How to sell Magic cards: singles, foils, sealed, bulk

Sort Magic cards into piles before you list: singles, which go up by their exact printing, foil and language; signed, altered and miscut cards; graded slabs; sealed product; and bulk. On TCGplayer most singles go up against its catalog, while signed, graded and many non-English cards need a Listing with Photos. eBay and Whatnot list the exact card from your own photos.

Which route fits each kind of Magic card?

Fees and payment timing on each marketplace in general are compared in our guide to where to sell cards online.

How do you match the exact printing?

On TCGplayer you search its catalog from the Inventory tab and must check that the version in the catalog matches the card in your hand before you add it. For a Magic card, check the set, any special frame or art treatment, and whether it is foil. TCGplayer grades foils by the same standards as non-foils but names them separately, so a foil goes up as Near Mint Foil, Lightly Played Foil and so on. One quick check: in the credits line, the dot between the card number and the language code is a star on a foil card. Our guides to Magic foil types, Collector Boosters and Secret Lair explain which versions exist.

Magic cards that have a language option in its catalog are listed normally; other non-English cards need a Listing with Photos with the language written out in full, such as Italian. Magic has been printed in ten languages besides English, and TCGplayer’s condition overview names a few exceptions, such as cards printed in Phyrexian.

eBay sets a title order for card games like Magic: the game’s name, the edition or set, the card’s name, the grading details and any special features. Its app can scan a Magic card to start a listing, but eBay warns the scan may not recognize a foil, so pick the foil version or add it to the item specifics yourself.

How should a Magic card’s condition be described?

TCGplayer allows five conditions, from Near Mint down through Lightly Played, Moderately Played and Heavily Played to Damaged, and nothing above Near Mint. Three of its rules matter most for Magic:

• Foils curl. TCGplayer says foils, Magic foils in particular, may be more prone to curling, and a curl must stay within its standards. It treats a foil that curls in transit as a condition issue under its refund policy, and notes that a foil can warp slightly even when it went straight from the pack into a top loader.
• Foils have their own flaws. Imperfections show more on foil, and TCGplayer names speckled foiling and foil bubbling as faults unique to foils. They are judged by the same standards as any other flaw.
• Defects and alterations make a card Damaged. Crimping and significant miscuts count as Damaged whatever else the card shows, and so do stamps, signatures, paint and marker. In a Listing with Photos you can choose the condition the card would have without them.

The condition scale itself is the same across card games, so our guide to selling Pokémon cards lines up TCGplayer’s, eBay’s and Whatnot’s condition names side by side, and card condition grades explains each step.

What about Magic cards printed in Japan?

TCGplayer’s guide to print runs, last edited in September 2024, says that from around the release of Theros Beyond Death in January 2020, cards printed in Japan began to look and feel different from cards printed in North America and Europe. When it was written, it added, every first print run of a main set came out of Japan, apart from products such as Collector Boosters, which were made in the United States. Its signs, grouped by where to look:

1. Packaging. Boxes and packs from these runs say Made in Japan.
2. Front. Text boxes look brighter and cooler in tone, and the surface is smoother than on other prints.
3. Back. The blue is brighter and the gloss is most obvious here. A thin white line usually shows around the black border, and the corners are very slightly rounder.
4. Foil. Foils look matte, with a softer rainbow shift.

These cards have a purple core rather than the blue core of other prints, and the light test and the weight test collectors use on other print runs do not work on them. A Japan-print look alone is no reason to list a card as a misprint. TCGplayer does not allow disclaimers such as “cannot guarantee authenticity” in a Listing with Photos. Its advice is not to sell a card you are unsure is real, and it lists a receipt, a certificate of authenticity or a grading company’s authentication as proof that reassures buyers. Our guide to spotting fake Magic cards covers the other checks.

How do you price a Magic card?

On TCGplayer you can type a price or match one of three figures: its lowest listing, its last sold listing or its market price. Rip.fan’s card price lookup covers English Pokémon cards only, so use the methods in our guides to checking Magic card prices and finding what a card sold for.

What changes for graded and sealed Magic?

