Although collectors now have more rating options than ever before, many still choose Professional Sports Authenticator (abbreviated as PSA) – even though this industry leader is still dealing with a backlog of millions of cards.
As more and more collectors regard trading cards and vintage sports cards as an alternative form of investment, the demand for grading continues to grow. Grading refers to the process of verifying the authenticity of the cards and assessing their condition.
PSA reports that as of October 20, it had a backlog of 7.2 million items to be processed, which is lower than the 12.4 million items in July. The company temporarily suspended its cheaper review-service in June to alleviate the backlog and reopened the Value service on October 29.
Even so, several dealers told CNBC that some sellers would rather wait for the PSA label than send their cards to competitors for grading.
CardsHQ Founder and CEO Geoff Wilson stated: "In the end, it all comes down to the value of the secondary market." CardsHQ operates one of the largest sports card stores in the world.
Wilson says that PSA rating cards are usually sold at a higher price than similar cards from competitors, which motivates collectors and investors to choose PSA in the hope of obtaining higher returns.
Such financial discrepancies can be quite substantial.
According to the records of CNBC regarding PriceCharting, a 1999 Base Set Fire Dragon (Charizard) PSA 9 rating card was sold on eBay for approximately $3,440 on September 29; in contrast, a CGC 9 rating version sold on the same day was priced at around $1,890.
This price difference has strengthened the leading position of PSA, and also gives its decisions regarding fees and review services considerable influence over the reselling market.
As of press time, PSA has not yet responded to the detailed questions raised by CNBC. In the updates that have been released, the company attributed service limitations and price adjustments to demand exceeding processing capacity, and outlined investments aimed at reducing backlogs.
"Gold Standard"
Rating companies will verify the authenticity of the cards, assess their condition, and then enclose them in a plastic protective case known as slab. The PSA rating system uses a 10-point scale, with the highest grade, Gem Mint, assigned to what they refer to as "nearly perfect" cards.
Just like credit ratings in the bond market, card ratings provide a common benchmark for both buyers and sellers to assess the condition of the cards.
This can reduce transaction friction, as both parties can refer to the historical transaction records of the same card under the same rating.
An unnamed spokesperson for the Singapore-based distributor Oxley Grading stated that this capability has helped to attract more global participants to the transaction card market and has also made cross-border transactions easier.
This spokesperson attributes the status of PSA as the industry's "gold standard" to its early inception, high brand recognition, and a large number of completed sales records.
The spokesperson said, "They have built a very strong brand and also accumulated a large amount of sales records."
It is estimated that among the rating cards submitted to Oxley Grading for acquisition, approximately 90% carry the PSA tag.
This dominant position creates a self-reinforcing cycle: buyers prefer PSA rating cards, which in turn encourages sellers to use that company. The presence of a large number of PSA packaged cards in stores and online markets further enhances the visibility and demand for this brand.
For sellers who choose rating agencies, this established resale demand may be more important than lower fees or faster turnaround times offered by competitors.
Collect the Empire
PSA is part of a larger collectibles business ecosystem.
Its parent company, Collectors, also owns competitive rating brands Beckett and SGC, pricing data platforms Card Ladder and PSA Vault, as well as financial services business. This treasury business will connect storage with external market sales, which includes eBay.
Together, these services cover most of the stages in a card business journey: rating, pricing, storage, sales, and even financing using collectibles as collateral.
According to data tracked by industry analysis firm GemRate, the three major card rating brands under Collectors accounted for approximately 71% of the total ratings issued by major rating companies in August. Among them, PSA alone accounted for about 65%, while the second-largest participant, CGC, accounted for around 28%.
The integration of Collectors has also drawn legal scrutiny.
A proposed class action filed in April challenges the acquisition of SGC and Beckett by Collectors, claiming that these transactions illegally weakened competition in the card rating sector. The allegations have not yet been confirmed in court.
Collectors has defended the acquisition of Beckett, stating that this move is aimed at strengthening a trustworthy brand while also preserving collectors' ability to choose the most suitable rating service for their collections.
