Shining Magikarp

A PSA 10 currently sells for about $117,130, raw the card sits at $1,478 — 79.2× as much. Of 2.193 copies already graded, 6 % received a 10 and 33 % a 9. Mathematically, submitting returns $17,278 on average, before fees and shipping. Rule of thumb: submit when the value at a realistic grade is at least double the raw value — which is the case here. Centering decides it: an off-centre card will not get a 10. The grade distribution comes from the PSA Population Report; people pre-sort before submitting, so your own hit rate may differ.

Across 90 auctions the median was $1,960, across 78 fixed-price sales $1,864. There is no meaningful difference — what matters here is how fast you want to sell.

Half of all sales fell between $800.50 and $1,341, with a median of $1,169. Selling fast lands you nearer the lower end; with patience, good photos and a complete title the upper end is achievable.

The cheapest genuine sales were around $564.34. Offers well below $338.60 are typically fakes, mislabelled cards or a different variant — ask for photos of all four borders and a close-up of the surface.

Last Sold uses only real sales — eBay plus auction houses like Goldin & Fanatics — recent sales count more (recency weighting), outliers and fakes are removed. It's not an estimate but actual sold prices, separated by condition, language and grading.