The 15 Most Valuable Pokemon Cards Right Now – 2024
What is the most expensive Pokemon card right now?
You might be surprised by the answer. Over the last few months, the Pokemon TCG singles market has seen incredible fluctuations, with cards once thought of as being the holy grail of Pokemon cards – like the base set Charizard – fetching only modest prices online.
It’s clear that the Pokemon TCG singles market is anything but stagnant.
But how do you find what Pokemon cards are the most valuable right now?
There are a lot of lists out there of the most valuable Pokemon cards of all time. The problem is, these lists often focus on ridiculously rare, anomaly Pokemon cards that were given out to a select few people. Or, they focus on high level auctions featuring gem mint cards, which can often give a misleading idea of what you can expect your card’s value to fetch if you were to sell it yourself.
To really get at the heart of how much a card is worth, we analyzed the Pokemon cards with the highest market values available from our friends over at TCGplayer.
*Updated April 18
Umbreon VMAX – Alternate Art
Market price: $727.61
Umbreon VMAX is the most popular card of the epic Sword and Shield era of Pokemon TCG, and also hails from the mega legendary Evolving Skies expansion (arguably the best Pokemon pack to buy right now).
Just why is this card so valuable? It’s got the most popular of the very popular Eeveelutions (Umbreon) and it’s booping the moon. Not to mention stellar artwork, and a legendary pull rate making it extraordinarily rare.
The price for this card continues to increase overtime, making it a solid investment for mega card collectors.
See the market price history of this card in our Umbreon VMAX alt art guide.
Gyarados Star Delta Species –Holon Phantoms
Market price: $700
Gyarados Star has several things going for it that make it desirable. First of all, it’s one of only a select few Gold Star Pokemon cards (less than 30 star Pokemon were ever made). Second, it’s part of the desirable delta species group of Pokemon – Pokemon that appear with irregular typings (such as a typically water type Pokemon like Gyarados appearing here as a fire type with fire type moves).
Third, Gyarados is definitely one of the most popular Pokemon of all, as made evident by the fact that there are more than one of its kind on this list (a feat only matched by the other iconic Pokemon – Charizard). And as Shining Gyarados is the first shiny Pokemon Pokemon fans ever enounter in the games, there’s a sort of universal pull to cards that feature Gyarados in its iconic red alternate coloring that denotes it as a shiny.
While this Gyarados surely is cool, stay tuned for the Gyarados card coming up further down this list. It’s even more epic.
Paradise Resort – World Championships Promo 2023
Market price: $700
There are some cards you can only get at the Pokemon World Championships. Of course, these cards tend to be either useful to players, valuable to collectors, or a little bit of both. This one is definitely one of the latter, given I don’t think anyone is playing straight Psyduck decks right now (or will be any time soon). However, it is one of the most valuable Pokemon cards of all right now, and it will be interesting to see if it holds up value overtime, or if the high price it’s fetching on the secondary card market is driven largely by hype.
Blaine’s Charizard – Gym Challenge
Market price: $750
There are many valuable Charizard cards, and among the most valuable is an early version of the card printed with one of the original gym leaders, Blaine, on it. This legendary card comes from a set that should strike a chord with more recent fans of the TCG. We’re talking about the legendary trainer galleries that were a strong draw in the later Sword and Shield sets. Those galleries find their roots in the Gym Challenge sets that featured legendary Pokemon next to their most famous trainers.
Beyond that, it’s hard to say what drives the demand for this well loved Charizard card. Perhaps like myself, many have fond memories of collecting these well loved Pokemon next to their iconic trainers. Or maybe people just love Charizard. It’s difficult to know for sure.
Treecko Star – Team Rocket Returns
Market price: $750
Why is this audacious but lesser known starter Pokemon featured so prominently on a list of most valuable Pokemon cards? While this card is undoubtedly a sleeper, we can’t deny that it’s grabbing a lot of attention on the singles market right now, with an average market price of around $750. While it’s hard to say exactly what the reason for this high price tag might be, it’s undoubtedly thanks at least in part to its inclusion on the exclusive list of Gold Star cards combined with the fact it is from an iconic pack that is almost impossible to find anymore – Team Rocket Returns.
Team Rocket Returns is a special pack partly because it’s the first one to include the famous Gold Star Pokemon. While this is the second gold star Pokemon we feature on this list of most expensive Pokemon cards, it won’t be the last. Gold star Pokemon from this era have faired quite well overtime. Today, they are among the rarest and most desirable cards of all.
Latias & Latios GX – Team Up
Market price: $763.27
The next most valuable card on the ungraded Pokemon card market is the Latias & Latios GX Alt Art card. This card is another anomaly on this list given it came out relatively recently, back in 2018. As for the reason for the high value? Well, the card is certainly rare, and it does feature some very popular Pokemon on it. In addition to that, people probably just really like the artwork, seeing two halves come together into such a meaningful and collectible heart-shaped pose.
Umbreon (H30) - Skyridge
Market price: $803.12
What do you get when you mix the unfailingly popular Umbreon with one of the most iconic Pokemon expansions in history? A top 10 most valuable Pokemon card.
This Umbreon card is certainly one of the most unique. It almost flies under the radar given how low key it is. And yet, it’s certainly a gorgeous card. Umbreon is featured here hiding amongst the grass looking furtively out at the trainer, almost daring you to catch (or buy it).
This card has been trending in value on the ungraded market lately, and is likely a solid buy if you’re looking for cards likely to retain value overtime.
First Edition Shining Gyarados Neo Revelation
Market price: $831
At number ten on this list of most expensive Pokemon cards is the First Edition Shining Gyarados from Neo Revelation. Not only is this card incredibly valuable, it also happens to be my personal favorite Pokemon card.
