Graded-card guide

Complete Graded Sports Card Checklist

A printable workflow for buying, grading, storing and selling slabs.

Graded cards combine a physical collectible, a third-party opinion, a holder and a market premium. Each part deserves separate verification.

1. Identify

Identify should be evaluated against the exact card, issue, grading company, grade, qualifier and holder generation. Use official verification and recent completed sales rather than relying on label familiarity alone.

2. Verify

Verify should be evaluated against the exact card, issue, grading company, grade, qualifier and holder generation. Use official verification and recent completed sales rather than relying on label familiarity alone.

3. Inspect

Inspect should be evaluated against the exact card, issue, grading company, grade, qualifier and holder generation. Use official verification and recent completed sales rather than relying on label familiarity alone.

4. Compare

Compare should be evaluated against the exact card, issue, grading company, grade, qualifier and holder generation. Use official verification and recent completed sales rather than relying on label familiarity alone.

5. Store

Store should be evaluated against the exact card, issue, grading company, grade, qualifier and holder generation. Use official verification and recent completed sales rather than relying on label familiarity alone.

6. Sell

Sell should be evaluated against the exact card, issue, grading company, grade, qualifier and holder generation. Use official verification and recent completed sales rather than relying on label familiarity alone.

Verification rule: Never buy an expensive slab only because its certification number returns a valid result. Compare the physical item with the official record.

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