While it may seem unfair at times, there are just some Pokemon cards that are stronger than others, like, A LOT stronger than others. So much so, that these cards may even be able to single-handedly change the tides of a game completely simply because the player top-decked it. Some are even so powerful that they are banned from competitive play, leaving the Pokemon TCG community scratching their head wondering how the Pokemon Company could ever release such an unbalanced card. But what makes a Pokemon card strong? 

While you could argue that factors such as a Pokemon’s health or its retreat cost can make it strong, the strength of a lot of Pokemon cards boils down to a single attack or ability that the Pokemon has coupled with the energy cost of said ability. Don’t get us wrong, the health of a Pokemon can definitely sweeten the deal as it can become awkward for your opponent to clear but more often than not these cards are praised for their ability to turn the game around with just a single ability. Players often determine the strength of a card by weighing up the cost of energy against the value of the action they are getting out of it and let’s just say, there are some pretty low-cost abilities that can completely change the game. So, it no particular order, let’s get into this list.

Mega Tyranitar EX is a dark-type card that comes from the 2015 set Ancient Origins. While it may be a mega Pokemon meaning that it is the only time the player will be allowed to mega evolve a Pokemon in the game, the sacrifice is made worth it by its one attack “Destroyer King”. This attack may sound pretty costly as it requires two dark energy and two colorless energy but it’s worth every single one. It does 110 base damage which is already a hefty blow, this is then scaled up by 60 for every damage counter on your opponent’s active Pokemon. This allows you to trap your opponent between a rock and a hard place if they have a damaged Pokemon in play. They are either forced to retreat their Pokemon if they don’t want the Tyranitar to blast through it or they sacrifice that Pokemon and give you a free prize card for the sake of saving some energy. Tyranitar is also especially useful if you can catch your opponent top-decking as the likelihood is, they won’t be able to retreat their active Pokemon.

This card may come as a surprise to a lot of newer players in the TCG as it lacks that wow factor in terms of art. It doesn’t have any flashy borderless art, nor does it have any cool glossy finish, so what’s going on here? How on earth could this card be good? Well, in 2008, The Pokemon Company released the set Great Encounters which would make this Claydol the biggest dark horse in Pokemon history. It went from being a card that the average noob would just throw away to an absolute must-have in most decks. You see, this Claydol has the ability to called Cosmic Power which allowed the player to, once during every turn, put two cards from their hand into the bottom of their deck but draw until they have 6 cards in return. Also, did we mention that the Claydol could still attack after doing this? This made the Claydol an absolute card-generating machine and one that would allow you to rid of any filler cards you may be pulling from your deck. Of course, it has now been power-crept into oblivion but it was a silent killer in its hay-day.

Remember how we mentioned cards getting banned from competitive play because they were just too overpowered… well Lysandre’s Trump Card was one of those cards. Released in the 2014 set Phantom Forces, players quickly realized the unbelievable value that this card had. It’s a trainer card that forces both players to shuffle their discard pile back into their deck. While at first glance that may not sound too crazy its power became very apparent very soon after its release. Oh, what’s that, you are getting absolutely steamrolled by your opponent and you’ve lost your win condition? Not to worry, Lysandre’s Trump Card acts as a complete reset button so that you don’t have to lose anymore. You know all that progress that your opponent just made after like 20 minutes of calculated play and making reads? Yeah… we’re just going to completely reverse all of that and give you all of your cards back. Hopefully, that does a better job of explaining why this card became so infuriating to play against.

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This card was introduced among a bunch of other tag team cards in the Sun & Moon era, especially in the Team Up expansion. While there are a bunch of extremely viable tag team cards, none are quite as powerful as the Mewtwo and Mew GX. This card’s ability was as follows: “This Pokemon can use the attacks of any Pokemon GX or Pokemon EX on your bench or in your discard pile”. Now if it just allowed you to use the attack of the Pokemon on your bench the card would still be decent but nowhere near as powerful as the deal-breaker which is the fact that it allows you to use the attacks of Pokemon that have been discarded. This means that the Mewtwo and Mew can combo with a deck full of heavy-hitting EX and GX cards to make probably one of the most demoralizing decks known to man. There is no feeling worse than expending so many resources on clearing a big card only for your opponent to drop another absolute tank and the Mewtwo & Mew encapsulate this feeling perfectly.

