likely grade range. Use sold listings (not “some guy on eBay asking $900 and a prayer”).
2. Pick the grader and tier based on value, how many cards you’re sending, and whether you care about subgrades.
3. Calculate your true total (I’ll give you the formula in a second).
4. Do a quick ROI sanity check. If grading costs $70 and the card only gains $40 in value… congrats, you paid for stress.

And yes, I’ve absolutely graded a card “because it felt special” and then watched the math laugh in my face. It happens.

The 4 costs that sneak attack your total

Most people budget for the base fee… and then get bodyslammed by the other three.

1) The base grading fee

This can be anywhere from $5 (budget graders) to $600+ (high end rush tiers at the big names). The more valuable the card and the faster you want it back, the more you’re paying.

2) Turnaround speed (translation: how badly you hate waiting)

Fast = expensive. Slow = cheaper (but you’ll forget you even submitted them and then a box appears months later like a time capsule).

Rough vibe:

• 3-7 days can cost $275-$600
• 1-4 months might be more like $14-$19 per card (usually with minimum quantities)

3) Shipping + insurance (the silent killer)

For 1-5 cards, shipping/insurance often lands around $25-$50 round trip.

On a single $50 card, that’s… kind of unhinged. (But also: you do want insurance. Don’t tempt the postal gods.)

4) The “extras” bucket

This is where your “simple submission” gets fancy:

• Membership fees (some companies require it)
• Subgrades
• Special labels
• Supplies (penny sleeves, semi-rigids, team bags, etc.)
• Upcharges if the company decides your card is worth more than you declared (yep, we’ll talk about that)

The only formula you need (so you don’t get jump scared at checkout)

Total grading cost = Base fee + Shipping/insurance + Supplies + Add ons + Membership (if required)

I also recommend padding 15-20% for the “miscellaneous nonsense” category return shipping changes, insurance bumps, or a tier jump.

Okay. Now let’s talk about the big three graders you’re most likely considering.

PSA: the popular kid (expensive, but resale usually loves it)

PSA slabs tend to pull the strongest resale prices, which is why PSA can charge what it charges and still stay busy forever.

Typical PSA structure (ballpark):

• Bulk: about $18-$19/card, but usually 25 card minimum, and you’ll wait around 120 days
• Value: about $30 (roughly 90-120 days)
• Economy: about $50 (roughly 45-90 days)
• Regular: about $75-$100 (around 15-20 days)
• Express: about $150 (around 10-14 days)
• Super Express: about $300 (around 7 days)
• Walk Through: about $600 (around 3 days)

The PSA “declared value” trap

This is the part people don’t fully internalize until it happens to them:

PSA can upcharge you if they believe the graded card is worth more than what you declared.

So if you declare $400 and PSA decides it’s $1,200 in the grade it got? They can invoice you for the higher tier before they send it back.

Personally, I’d rather slightly over declare than get the “hey bestie, you owe us more money” email. A conservative rule people use is declaring 10-20% above your cautious estimate.

The GameStop PSA option

Yes, there’s a cheaper PSA entry route through GameStop (around $15.99/card), but handling reviews are mixed. If you’re sending something you’d cry about losing, I’d be extra picky about where it goes and how it’s packed.

CGC: solid pricing (but watch the membership)

CGC came from the comic world and has become a real contender for modern Pokémon cards. Their pricing often feels like PSA’s calmer cousin.

Common CGC tiers (ballpark):

• Economy: about $17-$18 (around 20 days)
• Standard: about $45-$55 (around 10-15 days)
• Express: about $85-$100 (around 5-10 days)

The membership thing

CGC typically requires a $25/year membership before you can submit.

If you’re grading a handful of cards a year, fine. If you’re grading one card, that $25 hits like a mosquito bite directly on your eyeball.

Where CGC can be a money saver

For higher value cards, CGC can be weirdly competitive because their Express tier covers higher declared values than PSA’s Express in many cases (example: CGC Express can cover up to $10,000 while PSA Express may cap much lower, like $2,499). So if you’re grading something spicy, it’s worth comparing.

