The Compy Condition Standard

One rule book for every raw card on Compy. Sellers pick a condition by it, buyers check cards against it, and Compy decides disagreements by it. The five conditions match TCGplayer's, so each lines up with that condition's market price.

What each condition looks like

Real English Pokémon cards. Tap a photo to zoom.

The rules

Compy Condition Standard v2 - October 2026

How to check a card

Take it out of the sleeve. Look at the front and back under one bright light, at arm's length (about 2 feet).
Tilt it slowly - scratches and dents show when light skims across the surface.
Check the five parts below: corners, edges, surface, creases & dents, stains & discoloration.
The worst part decides. A card is only as good as its worst part - heavy whitening on one corner makes it Heavily Played, however clean the rest is.
Between two conditions? Pick the lower one.

A minor crease is a short, light line that doesn't break the colour or the card stock. A major crease is long or deep, or breaks the colour or the card stock.

Graded slabs: The slab case must have no cracks, chips or scratches, and the label must be clean and unaltered. Slabs with any damage to the case can't be sold on the buylist.

NMNear Mint

Looks fresh from the pack.

Corners: Sharp, or very close. Only the lightest wear.
Edges: Clean - a tiny white dot or two is fine, but no lines of whitening.
Surface: Smooth. At most a few faint scratches you have to look for. Factory print lines and ink spots are fine - that's how the card was made.
Creases & dents: No creases, dents or indentations.
Stains & discoloration: None.

LPLightly Played

Light wear you can see on a close look.

Corners: Some wear. One or two may be slightly rounded.
Edges: Some whitening.
Surface: Light surface scratches are fine.
Creases & dents: One very small crease, barely visible - only if the rest of the card is Near Mint.
Stains & discoloration: Very minor.

MPModerately Played

Clearly used, but still whole.

Corners: All four noticeably rounded, or showing some whitening.
Edges: Minor chipping and whitening.
Surface: Scratches or scuffs. The shine may be dull or gone.
Creases & dents: At most 1-2 very minor creases.
Stains & discoloration: Minor.

HPHeavily Played

Heavy wear all over, but no major damage.

Corners: Heavy whitening.
Edges: Whitening all the way around.
Surface: Scratches across the card.
Creases & dents: At most 2 minor creases.
Stains & discoloration: Small black spots or other minor staining or residue.

DMGDamaged

Anything worse than Heavily Played - but it must still be the genuine card.

Corners: Heavy whitening, folded over, or worse.
Edges: Whitening and fraying.
Surface: Scratched everywhere.
Creases & dents: Any major crease, fold, rip or tear, or 3 or more minor creases.
Stains & discoloration: Heavy staining or residue.

Not a condition problem

Centering doesn't change a raw card's condition (it matters for grading, not for NM / LP / MP / HP / DMG).
Wrong card or wrong printing (Unlimited instead of 1st Edition, regular instead of reverse holo): check the set symbol, number, edition stamp and holo pattern against the picture on the order.
Not genuine (proxy, reprint, fake): never allowed. Check the font, colours, the back, and the light test. Sending one is the fastest way to lose selling access.
Graded slabs are sold by the grade on the label. The cert number is recorded, and a slab can only be sent back if it's the same cert.

Photos that settle disagreements

Sellers: front and back of every card, out of the sleeve, in good light, the whole card in the frame.
Buyers flagging a card: the same - front and back - plus a close-up of the problem if you can.
A person at Compy compares the two sets against this standard. If the buyer's photos don't show the problem, the seller is right.

Grading: the details

What a card needs before it's worth sending to PSA, CGC, Beckett or TAG, and how to check it.

A gradable card could come back a 9 or 10. One weak spot drops the grade.

Centering

For a 10 the front borders can be no worse than 55/45 and the back 75/25. A 9 allows 60/40 on the front and 90/10 on the back.

How to check: Measure it with the Centering tool - eyeballing it is easy to get wrong by 5%.

Corners

All four corners on both sides sharp and square, with no white showing and no soft or rounded tip.

How to check: Look at each corner up close under a bright light. Check the back first - white specks show up there most.