Now let’s take it back about 20 years to the second generation of Pokemon when Game Freak seemed to still be finding their footing with the balancing of this game and would randomly drop the most game-breaking cards in the form of a 30 HP Cleffa. For a single colorless energy, this card allowed the player to shuffle their hand into their deck and draw 7 cards which if you’re low on cards basically reads as “here’s a fresh new hand for one energy”. Plus, the low cost of this ability made it so repeatable that players could just essentially flick through their deck in search of whatever cards they needed. Now, you may be thinking to yourself: “well it’s a 30 HP card so it’s not exactly hard to clear” but what if I told you, this demon’s passive ability meant that your ability to attack it was determined by a coin flip? That’s right, Cleffa’s passive means that every time your opponent attacks a coin must be flipped, if the coin lands on heads the attack goes through as normal, however, if the coin lands on tails, the attack is made void and your opponent’s turn automatically ends! Okay, but once you do finally attack you’re probably going to kill it right? Not quite. We almost forgot to mention that this card has no weakness and no retreat cost meaning that the player can just pull it back to their hand whenever they are sick of cycling through their deck.

There are quite a few Mews that have the same attack that we’re about to discuss but it became commonplace in the Pokemon TCG following the Southern Islands Mew promo. This promo card introduced the attack “Rainbow Wave” which became a huge problem for a lot of players. Rainbow Wave allowed its player to select any type of energy attached to the Mew (apart from colorless) and deal twenty damage to all enemy Pokemon of that same type… including benched Pokemon. Also, this attack neglects any weakness or resistance meaning it will irrefutably deal twenty damage to your opponent’s bench. This meant that if you could make the reads on the kind of deck your opponent was playing you could just start to chip away at their bench effectively for free. Even in the case of being unable to read your opponent’s hand, you could still just use the attack to discover the type of Pokemon your opponent has on their bench and possibly even what exact Pokemon they have on their bench if you are a bit savvier to the meta.

Speaking of being able to chip away at your opponent’s bench for free, the Mega Blastoise EX takes it one step further. Coming from the now famous 2016 set Evolutions, the Mega Blastoise EX introduced the attack Hydro Bombard which dealt a base damage of 120 for three water energy. On its own that’s already not a terrible deal but what if I told you it allowed you to do an additional 30 each to two of your opponent’s benched Pokemon? Unlike the Mewtwo, there isn’t even any condition that your opponent’s Pokemon have to meet for them to take damage, the Blastoise can just blast them with 30 damage for no reason. Not to mention, considering this is a mega-evolved Pokemon, it’s pretty tanky and hard to clear, meaning that the Blastoise can possibly start killing your benched Pokemon if you’re not careful.

It turns out that Mew and Mewtwo don’t have to be teaming up to be insanely strong cards and the Mewtwo EX proves this. Thanks to its attack “X-Ball” the Pokemon TCG meta upon this card’s release quickly devolved into a race to draw the first Mewtwo. This attack allowed Mewtwo to deal 20 damage multiplied by the number of energies on both Mewtwo and your opponent’s active Pokemon. Considering that the attack costs two colorless energy (which is ridiculously cheap) it basically had a base damage of 40. This attack allowed the Mewtwo to quickly blitz through any lead your opponent may have been establishing by dealing a quick 140 damage for relatively zero cost. Funnily enough, the only thing that was really effective at stopping a snowballing Mewtwo EX was another Mewtwo EX. However, once someone got the ball rolling with their own, it’s understandable if you are unable to cope with the damage that they start to ramp up.

