Let’s be real—what began as a playground pastime has grown into a multimillion-dollar business. Pokémon cards are no longer simple childhood keepsakes; they’re high-stakes investments, with bidding wars, grading spectacle, and endorsement deals. Whether you’re digging out your old binder or monitoring the auction scene, there’s no question that the Pokémon Trading Card Game (TCG) is big business. So, what cards top the paper kingdom here? Here are ten of the most expensive and rarest Pokémon cards ever auctioned—determined from mind-bogglingly costly to straight-out legendary.
10. Test Print Blastoise with Magic: The Gathering Back (1998)
Before Pokémon cards’ current status as a global phenomenon, Wizards of the Coast undertook test prints to ensure preparation for the English launch. An example of such a prototype—a Blastoise card featuring a Magic: The Gathering back—is now one of the most sought-after misprints in existence. Just five copies are known, and one graded 6.5 sold for a staggering $216,000. Its unusual provenance and scarcity make it a valuable piece of TCG history.
9. Tsunekazu Ishihara GX Promo Card (2017)
When you are the head of Pokémon, you’re turning 60 years old in style—by being featured on your official card. Fewer than a handful of these Black Star promos of Ishihara were ever given out, to close friends and associates mostly. One of them, signed and graded 9, went for $247,230 at auction. It’s a boardroom-level collectible, not something you’d pick up in your run-of-the-mill booster pack.
8. Snap Pikachu (1999)
To commemorate the Pokémon Snap video game launch, a special competition permitted fans to take in-game pictures to be entered for a chance to have their special trading card produced. The outcome: the extremely rare Snap Pikachu card. Nigh-on mythical in rarity, one of these cards can fetch $270,000. With so few reputed to exist, most enthusiasts will never lay eyes on one—let alone hold one in their hand.
7. No. 3 Trainer Trophy Pikachu (1997)
Given out at Japan’s inaugural official Pokémon TCG tournament, this bronze trophy card was awarded only to third-place finishers. Few were produced, and the rarity itself makes it invaluable to collectors. A graded 8 copy sold for $300,000, making it a piece of competitive Pokémon history.
6. Autographed Charizard, Japanese No Rarity (1996)
Charizard has long been a fan favorite, but this iteration is something special. Printed sans rarity symbol and signed by original artist Mitsuhiro Arita, this particular card is a one-of-a-kind treasure. A mint, PSA 10 model with the signature sold for $324,000 at auction—a collector’s paradise and piece of history.
5. Blastoise Presentation Galaxy Star Holo (1998)
Produced as part of an in-house pitch by Wizards of the Coast to Nintendo, this Blastoise presentation card was never meant for public consumption. Only two are thought to exist, and one graded PSA 8.5 sold for $360,000. The other is unaccounted for, which only serves to create more mystery.
4. First Edition Shadowless Holo Charizard #4 (1999)
No rare Pokémon cards list would be complete without this legendary flame-spewer. The first edition, holographic Charizard from the base set, shadowless, is the holy grail among Western collectors. A gem-mint, PSA 10 graded copy went for $420,000. To those who traded theirs away in the ’90s for some commons—oh, it still hurts.
3. Trophy Pikachu Silver 2nd Place (1998)
This silver-plated Pikachu card was given out to runners-up at the first-ever international Pokémon tournament in Japan. Less than 15 were ever made, all in Japanese, so they are very rare and sought after. A PSA 10 version sold for $444,000—evidence that the second best can also earn first-rate money.
2. Charizard Topsun Blue Back (1997)
Before Pokémon TCG mania, Japanese company Topsun launched a card set with a chewing gum promotion. The blue-back Charizard—particularly one with the misprinted date of 1995—is one of the rarest versions. A PSA 10 sold for an amazing $493,230. Whether produced in ’95 or ’97, it’s an enigma wrapped in a holy grail card.
1. Illustrator Pikachu (1998)
The crown of the Pokémon universe. Originally given to winners of an illustration contest held by CoroCoro magazine, this card shows Pikachu painting with a brush. Few certified copies are out there, but the most well-known one—a PSA 10—was bought by Logan Paul for $5.275 million. Million. He even wore it around his neck to Wrestlemania. If there’s ever been a symbol of Pokémon’s improbable crossover into pop culture and high-end collecting, this is it.
Before you can begin fantasizing about treasure in your attic, remember: condition, rarity, and provenance determine value. Even a first edition card can devalue if it’s not minty. And with grading wait times reaching a Snorlax-like nap level, patience is key. But if you’re among the fortunate few to possess one of these premium cards, you’re not grasping cardboard—you’re grasping gaming history.