Blogs
Only Greats |
Thursday, May, 30, 2024
How to get a Card Graded: Easy Guide (SGC Example)
Last Updated On: May 30th, 2024
As a teenager, I was enthralled by the idea of the stock market. You’re telling me I can take my paltry lawn mowing allowance and have it work for me? And I can invest in companies I use and care about?
So there I was, ready to set up my first portfolio. I downloaded an investment app, logged in, and . . . my face sank. The language was opaque, the instructions haphazard, and I quickly found myself drowning in an ocean of alphabet soup (EPS? S&P?? ETFs??). It didn’t take long before I shut down the app and shelved my dreams of day trading.
But I still knew that investing and adding value to my money was important. Necessary.
I like to think of card grading this way because it’s one thing to know that getting a card graded can unlock hundreds of dollars in added value, but it’s another to understand the process of grading from start to finish.
In this post, we’ll guide you through the step-by-step process of how to get a card graded. We’ll help you pick a grader and provide detailed instructions on packing, shipping, and submitting like a pro using SGC Grading as an example.
Let’s get grading!
Table of Contents
Overview
First things first about grading: not every card is worth submitting to a grader. Grading is a selective process and is not intended for each piece of cardboard that rolls out of the printer.
Some cards might even look like they would grade out as Gem Mints but are not worth the price of grading (looking at you, junk wax era cards). And yet, there are other precious cards whose ungraded condition might be so rough that they don’t warrant a grade.
There’s also the case of submitting a card for grading without the goal of receiving a grade. In other words, one may wish to submit their card to a grader to ensure it’s authentic.
Consider Mickey Mantle’s 1952 card, for instance, which is one of the most faked cards in circulation. Just because it looks frayed and worn and thus won’t grade highly doesn’t mean you shouldn’t consider submitting it, just for the peace of mind that it is really and truly the card you say it is.
Ditto for Michael Jordan cards; if your Jordan Platinum Medallion was run over by a car, it’s still wise to have it graded so would-be buyers know it’s real.
Step-by-Step Guide
With those caveats, let’s walk through how to get a card graded, beginning with researching card values.
Research Card Values
As we noted a moment ago, not all cards are created equally when it comes to grading. It’s important to consider the value of your card raw (for the uninitiated, raw means ungraded).
Once you understand the raw value of your card, it becomes much easier to make decisions down the line. For instance, to choose the correct service level for your card’s value, or for insurance coverage when it’s shipped, you’ll have to declare a value.
Understanding your card’s raw value will help determine whether you should grade it at all. For example, if you determine your card’s raw value and you can reasonably expect to earn a Mint grade (commonly a numerical grade of 9), then you’d need to determine whether that increase in value from raw to Mint is worth the all-in price of grading (which we’ll discuss in detail below).
We highly recommend using an app like Card Ladder to get an idea of your raw card’s value, in addition to graded card values as well.
Pick a Grading Company
The next step in our how to get a card graded guide is to choose your grading company. Keep in mind that, just as all cards are not created equal, neither are grading companies. It’s important to figure out your own personal motivation behind getting a card graded before selecting a service.
For example, if your sole focus is on cheap slabbing, you may go with one of the services with the lowest cost of grade per card. But keep in mind that those services will not endow your graded card with as much value as a more reputable option, like PSA or SGC.
In general, it’s best to steer clear of little-known graders. For a detailed rundown of grading companies, check out our full list of graders with pricing.
Compare Values Between Graders
As you’re looking for a service, keep a close eye on each grading company’s added value. This is why it’s so important to determine your raw card’s value first; with that in hand, you can get a clear sense of the value added by a grade.
By and large, PSA and SGC will add the most value to your raw card. And beware of concerning trends related to BGS, whose slabs continue to slide in value against PSA.
Research Service Tiers
In a moment, we’ll discuss how to select the right service tier based on your submission. For now, just know that these tiers are divided up by the value of the card(s) being submitted and turnaround time.
A clear grasp on your raw card’s value will help you choose the correct service tier. Otherwise, you could be required to pay more for a more expensive tier after submitting, a predicament known as the upcharge.
Consider Group Grader
Finally, you may wish to circumvent the entire process and go with a group grading service. A group grading service aggregates different submissions to meet minimum grading thresholds set by services. Additionally, they take the hassle out of the process by shipping, paying, and dealing with customer service if necessary.
It’s not for everyone and requires its own set of steps, but for some, group grading takes the stress out of this process and could be cheaper in some cases.
Order Submission Process
The following six steps are designed to give you a grip on how to get a card graded. For simplicity, we’ll use SGC as our example service. We’ll assume you have an SGC account already created.
Note: you do not need any club membership to begin grading with SGC.
1. Select Order Type
The very first step to getting your card graded is to select the right order type. For SGC, the decision is between standard grading and TCG grading.
Rule of thumb: if you’re grading sports cards, go with standard grading. TCG (i.e., Trading Card Game), on the other hand, is great for Pokémon, Magic: the Gathering, Yu-Gi-Oh, and other game-based cards.
2. Add Your Cards
In this step, you’ll add the cards you’re submitting for grading. Many services, including SGC, have an auto-suggestion feature that makes it easy to add the right card to your order (you can also add your card manually if auto-suggest doesn’t find it; more common with brand new sets or parallels).
For instance, in the example above, we see “2024 bowman dylan crews auto” typed into the search key and a handful of suggested cards populate below.
After selecting the correct card, you’ll declare the card’s value. This is important for two purposes. First, insurance and claims will use this value as reimbursement should (God forbid) something happen to your card. Second, this will determine the grading fee the card qualifies for which is displayed in aggregate at the bottom of the page (“Grading Fee $15.00”).