Coming in as the newest entry on this list from the 2022 set Brilliant Stars, this card uses the new V Star mechanic in a pretty interesting way. A V Star ability is an ability that can only be used once in a game and in the case of the Arceus V Star, this is the ability to search your deck for two cards of your choice. While that may not sound extremely powerful at face value, the ability to pick two cards out of your deck for no energy cost leaves a lot of room for some amazing combo potential.

When you think powerful Pokemon, I doubt the first thing that comes to your mind is a Tapu Lele, but you best believe that this Pokemon is a force to be reckoned with but not for the reasons you may think. Tapu Lele’s ability “Wonder Tag” means that once you play it from your hand onto your bench you can search your deck for a support card. This is an awesome way to affordably beef up your turn with card draw and a new Pokemon on your bench. As well as this, once your Tapu Lele is active it can use the ability “Tapu Cure” to restore two Pokemon on your bench to full HP.

Coming out with the Roaring Skies expansion of Pokemon, Shaymin EX has one of the lowest damage attacks on this list and yet is still one of the most powerful cards in all of the Pokemon TCG, so what’s going on here? Well, thanks to its ability “Set Up” which allows its player to draw until they have six cards once they play Shaymin from their hand onto their bench, this card became essential for generating cards. However, its power doesn’t stop there. When this is combined with the attack “Sky Return” (which only costs two colorless energy) which deals 30 damage and means Shaymin can return to your hand along with all attached cards, Shaymin becomes an infinite card drawing machine.

Believe it or not, a card doesn’t have to be some crazy secret rare or alternate art for it to be worth a decent amount of money. Of course, collector cards like the rainbow rares and the alternate arts are always going to be worth more, but the playability of a card definitely affects its value as its demand increases. For example, the Arceus V Star listed above is worth around £20 despite only being a V Star card and this is because of its viability in competitive play. So, if you have cards that you think are a little worse for wear but are still strong cards in the Pokemon TCG, you can definitely try selling them for a bit of quick change.

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A Rainbow Rare Pokemon card refers to a full-art Pokemon card that has a rainbow texture over it. They were initially introduced in the Sun & Moon era of Pokemon cards and were some of the hardest cards and most expensive cards to pull at the time. Although they have slightly lost their novelty, even now, in the back end of the Sword and Shield era of Pokemon, they remain some of the most valuable cards in specific sets.

Rainbow cards can only be pulled from the Sun & Moon base set onwards. Any set prior to this did not feature any Rainbow Rares. They will always occupy the rare slot of the pack (which you can identify by a star at the very bottom of the card) and varying pull rates depending on the set you’re opening. Each individual rainbow rare in the set will also have its own pull rates. Typically a card’s value is decided by two things: its rarity and how desirable the Pokemon actually is. Nobody really cares about Rainbow Rare Tauros because in essence nobody really cares about Tauros. Get yourself a Rainbow Rare Charizard however and it’s a different story, suddenly you got a pretty valuable card on your hands. 

Now let’s jump into this list (all price data gathered from TCGPlayer’s market prices).

We open the list with a tag team card from the Sun & Moon era of Pokemon. More specifically, the set Team Up. This set introduced the “tag team” mechanic in the trading card game and would then become a staple part of the Sun & Moon sets to come. This mechanic meant that the card could feature two separate Pokemon in one and in this case, the card features a cute little Pikachu with its arms crossed standing on the hand of a slightly more menacing Zekrom. Ungraded, this card clocks in at around $80 but in a PSA 10 can be as expensive as $200.

This card is relatively low on the list for a Rainbow Rare Charizard and this is likely because it’s one of the newer entries. The Rainbow Rare Charizard VStar burst onto the scene in February of this year in the set Brilliant Stars and also introduced the VStar game mechanic for the first time. The card features a Charizard roaring and flying through the air in all of its multi-colored glory and will cost you around $86 ungraded. In a PSA 10 however, you can expect to be paying around $300 and this is likely going to increase in the coming years as Brilliant Stars stops its print run.

