Our Grading Scale

We have spent a lot of time testing out different methods to arrive at this scale, we urge you to try it for yourself and see how you do!

Please note that this scale is a guide that ‘includes’ but is not ‘limited to’

Front

  1. This can only be given without any flaws
  2. If the front is almost perfect, usually one small blemish, noticeable under magnification
  3. The front will be in great condition, with the exception of one blemish (or multiple, dependant on size) , visible when pointed out
  4. Any form of deck scratches will limit the front to a seven
  5. If the front has any substantial scratches (deeper than deck scratches) then it cannot exceed a six
  6. Bends or creases will limit the card to a five, the severity of bends will decrease the grade further
  7. This will have the card in aesthetically poor condition, combining issues from grades 5-7
  8. If the card is peeling anywhere, it is limited to three
  9. The front is deemed very bad condition, combining issues from grades 3-4
  10. If the card is torn, trimmed or tampered then it cannot grade higher than one

Back

  1. This can only be given without any flaws
  2. If the back is almost perfect, usually one small blemish, noticeable under magnification
  3. The back will be in great condition, with the exception of one (or multiple, dependant on size) blemish, visible when pointed out
  4. Any form of deck scratches will limit the back to a seven
  5. If the back has any substantial scratches (deeper than deck scratches) then it cannot exceed a six
  6. Bends or creases will limit the card to a five, the severity of bends will decrease the grade further
  7. This will have the card in aesthetically poor condition, combining issues from grades 5-7
  8. If the card is peeling anywhere, it is limited to three
  9. The front is deemed very bad condition, combining issues from grades 3-4
  10. If the card is torn, trimmed or tampered then is cannot grade higher than one

Sides & Corners

  1. Flawless sides & corners will grant a 10, no indication of cut from factory
  2. If only one corner has a minor imperfection, it cannot grade higher than a nine
  3. Whitening on one corner will limit the grade to eight
  4. Minor blemishes on one corner and one side will limit the grade to seven
  5. Whitening on two corners will limit the grade to six
  6. Blemishes on two corners and two sides will limit the grade to five
  7. Whitening on three corners will limit the grade to four
  8. Blemishes on three corners and 3 sides, or any form of peeling will limit the card to three
  9. Whitening on all four corners will limit the card to two
  10. Blemishes on all four corners & all four sides, or a layer of card torn/peeled off will limit to one

Centring

  1. 50/50
  2. 55/45
  3. 60/40
  4. 65/35
  5. 70/30
  6. 75/25
  7. 80/20
  8. 85/15
  9. 90/10
  10. 95/05 or lower

The Final Grade

Each Graded Submission can include an optional metal Certificate of Authenticity and a free digital Grading Report Sheet accessible by scanning the QR on the reverse of the label & Photo of your card will be saved locally

After the subgrades have been decided, and confirmed by a second grader, the average of the 3 subgrades ‘front ‘sides & corners’ ‘back’ (as good centring cannot bring up a grade*) is found by combining them and dividing by 3, however if the graders feel one subgrade is a ‘strong’ or ‘weak’ example, they reserve the right to move the grade up or down by 1. We have found that this keeps an honest, mathematical score instead of limiting the final score by the lowest subgrade. Centring cannot raise a grade, only bring it down

*If a card has perfect centring then it can be considered in the average score, at the discretion of the grader

It is possible to score an overall 10 by subgrades being 10,10,9,9 or 10,10,10,8

So we wanted the lucky few who achieve all 10’s on the subgrades, to have a graded card that truly stands out.

This is our 10+ Card, because the ultimate collector deserves the ultimate presentation for their card