The five graders at a glance (checked October 7, 2026)
| Company | Lowest open price per card | Estimated turnaround | Scale and top grades | Subgrades | Slab and report |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PSA | $59.99 (Standard, up to $1,000 value) | 90 to 100 business days | 1 to 10 overall grade; Gem Mint 10 at the top | Not on the label | Single overall grade on the label; online cert lookup |
| BGS (Beckett) | $79.95 (Express) | 15 business days | Half-point scale; Pristine 10, with Black Label for perfect subgrades | Centering, corners, edges, surface, included on Express | Label color signals the tier (black, gold, silver) |
| CGC | $17 (Bulk, 25-card minimum, up to $500 value) or $20 (Economy, up to $1,000 value) | 150 or 90 working days | Half grades; Pristine 10 above Gem Mint 10 | Not listed as an option on CGC's current services page | Online cert verification |
| SGC | $50 (Standard, after the September 2, 2026 change) | 40+ business days | Half grades; 10 Pristine above 10 Gem Mint | No | Black "tuxedo" style label |
| TAG | $59.95 (Standard, up to $1,000 value; no Base price listed as of October 18) | 45 business days | Half grades except between 9 and 10; Pristine 10 above Gem Mint 10 | Corner, edge, surface and centering analysis in the report | DIG report on every tier; 1000-point TAG Score from Standard ($59.95) up |
Turnaround figures are each company's own estimates and can stretch with backlogs. Prices move with promotions and tiers, so verify current rates before you ship. Sources are listed at the end of this guide. To compare the full cost of a submission including shipping, use the grading cost calculator.
Each company in more detail
PSA
PSA opened a new Standard service level on September 14, 2026 at $59.99 per card, with a 90 to 100 business day estimate and a $1,000 maximum insured value. Its lower-cost Value tiers remained paused, and Sports Illustrated reported PSA saying the Standard tier "will not replace the Value tiers." PSA's fastest walk-through style tier is now called Premier, at $599 per card. PSA returns a single overall grade, so a card that is perfect in three categories and flawed in one simply shows the lower overall number. Fee details and membership costs are in our PSA grading cost guide, and the difference between the top two grades is explained in PSA 10 vs PSA 9.
BGS (Beckett)
As of October 7, 2026, Beckett's status page said Express was available through a temporary submission form while "Base and Standard card grading submissions are temporarily paused," and that Beckett.com and the Beckett app remained temporarily offline. The form lists Express at $79.95 per card with an estimated 15 business days and says all services include subgrades unless otherwise indicated. BGS scores centering, corners, edges and surface separately. Its best-known prize is the Black Label, a Pristine 10 with flawless subgrades: Rare Candy's guide to Beckett describes the requirements as perfect 50/50 centering on the front and 55/45 on the back, with corners and edges perfect to the naked eye. Beckett is owned by Collectors, the parent company of PSA and SGC, after an acquisition announced on December 15, 2025; Collectors said Beckett would remain an independent brand with its own grading standards.
CGC
CGC has the lowest open entry prices of the five. Its fee page lists Economy at $20 per card (90 working days, $1,000 maximum value) and Bulk at $17 per card with a 25-card minimum (150 working days, $500 maximum). Standard is $55 for cards up to $3,000 with a 10 business day estimate. CGC's grading scale uses half grades and separates a Pristine 10, described as virtually flawless to the naked eye, from a Gem Mint 10, where one criterion falls short of Pristine. CGC's scale allows centering of roughly 55/45 on the front and 75/25 on the back for a 10.
SGC
SGC raised its lowest service level to $50 per card on September 2, 2026, with an estimated turnaround of 40+ business days, according to Sports Illustrated. SGC's black label is a long-time favorite of vintage sports collectors. Its own population report breaks out 10 Pristine separately from 10 Gem Mint and lists half grades such as 9.5 and 8.5.
TAG
TAG grades with what it describes as machine-learning software and patented image capture technology, with a human Verification team confirming the findings. Every tier includes the Digital Imaging and Grading (DIG) report, which lists notable defects, corner, edge and surface analysis, and centering metrics. As of October 18, 2026, TAG's pages listed no price for Base, and Standard was $59.95 per card (up to $1,000 value, 45 business day estimate). From the Standard tier up, TAG adds a precise 1000-point TAG Score. TAG's scale maps Gem Mint 10 to scores of 950 to 989 and Pristine 10 to 990 to 1000, and TAG says it has no 9.5 because cards that exceed its Mint standard are Gem Mint. Wondering about its standing? Read is TAG grading legit?