You thought it was just going to stop and Pikachu and Zekrom? Don’t worry there are plenty more tag team cards to come but for now, let’s take a look at the Mewtwo & Mew GX. This card sees the return of the legendary Kanto region in the set Unified Minds duo which is probably what makes it so expensive. The card features a Mew floating in front of a Mewtwo sticking its weird three-pronged hand at the viewer of the card and costing about $100 ungraded, these two don’t mess about. In a PSA 10, they aren’t quite as expensive as the Charizard raking in about $200 but they are nonetheless more valuable ungraded.

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Told you it wouldn’t be the last of the team-up cards. This card from likely the most memorable Sun & Moon set: Cosmic Eclipse, features both a blast from the past and a spotlight being shone on the newer generation of Pokemon as we see the nostalgic first-generation, fire-type starter Pokemon Charizard carrying the seventh-generation fire-type starter Braixen on its back. Ungraded this card finds itself just a bit more expensive than the Mewtwo and Mew at around $102. Now if you manage to get hold of this card in a PSA 10 then you have yourself a roughly $300 – $350 card on your hands.

This is actually the first standard GX entry on the list and it is already hard to come by as it is. It comes from the Sun & Moon set Celestial Storm and seems to be a pretty rare card nowadays. It’s simply just a Rayquaza semi-coiled up roaring about something but has a market price of around $116 when ungraded. It’s hard to gauge an accurate price for this in a PSA 10 because not many have sold, but there are several being listed in the region of $650 for this card.

This entry comes from the Sun & Moon set Lost Thunder as it brings back the OG second generation (Silver) legendary: Lugia. Like a lot of the other dragon-looking Pokemon, the card just features the Pokemon screeching, roaring, or shouting, whatever you want to call it, it’s making some loud noise and the card is rainbow colored, what we are interested in is the pricing. To pick one of these up ungraded you’re looking at a $140 commitment and if you’re a real baller then you can buy it in a PSA 10 for roughly $800.

If you’re even a little bit into Pokemon cards then chances are you knew this one was coming. Also known as “The Rainbow Chonkachu” this beast of a Pikachu is in the upper echelon of Rainbow Rare pulls. Making its debut in the Sword & Shield set Vivid Voltage, the Rainbow Rare Pikachu VMax features the cutest, chunkiest Pikachu you’ve ever seen as lightning strikes behind him (or maybe it’s its tail, I’m not entirely sure). This is not only one of the rarest Rainbow Rare Pokemon cards but probably also one of the rarest cards in Sword & Shield. Even ungraded the card is worth around $150 but if you manage to get this in a PSA 10, you will have yourself a card close to $850 and this is from a modern set.

This will be the final tag team entry for the list and will probably remain that way unless The Pokemon Company both brings back tag team cards and then makes one more epic than this. This Unbroken Bonds Rainbow Rare pull brings together the Pokemon Black & White, fire/dragon-type legendary Reshiram with the fire/dragon-type starter Charizard to make one of the most awesome team-ups in Pokemon history. This card is worth around $150 ungraded and skyrockets to about $900 when in a PSA 10.

You’re probably noticing a pattern here with Charizard and the truth is, people just love anything with a Charizard on it and The Pokemon Company knows it. This Charizard comes from the Sword & Shield holiday set Champion’s Path, and re-uses the art of the Charizard VMax from the Sword & Shield set Darkness Ablaze but instead puts a rainbow flare on it. When I said Pikachu was likely one of the rarest Sword & Shield pulls is because this is probably the rarest Sword & Shield pull there is. Ungraded this card is worth nearly $200 and in a PSA 10, this card almost breaks the $1000 mark. In a few years, this may be one of the most sought-after Charizards.

