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PSA vs CGC Grading Cost and Turnaround (2026)
Short answer: After PSA's September 2026 price change, PSA's cheapest open tier is $59.99 with a 90–100 business day wait. CGC's cheapest tiers start at $17 but take up to 150 working days. If you want a specific card at a specific grade, buying the graded slab skips the fee, the wait and the risk of a lower grade than you hoped.
Last verified: September 30, 2026. Fees and policies change — confirm on each platform's own site before you rely on them.
PSA (updated September 9, 2026; value tiers paused)
| Tier | Price per card | Max declared value | Estimated turnaround |
|---|---|---|---|
| Standard | $59.99 | $1,000 | 90–100 business days |
| Priority | $79.99 | $1,500 | 70–80 business days |
| Express | $199 | $2,500 | 20–30 business days |
| Super Express | $349 | $5,000 | 10–15 business days |
| Premier | $599 | $10,000 | 7–10 business days |
PSA reports a backlog of roughly 9.9 million cards. Collectors Club membership is $149/year, and its bulk access is currently paused.
CGC Cards (current pricing page)
| Tier | Price per card | Max value | Turnaround (working days) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bulk | $17 | $500 | 150 |
| Economy | $20 | $1,000 | 90 |
| Standard | $55 | $3,000 | 10 |
| Express | $100 | $10,000 | 5 |
| WalkThrough | $300 | $100,000 | 2 |
CGC members get 10–20% off depending on membership level.
Grade it yourself or buy it graded?
Grading your own raw card makes sense when:
- you already own the card,
- it's clean enough that a top grade is realistic,
- and the graded value beats raw value plus fees, shipping both ways, and months of waiting.
Buying graded makes sense when:
- you want a specific card at a specific grade,
- you don't want to gamble a fee on a 9 that you hoped would be a 10,
- or you don't want to wait months.
Either way, the cert lookup on the grader's own site is what tells you what you're getting.
PSA vs CGC grades aren't interchangeable
A PSA 10, a CGC Gem Mint 10 and a CGC Pristine 10 are different grades and usually sell at different prices. Compare like with like (see our buying guide).
Not covered here: BGS pricing (beckett.com was offline when this was checked) and SGC pricing (the official page wouldn't load). We only list numbers we could confirm at the source.