The best grading company
depends on the card.
Anyone who names one winner for every collector is selling something. (Yes, including us. CCA wins some of these categories and loses others; we'll tell you which.)
Six things that actually matter
True cost per card
Not the advertised floor, the price you actually pay at your volume, plus minimums. A $14.95 rate behind no minimum can beat a $10 rate behind a 50-card one, and vice versa.
Real turnaround
Published estimates vs what collectors actually report. Months-long queues change what your cards are worth by the time they return.
Grading transparency
Can you see the formula? Are subgrades explained? Can you verify any cert publicly? A grade you can't audit is a grade you're taking on faith.
Protection & guarantee
Per-card insurance, slab quality (UV protection, seal), and whether the guarantee has real published dollar figures or just adjectives.
Population transparency
A public pop report tells you how a grader's census affects scarcity, and whether they publish it honestly, even when it's small.
Submission experience
Minimums, online tracking, grade-reveal experience, and how support treats a 10-card customer vs a 10,000-card one.
The numbers
Lowest published bulk tier for each grader| Grader | Lowest price / card | Bulk minimum | Typical turnaround |
|---|---|---|---|
| CCA | $8 | 10 cards | 7–14 days |
| PSA | $24.99 | 50 cards | 140–160 business days |
| CGC | $17 | 25 cards | 120 days |
| SGC | $20 | None | 180 days |
| BGS | $14.95 | None | 75+ days |
Competitor pricing, minimums, and turnaround reflect publicly published rates as of mid-2026 and are subject to change. CCA turnaround reflects standard bulk service.
Our honest verdicts
If you are…
Grading a five-figure vintage card to auction soon
Pick
PSA
Why
Deepest auction liquidity and the strongest brand premium on high-end vintage. You pay for it in fees and months of waiting, but on a $10,000+ card the premium usually covers it.
If you are…
Comics-style subgrade obsessives / thick-slab fans
Pick
BGS
Why
Black Label prestige and printed subgrades on the label; no bulk minimum. Turnarounds and consistency complaints are the trade-off.
If you are…
Vintage sports on a budget
Pick
SGC
Why
Respected tuxedo slab, solid vintage reputation, no minimum, mid-pack pricing.
If you are…
TCG collectors already in the CGC comics ecosystem
Pick
CGC
Why
Strong TCG focus and subgrade options at a mid-tier price with a 25-card bulk minimum.
If you are…
Bulk modern, personal collections, and value cards
Pick
CCA
Why
$8/card from just 10 cards, 7–14 day turnaround, published grading formula with a public estimator, insurance included on every card, and a lifetime guarantee with real dollar caps. The math case is strongest exactly where the big names are weakest: cards worth grading but not worth a $25+ fee and a five-month wait.
Competitor figures reflect publicly published rates and turnaround estimates as of mid-2026; verify current numbers on each grader's site. We keep our own claims checkable: the grading formula is public, the pop report is live (and honestly small, we're new), and the guarantee has real dollar figures.
If your next submission is bulk modern,
run the math on us.
10 cards · $80 · back in about two weeks. See the full pricing breakdown.
Start a Submission