This probably comes as no surprise to anyone. It ticks all of the boxes to make it the most valuable Rainbow Rare, it’s a Charizard, it’s a Rainbow Rare, and it’s the oldest Rainbow Rare Charizard, not to mention it is extremely hard to pull. YouTuber maxmoefoePokemon opened nearly 500 Burning Shadows Packs only to pull one of these bad boys. Because of this, ungraded, the card is already worth around $400, then if you get that in a PSA 10, say hello to your very own $3000 card.

While this list may make it sound like Rainbow Rares are the only secret rares worth pulling, this simply isn’t true. Almost any type of secret rare whether it be a Golden Rare, or an Alternate Art, they all have their own amazing pulls. Not too long ago, The Pokemon Company released a Golden Rare Mewtwo, and even earlier than that they released a Golden Rare Arceus both some of the rarest cards in their respective sets. If you own a card that just looks valuable, it’s always best to check online how much the card sells for before you jump to conclusions assuming it’s not worth anything.

While the list may suggest that Pokemon are the only things that can be Rainbow Rares there are plenty of trainer cards that are also Rainbow Rares. In fact, there are some Rainbow Rare trainer cards that are worth a good amount of money in their own respect. For example, the Rainbow Rare Bea from Vivid Voltage is worth about $50 in a PSA 10 and similarly, the Rainbow Rare Beauty from the same set is worth around the same. Of course, it can’t compete with the absolute best cards listed above but they are by no means worthless.

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First Edition Pokemon cards are vintage Pokemon cards that were included in the first print run of their designated set. This was a feature that continued to be printed on cards during Wizards of the Coast’s management of Pokemon card printing from 1999 to 2003. Because of this, First Edition Pokemon cards cannot be found in sets beyond the year 2003 when Nintendo took over from Wizards of the Coast.

A First Edition Pokemon card can be identified by a small, black, circular stamp with the number “1” on it that reads “EDITION” above it on the bottom left corner of the card’s art. This can also be verified by the lack of a shadow on the right border of the card’s art as well as copyright dates ranging from 1995 to 1999.

First Edition Pokemon cards are very rare but even within the First Edition cards themselves, there are varying degrees of rarity and value. For one, common and uncommon cards (indicated by the shape of the stamp on the bottom right corner of the card), although they are undoubtedly rare cards and will sell for more than any modern common or uncommon card, they won’t sell for half as much as basically any First Edition holographic card. Every single First Edition holographic card (and that means every single one) is worth a few hundred dollars in a PSA 10.

Throughout this post, we are going to be throwing around the term “PSA 10” which might sound like complete nonsense if you’re not familiar with Pokemon collecting so we’ll clear this up quickly. PSA stands for Professional Sports Authenticator and is a grading company for collectible items from trading cards to FUNKO POP figures. They grade cards on a scale from 1 – 10 (10 being the best) and grade them according to a few things. These things include the centering of the card, the quality of the print (especially in the case of foil cards), scuffs or scratches, warping or bends in the card, and staining. Once it is graded, the card is put into a hard plastic case with a label that states the grade of the card. Having a card in a PSA 10 case can massively increase the value of the card as you will see further into this article.

More First Edition Pokemon Cards

This holographic card comes from the 1999 base set of Pokemon cards and features the first generation electric type Magnemite evolution: Magneton. It is shadowless meaning it lacks the shadow on the right border of the card which was considered an “error” in a few of the print runs of the set which vastly increases the value of the card. Ungraded these have sold for around $130 but in a PSA 10 one recently sold for $17,000.

If only this were a Pikachu, the value of the card would likely shoot up by thousands. Unfortunately, however, there was no holographic Pikachu in the base set of Pokemon so the fans had to settle for a first edition, holographic Raichu instead. Ungraded these can sell for up to $200 and in a PSA 10, they have sold for $17,100.

