Pristine Grading International
PGI
A bulk specialist by design — its own rules cap it at cards worth under $100, which tells you what the slab is for.
Our score17/100TierDNo. 32 on the scorecards
Resale standingRaw valueOn a high-value card, expect a buyer to cut it out and regrade it.
Cheapest way in$12.50Flat rate, 25-card minimum, cards up to $100
Typical turnaroundAbout 2 weeks (shown as an icon on the site, not stated in text)Reader reports →
BacklogNone published
Cert lookupNone foundA buyer cannot verify this slab
Owned byIndependentFounded 2002
The short version
2 min to read it all, belowWhy it scores 17
The full breakdownWhere the slab sells
- eBay Authenticity GuaranteeNot listed
- Major US auction housesNot standard inventory
- Public cert lookupNone found
What to watch
The eligibility cap means the company does not compete for cards where grading affects resale meaningfully — that is a deliberate position rather than a failing, but it defines the ceiling.
All known concernsPricing
Official price listA single flat rate of $12.50, with the restriction as the actual product. PGI only accepts post-1980 cards worth under $100 raw, so it has deliberately opted out of high-value grading rather than competing for it.
| Tier | Price | Minimum | Card value up to | Quoted turnaround | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Flat rate | $12.50per card | 25 cards | $100 | About 2 weeks | Post-1980 cards worth under $100 raw only; ungraded returns cost $0.50 |
Prices as checked on 28 Sept 2026. They change often; the grader's own list is the final word.
A 25-card minimum sets a $312 floor. Cards returned ungraded still cost 50 cents each. Read the grading standards before submitting — the acceptance rules are narrower than most.
The full file
What sets them apart
Running since the 2002 National, and defined by what it refuses: cards must be post-1980 and worth under $100 raw, with no patch cards and a 25-card minimum.
That restriction is the product — PGI has opted out of high-value grading rather than competing for it. Three or more graders review each card under magnification, and it covers niches the majors underserve, including magazine cards and foreign issues.
Where the slab sells
Acceptance is close to moot here. PGI's own rules exclude the cards where grading changes resale value, so the question of whether the market recognizes its slabs rarely arises.
eBay
PGI does not appear on eBay's professional grader filter list and is not covered by the Authenticity Guarantee, so its slabs receive neither grader searchability nor eBay buyer protection.
Auction houses
Not accepted as standard inventory at Goldin, Heritage or PWCC — and largely irrelevant to them, since PGI caps submissions at $100 declared value.
Card shops and general resale
Minimal presence, consistent with a bulk-only operation.
Price history
PGI has not raised a listed price since Oct 2026.
Show the price history: 1 tier, 0 changes
These come from our own records. Small ticks are sightings where the price held. A line ends where the evidence ends.
Flat rate$12.50 unchanged since 26 Oct 2026
Every change
| Date | Tier | Change | Source |
|---|
An archived page shows the price on the day it was saved, so a change happened somewhere between that page and the one before it.
The slab and the label
Subgrades: None
A conventional clear holder with a dark inner surround.
Example slab shown for reference, not a card the editor owns.
A green label tiled edge to edge with repeating PGI text as a watermark, carrying the card details and grade — but no cert number printed on the front, so there is nothing on the label to verify against anything.
What they grade
- Sports Cards
Who it's for
- Personal Collection
- Protection & Preservation
Bulk protection and personal collections for modern low-value cards, which is the whole of what PGI offers. $12.50 a card, 25-card minimum.
Known concerns
The eligibility cap means the company does not compete for cards where grading affects resale meaningfully — that is a deliberate position rather than a failing, but it defines the ceiling.
Hobby visibility is correspondingly low and independent coverage scarce. Cards returned ungraded still cost 50 cents each.
History
Pristine Grading International has operated since 2002, but has deliberately narrowed rather than broadened its market.
Its submission rules exclude most of what collectors grade: cards must be from 1980 or later, valued at no more than $100, cannot be patch cards, and must arrive in batches of at least twenty-five.
The effect is a bulk, low-value specialist rather than a general-purpose grader — a positioning choice that also limits how visible the company is in the wider hobby.
Score breakdown
Five parts, each scored 0 to 100 and weighted. Market acceptance carries 60 of the 100, because the point of a slab is what the market pays for it.
Market acceptance 0 / 100 (weight 60). The other four parts together 42 / 100 (weight 40).
Market acceptance
0 / 100weight 60adds 0.0
Unverified, scored as zero: Sold-price parity with the leading label, same card and grade; Recognised in a major non-US market.
Trust and verifiability
45 / 100weight 15adds 6.8
Unverified, scored as zero: Public population report.
Holder and label
0 / 100weight 10adds 0.0
Unverified, scored as zero: Sealed, tamper-evident holder; Standard footprint that fits hobby cases.
Turnaround and access
80 / 100weight 5adds 4.0
Pricing
60 / 100weight 10adds 6.0
Unverified, scored as zero: No price rise over 25% in the last 12 months.
Weighted total 16.8, shown as 17 out of 100.
Scored on 5 Oct 2026. 6 inputs could not be verified and score zero. How we score
On the Wire
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