Is Champions Festival worth grading?
Pokémon · XY Black Star Promos · XY27 · full price guide →
Strong grading candidate — 13× premium in PSA 10
A PSA 10 Champions Festival sells for $4,548 against $350 raw: a $4,198 spread, 13× the ungraded price. A PSA 9 ($349) sells for less than raw, so anything short of a 10 loses money. Centering is the usual reason a clean copy misses the 10 — measure it before you submit.
- Raw (NM)
- $350
- PSA 10
- $4,548
- PSA 9
- $349
- Gem premium
- 13×
- As of
- Aug 10, 2026
Break-even by outcome and fee
| If it comes back… | Sells for | Economy / bulk (~$25.00) | Standard (~$50.00) | Express (~$150) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gem — PSA 10 | $4,548 | +$4,173 | +$4,148 | +$4,048 |
| PSA 9 | $349 | −$26.35 | −$51.35 | −$151 |
| PSA 8 | $125 | −$250 | −$275 | −$375 |
Net = sale price − $350 raw value − fee. Fee tiers are illustrative; plug your grader's current price into the calculator below.
Expected value — how often does it need to gem?
| Chance it gems | Expected sale | Expected net (standard fee) |
|---|---|---|
| 25% | $1,399 | +$999 |
| 50% | $2,448 | +$2,048 |
| 75% | $3,498 | +$3,098 |
Break-even gem rate at the standard fee: about 1%. Centering is the usual reason a clean copy misses — measure it before you decide.
Which grader pays the most — and what a 10 takes
All centering standards →| Grader | 10 sells for | vs best | Front centering for a 10 | Back |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| PSA 10 | $4,548 | best | 55/45 | 75/25 |
Tolerances are each company's published centering standard for its top grade; surface, corners and edges must also be clean. Centering is the one you can measure yourself before you pay.
Full grade ladder
Raw conditions & history →| Grade | PSA | CGC |
|---|---|---|
| 10 | $3,392 | — |
| 9 | $427 | $3,120 |
| 8.5 | — | $217 |
| 8 | $403 | $750 |
| 7.5 | — | $336 |
| 7 | $249 | $350 |
Run your own numbers
Should I pay this?
Enter the seller’s asking price to see your net outcome per grade.
Other XY Black Star Promos cards worth checking
Full set checklist →
Grading Champions Festival — FAQ
Is Champions Festival worth grading?
A PSA 10 Champions Festival sells for $4,548 against $350 raw: a $4,198 spread, 13× the ungraded price. A PSA 9 ($349) sells for less than raw, so anything short of a 10 loses money. Centering is the usual reason a clean copy misses the 10 — measure it before you submit.
How much is a PSA 10 Champions Festival worth compared with raw?
A PSA 10 Champions Festival (XY Black Star Promos XY27) sells for about $4,548 versus $350 for a raw near-mint copy — a 13× premium as of Aug 10, 2026.
What centering does Champions Festival need for a PSA 10?
PSA publishes 55/45 front and 75/25 back centering as the tolerance for a 10 (Gem Mint). Off-center copies are capped below the top grade regardless of surface — measure yours before paying the fee.
What gem rate makes grading Champions Festival break even?
At a standard ~$50 fee, submitting Champions Festival breaks even when it gems about 1% of the time (a miss assumed to sell at the PSA 9 price of $349).
Is your Pokémon card centered well enough to grade?
Centering makes or breaks a PSA 10. Scan any card with Midpoint to measure its exact centering, get a grade estimate, and see what your copy is actually worth.
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