In SGC’s case, all cards printed in the year 2000 or later (“modern” cards for SGC’s purposes) do not carry any danger for an upcharge fee. This means that you do not have to worry about paying more to grade more valuable cards in the event they receive a high grade.
But in the case of a service like PSA, which does charge a markup, this step would involve selecting the service tier appropriate for the market value of your card in its graded condition (e.g. if the card is likely a Mint 9 in your opinion, you declare the market value based on a Mint 9 grade). If you try to game the system and select a lower tier and PSA disagrees with you, you could be subject to paying the difference between the service tier you selected and the one PSA deems appropriate.
Once you’ve finished declaring values, select ‘Raw Card Grading’ from the Select Card Services dropdown for each card. Additional services offered include Crossover, Review, and Reholder, but we’re only focused on grading in this post.
By default, ‘Encapsulate all if altered’ is checked for each card. If left selected and the card is detected to be altered in any way, it will be slabbed as Authentic and labeled altered. Altered cards are those that have been modified in some way, be it by trimming, re-coloring, or restoration, to name a few. There are even reported instances of cards pulled straight out of a pack having been slabbed ‘Altered’ by grading companies — it’s a confusing result to say the least. While uncommon, this outcome is usually a net negative for the card’s value, so uncheck the box if you’d rather have your card returned back ungraded instead.
3. Select Service
Next, you will select the service level based on the card(s) you submitted and turnaround time. Keep in mind any card with a declared value of $3,500 or greater will default to the Immediate service level as the sole option. Here we have selected the Standard service option for our example order.
4. Select Return Shipping Address
In step four, simply type in the return address where you would like the grader to ship your card(s) to upon completion.
5. Select Return Shipping Method
Step five is where the submitter selects the method of return shipping. The shipping options available will correspond with the selection you made for service tier (in other words, a quicker turnaround time will populate quicker shipping times, which tend to be more expensive than slower ones).
SGC makes it easy to determine the cost of shipping, with the price indicated underneath each option. This helps to keep your cost calculations tidy and clear as you go through the grading process.
6. Review Your Submission
With the end in sight, you’re ready to review your submission! As we see above, our submission has one card with a declared value of $250. We selected the Standard service for $15/card and USPS Priority Mail (also $15) for a grand total of $30.
Upon clicking Finish & Pay, step 7 is where payment information is collected (not pictured), and the order is submitted. An invoice will be generated which is to be printed and included with the graded card package.
Packing & Shipping
After completing the online submission form, it’s time to pack and ship your cards.
As you pack your cards, be sure to order the cards exactly as they appear on your submission form (as we mentioned above, it should be printed and inside your package). This is so that the grading company can easily input your order when received without slowing down operations (a small fee may be charged if this is done improperly).
For example, if our order had three cards in total including the Dylan Crews card first, a Paul Skenes rookie in 2nd, and an Ichiro card in 3rd, we would place the cards in semi-rigid holders (aka ‘Card Savers’) in the same order.
Do not include any sticky notes, or tape on each card. Again, the goal is to pack the cards well, but don’t be excessive as to slow down the grading company. In fact, many grading companies have explicit prohibitions against sticky notes and tape.
Some companies, such as PSA, go so far as to outline a “Step 8” in the shipping process and require a submission ID label to be taped to the outer package so operations can scan and intake the order immediately upon receipt.
Multiple Orders in one Package
You can also include multiple grading orders within a single shipping package if desired. When doing this, it’s crucial to consider the service levels, types of cards (sports, TCG, etc.), and eras.
For example, many of PSA’s grading specials are based on the card type (e.g. Star Wars bulk special) or era of the card (e.g. 1980-present), requiring two different order forms to be completed.
If you choose to ship multiple orders in a single package, keep everything bundled separately. As mentioned earlier, sort the cards in the proper order as they appear on the order form, then place a rubber band around the cards, and include the submission form with them. Do the same for any subsequent orders within the package. The orders are sometimes processed by different departments so they’ll ship as individual orders when complete.
With PSA, the submission ID label printout includes all the submission numbers in a multi-order shipment. Using the example below, we see two order IDs: 749400, and 749401. But the scannable barcode has the submission numbers embedded into it, because you’re only required to cut out the barcode and attach it to the outer shipping box when mailing it in.
Tracking & Ultimate Reveal
Now for the fun part: receiving your grades. Most companies will email a confirmation that they’ve received your order. Additionally, you may receive updates as your cards complete varying stages in the grading process.
CGC, for example, has its own eight-part grading process, which includes verifying and authenticating a card, grading, encapsulating it in a slab, and taking images of the card in its new holder.
Once cards are ready for viewing, you can log into your account to see how each one graded out. That way, you can get a head start on planning your next steps with the card. Or, if you’re like me (and the poster of this video) and enjoy surprises, you can wait until the cards are shipped back to check out your haul:
Summary Tips: How to get a Card Graded
And that’s the process! As we reach the end, we see how important it is to take each step seriously, especially those at the beginning, like determining a raw card’s value and which grader to submit to.
Ultimately, this guide should help to make the submission process smooth. It should also get you to consider whether it makes sense to grade a card at all. We often hear how important it is to get a sports card slabbed, but think carefully about your own situation and goals before diving in headfirst.
Follow these shorthand tips if you want to cut to the chase:
- Only grade cards with a raw value of $50+, and Mint 9 value of $100+ (use Card Ladder)
- Do not grade cards that are off-centered, have noticeable flaws, or surface issues
- Not sure which grader to choose? Go with PSA, CGC, or SGC — pass on BGS
- Choose a slow service tier to get the best value
- Need a 2nd opinion? Try a pre-grade review with a group grader or contact us
- First time grading? Be patient, and expect some bumps along the way
As technology makes it easier to get cards graded, hopefully, it also makes the process easier. But if you’re ever in doubt, we’re here to answer any questions you may have!
