How to find a card shop worth the drive
Most people pick a card shop by distance. Distance is the least useful thing about a shop. Here is what to check instead.
9 min read · Updated 2026-08-17
Guides
Hobby guides
Every guide here answers a question somebody actually asks in a card shop. We say when something is uncertain, we do not print numbers we cannot stand behind, and nothing in these pages is paid for.
Finding a shop
Grading
Card grading explained: PSA, BGS, CGC and SGC compared
Grading is a third party's opinion of condition, sealed in plastic. Which third party you pick changes what the card sells for — sometimes by a multiple.
9 min read · Updated 2026-08-17
Selling
How to sell your card collection to a shop without getting lowballed
A shop paying 40% of retail is not necessarily ripping you off. A shop that will not explain how it got to a number is. Here is the difference.
9 min read · Updated 2026-08-17
Buying
Buying sealed vs singles: which one actually gets you what you want
Opening packs and acquiring cards are two different hobbies that happen to use the same product. Knowing which one you are doing saves a lot of money.
6 min read · Updated 2026-08-17
How card breaks work, and the risks nobody advertises
A break sells you a slice of a sealed box. The format decides whether that slice is a fair bet or a bad one, and the formats are not equivalent.
7 min read · Updated 2026-08-17
Shows and events
How card shows work, and how to actually get value out of one
A card show is twenty independent shops in one room, all pricing the same cards differently. That is the whole opportunity, and most people walk past it.
7 min read · Updated 2026-08-17
Looking for a shop rather than a guide?
The directory is the other half of this. Guides tell you what to look for; the directory tells you where.