How we analyze sports cards
Every card review on this site uses the same framework:
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Recent sold-comps: We pull recent eBay sold listings (typically last 30-90 days) for the specific card + condition combo. PSA 10 prices anchor the analysis; PSA 9 and raw/ungraded prices give the mid-tier and entry-tier references.
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PSA population data: We check PSA's public pop reports to understand supply. A card with PSA 10 pop under 200 trades very differently than one with pop over 5,000.
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Set context: A card's investment thesis depends partly on its set's overall trajectory. We rate sets separately and factor that into individual card scores.
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Risk assessment: We assign a low/medium/high risk level based on liquidity, holder base, and price stability over the last 12 months.
Price bands, not exact prices
We use price bands ($1,500-$4,000) rather than specific dollar figures because sports card prices move too fast for fixed numbers to stay accurate. Bands reflect the typical range of recent sold-comps. The eBay sold-listing pages we link to show current real-time pricing.
How we rank cards
Our 1-5 investment score weighs:
- Liquidity — how quickly can you sell at a fair price?
- Population scarcity — PSA 10 supply relative to demand
- Cultural significance — Mantle, Jordan, Brady, LeBron, and other legacy players command a premium
- Set trajectory — strength of the set's overall investment thesis
- Price stability — has the card held value through market downturns?
A 5-star rating means low-risk, blue-chip, high-conviction. A 1-2 means speculative — possibly high upside but high risk of underperformance.
Corrections
If pricing data is stale, a thesis has changed, or facts are wrong: email us. We update the entry and add a "last updated" note when the thesis has materially changed.
What we don't do
- We don't accept payment from auction houses, grading services, or dealers to rank cards higher.
- We don't pump-and-dump. If we own a card we're analyzing, we disclose it.
- We don't predict specific future prices. Anyone telling you what a card will be worth in 6 months is guessing.