How long does card grading take at CGC and SGC?
Grading 6 min read
CGC's and SGC's published grading waits by service level, when each clock starts, what counts as a business day, what stretches a wait, and the trips each way.
Guides, page 13
Older guides
How crossover grading works at CGC and SGC
Grading 7 min read
A crossover moves a graded card into another company's slab. How CGC and SGC price it, what CGC does when the grade would drop, and when the move is worth it.
Hobby vs retail sports card boxes compared
Sports cards 6 min read
How hobby boxes differ from blasters, hangers and tins: what each maker states a box holds, and card rates by format from Upper Deck's own checklist.
Grading Magic, Yu-Gi-Oh! and One Piece cards
Grading 6 min read
Which CGC and SGC services take Magic, Yu-Gi-Oh! and One Piece cards, the rules that apply to each game, and how to tell when the grading fee makes sense.
1st Edition vs Shadowless vs Unlimited Pokémon cards
Pokémon 6 min read
How to tell the Base Set prints apart on Pokémon, Trainer and Energy cards, the cards that break the rules, and how graders and price lists name each print.
Fanatics Instant Rips and Topps Instant Packs explained
Platforms 6 min read
How Fanatics Collect's Instant Rips and Topps Instant Packs work: what each pack holds, the Instant Credit offer and its math, the vault and the cost to ship.
CGC vs SGC: scales, labels, fees and waits
Grading 8 min read
CGC Cards and SGC side by side: grading scales, labels, holders, fees, estimated waits and shipping back, with the full cost of five sample orders at each.
Card scanner apps compared: CollX, Ludex and more
Buying and selling 7 min read
What CollX, Ludex, Collectr, the TCGplayer app and eBay's scanner each identify, where their prices come from, and what each costs, as of October 2026.
Card restocks at retail: queues, limits and launch days
Offline and retail 7 min read
How Pokémon Center's virtual queue, Invite Only program and purchase limits work, how Best Buy planned a launch-day line, and what stores say about restocks.
Card price sites compared: what each one measures
Buying and selling 8 min read
Which sales Card Ladder, eBay's Price Guide, TCGplayer, Collectr and CollX build their prices from, which statistic they use, and how often each updates.
Card condition problems explained, flaw by flaw
Grading 9 min read
Whitening, dents, creases, print lines, centering and surface wear: how TCGplayer measures each flaw and how CGC and SGC describe it on their grading scales.
Card condition explained: Near Mint to Damaged
Grading 7 min read
What Near Mint, Lightly Played, Moderately Played, Heavily Played and Damaged allow on TCGplayer, and how eBay and CGC word the same wear.
Box breaks explained: team, division and personal formats
Sports cards 7 min read
How a box break works, what each spot format gets you, how many spots each league's teams make, and what eBay, Whatnot and Fanatics Live ask of breakers.
Autographs, patches, short prints and 1 of 1s
Sports cards 7 min read
What autograph, patch and short print cards are, how makers mark them, the ways they state how often a card appears, and what to check before buying.
Are rip site cards real? How to check yours
How ripping works 5 min read
Cards on rip sites such as Rips by Triumph and Phygitals are physical cards held in storage. Where each site keeps them, who graded them and how to check.
1980s and 1990s sports cards: what still sells
Sports cards 6 min read
Why most sports cards from the 1980s and 1990s are common, which rookies, parallels and errors from the era still sell, and how to sort an old box quickly.
What it costs to ship a graded card home
How ripping works 7 min read
What rip sites charge to ship a graded card out of the vault, from a flat fee per card to rates set by the order's total, and how to be ready for delivery.
Card images from Scrydex.