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Sports card grading: centering lines and fees at six graders

Baseball, basketball, football and hockey cards are the standard 63 × 88 mm. Below: the centering each grading company publishes for its Gem Mint and Mint 9 grades (sports-card backs where a company publishes them separately), and its cheapest open tier, as read on the dates shown.

Measure your sports card from a photo →

Grader	Gem Mint (front / back)	Mint 9 (front / back)	Cheapest open tier
PSA	GEM-MT 10: ~55/45 / 75/25 back	~60/40 / 90/10 back	Standard $59.99, 70–80 business days (cards up to $1,000)
BGS	Gem Mint 9.5: 55/45 / 60/40 back	55/45 / 70/30 back	Express $79.95, 15 business days
CGC	Gem Mint 10: ~55/45 / 75/25 back	60/40 / 90/10 back	Bulk $17, 150 business days (min 25 cards, cards up to $500) No minimum: Economy $20
SGC	10 Gem: 55/45	60/40	Standard (≤$1,500) $50, 40+ business days (cards up to $1,500)
TAG	Gem Mint 10: ~55/45 / ~70/30 back	~60/40 / ~90/10 back	Value $29.95, 90 business days (min 10 cards) No minimum: Standard $59.95 Not taking pre-1989 cards, memorabilia cards or stock over 50pt.
ACE	Gem Mint 10: under 60/40 / under 60/40 back	under 65/35 / under 70/30 back	Basic ~$23.92 (£18), 30 business days

PSA lines checked 2026-10-28, fees 2026-11-02 · BGS lines checked 2026-07-14, fees 2026-10-15 · CGC lines checked 2026-10-28, fees 2026-10-28 · SGC lines checked 2026-09-17, fees 2026-09-17 · TAG lines checked 2026-10-28, fees 2026-10-28 · ACE lines checked 2026-10-28, fees 2026-10-28. “~” is the company’s own “approximately”; “under” is its “less than”.

What to know for sports cards

TAG judges sports-card backs more loosely than card-game backs (a Gem Mint 10 back of ~70/30 against ~65/35); the table shows the sports figures.
CGC states its ratios from Mint 9 down “for sports and non-sports cards”, so they apply to sports cards directly.
Chrome and refractor surfaces throw glare; tilt the card or the light until the border edges are clear. The app warns when an edge is unclear.
TAG is not accepting pre-1989 cards, memorabilia cards or stock over 50pt right now.

PriceCharting’s guide has no sports cards (they are on its sister site, which our permission does not cover), so you enter the raw and graded prices yourself; the app links to recent sales to look them up.

Worth grading? It pays only when the expected price after grading, minus the fee, beats the raw price. The arithmetic · a sample verdict.

Questions

What centering does a sports card need for a PSA 10?

PSA’s GEM-MT 10 line is ~55/45 on the front (PSA’s “approximately”) and 75/25 on the back, as read on 2026-10-28.

Which grader is most lenient on centering for sports cards?

On the published Gem Mint front lines, ACE (under 60/40). The others: PSA ~55/45, BGS 55/45, CGC ~55/45, SGC 55/45, TAG ~55/45. A lenient line is not an easier grade overall, and each company’s 10 sells for a different price.

What is the cheapest way to grade sports cards?

On the dates checked, the lowest fee is CGC Bulk at $17 (minimum 25 cards, cards up to $500); for a single card, CGC Economy at $20 (cards up to $1,000), then ACE Basic at ~$23.92 (£18). Fees are per card; shipping is extra, and the cheapest fee is not always the best decision.

Where do the prices for sports cards come from?

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