Grading Scale
Grades That Make Sense!
What does Monster Grading Co. do differently?
We’ve created a grading scale that is intuitive to collectors. We realized that many of the scales that exist out there are do not accurately reflect on the condition of a card. For example: a card graded as “2” is considered “Good” by some of the other grading companies. If you ever sold someone a card with a crease in it and claimed it was in “good” condition, you’d soon be giving a refund. Therefore, our grading scale takes sub-grades into consideration and weighs them differently into the final grade.
How are grades determined?
At Monster Grading Co., our expert graders use top-of-the-line equipment including optical magnifying glasses, digital microscopes, specialized filters, and special lighting. Our job is to be objective and thorough when assessing the quality of your submissions.
What is a sub-grade?
Sub-grades are the individual grades of 4 card characteristics that our expert graders review and consider before giving a card its final grade. The front of the card is much more important than the back, but the back will be considered in the grading process.
Our grading standards are simple and clearly outlined in order to help you understand why your card received its grade. Let's dig in.
Sub-grades
Sub-grades are included on every card graded with Monster Grading Co.
Surface (35% of overall grade)- We assess the look and feel of the surface of the card, front and back. Conditions that affect the surface grade include: scratches, fading from sunlight, foreign substances (including oils from fingerprints), water damage (including humidity), scrapes, pinholes, creases, etc. *NOTE* all submitted cards will be lightly wiped down with a lint free cloth to remove dust and light fingerprints. We do NOT guarantee the removal of all foreign substances, as we do not want to damage your cards.
Centering (25% of overall grade) - The one aspect of the card that is completely controlled by the printing and finishing process. We assess how well the printed image lines up with the cut of the card, front and back. The card will be measured (usually from a border) using microscopes to determine whether the card is too far in any direction, or tilted. The centering grade is determined by the worst centering on the card; if a card is perfectly centered left-to-right, but poorly centered top-to-bottom, the vertical centering determines the grade.
Grade - Ratio
1 - 5/95
2 - 10/90
3 - 15/85
4 - 20/80
5 - 25/75
6 - 30/70
7 - 35/65
8 - 40/60
9 - 45/55
10 - 50/50
*NOTE* some cards are so far off center that they receive their own special designation of off-center (O/C). These cards are either missing a border completely on one side, tilted to an extreme level, or contain alignment marks that are not meant to be seen on a finished card.
Edges (20% of overall grade) - We assess how smooth and straight the edges of the card are. Typically, though not always, a card comes packaged with perfectly cut edges. Damage to the edges of a card is usually caused by improper storage. Rubber bands create indents in the edges. Tins, or larger hard cases can cause the edges to compress when bounced around during travel. *NOTE* A slight warp in a card will not typically affect your grade. They flatten out when encased in the clamshell slab.
Corners (20% of overall grade) - We assess the cut of the corners as well as any damage to the corners, similar to edges. Corners are very susceptible to damage from improper storage, especially cards with 90° corner angles rather than rounded edges. During travel, corners become compacted, spreading out the layers of the card or creating small creases.
Most of the damage assessed via sub-grades could have been prevented by the card owner. Therefore, we recommend finding a penny sleeve and top-loader combination for any cards that are important to you until we encase them.
Final Grades
Final Grades (the overall grade of your card) - We have created a formula for calculating your final grades based on your sub-grades.
Grades are weighted and calculated as follows:
Surface = 35% of the overall grade.
Centering = 25% of the overall grade.
Edges = 20% of the overall grade.
Corners = 20% of the overall grade .
FINAL GRADE IS CAPPED at 1 full grade above the lowest grade in Surface, Edges, or Corners.
Centering will not cap the final grade because it is not considered damage. Damage to the card in one of those three categories creates an upper limit to your card's final grade. This prevents a card that looks like it has been run over from still achieving a grade such as “very good”.
Example card:
Centering: 10
Surface: 1
Edges: 10
Corners: 10
This card would receive a final grade of 2, as the damage to the surface is too severe for the other sub-grades to make up for it.