This is one of only two entries on this list that aren’t a part of the base set of Pokemon as this one comes from 2002 set Neo Destiny, just a year before first editions stopped running. If you don’t already know this about Pokemon, all the Pokemon Company has to do is slap a Charizard on a card and it will likely sell for top dollar and this card is no exception. Ungraded, these cards are already insanely hard to get a hold of, ranging anywhere between $1000 – $2000 but put this card in a PSA 10 and it’s a whole different story. In a PSA 10, the First Edition Shining Charizard has sold for $20,000.

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Everyone’s favorite telekinetic alien thing is pretty valuable if you have a First Edition, shadowless version of it. In fact, chances are you have seen or even at one point owned (if you are a 90s kid) one of these holographic Mewtwos. But it’s not the 90s anymore, so if you still got one of these in mint condition, ungraded it can sell for around $400 and in a PSA 10 it has previously sold for $22,000.

At number 6 we have a bit of a curveball entry that I don’t think many people saw coming considering the vast number of cards I’d rather pull when opening base set Pokemon cards. However, the reason this card is so valuable is that the Hitmonchan itself takes up such a small portion of the card art, meaning that there is foil is clear and fills up more space. This makes it much harder to grade well. In fact, only 56 copies of the card exist in a PSA 10. Speaking of which, ungraded you can probably pick one up for about $200 but as soon as you get that in a PSA 10 case, the card’s value skyrockets up to $23,100.

Oh yeah, remember that whole rule about slapping a Charizard on a card and people going wild for it? Well, the same principle applies, although to a lesser degree, to essentially all first-generation starter Pokemon. While it’s common knowledge that nobody on this planet picks grass-type starters, the First Edition, Base Set Venesaur is extremely popular among collectors. You can expect to find one of these ungraded for around $600 but in a PSA 10 this has sold for $25,000.

This is another one of those entries that just feels completely out of left field, because, let’s be honest who really likes Chansey that much? Well, it turns out not that many people like Chansey that much but it’s valuable for the same reason as the Hitmonchan. Because of the nature of the card’s art and how vast and clear the foil is, it’s extremely hard to get one in a PSA 10. They are so rare in fact that only 48 exist in a PSA 10. Ungraded they are worth about $200 but in a PSA 10 they are suddenly worth around $36,877.

Considering the value of everyone’s least favorite first-generation starter Pokemon, it comes as no surprise that the Blastoise is worth so much as well. But, as well as being a sought-after Pokemon, this card only has a population of roughly 100 in a PSA 10. Because of this, finding one ungraded will probably cost in the ballpark of $420 but in a PSA 10 this card sells for obscene amounts. It recently sold for $45,100 in a PSA 10.

To the more seasoned collectors, you may already be aware of the reason for this card’s value, but for everyone else, this may come as a massive shock. While Lugia is definitely nostalgic and a fan-favorite legendary to some degree, it certainly isn’t at Charizard level of cards that people want, so what is happening here? It all has to do with the card population, but there’s a reason for this too. Yes as we’ve mentioned before the vast and clear foil already makes the card hard to grade blah blah blah. However, when Neo Genesis dropped in 2000, the first few print runs of the set were irredeemably bad, the printing on the foil was just completely inconsistent and this meant that all of the First Edition prints of the card were just terrible. While they later corrected the printing in the unlimited version of the set, it was too late, the First Edition run was already over leaving there only to be 43 PSA 10 Lugias to exist today and only 3 in a BGS 10. Even finding someone selling an ungraded one is rare but has sold for around $800 in the past. In a BGS 10 however, you better be ready to say goodbye to your mortgage because this card has sold for $144,300.

Everyone and their mom have seen this card by now. It’s the poster boy of Pokemon himself, this OG Charizard has been the crown jewel of Pokemon since 1999 and it doesn’t look like it is going anywhere, anytime soon. This card is probably the most popular card of all time among collectors and with good reason. It ticks all the boxes of being a valuable card, it is extremely hard to get a hold of, it’s vintage, it’s First Edition and most importantly of all, it’s a Charizard. The population of the card clocks in at 121 in a PSA 10, which comparatively isn’t that low, but when we’re talking Charizards, that is DEFCON 1 levels of rare. This is why ungraded, the card practically doesn’t exist, but if you do manage to find one it would still cost you around $4000 and in a PSA 10 this card sold for a whopping $350,100.

