PSA’s massive grading backlog took another meaningful step downward, but collectors waiting for the company’s lower-priced Value submission tiers still have a long way to go.
PSA reported on August 25 that its active global backlog had fallen to approximately 10.9 million units, down from 11.85 million on August 11. That amounts to a reduction of roughly 950,000 cards — about 8% — over the latest two-week reporting period.
The movement matters because PSA has tied the reopening of its paused Value tiers to an operational benchmark rather than a specific date. Its tracker shows those tiers reopening once the backlog falls below 5 million units.
At 10.9 million, PSA therefore still needs to work through approximately 5.9 million more units to reach that threshold.
PSA has cut a little less than 1 million cards from the backlog over the last two weeks.
Backlog sat at 11.85 million cards for the Aug. 11 update.
PSA Has Cut 1.5 Million Cards From Its Late-July Backlog
The latest number continues a turnaround from PSA’s late-July surge.
PSA reported a backlog of 12.4 million units on July 28, up from 11 million two weeks earlier. The company attributed that increase to higher-tier submission volume, packages arriving within an eligibility window connected to the Value-tier shutdown and convention-season submissions.
By August 11, the backlog was down to 11.85 million. Tuesday’s update puts the total another 950,000 units lower, meaning PSA has reduced its active backlog by about 1.5 million cards since July 28.
PSA credited “steady daily output across all five grading hubs,” including its recently opened operation in Plano, Texas, for the latest progress.
The Plano location became PSA’s fifth global grading facility in July, joining operations in California, New Jersey, Florida and Tokyo. PSA said when the facility opened that the expansion was part of a broader $200 million infrastructure investment designed to increase capacity and improve turnaround times.
That added capacity is now particularly important because PSA has to keep reducing the existing queue while continuing to accept submissions through service levels that remain open.
Why PSA’s 5 Million Target Matters to Collectors
PSA temporarily stopped accepting new submissions for Value Bulk, Value, Value Plus and Value Max on June 2 after a surge in demand placed significant pressure on its grading pipeline.
When announcing the shutdown, PSA said submissions had spiked 20%, adding another 1.6 million cards to its backlog. Regular, Express, Super Express and Walk-Through services remained available.
PSA has repeatedly emphasized that reopening Value is tied to backlog conditions rather than a predetermined date. Its June tracker update projected that it could take five to six months to bring the queue down to its 5-million-unit target, although the company described that projection as fluid.
The August 25 number is encouraging for collectors because the backlog has now declined in consecutive updates after the July increase. But 10.9 million also puts the scale of the remaining job into perspective.
PSA would have to eliminate roughly 54% of its current backlog to get from 10.9 million below the 5-million threshold.
And the recent rate should not be treated as a guaranteed countdown. PSA’s own tracker shows how quickly submission volume can change the total: the backlog jumped from 11 million to 12.4 million during one two-week stretch in July before reversing course.
For collectors waiting to submit cards through Value pricing, the most important signal will therefore be whether PSA can sustain the downward trend through its next several biweekly updates.
For now, the company is clearly moving closer to its reopening benchmark — just not there yet.
PSA Backlog Drops to 10.9 Million as Value Tiers Remain Closed