Resale value considerations
Graded value is set by buyers, not by the grading companies, and it varies card by card. A few practical points hold up regardless of which slab you choose:
- Compare sold prices, not asking prices. Before you choose a company, look up recent sold listings for the exact card in each company's slab at the grade you expect. The gap between companies is different for a vintage baseball card than for a modern Pokémon chase card.
- Price in the fee. A grade only pays if the graded sale price beats the raw price plus fees and shipping. At $59.99, PSA's cheapest open tier costs about three times CGC's $20 Economy tier, which changes the math on lower-value cards.
- Price in time. A 90 to 150 business day wait means your money is tied up for months, and prices can move while the card is away.
- Top grades carry most of the premium. The difference between a 9 and a 10 can be large, so the decision often comes down to how likely a 10 really is. See PSA 10 vs PSA 9.
- Subgrades and scores can help or hurt. BGS subgrades and the TAG Score show exactly where a card is strong or weak. That transparency helps a buyer judge a strong 9.5, and it also reveals a weak one.
Which company for Pokémon, sports or vintage?
- Pokémon and other TCGs: PSA is the default many collectors start with, CGC keeps the cost down for mid-value cards with its $17 Bulk and $20 Economy tiers, and TAG sells TCG-specific service levels, with Standard at $59.95 as of October 18, 2026. Our Pokémon card grading guide goes deeper.
- Modern sports: PSA for broad recognition, BGS when you want subgrades and have a realistic shot at a 9.5 or Black Label, and TAG if you want the DIG report and TAG Score.
- Vintage sports: SGC's black label has long been popular with vintage collectors, and PSA is the other common choice. Compare recent sold prices for your exact card in both slabs.
- Bulk and lower-value cards: CGC's Bulk tier at $17 with a 25-card minimum is the lowest open price in this comparison.
- Chasing perfection: BGS Black Label, CGC Pristine 10, SGC 10 Pristine and TAG Pristine 10 all sit above a standard Gem Mint 10 on their scales.
Crossover and regrading
Crossover means submitting a card that is already in one company's slab so another company can grade it. PSA's crossover service grades the card through the existing holder, and only removes it and re-slabs it if it meets the minimum grade you set on the form. If it falls short, the card comes back in its original holder and the grading fee is still charged, according to CardGrade's walkthrough of the service. Two practical tips:
- Set a minimum grade you would actually be happy with. Setting it too low means you might trade a strong slab for a weaker one.
- Remember the fee is charged either way. Crossing over only makes sense when the value gap between slabs is bigger than the fee.
Cracking a card out of its slab and resubmitting it raw is the other route, but it carries the risk of damage while removing the card. TAG also lists a $15 reslab and reholder service for its own slabs.
How to verify a graded slab
Fake slabs and swapped cards exist, so check the certification number on the grader's own site before you buy a graded card:
- PSA: enter the cert number at psacard.com/cert and compare the card, grade and images with the slab in front of you.
- CGC: use CGC's verification page at cgcgrading.com/certlookup.
- TAG: every TAG grade comes with a DIG report that includes high-resolution card images, so compare the report images with the card itself. TAG's customer portal and population report are at my.taggrading.com.
- SGC: look up the cert number on gosgc.com.
- BGS: Beckett's website was temporarily offline as of October 7, 2026, so its online lookup may be unavailable. Check again before you buy, or ask the seller for clear photos of the label and cert number.
Beyond the number, compare the label font, hologram and slab construction with a slab you know is genuine, and make sure the card in the photos matches the card in the cert record.
The step before any of them
Every company charges whether your card comes back a 10 or a 7. Pre-grading with Binder AI gives you a photo-based estimate with centering, corners, edges and surface subgrades on the PSA, BGS or TAG scale, plus eBay sold prices and a graded value table, so you only pay to grade the cards that deserve it. AI grades are estimates, not official grades. Learn what each category means in card grading criteria, then start with is my card worth grading? and the grading ROI calculator.
Sources, checked October 2026: Sports Illustrated on PSA's new Standard tier, Beckett submission form, Beckett status page, Rare Candy guide to Beckett grading, Collectors announcement on Beckett, CGC services, CGC grading scale, Sports Illustrated on SGC pricing, SGC population report, TAG Base grading, TAG Standard grading, TAG grading scale, TAG on why there is no 9.5, TAG grading process, CardGrade on PSA crossover.
