Grading ROI calculator
Arithmetic on numbers you enter. No card prices are stored on this site and none are supplied here — look up your own comps and type them in.
Grading pays when the graded proceeds beat the raw price by more than every cost combined, weighted by the chance of missing the grade you are counting on. Fill in what you know and the answer appears below; nothing leaves your browser.
Expected gain over selling it raw
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Break-even sale price in the holder
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Break-even multiple of the raw price
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What the calculator actually computes
Costs are the grading fee, shipping in both directions, and supplies or membership. Proceeds are the graded sale price minus the marketplace fee, weighted between the grade you want and the one below it. The comparison is against selling the card raw today, also after the marketplace fee — because that is the real alternative, not keeping the money.
| Field | Where the number comes from |
|---|---|
| Raw sold price | Completed sales of the same printing in your condition, not asking prices |
| Price at the grade you want | Completed sales of that exact card in that exact grade |
| Price one grade below | The outcome that decides most submissions, and the one people skip |
| Grading fee | The tier you can actually book today — see the fee comparison |
| Shipping, both ways | Insured postage out plus return shipping charged by the grader |
The middle outcome decides it
A submission is not a bet on the top grade; it is a bet on the whole distribution. If the calculator shows a loss on the one-grade-below line, you are relying on a coin flip to cover a known cost. That is the point at which selling the card raw stops being the boring option and starts being the correct one.
The marketplace fee field is the one people guess at; the selling fee calculator works it out from published rates, including the postage that never appears in a fee table.
Two inputs are worth checking before trusting the answer: centering, which caps the grade before a grader touches the card — measure it with the centering calculator — and the fee, which depends on which tiers are open. As of 21 August 2026 PSA's entire Value ladder was paused, which moves its cheapest bookable option to $79.99 per card; the grading cost comparison has the current table for all three graders that publish one.
Related pages
The reasoning behind these fields, including when the answer is simply no, is in is it worth grading Pokémon cards. For the condition judgement that feeds the grade you expect, use the condition guide, and for the value question underneath all of it, what a card is worth.
Frequently asked questions
How do I calculate whether grading is worth it?
Add the grading fee, both shipping legs and supplies, then compare the expected graded proceeds after selling fees against what the card sells for raw today. If the difference is smaller than the total cost, grading loses money even when the card grades well.
What probability should I use for the top grade?
Use your own inspection, not optimism. A card with visible edge wear or centering outside 55/45 has a low chance of a top grade regardless of how clean the surface looks. If you cannot justify a number, run the calculation twice and see whether the answer changes.
Should selling fees be included?
Yes. Marketplace commission applies to the sale price, so it scales with the outcome you are hoping for. Leaving it out is the single most common way a grading plan looks profitable on paper and is not once the money arrives.
Does the calculator send my numbers anywhere?
No. Everything runs in your browser and nothing is stored or transmitted. There is no account, no email field and no server involved in the arithmetic on this page.
TCG Valuer is an independent site and app. Not affiliated with, endorsed by or sponsored by Nintendo, The Pokémon Company, PSA, Beckett, CGC or SGC. Product names are used descriptively to identify the cards and services being discussed.