Edges

No white chips, nicks or fraying along any edge. Clean, straight cuts.

How to check: Run your eye along all four edges of the back, where the dark border shows every chip.

Surface

No scratches, scuffs, dents, print lines or stains on the front or back. Holo and full-art cards scratch easily.

How to check: Tilt the card slowly under a light (a phone flashlight works) - most scratches and dents only show at an angle.

Bends and damage

No bends, creases, warping, writing or water marks. Any crease rules out a high grade.

How to check: Lay it flat on a table and look across it at eye level, then hold it up to a light to spot creases.

Looks fine, but isn't

- Straight from the pack doesn't mean a 10: cards often come out off-centre, with print lines or edge chips from the factory.

- Sleeve and binder scratches are faint and only show under a light at an angle.

- White specks on the back corners and edges are easy to miss from the front.

- A card kept in a top loader for years can still have a dent from being pushed in.

Is it worth grading?

Compare what it sells for graded at a 9 (not just a 10) with the raw price plus the grading fee and postage. If it only pays off at a 10, it's a gamble - even near-perfect cards often get a 9.

In depth: English Pokémon cards

How to apply the standard above to English Pokémon cards - where wear hides, what's factory, and how to check the printing. Guides for the other games are coming.

Quick check: go down until you hit a yes

DMGAny major crease, fold, rip or tear, 3 or more minor creases, fraying edges, or heavy staining?
HPHeavy whitening on the corners, whitening all around the edges, scratches across the card, 2 minor creases, or small black spots?
MPAll four corners rounded or whitened, minor chipping, scratches or a dull shine, 1-2 very minor creases, or minor stains?
LPSome corner wear, some edge whitening, light surface scratches, one barely visible crease, or very minor stains?
NMNothing above - sharp corners, at most a tiny white dot or two (no lines of whitening), at most faint scratches, and no creases or dents?

Between two conditions, pick the lower one.

Set up before you look

Light: One bright light from above or the side (a desk lamp or phone flashlight). Overhead room light alone hides scratches.
Out of the sleeve: Sleeves and toploaders hide scratches and add their own. Check the bare card on a clean, dark cloth.
Clean first: Dust and sleeve marks look like scuffs. A dry microfiber cloth, wiped gently from the centre outward, removes them. Never use liquid.
Distance: Judge at arm's length (about 2 feet), straight on, then tilt. No magnifier - the standard is what a person sees.
Both sides: Always check the back. Most wear on English cards shows on the blue back border first.

Corners

Look at all eight corners (four front, four back). Each one must match the condition you pick.

Sharp: A clean point, the same curve as a new card, with only the lightest wear. NM.
Some wear: A white dot or a soft point; one or two corners may be slightly rounded. LP.
Rounded or whitened: All four corners noticeably rounded, or showing some whitening. MP.
Heavy whitening: Lots of white showing on the corners. HP.
Folded over or worse: A corner folded over, split, peeling or missing a piece. DMG.
Tip: Lay the card next to a pack-fresh common from any recent set. Comparing side by side is the fastest way to see rounding.

Edges and whitening

Whitening is the white card stock showing through where the coloured border has worn off.

Back (blue border): Shows whitening most clearly. Little or no whitening: NM. Some whitening: LP. Minor chipping and whitening: MP. Whitening all the way around: HP. Fraying: DMG.
Front, yellow border (1999 - mid 2023): Yellow hides whitening. Tilt the card so light skims the edge and look for pale or rough spots.
Front, silver border (Scarlet & Violet, 2023 on): Silver hides wear even more. Look for edges that look dull, grey or rough compared with the rest of the border.
Gold and full-art borders: Secret rares and full arts have no plain border - wear shows as tiny lighter specks along the edge. Check under a tilt.
Chipping: Small bites out of the edge, common on vintage (1999-2003) cards. Minor chipping: MP. Frayed edges: DMG.

