As a collector, you’ll certainly want premium chase cards in your possession. So, we understand your interest in finding the most valuable trading cards. Well, the number one is a 1998 Pokémon Illustrator Pikachu, which sold for $16.492 million.
Other expensive trading cards in history include not just Pokémon, but also sports, especially basketball and baseball. Football, hockey, soccer, One Piece, and even Magic: The Gathering Cards have sold for millions of dollars as well. Continue reading as we explain more about the valuable cards and how to potentially get some of them.
It’s difficult to trace every single card purchase to know the most expensive ever since some sales are auctioned, and others are private. Thankfully, however, reliable documenting companies such as Guinness World Records report significant sales. After going through the records, these are the top 10 we discovered:
| Card | Price (million) |
|---|---|
| 1998 Pikachu Illustrator, PSA 10 | $16.49 |
| 2007-08 Jordan/Kobe Dual Logoman | $12.93 |
| 1952 Topps Mickey Mantle #311 | $12.62 |
| 2026 Ohtani Dual Gold Logoman | $11 |
| 2006-07 Jordan/LeBron Dual Logoman | $10 |
| 1909-11 T206 Honus Wagner, SGC 2 | $7.25 |
| 1914 Baltimore News Babe Ruth, SGC 3 | $7.2 |
| 1909-11 T206 Honus Wagner, SGC 3 | $6.60 |
| 2009-10 Stephen Curry Rookie Logoman | $5.9 |
| 2003-04 LeBron James Exquisite RPA | $5.2 |
The 1998 Pikachu Illustrator tops the list of most valuable Pokémon cards. Logan Paul sold it for the massive price on February 16, 2026, through Goldin Auctions. From our research, it holds the Guinness World Record for the most expensive trading card sold at an auction.
This Upper Deck Exquisite card has Michael Jordan and Kobe Bryant, two of the greatest basketball players. Not just that, but it also features their autographs and NBA Logoman patches. It’s a one-of-one card, so its sale of $12.932 million on August 28, 2022 didn’t surprise us.
Here’s an SGC 9.5 card of the iconic Mickey Mantle that was purchased at Heritage Auctions for $12.6 million in August 2022. Its price was more than 2x the previous record for the most expensive trading card at the time.
From the description, you can tell this is a more recent trading card. A Florida collector pulled it from a hobby box and sold it to Mathew Allen for $11 million. We confirmed the pull from Topps official X (formerly Twitter) account when it happened.
On September 26, 2025, an investment group paid $10 million for a rare Michael Jordan and LeBron James card. This puts it second on the list of most valuable basketball cards, after the Jordan/Kobe mentioned previously.
When it was sold on August 3, 2022, this T206 broke the existing record. However, its position as the most expensive didn’t last because less than four weeks later, the second card we ranked on this list was purchased.
This trading card of the Sultan of Swat was bought at Robert Edward Auctions in December 2023. As of then, it was nearly 110 years old, making it not just one of the most valuable baseball cards but also one of the earliest. It features Babe Ruth during his time with the minor-league Baltimore Orioles.
Like the previous card, this one was also sold through Robert Edward Auctions. The card commanded such a high value because it’s a tobacco set, issued by the American Tobacco Company between 1909 and 1911. There are fewer than 100 authentic copies.
The sale of this Stephen Curry Rookie card took place in private in 2021. But when it happened, it broke the record for the most expensive NBA card at the time, overtaking the King James card, which comes up next on our list.
This Upper Deck Exquisite Collection Rookie Patch Autograph (RPA) Gold parallel sold through the PWCC Marketplace. We checked the official data and saw that it’s graded BGS 9 with a 10 grade for the autograph.
Due to their high prices and rarity, the odds of obtaining an extremely valuable trading card are relatively low. Nevertheless, they’re still possible to get, and these are some ways to try:
On a digital mystery pack site, you pay for a pack and rip it for a random trading card. Legit platforms feature cards graded by PSA (Professional Sports Authenticator) and BGS (Beckett Grading Services), among other companies.
In our experience, premium chase cards are often more likely with expensive mystery packs than cheaper ones, which is expected. For instance, you may be interested in the most valuable football cards. If so, you have a higher chance of pulling one with a $1,000 NFL pack than a $100 one.
You can easily visit an online marketplace, such as eBay and TCGplayer, to purchase valuable trading cards. As you’d expect, they’ll be listed at expensive amounts.
Alternatively, you can join online auctions for extremely rare cards, bid on cards, and pay if you win. Then, the cards will be shipped to your location. Examples of such auctioning platforms are Heritage Auctions and Goldin.
With this method, you pay for a spot in a break, not buying the entire box. Afterward, a host opens the box or case live, and you either live stream in real time or watch a recorded session. You’ll receive the trading cards assigned to your spot, according to the break rules.
Based on our expertise, hobby boxes are the main choice for valuable pulls, especially sports cards. That’s because they’re generally made for collectors. Anyway, you can still find expensive cards in jumbo, mega, and blaster boxes.
If there’s one around your location, you can walk into a retail shop to buy individual cards or sealed hobby boxes and packs. Some shops have graded cards from PSA and BGS, which can be useful when searching for higher-value.
With individual cards, you already know what you’re getting for the amount you’ll pay. You can inspect the card before buying and ask the seller about the condition and history. If there’s time, you could even compare with recent online sales.
Sealed physical boxes and packs are more ideal for random valuable pulls. After purchasing, you take the box or pack home and open it to reveal the cards.
If you’re after expensive trading cards, take note of these pros and cons:
Getting valuable trading cards isn’t exactly a common occurrence; otherwise, the collectibles wouldn’t be valuable. However, if you use the right sources, you can increase your odds of getting them.
We mentioned multiple options, including digital mystery packs, online marketplaces, auctions, box breaks, and local shops. Of all, the simplest is using a digital mystery pack site because you get to pull cards instantly at your convenience. Plus, you can sell the cards back, store them, or request shipping.
You may not pull collectibles that cost millions of dollars like the top 10 most expensive trading cards on our list. Nevertheless, with higher-tier packs, cards worth thousands are feasible.
Check the banners on this page to see our recommended platforms where you can rip digital mystery packs and potentially pull valuable cards. You can click on any you prefer to visit the site and sign up.
The most expensive ever sold is a 1998 Pikachu Illustrator, PSA 10, bought for $16.492 million. Others include the 2007-08 Jordan/Kobe Dual Logoman, 1/1, and 1952 Topps Mickey Mantle #311.
Rare and high-grade trading cards are usually worth the most money. They’re mainly Pokémon, basketball, and baseball collectibles.
Yes, trading cards still have a lot of value. Rare sports and non-sports cards can sell for thousands or millions of dollars.
You can tell if a trading card is valuable by checking the condition, grade, and recent sales data. There are several online databases and marketplaces to use.
