If you are a serious Pokémon TCG or Magic: The Gathering collector, you are likely somewhat aware of the PSA card grading service. PSA has long been the standard for card grading, at least among TCGs. This means a PSA grade is often taken more seriously than one from another company. However, this may change if the company doesn't start keeping up with its competition.

For the uninitiated, there are plenty of reasons to get a card graded through a service like PSA. Say you pull a rare serialized Gold Chocobo out of your rare and valuable Pokémon card for a low price, you can make sure it's not a fake before trying to sell or trade it.

Is PSA The Best Card Grading Company In 2025?

PSA Is The Best For Resale Value But Not In Other Regards

Whether PSA is still the best grading company or not is somewhat dependent on what you're looking for when getting your cards graded. If you're strictly looking to increase the dollar value of your card in hopes of selling it, PSA is still your best option. This is because PSA, despite complaints some collectors have about it, is still seen as the most credible card grading service. A card with a high PSA grade is typically worth more than a highly-graded card from another service.

There are some exceptions to this rule. For instance, a Beckett Grading Services (BGS) Black Label 10 includes a detailed list of sub-grades and is very difficult to achieve. Its rarity could make it potentially more valuable than a PSA 10 grade. Besides prices, there are other reasons to choose services besides PSA, if you aren't just looking to flip cards for a profit.

Certified Guaranty Company (CGC) is both cheaper than PSA and has a quicker turnaround time. If you're just looking to get your cards graded for your own personal collection, this could be a nice alternative. Up-and-comer Technical Authentication & Grading (TAG) is also making waves due to its detailed breakdowns as to exactly why your card earns the grade that it does. TAG easily gives customers the most insight into the grading process, which can be a nice change of pace from something like PSA.

Why Card Collectors Are Turning Away From PSA

Other Services Offer More Comprehensive Details For Less

The emergence of companies like TAG and CGC, which offer more detailed breakdowns and reasons behind their grades, has created some serious competition for PSA. Both services are also cheaper than PSA if you want the regular service from any of them. PSA costs $75 for regular grading services whereas CGC only costs $45 and TAG costs $25. Now, it's worth noting that PSA does offer up to $1500 insurance for your card at its regular rate, which is significantly more than TAG's $500.

Although this is just anecdotal, I've also seen complaints on places like Reddit from players expressing frustration over grades received on certain cards. While PSA does offer detailed breakdowns of why decisions are made, it comes at a price. Some collectors may prefer to go with a service that offers an explanation of their grading process at a lower price point. If new grading companies can offer more transparancy at a lower price, it is very possible they could seem like a much more attractive option to collectors, especially those who just want to hold onto their graded cards.

TAG Is Raising The Bar With Ultra-Detailed Card Info

TAG Offers A Detailed Breakdown Of Their Grader's Decisions

As demonstrated by YouTuber ShortPocketMonster, TAG's service offers a detailed breakdown that allows you to see for yourself why your card received the grade it did. Perhaps one of the best features is TAG's defect map, which gives you an exact location and description of specific issues with your card that impacted its grade. All these details can be easily accessed by scanning the QR code at the top of the card's casing. This information also comes with the regular grading price, making it about $125 cheaper than PSA's least-expensive service that offers grading notes.

PSA may still be seen as the standard for now, but if companies like TAG continue to offer more comprehensive details about how a card's grade was determined, that could change. Pokémon TCG or Magic: The Gathering players may start to put more stock in more transparent card grading methods. This could eventually lead to high TAG or CGC grades making cards more valuable than high PSA grades. Right now, it seems like PSA is confidently resting on its laurels, and if that doesn't change, I wouldn't be surprised to see collectors turning elsewhere.

Sources: ShortPocketMonster/YouTube