Ryan Barone (@ballcardgenius, Card Expert) is a lifelong member of the hobby. He has been quoted in PSA Magazine, and his content has regularly been mentioned in “Quick Rips” (the Topps RIPPED Newsletter) and across other hobby publications. hello@ballcardgenius.com; Last Time Ago LLC dba Ballcard Genius.
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The good news is that there are more than enough sports card price guides available for you to utilize. The bad news? There are so many different price guide options that it is hard to know which is best. (Not to mention that “best” for you is probably much different than “best” for me or someone else.)
As a result, instead of simply listing out the different sports card price guide options, I’d like to present a handful, labeling them the “best” for a particular situation, and thus allowing you to make your way through the different recommendations based on your needs.
Sound good?
One note, with all of these options, don’t take things at face value especially if you are a newcomer in cards. With AI, image recognition, a ton of market data, similar parallels, etc., it’s easy for the wrong price or value figure to show up for your cards. So, until you’re a seasoned collector and can spot a value error without hesitation, I’d recommend consulting multiple sources and performing due diligence to ensure you’re crystal clear on pricing (especially if you’re planning to make a sale or trade).
1. Best All-Around Price Guide: eBay
eBay, the global online marketplace, has long been a go-to destination for both buyers and sellers of sports cards. The huge user base and millions of listings make it an undeniable tool for gauging the current market value of almost any card.
Whether you’re a seasoned collector or just starting out, eBay offers a real-time snapshot of what people are willing to pay for a particular card. By analyzing completed sales (often referred to as “ebay comps“) and looking at current listings, you can get a pretty clear picture of a card’s demand and value.
Specifically, eBay’s dynamic nature, with cards being bought and sold around the clock, ensures that you’re always getting the most up-to-date pricing information.
In terms of shortcomings, the platform’s data on sold items is restricted to the last 60 days, which can pose challenges when researching rarer cards with infrequent sales. Not to mention that cards sold via the “Best Offer” option might not always display the final sale price (though there are external tools to circumvent this limitation; keep reading).
In essence, eBay serves as a comprehensive barometer for the sports card market. While it’s an excellent starting point for most collectors, it’s not the only source of sales, and thus it’s always wise to cross-reference with other options, especially for high-value or rare cards.
2. Best for “Book Price”: Beckett
Now, I’m going to say I personally don’t ever use Beckett for pricing, but some do. Not to mention that there was a time when Beckett ruled all, and is a name you’d expect to see on such a list, so I had to include them.
So with that said, Beckett, a name synonymous with sports card collecting, has been a staple in the hobby for decades. Founded in the early 1980s by Dr. James Beckett, the Beckett price guide quickly became the gold standard for card valuations. Before the digital age, collectors eagerly awaited the monthly publications to see how their cards’ values had fluctuated.
(That black arrow, am I right!?)
This “Book Value” is a term often used in the card collecting world to refer to the listed price of a card in a price guide, such as Beckett. It represents an average or estimated value based on reported sales, expert opinions, and other market factors.
However, it’s essential to note that “book value” is often a static figure that doesn’t change as rapidly as the real-time market. Meaning, while Beckett’s “book value” provides a general ballpark figure, the actual sales data, like those from eBay comps, often paints a more accurate picture of a card’s current market value.
This is because real-time sales data reflects the actual amount a buyer is willing to pay for a card at a specific moment in time, considering various factors like player performance, card condition, and market trends.
In contrast, “book value” might not account for these rapid changes, leading to potential discrepancies between the listed value and the card’s actual selling price.
All said, in today’s digital age, while Beckett remains a respected name and a reference point, many collectors lean towards real-time sales data from platforms like eBay for a more immediate and accurate valuation. On the other hand, I’ve read multiple comments about Beckett being a good source for hard-to-find cards.
So, again and to the nature of this post, what works best for you and your needs?
3. Best for Small Collections: Mobile Apps
For those with smaller collections or just a few cards to look up, mobile apps with card tracking features are a boon. These apps often come with user-friendly interfaces, allowing you to either scan your card or search for it by name.
1. CollX is designed to quickly determine the worth of your cards. By simply snapping photos, you can instantly get the current market price thanks to the app’s database of trading cards (and a computer-vision system that strives to find an exact match for the scanned card). If there are multiple variants, such as reprints or parallels, CollX informs you, allowing you to pick the correct match.
2. Card Hedge stands as a viable sports and trading card price guide option, offering a combo of collection management and price analysis tools. It encompasses a range of sports, from baseball and football to hockey and soccer, and even covers categories like Pokemon and Marvel.
(Grab a 7-day free trial ⬇️ )
By curating pricing data from latest sales, Card Hedge provides an accurate market snapshot, covering all grades and raw cards. And with a database of over 700,000 cards and 57 million+ searchable sales, you could say it’s a comprehensive resource.
