How to identify a Pokémon card's set
Find a Pokémon card's set from its symbol or code, its number and its border, and what decides it when several sets print the same total.
By the Rip.fan Editorial Team.
Published 8 min read
A Pokémon card names its set in the small print. Cards from the Scarlet & Violet era on print a short set code, such as SCR for Stellar Crown. Older cards print a small picture symbol, and Base Set cards print none. Read that mark first, then the card number over the set’s printed total. The total narrows the search but does not always settle it, because many sets share one. When two or more sets remain, the name at that number, the symbol or code, the border and any letters in front of the number decide it.
Our guide to how to read a Pokémon card labels every part of the small print.
Where is the set mark on the card?
It moved over the years.
| Cards from | Where the set mark sits | What it looks like |
|---|---|---|
| Base Set, 1999 | Nowhere | No symbol at all |
| The other sets before Expedition Base Set (2002) | Just below the picture, at the right | A small picture symbol |
| Expedition Base Set to the Sword & Shield era | Bottom right on most cards; bottom left on promo, GX, EX, Energy and Trainer cards | A small picture symbol |
| Scarlet & Violet era, 2023 on | Bottom left | A short letter code in a box, with EN for English |
On the newest cards the expansion code sits at the bottom left, in a black box with white text, or a white box with black text on a parallel foil card. Basic Energy cards now carry an expansion code at the bottom left too.
Three marks need a note. Base Set 2, the reprint of Base Set, carries a “2” symbol, and the Black Star Promos from Wizards of the Coast print a black star where a set symbol would sit. The promo mark is a black star with the word PROMO, and our guide to promo cards explains how each promo series is numbered.
Why doesn’t the card number settle it?
The card number reads like 115/142: the card’s own number, then the printed total of the set’s main list. It is called the set number, and a card numbered above the total is a secret rare. But the total is not unique. On Rip.fan’s own card price pages (prices checked October 9, 2026), many printed totals belong to two or more English sets.
| Printed total | Sets that print it | What tells them apart |
|---|---|---|
| 64 | Jungle (1999), Neo Revelation (2001), Shrouded Fable (2024) | A symbol on the first two; a printed set code on Shrouded Fable (SFA) |
| 86 | Black Bolt and White Flare (2025), Chaos Rising (2026) | The printed set codes (BLK, WHT and CRI) |
| 102 | Base (1999), HS-Triumphant (2010) | Base Set cards have no symbol |
| 108 | Power Keepers (2007), Dark Explorers (2012), Roaring Skies (2015), Evolutions (2016) | The symbol and the card at that number; none prints a code |
| 132 | Gym Heroes and Gym Challenge (2000), Secret Wonders (2007), Mega Evolution (2025) | The symbol on the first three; a printed set code on Mega Evolution (MEG) |
| 198 | Chilling Reign (2021), Scarlet & Violet (2023) | A yellow border and a symbol, against a gray border and a printed set code (SVI) |
| 236 | Unified Minds and Cosmic Eclipse (2019) | The symbol and the card at that number |
The codes in parentheses are the ones Rip.fan’s set pages list for those sets.
The quickest tie-break is usually the name. Number 1 out of 108 is a different Pokémon in each of the four sets that share that total: Aggron in Power Keepers, Bulbasaur in Dark Explorers, Exeggcute in Roaring Skies and Venusaur-EX in Evolutions. Match the name and the picture first, then confirm with the symbol or code.
What do letters in front of the number mean?
A letter prefix marks a subset that is numbered apart from the main list. The printed form below follows Rip.fan’s set pages.
| Prefix | Printed as | Where it appears | Rip.fan page |
|---|---|---|---|
| TG | TG01/TG30 | Brilliant Stars, Astral Radiance, Lost Origin and Silver Tempest (2022) | Four separate Trainer Gallery pages |
| GG | GG01/GG70 | Crown Zenith (2023) | Crown Zenith Galarian Gallery |
| SV | SV1/SV94 and SV001/SV122 | Hidden Fates (2019) and Shining Fates (2021) | Hidden Fates Shiny Vault and Shining Fates Shiny Vault |
| RC | RC1/RC32 | Generations (2016) | The Generations page |
| H | H1/H32 | Aquapolis and Skyridge (2003) | Each set’s own page |
| SH | SH1 to SH12 | Stormfront, Platinum, Supreme Victors and Arceus | Each set’s own page |
Two rows need care. The Trainer Gallery prefix and total are identical in all four sets, so the number cannot tell them apart, and two different Gardevoir cards sit at TG05/TG30, one in Astral Radiance and one in Silver Tempest. Compare the art with each set’s page on Rip.fan, and let the set symbol confirm it. The H run is the same in Aquapolis and Skyridge, so the symbol decides there as well.
