Top Ten Most Expensive Pokemon Cards: Ranked!
From Charizards to Pikachu's, I am sure you have heard of some crazy numbers fly out of the auction house regarding the price of Pokemon cards. With some cards that were played so much that a good quality one is like gold, to cards so rare that only two were ever made, pokemon cards definitely hold their value. In this list we will go over the top 10 most expensive cards that have been sold on the market to date.
#10
Tamamushi University Magikarp Trophy
Now i know what you are thinking. "A Magikarp made this list? Seriously?". Hear me out on this one. This card was only given out to the winners of a pokemon tournament in 1998. To participate, Students in Japan had to complete a test and pass it just to get into the tournament! This card sold at an auction in February of 2021 for $66,000! Never let someone tell you that Magikarp is a worthless Pokemon.
#9
Umbreon Gold Star Holo
With the rising popularity of Umbreon and Espeon, it comes as no surprise that one of these dog-like Pokemon made the list. What is surprising however, is how much work you had to put in just to receive this card in the first place. Back in 2005, players had to accumulate 70k in the Pokemon Players Club's fourth season. The low population of this card that followed this season has shot the value of this card up to $70,000 as of June of 2021!
#8
No. 1 Trainer (Super Secret Battle)
It seems to me that the general theme of this list is Tournament cards, and this placement is no exception. Given out in 1999, the Pokemon Company gave this card to winners of their regional contest. This card wasn't the end however, as it only gave you entry to the finals, held in a 'super secret' location, giving the card its namesake. In July of 2020, this card sold at an auction for $90,000!
#7
No. 2 Trainer (Pokemon World Championships)
The first English card on this list, and also beating out the No. 1 Trainer card, this card is the second lowest population card in the world, with only a recorded number of 3 in existence, according to PSA. This card was given out to the winners of the 2007 World Championships, held in california. with over 150 bids at auction in February of 2021, this card ended up selling for $110,100! Not bad for a No. 2.
#6
Lugia 1st. Edition (Neo-Genesis)
If you have ever heard of Mewtwo, you have probably heard of Lugia in the same sentence. Since its release in 2000, this has been one of the main cards to hunt for in the Neo-Genesis set, and for good reason. this Psychic bird has broken records for two years in a row, first in 2020, selling for $129,000, and then again in May of 2021 for $144,300!
#5
Kangaskhan (family Event Trophy Card)
Five down, five more two go in this list, and a Kangaskhan is one of the last pokemon I expected to reach this far into the ranking. To paint the picture for you, this card was only given to the participants of a special tournament in japan in 1998. The catch? A parent and a child had to be participating alongside each other in the tournament. Because of these rules, there is only a recorded number of 11 of these cards in the open market. Fittingly, one of these family cards sold in October of 2020 for a massive $150,000!
#4
Ishihara GX Promo (Autographed)
Now why on earth would the President and CEO of the Pokemon company release a card of himself in 2017? For his Birthday of course! This card was handed out to each employee who showed up to his birthday party, which was somewhere between 30-60 people. This specific copy, which was signed by Ishihara himself, sold in 2021 for $247,230, a far cry from an unsigned copy that sold for around $50,000.
#3
Blastoise Holo (WOTC Commissioned)
In spot number 3, we have the rarest, and the oldest, card known to Pokemon. This card was commissioned by Wizards of the Coast in 1998, and was meant to be given to retailers to show what the final product for their Pocket monster cards were supposed to look like. With these stipulations, this was theorized to be the first pokemon card printed for the US. This card was so rare, that there are supposedly only 2 in existence, with only one confirmed. This Historical Object sold at an auction in January of 2021 for $360,000! With it being the only Confirmed card of its time, some suggest that this card will continue to climb the ranks to be the most Expensive card ever.
#2
Shadowless Charizard, First Edition
I knew it was coming, you knew it was coming, the only surprise was that it wasn't number one (although number two isn't bad at all). This Base Set Shadowless Charizard has become a staple in the Pokemon community for being one of the most iconic cards in the entire game, and the price of it backs up that statement 10 fold. this card has broken three records, from selling for $226,000 in 2020, to selling just an hour later for for $369,000! but both of those are just shadows compared to March 19th of 2022, when it sold for a whopping $420,000! All that money for a Fire-Flying Pokemon!
#1
Illustrator Pikachu
Not only is this the only Pikachu to make the list, but the story behind this card taking the number one spot is even crazier! With this card selling in February of 2022 for a hefty price of $900,000, this was the highest ever price for this extremely rare card. Given out to Art students in a contest back in 1998, this card even broke its February record in april when Logan Paul, of all people, bought the card for a ridiculous amount of 6 Million Dollars! This price has easily solidified this card as the Number one Most Expensive Pokemon card in the world!
While certain cards on this list were expected, some, like the Magikarp and Kangaskhan were so out of left field that I had to do a double take. Pokemon cards have been around for over 20 years now, and with no sign of slowing down, be sure to keep ahold of any you come across, because who knows what kind of cards will be selling for 6 million dollars another 20 years from now?
Published 9-26-2022