PSA Grading Update Could Save Sports Card Collectors Hundreds

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NEW YORK - SEPTEMBER 21: A man sells vintage baseball cards prior to the start of the last game at Yankee Stadium between the Baltimore Orioles and the New York Yankees on September 21, 2008 at Yankee Stadium in the Bronx borough of New York City. Yankee Stadium held it's inaugural game on April 18, 1923 against the Boston Red Sox and tonight's match will be the final game to be played at the historic stadium. During it's 85 years as ''The Home of Champions,'' the stadium has also been known as ''The House that Ruth Built'' and ''The Cathedral.'' The stadium has been host to 33 World Series, three Papal visits and has been visited by legends such as Babe Ruth, Joe DiMaggio, Yogi Bera, Mickey Mantle and boxing great Muhummad Ali. In 2009 the Yankees will move across the street to a newly constructed stadium estimated to cost $1.3 billion. (Photo by Chris McGrath/Getty Images)

PSA’s latest backlog update could have a direct impact on how much sports card collectors spend on grading.

The company revealed on October 6 that its active grading backlog has fallen to 8.2 million units, down from 9 million on September 22.

That is another encouraging step for collectors waiting on PSA’s cheaper Value services to return, and it raises a practical question for anyone sitting on a stack of cards:

Is it worth paying $59.99 per card to grade them now, or waiting for cheaper options to reopen?

For collectors without an urgent reason to submit, the difference could amount to hundreds of dollars.

Waiting for PSA Value Could Save Collectors Hundreds

PSA’s cheapest currently available grading tier is Standard, which costs $59.99 per card and carries an estimated turnaround time of 90 to 100 business days.

Before PSA paused its cheaper tiers earlier this year, Value was priced at $32.99 per card, while Value Bulk cost $24.99.

That gap adds up quickly.

A 20-card submission at the current $59.99 Standard rate costs $1,199.80 before shipping and other expenses.

At the old $32.99 Value price, those same 20 cards would cost $659.80 — a difference of $540.

Compared with the old $24.99 Value Bulk rate, the difference grows to $700.

For a collector with 50 cards waiting to be graded, the gap becomes even more significant.

That is why PSA’s backlog updates matter beyond simply showing operational progress. Every step closer to restoring cheaper grading could materially change the economics of a submission.

There are obvious exceptions. A hot rookie card, a card tied to a player whose market is surging or a card a collector intends to sell immediately may justify paying the higher Standard rate.

But for a pile of lower-dollar cards with no time-sensitive reason to grade them, waiting is becoming easier to justify.

PSA Is Now 3.2 Million Cards From Its Key Target

PSA’s backlog has fallen rapidly since peaking during the summer.

The company reported a backlog of 12.4 million units on July 28. That number dropped to 11.85 million on August 11, 10.9 million on August 25, 9.9 million on September 8 and 9 million on September 22.

Now it stands at 8.2 million.

That means PSA has reduced the backlog by roughly 4.2 million units since July 28, a decline of nearly 34%.

The recent pace has been particularly notable.

PSA has cleared approximately 1.7 million units since September 8 alone.

When PSA suspended several Value services earlier this year, the company identified a backlog of approximately 5 million units as an important target in its effort to normalize operations.

At 8.2 million, PSA is now 3.2 million units away.

The company has not promised that hitting 5 million will automatically trigger an immediate reopening of Value or Value Bulk, and submission volume can change quickly.

Still, the gap is getting meaningfully smaller.

PSA also said in its October 6 update that sustained progress at its current rate would put the company in position to assess reopening additional service tiers in the coming months.

That is likely the most important line in the entire update for collectors.

When Will PSA Value Grading Reopen?

PSA has not announced a specific date for the return of Value or Value Bulk grading.

For now, collectors who want to submit cards to PSA must either use Standard or one of the company’s more expensive service levels.

PSA did introduce Standard at $59.99 in September, but the company made clear that it was not intended to permanently replace Value.

That distinction matters.

If PSA continues reducing its backlog at anything close to its recent pace, collectors could soon be facing a much different grading market than they were during the summer.

There is no guarantee that the eventual Value pricing will match its previous $32.99 or $24.99 levels, either.

But for collectors deciding whether to grade a large batch of cards today, PSA’s October 6 update creates a legitimate reason to think twice before paying the current $59.99-per-card entry price.

The backlog is still massive.

It is also shrinking fast enough that waiting may finally have a real dollar value