CCA grading
questions and answers

Create a free CCA account, then choose 'Start a Submission' from your dashboard. Pick a service level, search our catalog for your cards (or add any card manually), set your declared values, choose shipping and a payment method, and submit. You can save a draft and finish it later.

Pokémon and other trading card games from our catalog, plus sports cards and anything else you enter manually if it isn't in our database yet. You can mix different games and sports cards within a single submission.

After you finalize a submission we generate a printable packing slip and a mailing label with a scannable barcode. Mail your cards to: CCA CARD, ATTN: SUBMISSIONS, P.O. BOX 1654, Huntington Beach, CA 92647. Then mark it as shipped from your dashboard.

Once we receive your package, you can follow every stage (received, verifying, grading, encapsulation, QA, and shipping) in real time under 'My Submissions' in your dashboard.

A CCA grader scores four condition subgrades: Centering, Corners, Edges, and Surface, each on a 1–10 scale (including a 9.5 half-step). Those combine into a single overall CCA grade from 1 to 10, weighted toward surface rather than averaged.

Yes. All four subgrades (Centering, Corners, Edges, Surface) are determined for every graded card and shown on the slab label and the public certification record, alongside the overall grade.

Technology is used only to measure centering from high-resolution scans and to identify cards. A CCA grader reviews corners, edges and surface and assigns every subgrade and the overall grade.

Beyond a numeric grade, a card may be marked Authenticated (AUTH), Autographed, Do Not Holder (returned raw at your request), or Unable to Authenticate. Genuine error/print-error cards are recognized as their own variant.

If a card cannot be graded or fails authentication, for example a counterfeit or an altered card, it is returned without a numeric grade and may be marked 'Unable to Authenticate.' No grading fee is charged for that card.

Bulk: $8/card (10-card minimum), Standard: $10/card, Express: $25/card, and Walk-Through: $75/card. You choose your tier at the start of a submission.

Turnaround depends on your service level and is an estimate in calendar days, counted from confirmed intake (after we receive and verify your cards) and excluding shipping: Walk-Through 24–48 hours, Express 3–5 days, Standard 5–10 days, and Bulk 7–14 days.

You aren't charged upfront. At checkout you save a card on file and approve your estimated total; we only charge that card once grading is complete and your order is ready to ship. Your itemized invoice is always available in your dashboard and by email.

Yes. Your total (grading, insurance, and shipping) is itemized when you submit. If our team ever needs to adjust an invoice, the change and reason are shown in your dashboard and you must approve the new total before we charge you.

Place each card in a soft sleeve and a semi-rigid holder, sandwich them between pieces of cardboard, and ship in a sturdy box. Include your printed packing slip so we can match your order quickly.

Every tier includes free coverage per card: Bulk $100, Standard $250, Express $500, and Walk-Through $1,500 per card, so your included coverage scales with how many cards you send. You can add extra coverage above that amount for a small fee at checkout.

We support shipping to a range of countries with rates calculated at checkout. International customers are responsible for any applicable customs duties or import taxes.

Anyone can look up a CCA certification number on our Cert Verification page. Once an item is graded and shipped, its public certification record shows the overall grade and subgrades, high-resolution front and back scans, and full card details.

After your order is paid, you'll get a Grade Reveal in your dashboard, a card-by-card reveal of your slab scans and grades. Your grades stay hidden until you choose to reveal them, one at a time or all at once.

Eligible CCA slabs that stay in their original tamper-evident holder are covered by the CCA Authenticity and Grade Guarantee, for trading cards and sports cards, up to $250,000 per claim. It does not apply to the original submitter. See the Guarantee page for the caps, exclusions and claim process.