You can open virtual packs of trading cards without buying or physically receiving the items. That’s possible with pack simulator tools. We checked and found them on both websites and mobile apps on iOS and Android.
Pokémon is the most common with pack simulators because of its huge card library and popularity. After it, you’ve got sports, Magic: The Gathering (MTG), and other popular trading card games (TCGs). Simulators have their upsides, including testing, learning, and having fun. But if you’d prefer to pull cards that have value, we suggest using digital mystery pack sites.
Pick a pack, open it, and wait to see what trading cards come out. This simple experience is what a pack simulator tries to recreate. As such, you can use them to rip cards online, but everything you pull is virtual.
In our tests, we saw different types of simulators. That said, the standard ones usually have a pool of cards that can appear in each pack and assign different odds to them. Rare ones have a small chance of showing up, but common collectibles appear more often. When you choose a pack, the tool selects cards from the pool based on its rules.
These are some pack categories we confirmed have simulator tools online:
| Pack category | Examples |
|---|---|
| TCG/CCG | Pokémon, Yu-Gi-Oh!, Magic: The Gathering (MTG), One Piece |
| Sports | NBA, NFL, MLB, NHL |
| Movies & TV | Marvel, Star Wars, WWE, Disney |
You can visit a simulator website and start ripping virtual packs without signing up or making a payment. Alternatively, there are iOS and Android apps to install, and we recommend them more if you prefer keeping track of your pulls.
We group pack simulation tools into three simple categories based on our experience with them:
These are what we referred to as standard simulators in the previous section. They’re standalone tools that imitate opening a real pack to pull trading cards, and nothing more.
You could find a Pokémon booster pack opening simulator, for example. Then, you open it digitally and reveal cards from the popular TCG. Such cards usually have no real ownership or cash value and may, in fact, not be stored after the simulation. However, if it’s an app, the platform will likely maintain a record of the cards, even though they remain entirely digital.
There are actual digital card games that feature pack opening as part of the experience. With such options, you open packs to get cards for your in-game collection, which can be used to play as well. The collectibles are still totally virtual.
We noticed that game-based simulators are usually mobile apps. An example is the TCG Card Shop Tycoon Simulator we found in the Apple App Store. In the game, you operate a virtual trading card shop and buy and sell cards or packs, while managing your store so that the business can grow. Opening packs is included in the gameplay.
Certain digital mystery pack and box sites that we tested have a Demo or Free Try feature. Online collectors use them without having to pay or even create an account, meaning that they function as simulators.
Let’s use HypeDrop, for instance. During our HypeDrop review, we used the Free Try option on a Graded Card mystery box. That box had a $761.74 price, but we didn’t pay anything at all. After unboxing, we obtained a One Piece PSA 10 Who’s Who Tournament Pack card. However, the pull was only virtual, and so we did not get the actual collectible.
It’s best to use digital mystery pack sites to simulate openings if you intend to later make the switch to real openings.
If the cards pulled don’t have any value, you may wonder whether a pack simulator is useful at all. Our response is yes. They can be useful for the following reasons:
The first reason is if you’re new to online collecting. Rather than spend money right off the bat, you can turn to a pack simulation tool and learn how the entire thing works. We suggest it to find out the different cards available and their rarities, especially for TCGs. This way, you’ll have a firsthand understanding of what the sets look like before you open the actual packs.
For us, this is one of the most interesting uses. In our Packz.io review, we saw odds of pulling different card types based on their estimated values. Confirming whether the numbers are legit would require opening hundreds of packs on the site. That’s a lot of money to spend. We do rate Packz.io as legit, though, so you can trust the odds.
Our point is, if you do want to test the probability of getting a collectible from a specific set, a simulator is ideal. Opening one simulated pack tells you almost nothing. But if you open 100 packs, then you can tell that a card is indeed common or rare.
You may be contemplating which of two, three, four, or more packs to buy. In such a situation, a simulator can be useful for comparison, letting you know which pack interests you more.
The way we see it, this upside only works with simulators that use real-world pack types and sets that you could actually buy. Not fictional ones.
While making our BoxMadness review, we spent a lot of time using the Demo option to unbox and reveal cards. The site uses this fun animation where the digital box rotates at a high speed, followed by a light flash before you see the card. It was entertaining.
So, there’s no need to overthink it sometimes. There’s fun in simply opening a pack and waiting for the last card to show up, and a simulator makes it possible without having to spend a single dollar.
Do a simple online search of your favorite trading card category + pack simulator. You’ll see many websites offering the tool, as well as mobile apps. So, which should you use? Here are our tips to help you choose:
From what we’ve said so far in these guides, it’s clear that legit pack simulators should be free to access. After all, you’re not receiving physical cards. So paying to reveal a virtual result defeats much of the point.
The exception is if the simulator is linked to an actual marketplace or to a digital mystery pack site you can use to get real cards. In that case, the connection should be obvious.
Most simulator sites and apps we saw are focused on a specific trading card category. For example, a platform might concentrate solely on Pokémon packs and not offer sports or anything else. You therefore have to check that the simulator you’ve chosen includes the type that you prefer.
We advise checking whether it has specific sets and products rather than simply grouping everything under one broad category. Nevertheless, such a level of separation is more typical of digital mystery pack platforms. For instance, in our Ripit review, we identified Starter, Great, Super, Alpha, Pyro, Ultra, and Master pack types.
If the reason you need a tool is to test card probabilities, as we earlier hinted, then odds become important. The rates shouldn’t be fixed, but rather based on current card probabilities according to the particular set and type. That’s exactly what we observed in our Trove review since the platform calculates the probabilities in real-time.
The last point matters if you’re doing it for fun. There are simulators that just display the whole result on your screen at one go, and that fails to provide any entertainment value. The best ones, however, simulate the process of opening a physical pack and show the cards being revealed one after another with interesting effects.
After having used a simulator to learn and test, you might want to look into a digital mystery pack site. On these platforms, you still rip packs online through websites or apps. The only difference is that you have to pay to open them, which means the cards you pull are real. You have the option to sell them back or request shipping to your address.
We’ve rated the best digital mystery pack sites, as you can see on the banners shown on this page. These sites have cards for different sports and TCGs. Plus, the packs are available in various price levels, so you can choose one that suits your budget.
We’ve rounded up the pros and cons to know about the simulators below:
A pack simulator, as we’ve explained, comes in handy especially for learning how online ripping works and testing card odds. You can use it to compare pack content as well, or simply have fun. The tools are free, so there’s no worry about spending money. Remember that if you want real valuable trading cards, you can’t get them with a simulator. Digital mystery pack platforms are what we recommend for those collectibles.
To see our best-rated sites, look at the banners on this page and then click on any one of them to get started.
Yes, legit online pack simulators are free. When you visit the website or install the mobile app, you won’t be asked to pay before ripping.
The best simulator app is one that has plenty of packs and cards that interest you. Also, the app should be on official download stores and completely free to install.
Most simulators have Pokémon and sports trading cards. It’s also common to see tools with One Piece, MTG, Yu-Gi-Oh!, Marvel, Disney, and Star Wars digital collectibles.
You cannot because the tools are solely for virtual openings. Although there may be real and authentic versions of the cards, the simulator shows only digital copies. You can get real cards from the digital mystery pack sites featured on this page.