Collectors CEO Nat Turner stated in the company's acquisition announcement for 2025: "We believe that a strong and well-supported brand can help to expand the opportunities for participation in this hobby."
The cost of relying on a single market
For sellers who prefer to consider the resale premium of PSA, changes in PSA fees and review-giving services may affect the economic viability of giving a review for a card.
PSA increased the fees for several existing service packages in February, with Value Bulk rising from $21.99 to $24.99, and Value rising from $27.99 to $32.99. The company also extended the expected turnaround times for some services, stating that these changes will help to balance the demand for reviews with the rating capacity.
The spokesperson for Oxley Grading stated that the suspension of the cheaper tariff in June further reduced affordable options, and the higher costs also made customers more cautious when choosing which cards to send reviews for.
At the same time, Wilson indicates that these restrictions have particularly affected collectors and dealers who purchase unrated cards, send them to PSA for rating, and then resell them at a higher price.
He said that for cards with a value of just a few hundred dollars or less, this strategy is now even less tenable.
Wilson added, "You will see more bare cards being bought and sold at card expos." Here, 'bare cards' refers to unrated cards in the industry.
PSA also acknowledges that customer waiting times are too long.
In an update on October 28th, the company stated that the number of reviews received in April and May was 2.5 times that of the same period last year. The company also announced a reduction in the expected turnaround time for the Standard and Priority services, and mentioned that new Value review orders would be processed after existing ones.
Collectors's PSA and President of the Rating Business, Ryan Hoge, stated in a declaration: "We have significantly increased our production capacity, but there is still work to be done."
For Wilson, these capacity investments are precisely part of the attractiveness of PSA.
He said, "By doing so, they have improved the experience for collectors."
Limited bargaining power
The dominant position of the leading rating agencies may leave collectors with little room for counteraction.
The spokesperson for Oxley Grading stated that collectors' preference for the resale value of PSA reduces the attractiveness of using other rating agencies, and added, "The lead of PSA comes from resale demand and liquidity, while other labels are still building these capabilities."
The trading card platform TCG Marketplace's operations manager, Amber Chuah, told CNBC that since many major rating agencies are based in the United States, overseas customers may have fewer rating options to choose from.
The most common complaints she hears are about long waiting times and the disappointment caused by the final card ratings being lower than what customers expected.
She added that if one wishes to dispute a rating, it often requires another round of sending and waiting, which discourages some collectors from challenging the results.
"If you're really in a hurry to sell, it will take a lot of time."
PSA did not respond to CNBC's questions regarding these sources of information.
According to the PSA clause, customers can request a paid review of a disputed rating, but the rating fee and applicable shipping costs shall be borne by the customer. The company also provides a defect description for eligible reviews to explain in more detail how the rating was determined.
The Wilson of CardsHQ indicates that in processes involving human judgment, there are certain differences between various assessment results, which is an inherent challenge of this process.
Challenge PSA
Wilson does not agree with the statement that "the status of PSA leaves customers with no other choice."
He said, "First of all, alternative solutions do exist." He mentioned smaller rating agencies such as CGC, Beckett, and TAG.
According to GemRate data, CGC's rating volume in August more than doubled compared to a year ago, indicating that competing rating agencies are attracting business. Beckett also recorded strong growth, despite being owned by Collectors.
The spokesperson for Oxley Grading stated that there may still be room in the market for lower-cost services for collectors who place more emphasis on the artistic value, emotional value, or the need to preserve cards, rather than maximizing their resale value.
However, competing for those sellers who seek the strongest financial returns is still even more challenging.
The spokesperson said that to establish a resale acceptance level comparable to that of PSA, a significant investment is required, and there is no guarantee that buyers will place as much importance on the tags of new entrants as they do on the PSA tags.
For Wilson, a wider acceptance in the secondary market is the key to changing this balance.
He said, "If the entire market begins to respect more the value of cards issued by other rating companies, then collectors will increasingly send their cards to those companies for rating."
