A major distinction between EX Pokemon cards and regular Pokemon cards is how powerful they are. EX Pokemon cards are generally stronger, with higher stats, more potent abilities and more powerful attacks, which gives players an edge during gameplay and have the potential to completely turn the tides of a game.

Another contrast between EX Pokemon cards and common Pokemon cards is the way they can be obtained. These cards are generally only available in special booster packs or theme decks, making them harder to get than the usual Pokemon cards.

These cards were introduced In 2012 by the Pokemon Company in the Black & White set Next Destinies as an attempt to replace the Lv.X mechanic from the generation before it. It introduced classic EX cards such as Reshiram EX, Zekrom EX, and the Mewtwo EX Full Art. These cards had enhanced artwork and refreshed game mechanics, making them extremely desired by fans and collectors. They would go on to make these cards until 2017 with the introduction of Sun & Moon.

While the name EX and GX may sound quite similar, there are quite a few fundamental differences between the two types of cards.

For one the design of the cards have some key differences between them. EX cards feature art that kind of spills over the inner border of the cards art whereas GX cards don’t even have an inner border.

As well as this, because you can only play one GX card per game, GX cards tend to have much higher HP values than EX cards. However, it’s not just their HP that makes them this much stronger, GX cards also feature GX attacks which can only be used once a game.

While EX nor GX cards are the rarest cards in the world, GX cards are marginally rarer than EX cards.

So in short, GX cards aren’t particularly similar to EX cards apart from the fact that they rhyme and they are ultra rares.

So, if you’re a bit more of a seasoned Pokemon TCG fan, then you may recall that ex-cards were a thing way before 2012. They go as far back as 2003 in the set “EX Ruby & Sapphire” and they weren’t vastly different from EXs as we know them today. These cards were similar to normal Pokemon cards but they would have improved health, and attack a lot like, you guessed it, modern EX cards. The art is obviously a bit better on the more modern cards but for the most part, they are more similar to EXs than GXs.

You might be wondering then why The Pokemon Company would deem it necessary to call a stop to the EX cards if they were so popular and the truth is, it was inevitable. Regardless of how popular a game mechanic is, with each new era of Pokemon, they always like to change things up and scrap one game mechanic to introduce another. We’ve seen this time and time again with EX getting replaced by GX and GX getting replaced by V & VMax and V and VMax soon to be replaced by another mechanic. It’s an easy way for The Pokemon Company to keep the game fresh without stripping away all familiarity with the game so returning players can quickly get straight back into the game.

Now, let’s get into the most expensive EX pokemon cards.

Kicking off this list is the less popular counterpart to the Mega Charizard duo with the Mega Charizard Y EX. This card was released in the 2014 X & Y set Flashfire which would introduce the “Mega Evolution” mechanic from the video game into the card game. As we’ve mentioned in almost every article containing a list, it’s hard to find a “most expensive cards” list without at least one Charizard on it and this is no exception to that rule. Ungraded this card can be found selling for around $20 and in a PSA 10 can be as expensive as $70.

Making a pretty nostalgic entry at number 9 is the fabled ground-type legendary from the Ruby, Sapphire, and Emerald era of Pokemon. This card was released in the 2012 set Dark Explorers and further begged the question of whether Kyogre or Groudon was better. This card is a full art and ungraded the card is worth around $60 but in a PSA 10, the card is worth nearly $500.

But if you thought that last entry was nostalgic, get a load of this one. The Mew-EX comes from the same year as the Groudon EX in the set Dragons Exalted. This card is not only expensive for its awesome full-art but also for its amazing gameplay mechanic that would go on to remain a staple card in most psychic decks even as the meta evolved. Even ungraded, the card can be worth around $100 but when in a PSA 10 this card is worth nearly $2000.

This card burst onto the scene in the set Ancient Origins. This is likely one of the coolest EX arts that you can get your hands on (in my humble opinion) thanks to its gold trim, the Japanese text flying around the card, and just having a mega Rayquaza on a card, it just makes for an awesome card art. Ungraded this card is worth more than $100 and in a PSA 10 it’s worth upwards of $600.

And it just wouldn’t be a true celebration of some vintage legendaries without including the Pokemon Silver mascot Lugia. This card was introduced in the set Plasma Storm and is a little different from most of the entries on this list thanks to the fact that it is a “Team Plasma” card. This was a mechanic introduced in the set Noble Victories and would allow other Plasma cards to interact with them in unique ways. This Lugia’s special ability was the attack Plasma Gate. This attack dealt 120 damage on the condition that you had a Plasma Energy in your discard pile. But enough about that, how much is this card worth? Well, ungraded, the card is worth more than $120 and in a PSA 10 the card can be found selling for upwards of $3000.

A really mysterious entry at number 5 (coming from the set Dark Explorers) because let’s face it, if you played Pokemon Platinum or Pearl, chances are you googled on several occasions and spent hours trying to find out “how to get Darkrai”. This nostalgia alone is enough to make people throw all of their money at this card but it gets better. The card art is just pretty cool in itself so it’s no surprise that people want this card so badly. So much so that, ungraded, the card is worth around $103, and in a PSA 10 the card can sell for more than $540.

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You thought we were going to be finished with the Charizards just like that, if so, you are about to be sorely disappointed as this card won’t be the last we see of the flying orange fella. This card was introduced in the set Flashfire and received all the hype you would expect from a Charizard full art card. Ungraded, the card is already worth around $118 and in a PSA 10 the card can be found selling for more than $1500.

Coming in at number 3 we have yet another entry from the set Dragons Exalted and yet again we have ourselves a Rayquaza. This time, however, it comes in the form of a full-art and likely one of the coolest full arts in the set if not the era. It features this crazy fiery background making Rayquaza look like he just flew out of hell to greet you and ungraded the card is worth about $145. In a PSA 10 though, the card can be worth $2400.

This Dialga is where the Pokemon company decided to get a little more experimental with their card art. At its core, it’s still just a regular Dialga ex full art but they have instead given it a glossy silver finish so that all other colors on the card are muted. The only color on the card apart from the text is silver. Granted, it looks pretty damn cool and as a result, the card is worth about $150 even without a grade. Then, in a PSA 10, the card can be found selling for more than $3000.

Finally, the list wouldn’t be complete without a Charizard stealing the number 1 spot, and in an almost poetic ending we are ending this list how we started it, with a Mega Charizard EX from the same set Flashfire. The only difference here is that it is the X version, also known as, the version that everyone prefers way more. He literally has blue fire spewing out of his mouth, how could you not like him more? Anyway, ungraded, this card sells for roughly $250 and in a PSA 10 the card has previously sold for $2000.

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