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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After covering 12 different sports card apps (and 7 more focused on card selling), I realized that while some people want an app for pricing and tracking their collection, others need a tool to help with things like centering.
And, believe it or not, there are options!
Why? Because when it comes to grading, when you’re holding a card in your hand, you can see the damaged corners, chipping, dimples, and creasing—but centering? It’s tough for the naked eye of some. So while there are grading tools, they can be tedious, and thus having an app you can open at a moment’s notice for help is a huge value add.
1. True Grade App
TrueGrade (App Store, Google Play) hopefully has just what you’re looking for—you can upload a pic of your card and their AI-powered system gives you a centering score and an estimated PSA/BGS grade.
(Just remember, this is just a ballpark figure based on the picture you upload. Thus, if your picture is bad or not clear, it’s tougher for the app to grade it. Not to mention that nothing is ever perfect and grading is subjective, so even if you get a perfect 10 on the app, there is no telling the grade you’ll receive if you send it in.)
TrueGrade breaks down the grading game in a way that’s easy to understand. They look at stuff that counts, like centering, corners, edges, and the card’s surface. Each factor gets a grade from 1 to 10, and then the app rolls those grades together for an overall score.
A few things to remember:
While centering is great, corners matter. Even if your card’s centering is spot on, dinged corners can drop your grade. Not to mention that edges are also key. Keep an eye out for any wear or flaking, chipping, etc.
Regarding centering, it’s all about balance and symmetry. Ideally, you want something like a 55/45 to 60/40 split at most.
Read More: Baseball Card Centering Examples
The card’s surface counts too. Modern shiny cards can get scratched up, while older ones might lose some gloss.
All in all, if you’re trying to get a handle on card centering or just curious about the overall grade, TrueGrade is worth a look.
2. Card Centering Calculator
While not an app, the SportsCardsPro Card Centering Calculator is still a tool that is serviceable on your mobile device that can help with your centering questions.
By taking a photo of your card and uploading it, their bot takes over, providing a centering score and an estimated PSA/BGS centering grade.
(Again, you might get a centering grade of 10, but it’s essential to remember that this is purely based on centering and doesn’t consider other grading elements like edges or corners.)
Upon uploading, you’ll see specifics such as, in this example, a centering ratio of 1.32 (56/43), and pixel details like the horizontal left being 22 pixels with the “10” example below.
To get the most accurate results from the tool, there are a few things to keep in mind:
- It’s best to use cards with clear borders.
- Instead of scanning, the tool works best with photos that have some background around the card.
- A uniform background color, like plain paper, is ideal, especially if it contrasts with the card’s border.
It’s also recommended to remove any case or sleeve from the card and ensure the card appears rectangular in the photo, minimizing any trapezoid effect.
If you’re keen to understand more about your card’s centering or are just exploring, the SportsCardsPro Card Centering Calculator is a handy tool to consider.
3. Edge Grading Centering Tool
If you like the above, you might find the Edge Grading centering tool quite useful as well. It’s not a mobile app, but another browser tool designed to help determine the centering of your cards.
By uploading an image, the tool provides centering statistics, like a left/right split of 45%/55%.
Not quite sure about the results? You have the option to adjust them manually.
I really like this tool for that specific reason. For example, this Anthony Edwards Prizm RC is clearly off-center, but Prizm is also tough because there isn’t a true border. So, the tool was actually estimating based on lines that aren’t considered the border of the card. So, I adjusted:
For those new to the concept of centering, the tool breaks it down simply. For instance, if both sides of your card are 3mm wide, that translates to a 50/50 split. It’s also insightful to see how different grading giants, such as PSA centering standards and BGS’ approach. While PSA might be okay with a 60/40 split for their top grade, BGS leans towards a strict 50/50 split.
Whether you’re deep into card grading and centering, or just exploring, each of the above offers a practical and informative experience.