Add ons you might see:

• Subgrades: +$15
• Special designations/labels: small extra fees (varies)

Beckett (BGS): flat rate vibes + subgrades that people obsess over

BGS is the “I like details” option. And I get it. There’s something satisfying about seeing exactly where the card lost points.

The standout perk: BGS doesn’t base pricing on your card’s value.

A $100 card and a $5,000 card cost the same in the same tier. That predictability is nice for your nervous system.

Typical BGS pricing (ballpark):

• Base (no subgrades): $14.95, 45+ days
• Add subgrades: just +$3 (so $17.95 total)
• Faster tiers: $34.95 (20-25 days), $79.95 (7-10 days), $124.95 (2-3 days)

BGS is especially loved because:

• Subgrades are cheap (and addictive)
• A BGS 10 Black Label can command wild prices on certain cards
• They’re often more flexible with things like non-English cards or oversized promos

Budget graders: for when you just want pretty slabs on your shelf

Not every card needs to enter the resale Olympics.

If you mostly want your binder highlights protected and uniform (or you’re organizing a modern pile and you don’t want to take out a second mortgage), budget graders can make sense.

A couple examples people use:

• GMA: about $5-$10/card, ~30 days
• TAG: about $12-$16/card, 15-25 days (AI assisted approach)

The trade off: resale usually lags often 20-30% lower than PSA equivalents. But for display? Totally fine. Not everything needs to be “investment grade.” Sometimes you just want your childhood Blastoise to look fancy.

Bulk submissions: the only time the math starts acting reasonable

If you’ve got a real stack (and patience), bulk can slash your per card cost.

Examples:

• PSA Bulk: around $18-$19/card (often 25 card minimum)
• CGC Bulk: sometimes $14-$15/card

That’s a big drop compared to sending one or two cards at Economy/Value pricing.

One quick reality check though: bulk orders are like group projects one problem card can slow down the whole batch.

Turnaround times: what they say vs. what your calendar experiences

Posted turnaround timelines usually start when they scan your package in, not when you drop it off.

Also: add shipping both ways. I generally assume 5-10 days each way depending on how you ship and where you live.

And during busy seasons (after big set releases, holidays, etc.), turnarounds can run 20-30% longer than the estimate. So that “45 day” order can easily become “hi, it’s been two months, do you still remember me?”

Quick and dirty ROI check (so you don’t grade a $12 card for $80)

You don’t need to be a market wizard. Do this instead:

1. Check sold listings for your exact card: one raw sale, plus one or two graded sales.
2. Assume a conservative grade range. If it’s not pack fresh and flawless under good light, stop manifesting a 10.
3. Inspect the big four: centering, corners, edges, surface. One obvious flaw usually kicks you out of Gem Mint fantasyland.
4. Peek at pop reports. If there are a zillion PSA 10s, your card is joining a crowded club.

If the graded value minus grading costs equals “basically nothing,” save your money.

When you should keep the card raw (and sleep peacefully)

Skip grading if:

• The raw value is under ~$50. Once fees hit $30-$75+, you’re paying a huge percentage of the card’s value.
• You can already see damage. Whitening, scratches, dents… you’re probably not getting a grade that adds meaningful value.
• It’s a modern common/unpopular card. A 10 doesn’t magically make every card valuable.
• High grade populations are massive. Tons of 10s = smaller premium.
• One grade point destroys the price (like the big gap between 9 and 10 on certain cards). Only play that game if the card truly has the goods.

Sometimes the smartest “investment move” is doing absolutely nothing. (My favorite kind of move, honestly.)

So… which grading option should you choose?

Here’s my personal cheat sheet:

• Pick PSA if resale value is the main goal and your card is in that “people actually fight over this” category.
• Pick CGC if you want competitive pricing/turnarounds and don’t mind the membership (or you’re grading enough cards to justify it).
• Pick BGS if you love subgrades, want predictable flat pricing, or you’re chasing that Black Label dream.
• Pick a budget grader if your goal is protection + display and you’re not trying to maximize resale.

Before you tape up that box, do the thing everyone skips: understand how grading works and calculate your true all in cost. Not the advertised fee the real total. Run the numbers for one card first, and you’ll instantly see whether grading is a power move… or just an expensive hobby mood swing.