The SH run works the other way. It continues from set to set: SH1 to SH3 in Stormfront, SH4 to SH6 in Platinum, SH7 to SH9 in Supreme Victors and SH10 to SH12 in Arceus. An SH number on its own names one set. Arceus also carries AR numbers, Rising Rivals RT numbers and Call of Legends SL numbers.
Do not confuse the SV prefix with the Scarlet & Violet code. On a 2019 or 2021 card, SV in front of the number means a Shiny Vault card. A Scarlet & Violet era card prints its set code in a box at the bottom left. Our guides to Hidden Fates, Shining Fates, Brilliant Stars, Crown Zenith and Generations cover each subset.
How do the border and the regulation mark narrow it?
They split the eras, not the sets, so use them to cut a list of candidates down.
- Border color. Pokémon’s March 2023 article said the Scarlet & Violet Series would move English cards from yellow borders to the gray border used in Japan. A yellow border rules out the Scarlet & Violet sets.
- Regulation mark. Pokémon said in April 2021 that cards from the Sword & Shield Series on print a letter at the bottom, and that cards from one expansion don’t always share the same letter. The first English marks date to 2020. A card with a letter dates from 2020 or later.
- A 1st Edition stamp. It marks a first print run, and the symbol still names the set. Our guide to 1st Edition and Shadowless cards explains the stamp.
Our guide to Pokémon card eras lists which letter goes with which years and the name labels, such as GX or VSTAR, that date a card.
How do you check the answer on Rip.fan?
Rip.fan’s card price lookup reads a number typed as it is printed, with or without leading zeros. Type 1/132 and it lists the card at number 1 from every set with a printed total of 132, each with its set name. Type TG05/TG30 and you get the Trainer Gallery card from each of the four sets. Add a word of the card’s name to cut the list down, or pick one set from its menu. The lookup covers English cards only.
The Pokémon card prices page lists every English set Rip.fan tracks under its series, with its release date and card count. Each set page lists the cards by number, in the form most cards print it (TG01/TG30, for example), and it shows a short code for the set where its data has one. On a Scarlet & Violet era set, that code is the one printed on the card: Stellar Crown, for example, is SCR. Older set pages may show a code too, but cards from before Scarlet & Violet print a symbol instead, so match those by the symbol.
For a graded card, the label describes the card, and our guides to reading a CGC label and checking a cert number show how to confirm it. For a card printed in Japan, see our guide to Japanese Pokémon sets.
What if the art matches an older card?
Then check twice. Pokémon has brought older cards back in later products: Base Set Charizard comes back in 30th Celebration with a new foil treatment, and that card is 4/102, the Base Set number, on Rip.fan’s page for the 30th Celebration: Classic Collection. Our guide to telling a reprint from an original card covers the marks that separate them. To match a symbol by eye, use Bill’s Archive’s chart of English set symbols, laid out era by era from Base Set to Mega Evolution.
How to identify any card’s set in five steps
- Find the set mark: a code at the bottom left, a symbol at the bottom right or below the picture, or nothing at all.
- Write down the number exactly as printed, letters and total included.
- Note the border color and whether there is a one-letter regulation mark.
- Type the number with its slash into the card price lookup and compare the name and art of each result with your card.
- Confirm the set by its symbol or code, then check the price for that exact printing. Our guide to looking up a Pokémon card’s value covers that step, and our guide to Pokémon rarity symbols explains the mark beside the number.
Frequently asked questions
Which set has the code MEW?
151. Its cards print MEW at the bottom left, and the set came out September 22, 2023, with 207 cards.
What set is SVE on a basic Energy card?
Scarlet & Violet Energies, a run of 24 basic Energy cards released March 31, 2023: 3 of each of the 8 types. Mega Evolution era basic Energy print MEE, a run of 16 cards from September 26, 2025.
What do the codes SVP and MEP mean?
SVP is the Scarlet & Violet promo series and MEP the Mega Evolution promo series, which began September 26, 2025.
Can I search Pokémon's own card database by set?
Yes. Its advanced search filters by expansion, rarity and illustrator, among other fields. Small print with no effect on the rules, such as a card's height and weight line, cannot be searched.