Yes, all print runs of the base set First Edition Pokemon cards did not feature a shadow on the right border, the shadow was then added in a later print run in the unlimited version of the set.

First Edition was a feature that ran for every set (except Base Set 2) until Neo Destiny in 2002. This means that the value of a First Edition pack varies depending on what set you are referring to. The First Edition Base Set packs are likely the most expensive packs, costing around $4000 a pack, but if you look towards first edition jungle packs, they are worth around $400 a pack. A good way of gauging the value of a pack is checking the sold items under the item’s name on eBay.

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With the resurgence of Pokemon in the last few years also came the resurgence of fake Pokemon cards. These are typically significantly lower-quality cards printed by third-party companies in an attempt to mimic actual Pokemon cards. They attempt to fool people who don’t know any better like clueless parents into paying full price for their cheap knockoff. 

These cards are often fairly easy to spot as long as you know what you are looking for and if you’re shopping in the right places you’ll rarely have to face this issue.

These cards are typically sold loose in bulk out of a cardboard box in a Sunday market making them fairly easy to avoid. However, this is not to suggest that there aren’t more elaborate sellers attempting to fool the wiser collectors. 
Any site where you can buy ungraded, individual cards without moderation opens up opportunities for fake cards to be sold. This includes sites like eBay and Gumtree. Because of this, it is essential to take a thorough look at whatever you are buying and follow the steps below before making a purchase, especially on rarer, more expensive cards.

First Things To Look Out For 

When shopping for Pokemon cards or maybe even when checking your own collection of cards that you may be suspicious of, these are the first things you should consider and shouldn’t require any reference. 

Spelling & Grammatical Errors

Read every part of the card, is the Pokemon’s name at the top of the card spelt correctly, are there commas where there shouldn’t be, are there commas missing? This is crucial as every official Pokemon card goes through several checks in its digital form before it is even sent off to the printing line. Hence, it is extremely unlikely that an official Pokemon card will have a spelling error on it. 

No Accent Over the “é” In Pokémon

All official Pokemon cards have an accent over the “é” in the word Pokemon or any interaction of the term “Poké”. This is irrespective of where on the card the word is written as it will always have the accent over the é. 

Any Reference To Pokémon That Doesn’t Use The Word “Pokémon”

Some fake Pokemon cards tend to refer to Pokemon as other things aside from Pokemon. For cards printed in English, Pokemon are only ever referred to as Pokémon. Terms like “Pocket Monsters” being used about Pokemon is typically a pretty good indication of the card’s fakeness. 

Unrealistic HP and Attack Values 

Any card with obscene attack and HP values i.e over 1000 is immediately fake. As of 2021, The Pokemon Company doesn’t print cards over 340 health let alone over 1000 health. The HP of the Pokemon is the number in the top right corner of the card next to the Pokemon’s name. Its attack values can usually be found on the right of the text underneath the art of the card, however, some Pokemon do not have an attack value in which case you must refer to the HP and other details listed below.

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The following are details that will require a physical copy of any other real Pokemon card you own to compare against. This will ensure the most accurate readings of your card. 

Borders Blurring Into Card 

Sometimes, especially on the back of fake cards, the border can begin to bleed onto the main body of the card. Check the back of your card and see if the dark blue of the border begins to fade into the blue of the actual card at any point on the card. If this is the case, your card is possibly fake. 

Washed Out Colour 

The printing on fake cards usually isn’t as consistent as that of real cards and what can often happen is the colors of the card appear washed out. This is usually also evident on the back of the card as it will appear a much paler blue than a normal Pokemon card. 

Card Material

Fake cards often use a much cheaper and less durable material which is a lot thinner than normal Pokemon cards. You can usually just tell by holding a fake card and feeling it a bit whether the material is that of an official Pokemon card or just a cheap phoney print. 

