Pikachu

A PSA 10 currently sells for about $1,480, raw the card sits at $78.50 — 18,9× as much. Of 599 copies already graded, 31 % received a 10 and 39 % a 9. Mathematically, submitting returns $588.32 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 56 auctions the median was $42.70, across 166 fixed-price sales $47.18. Fixed price therefore fetched about 10 % more — for this card patience with a set price is the better route.

Half of all sales fell between $29.12 and $57.63, with a median of $40.75. 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 $20.76. Offers well below $12.45 are typically fakes, mislabelled cards or a different variant — ask for photos of all four borders and a close-up of the surface.

From real sales: German $57.12 (11), English $41.31 (222), French $37.40 (30). German fetches about 53 % more.

lastsold 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.