Sports Card Grading ROI Estimator

The Card Grading ROI Estimator is a tool designed to help sports card collectors and investors decide whether it’s financially worthwhile to get a specific card professionally graded.

Directions: Start by picking a specific card and enter the appropriate values into each field, and then click “Calculate” to see the results.

You will need to input data to use this tool. I prefer Card Ladder because you can access pop report and comp data all in one place (and you can get a free 7-day trial to try Card Ladder Premium), however you can also use gemrate.com for pop data and 130point.com/cards for comps for free.

[The first field “Total PSA Pop” refers to the total number of the card PSA has graded.]

Card Grading ROI Estimator


Here’s what this tool does:

  1. It takes into account the likelihood of your card receiving different grades based on historical grading data.
  2. It considers the potential value of your card at different grade levels.
  3. It factors in the current ungraded value of your card and the cost of grading.
  4. Using this information, it calculates:
    • The estimated value of your card if graded
    • The estimated value after accounting for selling fees
    • The potential net change in value after grading
  5. Finally, it provides a simple “Yes” or “No” recommendation on whether you should get the card graded based on the potential financial outcome.


This tool is intended to help you make a data-driven decision about card grading, potentially saving you money on grading fees for cards that may not increase significantly in value, or helping you identify cards that could see a substantial value increase through grading.

Note #1: This formula is designed to be used with modern sports cards where PSA 10s are the primary grade that significantly raises the card’s value.

Note #2: The “Should I Get It Graded” field will answer “yes” when the value added to the card is positive and “no” when the value added is negative. Since grading requires time and money, I prefer to only submit cards that add meaningful value, so you might consider NOT submitting a card that only adds a small amount of value (even if the tool suggests to get it graded).

Note #3: This is an estimate using a weighted average of all possible outcomes. A card can also only get one grade, and your card may be more or less likely to get a certain grade based on any condition flaws (centering, corners, edges, surface). It also only considers cards that have been submitted for grading, and the grade rates do not necessarily represent the average ungraded card.

Summary: This tool generates a potentially useful data point to consider by using data, but each card is different and it cannot predict how YOUR card will grade. You’ll still want to use your own judgment to make a final decision about whether or not to submit a card to be graded.

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If you like this tool and want more resources, guides, proven strategies, content, and guidance to help you take your card venture to the next level, consider joining our premium community, designed by a six-figure sports card investor for the sole purpose of helping you become more profitable in the card market.

Learn more here: Cardboard Profit Ignite

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