How to avoid buying fake Pokemon cards?

Real Pokémon booster packs have straight, flat edges along their seals, and hardly any air around the cards inside. If the edge of a booster pack is ribbed or wavy, or the cards have too much room in the pack, that's another sign the contents are fake.

Where to buy Pokémon cards that are not fake?

Is it illegal to buy fake Pokémon cards?

First and foremost, it's important to understand that fake Pokémon cards are not authorized or produced by The Pokémon Company International (TPCi). Therefore, buying, selling, or distributing fake Pokémon cards is considered copyright infringement and is a violation of intellectual property laws.

Is there a trick to buying Pokémon cards?

Buying a box is the most efficient way of obtaining a large amount of cards, and many retailers will offer a small discount for purchasing a box. Note that you will at least receive 36 rare cards by purchasing a box, and usually more than that.

Are you allowed to play with fake Pokémon cards?

Pokemon TCG: Can I use fake cards? Unsurprisingly, no. You can't use fake Pokemon cards in official battles – at least if you don't want to get caught and punished.

How To Avoid Buying FAKE Pokemon Cards & Boosters

Are McDonald's Pokémon cards real?

Are Pokémon cards from McDonald's real? Yes, they are real and are created by The Pokémon company for McDonald's.

Are fake Pokémon cards obvious?

The authenticity of a Pokémon card can be determined by certain physical characteristics. Tests such as the “Light” and “Rip” test can identify fake Pokémon cards. Inspecting spelling, font, color, material, holographic effect, cutting method, and text placement can help differentiate genuine Pokémon cards from fakes.

What to know before buying Pokémon cards?

The black symbol in the bottom corner of a Pokemon card denotes its rarity: a circle is common, a diamond is uncommon, and a star is rare. Traditionally the star is black, but a card with a star of an alternate color such as white or gold means it's ultra rare.

How rare is secret rare Pokémon?

Third, the jump from Ultra Rare to Secret Rare can be much steeper than any other rarity jump. In Fusion Strike, we only found one Secret Rare in roughly 50 packs — that's just one Secret Rare for every ten Ultra Rares.

Are fake Pokémon cards sold on eBay?

Are Pokemon cards on eBay fake? As a whole, Pokemon cards on eBay and auction sites are not fake. Most cards being sold on auction sites are real, but it is not uncommon to find fake cards being sold. Auctions that do no display clear images of a card should be avoided.

Who bought a fake Pokémon card?

Paul bought what he thought was a case of first edition Pokemon cards that would have been worth millions. However, Rovell noted the cards, which were sold to Paul by card dealer Matt Allen, were worth $359.

What is the most illegal Pokémon card?

One such card is the "Hex Maniac" Supporter card from Ancient Origins. "Hex Maniac," when played, prevents any and all Pokémon abilities to be used until the end of the opponent's next turn. So the player who kicks off the game will have an immense advantage over the player who goes second.

Do fake Pokémon cards smell?

We all know that booster fresh smell when you open a pack of legit Pokémon cards right? It seems one thing these counterfeitters haven't quite mastered is recreating it, many of the fake cards don't smell 'booster fresh' and might smell a bit plasticy/different.

What Pokémon packs are worth buying?

What is the 3 rarest Pokémon?

Uxie, Mesprit and Azelf are the Lake Guardians of the Sinnoh and, despite being the only legendary Pokémon to appear in the wild outside of events and Daily Adventure Incense, they're three of the rarest Pokémon in the game.

What is the rarest legit Pokémon?

No Rarity Pokémon cards are among the rarest Pokémon cards in existence, and few come rarer than the Venusaur Pokémon card from the game's first print run in 1996.

How rare are V cards?

V Pokemon cards are some of the strongest in the game. They are all Ultra Rare, which make them difficult to pull out of any random booster pack. Brief content visible, double tap to read full content. Full content visible, double tap to read brief content.

How many of each Pokemon card should I keep?

Although you can include any number of any type of card - Pokémon, trainer and energy - in your deck other than the rule above, it's often recommended that beginners aim to have an even split of Pokémon cards, energy cards and trainer cards: 20 of each.

How many Pokémon cards should you have?

Before you begin, it's important to note that each deck must contain exactly 60 cards—with at least one Basic Pokémon—and cannot contain more than four copies of any card (except basic Energy).

Is it better to buy booster boxes or packs?

If you bought 10 packs of Team Up, you would end up with 10 rare cards, 30 uncommon cards, and 60 common cards. While you can buy booster packs individually, they are also commonly sold in a booster box of 36 packs. One of the best reasons to buy booster boxes is to get a better distribution of cards.

Is a Pokémon card fake if it has a black line?

Thankfully, you don't have to rip your card to find out if it's authentic. Just take your card, face one of the edges towards you, and look closely for a thin black line between the two halves of the card. It's very thin, but should be quite obvious up close. If you see it, your card is legit.

How to find fake Pokémon cards?

Are fake Pokémon cards glossy?

Card Texture

For starters, a very common thing with fakes is that they are way too glossy. You can literally see the light reflect off the card, meaning that the texture is so off it has become apparent visually. When a card is way too glossy, it will feel completely different than a real Pokemon card.

What is the rarest Pokemon card in 2023?

As of February 2023, an Illustrator CoroCoro Comics Promo (Pikachu illustrator card) was the most expensive Pokémon trading card in the world, having been sold at auction for six million U.S. dollars.

Is the Pikachu card from McDonalds rare?

The Value of Different Mcdonalds Pokemon Cards

The most valuable card is Pikachu, worth $7-8. The least valuable card is Tynamo, which is only worth $1.21. However, some rare McDonalds Pokemon cards are worth significantly more than the average card. For example, Victini is a rare card worth $4-7.