It hails from the famous Neo Revelations pack that made its debut not long after the initial Pokemon cards hit the market, back in 2000. This was when I first got into Pokemon card collecting, and is one of the sets I remember best from my early days, which makes it special for me and a lot of other collectors, too.
Beyond the sheer wow factor and rarity of this card on the ungraded card market, what really makes this card exciting for die-hard Pokemon fans is that it is the first time a copy a Shining Pokemon hit the market. After all, Gyrados is the first ever Pokemon we see in its shining form in the games, so shining Gyarados will always hold a special place in our hearts.
If you are going to attempt to pick this card up on the ungraded market in its first edition form, it’s going to cost you around $800.
Checkout our market guide to Shining Gyarados 1st Edition for more info.
Mew Star (Delta Species) - Dragon Frontiers (DF)
Market price: $655.82
Without a doubt, Delta Species – or Pokemon with atypical typing from an expansion released in the mid-2000s – are among the rarest and most valuable cards out there. Of these, few are more expensive on the ungraded market than Mew Star.
It’s not really surprising that the Mew Star Delta Species variant card would be so valuable. After all, it’s from a legendary pack (Dragon Frontiers) and it’s Mew. Mew is easily one of the best loved Pokemon of all time, with a special place in our hearts given its title as mythic Pokemon from the original Pokemon set.
Of all the Mew cards released over the years, however, this Mew is the most valuable. That being said, a new Mew ex shiny card is soon to be unleashed on the world in Paldean Fates.
Base Set Charizard
Base Set Unlimited Market Price: $1,188
There’s something very odd going on in the Pokemon card market right now surrounding not just the Base Set Charizard, but also other expensive Charizard cards. Since our last update to this list, several high profile Charizard cards have slipped dramatically in value, signaling perhaps the end of the Charizard bubble that saw cards featuring the iconic Pokemon fetching truly exorbitant prices at auctions.
At the moment, the unlimited version (not first edition) of the Base Set Charizard has a higher market value than its first edition counter part on TCGplayer. While that may seem odd, there is undoubtedly an underlying reason that’s not yet known.
Read our article that chronicles the stunning decline of the Base Set Charizard for more info.
First Edition Venusaur - Base Set (Shadowless) (BSS)
Market price: $1,199
A card that really needs no introduction, the original base set Venusaur remains one of the most valuable cards on the ungraded card market today. Finding this card in Near Mint Condition or better on the ungraded card market is going to be tricky, and will likely cost you over $1000. However, there are several available at the Lightly Played condition and better currently on TCGplayer.
Charizard Skyridge
Market price: $1,200
Skyridge seems to be a very bankable expansion, with a high representation on this most valuable Pokemon cards list. What is it exactly about this particular Charizard card that people like so much? Certainly it’s beautiful, and it’s got that odd credit card look unique to the e-Redeader series cards. Perhaps the irregular typing also adds to this card’s high value. Whatever the reason, Skyridge cards are incredible valuable, and Charizard is one of the most valuable among them.
Shining Charizard - Neo Destiny (N4)
Market price: $1,440
Charizard features heavily on this list of most valuable Pokemon cards, and for good reason. Besides Pikachu, it is the franchise’s most recognizable Pokemon, and since the beginning has been synonymous with value and rarity in the Pokemon TCG world.
We dig a bit deeper into why this particular Charizard card is so valuable in our list of most valuable Charizard cards. But in summary, it’s the first shining version of Charizard, making it rare and desirable. At the same time, it also hails from a very big time in Pokemon card history, from sets that feature the Johto Pokemon – arguably one of the most popular generation of Pokemon of them all.
Umbreon Star - POP Series 5 (POP)
Market price: $1,250
If this card looks really familiar to you, it might be because you happened to pull its reprinted version from Pokemon Celebrations. But the one that’s really valuable is from the Prize Pack series 5. As these packs weren’t available to the general public at stores etc, very few of these cards are actually around. Added to this card’s desirability is the fact that it is an Umbreon, and everyone knows that Umbreon is the most popular of the very popular Eevee evolutions.
If you’re looking to pick this card up and add it to your collection, you can expect to be shelling out over $1000 on the ungraded market and a whopping $11,200 on the graded market.
Rayquaza Star is the most expensive Pokemon card
Listed price: $3,500+
This card is so rare on the ungraded market that it’s hard to find actual data on sales. Listing prices are high price, starting at $3,500 for moderately played condition cards, and rising up to $10,000+ for near mint condition.
Rayquaza Star is another example of an incredibly rare Delta Species Pokemon, although it doesn’t hail from Dragon Frontier. Regularly flying under the radar, it’s easily one of the most valuable Pokemon cards of all time.
As you may have noticed, prices in the Pokemon card market are largely dictated (among other things) by popularity of the Pokemon. Rayquaza is one of the most bankable Pokemon of all, lending in part to the recent popularity of Evolving Skies where it was featured prominently.
While that market price for an ungraded Rayquaza Star card may be impressive enough, on the graded market, certefied gem mint condition cards are fetching an insane $45,000.
A Few Important Notes on How this List of Most Valuable Pokemon Cards Was Compiled
Condition massively impacts value of a card
The graded card market has its own specific rules for how to asses the potential value of a Pokemon card. The ungraded market, however, can be more open to interpretation. Before purchasing or selling ungraded cards, look at our guide to understand the different conditions of a card, and how those broad conditions affect the value of a card.
What is market value?
Market value is the most accurate way to assess the value of a card. While many sellers will list cards at inflated prices, that won’t influence the market value. Market value is influenced only by the confirmed sales number an actual sold card has fetched. This way, you know what it is people are actually willing to pay for a card, not some arbitrary number being listed online or at an auction with a select group of buyers.