3. Ludex stands out with its advanced AI scanning technology, offering a quick and efficient way to evaluate and identify every card in a collection. The app uses multiple layers of AI technology to correctly identify cards and match them to its extensive checklist database.
From just the front image, Ludex’s AI matches the image to its database, providing details about the set, year, and corresponding value range. The app also determines if a card is a specific variant, like a Topps Chrome refractor or a Panini Prizm silver.
Ludex finds the value of your baseball card collection using a proprietary algorithm that matches card information with relevant sales from major online marketplaces. The app’s Price Report updates daily, ensuring users get the most recent sales data for their cards.
4. Cardbase is another comprehensive platform that boasts a large collection of cards. Users can search and discover from over 30 marketplaces and auction houses, making it easier to manage and track their collection.
The platform tracks multiple sites simultaneously, helping users find exactly what they’re looking for. The platform also offers a blog section, providing insights, price guides, and valuable information for collectors.
5. Card Genie is another versatile sports card collecting app that offers a suite of features tailored for the modern collector. Users can effortlessly manage their sports card collection directly from their phones, while checking past eBay sales and receiving “Genie’s Estimates” based on this sales data. The app also provides access to PSA population reports, player statistics, and even facilitates card sharing.
Read More: Reading the PSA POP Report
4. Best for Large Collections
Now, if you need something a little more robust than the above options, Market Movers is a more in-depth platform tailored for collectors with extensive card collections and are serious about taking things to the next level.
With that in mind, Market Movers boasts:
Advanced Price Charts: Accurate price information for over 1.5 Million+ cards and 7,000+ sealed products, allowing users to compare card prices across various grading companies and conditions.
Collection Management: Manage, track, and organize your entire collection seamlessly. Market Movers provides insights into a collection’s value and stats by various parameters like sport, year, player, set, and grade. Additionally, users can track all their transactions, understanding their profit and loss over time.
Real-time Price Movements: Users can quickly identify trending players and cards, leveraging the Price Movements data to time their transactions perfectly.
Deals and Market Pulse: Market Movers helps users find underpriced cards across multiple marketplaces and track market trends by sport, era, and more. This ensures collectors are always in the loop about what’s trending in the market.
Price Alerts: With custom alerts, users are notified about new prices, ensuring they’re always ready for any price movements.
In a tutorial video, the platform’s ease of use, especially regarding importing card inventory spreadsheets, is highlighted. This feature is particularly beneficial for those who have maintained their collection in spreadsheets over the years.
If you’d like to give Market Movers a shot, you can grab a free 14-day trial—simply visit this link, and sign up for an account and plan with code BALLCARDGENIUS. If you decide to continue after the trial, you’ll get 20% for the lifetime of your subscription.
5. Best When eBay Fails
Now, while eBay is a go-to for many collectors, it sometimes falls short in providing the true “sold for” price when a card is sold via a best offer. For example, does this look familiar:
Although you can occasionally unearth this price by delving into the eBay price guide, it’s not always a guarantee. For such instances, 130 Point ebay sales tool emerges as a stellar alternative.
With this card example, just go to https://130point.com/sales/, and then search for your card like you would on eBay. After a few quick seconds, you’ll see your results, and while we only saw the $330 with strikethrough on eBay, 130 Point reveals the true sales price of $255:
6. Best for Extremely Rare Cards
With all of the other tools, the one shortcoming is that if a card hasn’t been sold in years, it’s near impossible to find any info or data on it. So, while not perfect, Worthpoint can perhaps help find those extremely rare corner cases given how far back you can look to find that unique item.
WorthPoint has an expansive Price Guide that offers access to over 740 million historical prices, sourced from online marketplaces like eBay and prominent auction houses. With data stretching back to 2006, it’s one of the most comprehensive databases available.
7. Best for “Jumping In”
Especially as a newcomer to the hobby, a lot of what has been presented above and will be talked about below can be pretty overwhelming. Sure, people usually love bells and whistles, but sometimes just being able to jump in and get your feet wet is great as well.
SportsCardsPro offers just that—a no-frills yet potent experience tailored for both novices and seasoned collectors. The platform provides current and historic sports card prices, ensuring that users have access to accurate and timely data. With daily updates sourced from various internet platforms, users can trust the reliability of the information presented.
Some of the standout features of SportsCardsPro include:
- Historic Sales Data: Users can view sales history for every card and condition.
- Collection Tracker: A dedicated tool to manage and assess the value of one’s collection.
- eBay Deal Scanner: This feature identifies sports card listings on eBay that are priced below their actual value, ensuring users snag the best deals.
In essence, SportsCardsPro is designed to facilitate a smooth entry into the world of sports card collecting, ensuring users can dive in without feeling overwhelmed.