1
Very Poor
Look, let’s be honest... It’s not good. You know it. We know it. That’s okay, though, cause for some insane reason, people collect graded cards of every type. So you’ve got that going for you..
A “Very Poor” card contains flaws across all characteristics. Rips, tears, holes, or other extreme defects such as water damage have significantly impacted this card.
2
Poor
Yikes. Someone didn’t take care of their cards while growing up. Bright side: at least it’s not a “1”?
A “Poor” card exhibits extreme wear across multiple areas of the card. Heavy creasing, deep scratches, dents and ink stains may plague this card.
3
Heavily Played
Maybe you kept this card in your special binder and took it out to show all your friends after eating Doritos and forgot to wash your hands. Maybe you found it on the side of the road and thought it was cool. Whatever happened to it, we’re glad it’s here before it takes more damage.
A “Heavily Played” card exhibits wear across multiple areas of the card. May have one heavy crease, a few light ones only visible from one side. A corner may be lifting, or a foil layer may be in the early stages of separation.
4
Moderately Played
A well loved card. Maybe this card was a staple to some of your best TCG decks. It’s seen lots of shuffles. You may have even traded it, only to regret the trade moments later. Realizing you made a terrible trade, you traded back heavily in your friend's favor just to allow yourself to sleep at night. Was it worth it? Totally.
A “Moderately Played” card exhibits moderate wear across multiple areas of the card, but nothing absurd. Corners may show minimal rounding. Edges may show moderate chipping or notching. The surface may exhibit light creasing visible from one side, or other moderate defects.
5
Lightly Played
You probably talked your mom into playing a few rounds of Pokemon with this card. Or maybe you took this card out to show your siblings now and then. You cared about it, just not enough to hide it away until one day when it would, of course, be worth millions. So it took some damage. That’s alright. It’s still… it’s… fine.
A “Lightly Played” card exhibits minimal wear. Corners may show minimal rounding. Edges may show signs of chipping or notching. The surface may contain multiple small defects and one small crease visible from one side.
6
Good
Alright! A “Good” grade! Your parents must be so proud. You took care of this card pretty well. It’s probably spent most of its time in a penny sleeve, but you probably showed it off a bit too much. That’s alright, though, because it meant something to you.
A “Good” card exhibits slight wear. Corners may show very minor rounding. Edges may show minor signs of chipping or notching.The surface may exhibit light scuffing or scratches and maybe a moderate defect such as an indent, slight chipping, slightly faded.
7
Very Good
“Very Good” huh? Cool. You did all the right things. You stored your card the way you should have; away from sunlight and garlic, only to make an appearance at night… oh that’s vampires. Same thing?
A “Very Good” card exhibits minor wear. Corners and edges may show minor signs of chipping or notching. The surface may exhibit light wear, and any scratches will only be noticeable on close inspection. Most of the original finish is present.
8
Near Mint
Near mint! That’s almost mint! By definition! Honestly, there’s probably nothing more you could have done. Not all cards are created equal. You did a good job caring for this card. Be proud.
A “Near Mint” card may exhibit minor surface wear that is only visible with close inspection. Corners may show very minor wear. Edges should be mostly clean. Original finish is present.
9
Mint
“Bro… it was pack fresh.” Yeah, well, like we said before, not all cards are created equal. There’s nothing more you could have done. The majority of the greatest cards are going to land a 9 or a 9.5 when graded through our service. These cards are really close to perfect, and you should be proud. It’s awesome.
A “Mint” card is in superb condition with clean corners, edges, and sharp image focus. Any minor flaws are not visible without scrutiny.
10
Near Perfect
A truly awesome card. A near perfect 10 is attained when the card is so close to perfect, but a sub-grade or 2 were just a touch off.
A “Near Perfect” card’s attributes include 2 or more of the following: perfectly shaped corners, perfectly cut and clean edges, 50/50 centering, and an untarnished surface.
10
Perfect
The holy grail. A truly perfect card. Flawless sub-grades. Hang on to this one. And have a FREE CARD STAND on us.
A “Perfect” card’s attributes include perfectly shaped corners, perfectly cut and clean edges, 50/50 centering, and an untarnished surface.