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Directories & comparisons

Card Grading Companies Compared

Five companies grade cards at scale and they are not interchangeable. This compares them on the four things that decide a submission — cost, wait, resale premium and what each is actually respected for — and recommends one for the card you describe.

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The five graders, on what actually differs between them.
CompanyEntry priceFastestScaleBest forStatus

What each one is actually respected for

  • PSA — the deepest market and the highest resale premium on modern cards. One number on the label, no subgrades. Every tier under $80 is currently paused.
  • BGS — four subgrades printed on the label and the Black Label, which is the hardest designation in the hobby. Strongest reputation on modern autographs and patches.
  • CGC — the only major grader with everything open, a Pristine 10 above Gem Mint, and the deepest TCG credibility outside of sports.
  • SGC — the cheapest open rate anywhere, and a reputation on pre-war and vintage cardboard that rivals PSA in that specific corner.
  • TAG — grades optically and publishes a thousand-point defect scan. The only reproducible grade, and the smallest resale market.

The trade-off nobody states plainly

Resale premium and cost move together. PSA charges the most and returns the most on modern cards; SGC charges the least and returns less in that same market. The premium is real and it is not free, and on cards below a few hundred dollars the fee difference usually exceeds it — which is the whole calculation.

Published per-card grading fees and availability, checked 3 September 2026.
Grader Tier Per card Max declared value Business days Status
PSA Value Bulk 20+ cards $24.99 $500 95 paused
Value $32.99 $500 75 paused
Value Plus $49.99 $500 45 paused
Value Max $64.99 $1,000 30 paused
Regular $79.99 $1,500 40–50 open
Express $149 $2,500 20–30 open
Super Express $349 $5,000 10–15 open
Walk-Through $599 $10,000 7–10 open
Premium 1 $999 $25,000 5–7 open
BGS Base (no subgrades) $14.95 $250 75–90 paused
Base + subgrades $17.95 $250 75–90 paused
Standard $34.95 $1,000 45 paused
Express $79.95 $2,500 15 open
Priority $124.95 $5,000 5 open
CGC Cards Bulk 25+ cards $17 $500 150 open
Economy $20 $1,000 90 open
Standard $55 $3,000 10 open
Express $100 $10,000 5 open
WalkThrough $300 $100,000 2 open
SGC Standard $15 $1,500 40–50 open
Standard (mid) $85 $3,500 40–50 open
Expedited $150 $3,500 2–3 open
Expedited 7.5K $250 $7,500 2–3 open
TAG Basic $22 $500 45–60 paused
Standard $39 $750 30 paused
Express $59 $1,000 10–15 open
Priority $149 $2,500 5 open
Walkthrough $299 $10,000 2–3 open

Questions people ask about this

Which card grading company is best?

PSA for modern sports cards you intend to sell, because its resale premium is the largest. SGC for vintage and for anyone cost-sensitive, at $15 a card. CGC for Pokemon and other TCG, and because every tier is open. BGS for modern autographs and patches where subgrades matter. TAG if you want a reproducible, machine-generated assessment.

Is PSA worth the extra cost?

On cards above roughly $300 with a meaningful PSA premium, usually yes. Below that the fee gap — $79.99 against $15 at SGC — frequently exceeds the resale difference outright. The crossover depends on the specific card, since the premium varies enormously between modern and vintage.

Which grading company is cheapest?

SGC at $15 per card on its Standard tier, with a $1,500 declared-value ceiling. CGC Bulk is $17 but requires 25 cards and quotes 150 working days. Both undercut PSA's current entry price of $79.99 by a wide margin, since PSA paused everything below it in June 2026.

Where these numbers come from

Rates on this page were last checked against the published price lists on . Grading companies change fees and pause tiers without notice — confirm the total on the submission form before you pay.