Flat Untextured Foiling 

Official Pokemon cards vary in foil depending on what kind of card it is. If it’s just a standard holo rare, the art of the card will have detailed, textured foiling. If it’s a reverse holo, everything but the art of the card will have foiling. This applies to every card with texture whether it be an EX, GX, VMax, Rainbow Rare, you name it, there is a specific type of foiling for the card type. Fake cards however seem to have one standardized flat foiling that lacks any texture at all. 

Lack Of Foil On Holographic Card Or Vice Versa 

If any card that you own that would typically be holographic, things like ultra rares, holographic rares, gold cards etc. have a matte finish, this almost immediately means that your card is fake. If you’re unsure whether or not your card should have a holographic finish on it, it’s best to double-check by looking up a physical copy of your card (digital scans aren’t very useful for telling the finish of the card) whether it be through Google images or another copy of the card you may have.

For the following details, you should look at a digital scan of your card to verify that your card is legitimate as these will be details specific to one card specifically. You can easily find digital scans of your cards here, by just searching the name of your Pokemon and the set it’s from.

Incorrect HP / Attack Values 

Although we previously mentioned making sure that the HP and attack values of your card weren’t ludicrous and that there is a standardized cap on the attack and HP of Pokemon as of 2021, there is still a chance that these values are ever so off. This could be by 10 or 20 points, so make sure to double-check the digital scan of the card and compare it against your own to confirm that all values are in place. 

Incorrect Pokémon Typing 

Every Pokemon card has a typing which can be identified most evidently by the colour of the card in most cases, however, can also be identified by the little symbol in the top right corner of the card next to the HP of the Pokemon. If this symbol does not immediately match the colour of your card, then you won’t even need a digital scan to test the legitimacy of your card. However, in the case of full arts and VMax cards, it can be less obvious what type of Pokemon the card is which is why you have to look at the logo. Once again, if it doesn’t match that of the digital scan of your card, your card is unfortunately fake. 

Incorrect Font / Font Size

This one can be a lot harder to spot, especially if the font size is off by just 1 or 2. Some giveaways include looking at the font and font size of the name of the Pokemon given that it is usually in bold and has one size across all cards. 

Incorrect Set Symbol Or Set Number 

The symbol for the set can be found at the very bottom left corner of the card just above the border of the card. On the right of this, you will also find a fraction like 011/134, or something to that effect. The symbol indicates what set the card is from whether it be Darkness Ablaze, Cosmic Eclipse etc. The number next to this indicates the numbered position of the card in the set. Pokemon cards are ordered numerically and therefore must have a number assigned to them at the bottom of the card. If this symbol doesn’t match the set the card is originally from or the number doesn’t match the number of the digital scan, you’re looking at a fake card. 

Incorrect Weakness / Resistance Type 

People often forget that others play the Pokemon Trading Card game competitively and by nature gloss over the other minor details of the card like the weakness and resistance of the Pokemon. This refers to what type of Pokemon the card takes reduced from and deals increased damage to; it’s honestly an easy detail to miss. You can find the weakness and resistance type of your card by looking at the silver banner close to the bottom of your card. There you will see a symbol similar to the one in the top right corner of the card. If these do not match the digital scan of your card, the card is likely fake. 

Incorrect Retreat Cost 

Finally, on the same silver strip at the right of the card, you will also see what is known as a retreat cost. This is what it costs to pull the card out of play in the game but for us, it’s going to serve as a means of telling if the card is fake. Each Pokemon has a unique retreat cost and it must therefore match the cost of the digital scan of your card. 

Getting accustomed to what legitimate cards look like is important if you want to avoid buying counterfeit cards. Hence, most collectors can spot a fake from a mile off. 

For those less experienced, if you keep a keen eye on the details and are mindful of where you’re buying your Pokemon cards, you should be safe.

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