• Graded cards. TCGplayer requires a Listing with Photos for every graded card, and a new seller at Level 1 can list no single item above $500 and no more than $1,000 at once. eBay’s Authenticity Guarantee accepts graded cards from PSA, SGC, CGC (with CSG) and BGS. It gives two thresholds, $200 and over $250. Our guide to grading Magic, Yu-Gi-Oh! and One Piece cards covers the graders.
• Sealed product. TCGplayer’s sealed listings include Magic booster boxes, booster cases, starter cases and single packs, and require original, unopened, undamaged packaging that has never been resealed or shrink-wrapped again. Packs taken out of a box must be listed as packs. Only Certified Hobby Shops that meet its sales and feedback targets can list presales. eBay’s Authenticity Guarantee does not cover boxes or packs. Our guide to selling sealed product covers photos, shipping and fees for boxes.

What about bulk Magic cards?

Any TCGplayer seller can list a Bulk Lot, which is a Listing with Photos with up to 5 photos. The description must state how many cards the lot holds and their conditions, and the photos may show only cards the buyer will receive; a lot listing featuring cards a buyer may not get is removed if buyers report it.

TCGplayer itself no longer buys. It stopped taking new trade-in and buylist submissions on July 17, 2024. Its Direct program charges 50% of a card’s value on cards priced at $2.49 or less, in place of its other fees, but it is open only to Level 4 sellers who meet further targets, including about 3,000 eligible cards in stock and 100 sales a month. For a shop’s offer instead, see selling cards to a local shop.

What do fees leave when cards share an order?

Both marketplaces charge a fixed $0.30 on every order, so a seller keeps more of each cheap single when a buyer takes several at once. The table prices $2 cards. It assumes the buyer pays $1.49 shipping on each order (TCGplayer’s minimum on orders under $5, assumed as the seller’s rate on the larger orders and, for comparison, on Whatnot) and 7% sales tax on the cards and shipping, the rate TCGplayer uses in its examples. “Kept” is the card price less fees; the shipping charge goes on postage.

These figures are Rip.fan’s arithmetic. TCGplayer’s Level 1 to 4 rates are 10.75% of the cards (capped at $75 per item) and of the shipping, plus 2.5% of the order total and $0.30 per transaction, which it defines as everything one buyer checks out from one seller with one shipping method. Whatnot’s US standard rate for TCG sales is 8% of the item price, plus 2.9% of the order total and $0.30. Our seller fee calculator works out both for one card at any price, shipping charge and tax rate.

How should the cards ship?

TCGplayer’s shipping guide recommends a sleeve, then a top loader, then a team bag, all inside a bubble mailer. It suggests tracking on orders over $20, requires it over $49.99, and requires signature confirmation over $250. eBay’s standard envelope costs $0.63 to $1.11 for 1 to 3 ounces and covers a single card worth up to $20, or several cards up to $50. Whatnot asks for every raw card in a team bag and every high-value card in a penny sleeve and a top loader. Our guide to shipping raw cards prices each option, and the Magic, Yu-Gi-Oh!, One Piece and Lorcana hub lists every Magic guide.

Frequently asked questions

What order fee does eBay add to a cheap Magic single?

$0.30 on an order of $10 or less and $0.40 on a bigger one, on top of the 13.25% final value fee, as of October 27, 2026. eBay counts as one order everything a buyer checks out together with the same shipping method.

How do you flatten a curled Magic foil?

Press it inside a heavy hardcover book, with a few more books on top, for a couple of days; that usually straightens a foil warped in transit. Weather and changing temperatures are what warp foils on the way.

How many cards can a TCGplayer seller list at Level 1?

Up to 100 items for sale at a time, counting each copy, and no more than 100 entered in one day. Level 2, reached after 2 orders pass their expected delivery date with feedback of 80% or more, raises that to 500 items and $5,000 listed at once.

Do TCGplayer Pro sellers pay different fees?

Yes. On October 27, 2026, a Pro seller paid 9.25% commission plus a 2.5% Pro fee, each capped at $75 per product, in place of the standard 10.75%, with the same 2.5% plus $0.30 transaction fee. Sales through a Pro website skip the commission.