Surface

Holo and reverse holo: Scratch most easily. Tilt slowly under the light. A few faint scratches you have to look for: NM. Light surface scratches: LP. Scratches or scuffs that dull the shine: MP. Scratches across the card: HP. Scratched everywhere: DMG.
Textured cards: Full arts, V / VMAX / ex Special Illustration Rares and gold cards have a raised, fingerprint-like texture. The texture is how they're made - not wear. Scratches still count.
Back scuffing: Light, cloudy rub marks on the blue back from shuffling. Faint ones that show only under a tilt: LP. Clearly visible: MP.
Fingerprints and smudges: Wipe them off first. Only what stays after cleaning counts.
Dents and indents: A small pressed-in dot or line (from a pen, a fingernail or a sorting tray). Any dent or indentation means the card isn't Near Mint.

Bends, creases and curl

Check flat: Lay the card face up on a flat table and look at it from the side at eye level, then tilt it under the light.
Holo curl: Modern holos and reverse holos often curve slightly from humidity. If it lies nearly flat on the table and has no line or ridge, it's not damage.
Minor or major: A minor crease is a short, light line that doesn't break the colour or the card stock. A major crease is long or deep, or breaks the colour or the card stock.
How many: One barely visible crease on an otherwise Near Mint card: LP. 1-2 very minor creases: MP. Up to 2 minor creases: HP. A major crease, a fold, or 3 or more minor creases: DMG.
Pressed out: A crease that was flattened still shows as a line under a tilt. It still counts as a crease.

Factory - not wear

These come from the printer, not from handling, so they don't lower the condition. Mention them if they're big.

Off-centering: Borders wider on one side. Matters for grading, not for NM / LP / MP / HP / DMG.
Print lines: Thin straight lines printed across the holo or art, most common on modern full arts and Special Illustration Rares. Look the same on every copy from that sheet.
Ink specks and holo bleed: Small dots of ink, or holo foil showing slightly past the art box.
Pack crimp: A ridged line along the top or bottom edge from the pack seal, common on some vintage and modern packs. It's flat and straight, unlike a crease.
Miscut: Cut noticeably off (part of the next card showing). Not wear - but say so, as buyers of miscuts and regular cards are different people.

Era by era

Vintage (Base Set to Skyridge, 1999-2003): Thick, soft card stock: corners round and edges chip quickly. Holo foil scratches very easily. Unlimited prints are common - see printings below.
EX to HeartGold SoulSilver (2003-2011): Holos and reverse holos scratch easily; check backs for scuffing from old sleeves.
Black & White to Sun & Moon (2011-2019): Glossier stock. Full arts and secret rares have texture; check textured gold cards for edge whitening, which shows on gold.
Sword & Shield (2020-2023): Yellow borders; full arts and alternate arts chip on the edges right out of the pack. Check under a tilt even on pack-fresh cards.
Scarlet & Violet on (2023-): Silver front borders hide whitening - judge edges on the back. Print lines are common and are factory.

Check the printing (a different card if wrong)

A wrong printing isn't a condition problem - it's the wrong card. Match the order's picture.

1st Edition: Black '1st Edition' stamp on the left, below the art box, on vintage sets. No stamp means Unlimited.
Shadowless (Base Set only): No grey drop shadow along the right side of the art box, and thinner HP text. With the shadow it's Unlimited.
Holo vs reverse holo: Holo: only the picture shines. Reverse holo: everything except the picture shines. Some sets have patterned reverse holos (e.g. Poké Ball or Master Ball patterns) - these are separate cards.
Stamps: Prerelease, Staff, Pokémon Center, league and event stamps make a different card. Check for a small logo or text on the art.
Number and set symbol: The set symbol and the number at the bottom (e.g. 4/102) must match the order.

Is it genuine?

Fakes, proxies and reprints are never allowed. Signs to check:

Font and spelling: Fakes often use the wrong font, odd spacing, or misspell attack names and the é in the game's name.
Back: Compare the back's blue swirls and the logo's colours with a card you know is real. Fakes are often too dark, too purple or blurry.
Light test: Hold a phone flashlight behind the card. Real cards have a dark inner layer and let little light through; many fakes glow.
Holo: Fake holo is often flat rainbow foil across the whole card, or a texture where the real card has none.
Feel: Real cards are stiff with a smooth, slightly glossy finish. Fakes are often thin, waxy or too glossy.