I have heard this story so many times:
“I grew up collecting Pokemon cards and they are in a box in my closet. I even have some Charizards! How do I know if they have any value?”
Below, I am going to give you the ultimate countdown for the ten most valuable Charizards ever printed. However, it is important to note that if you have any of these cards, they aren’t necessarily worth the numbers that I have listed, as these are the prices of the top conditioned and graded cards on the market.
If your Charizards have been protected throughout the years and are in excellent condition, you are going to have to send them off to PSA to get them graded (on a scale of 1-10 with 10 being the highest score) if you want to sell them and get the most value in return. The PSA Population Reports listed in each section illustrate just how rare each of these cards are in top condition.
Let’s see how many ‘Zards you own and if you are up to date on recent sales.
The 2002 Neo Destiny 1st Edition Shining Charizard is a masterpiece. Charizard itself is the hologram, which makes it the most unique card on this list of Charizards. With the largest PSA 10 population of all the cards on the list, it’s fitting for the Shining ‘Zaard first entry. 1 year ago, a PSA 10 was valued around $8,600.00 and by September it has been a steady $14,000.00 and up to obtain.
Recent Sales:
PSA 10: $14,700.00 7/29/21
PSA 9: $4,050.69 7/28/21
PSA 8: $3,049.00 10/12/20
PSA Population Report:
PSA 10: 223
PSA 9: 253
PSA 8: 65
The newest card to make the list, the 2003 Skyridge Hologram Charizard has seen a massive rise since May 2020. Back then a PSA 10 sold for under $3,000.00. By June 2020, they were well over $7,000.00. In November 2020, the new record sale was $28,100.00. Since then, they have come back down and the market has cooled off some with the last sale of $18,600.00. The PSA 9 topped out at $9,000.00 in December 2020 and has come back down to sales in the $5,000.00 range. 365 days ago, a PSA 9 was under $1,500.00, so it’s still up 3x since August 2020.
Recent Sales:
PSA 10: $18,600.00 6/28/21
PSA 9: $5,200.00 6/11/21
PSA 8: $4,150.00 4/28/21
PSA Population Report:
PSA 10: 198
PSA 9: 203
PSA 8: 59
The 1995 Topsun Green Back Charizard is the first original ‘Zard to make our list. With such low pop numbers, you would think this rookie Charizard would be higher on the list, but due to demand and a lack of appreciation from hobbyists, the Green Back lands at #8 on our list. Due to such low graded population and being extremely difficult to find, this card should steadily rise to the top of the list of raw cards to pursue.
Recent Sales:
PSA 10: $18,250 8/5/21
PSA 9: No Sales
PSA 8: $770.00 7/19/21
PSA Population Report:
PSA 10: 46
PSA 9: 34
PSA 8: 26
Quite possibly the fastest riser on the list, the 2002 Expedition Charizard is now entrenched in the grail category. In 2019, the PSA 10 ‘Zard was under $2,000.00. Last summer the only public sale was for $5,600.00. Both of the next public sales topped $20,000.00 and with such a low population, there is some serious justification in making those purchases. The price drop-off from PSA 10 to PSA 9 is drastic and with 7 times more PSA 9’s on the market, it’s justified.
Recent Sales:
PSA 10: $21,443
PSA 9: $861.00
PSA 8: $636.00
PSA Population Report:
PSA 10: 35
PSA 9: 284
PSA 8: 207
The Topsun Blue Back Charizard is from the same set as the Green Back ‘Zard, which was previously on this list. The Blue Back is substantially harder to acquire and carries a much heavier price tag. With a top PSA 10 sale of $75,000.00 and only 24 examples, this is certainly a safe card with tons of upside with over 26 years since the set release.
Recent Sales:
PSA 10: $25,000 5/28/21
PSA 9: $4,050
PSA Population Report:
PSA 10: 24
PSA 9: 49
PSA 8: 27
The only card that’s not English or Japanese on this list, the Spanish 1st Edition Charizard has become quite valuable over the last couple years. Due to mostly imperfect printing, the majority of these Charizards don’t grade well. This is reflected by only 7 PSA 10 examples of the 176 total graded. Sealed Spanish 1st Edition Packs are some of the best value buys available today, due to quality of the hologram cards, and that’s if you pull a hologram. 1 in 3 Base packs contains a hologram, but be careful when buying packs.
For more info check out our Original Pokémon Guide!
Recent Sales:
PSA 10: $24,800.00
PSA 9: $1,920.00
PSA 8: $1,025.00
PSA Population Report:
PSA 10: 7
PSA 9: 72
PSA 8: 50
The Shadowless Charizard is one of the biggest current bargains on this list. The PSA 10 population is less than half that of the 1st Edition Charizard and its essentially the same card just without the 1st Edition Stamp. While that’s the only difference between the cards, their price tags are also drastically different. The last PSA 10 confirmed sale is 12.5% the cost of the biggest PSA 10 1st Edition Charizard sale this year.
Recent Sales:
PSA 10: $47,970.00 5/24/21
PSA 9: $4,300.00 8/3/21
PSA 8: $2,325.00 7/12/21
PSA Population Report:
PSA 10: 53
PSA 9: 673
PSA 8: 848
The 1996 No Rarity Japanese Charizard is the most intriguing card on this list. The 2nd Charizard ever printed, the No Rarity Charizards were most likely error cards that were printed early on. Currently standing at 6 pristine PSA copies, the No Rarity Charizard is the 2nd lowest population of all the cards on this list.
Recent Sales:
PSA 10: No Sales Listed
PSA 9: $45,000.00 4/28/21
PSA 8: $14,000.00 4/25/21
PSA Population Report:
PSA 10: 6
PSA 9: 30
PSA 8: 47
Are you surprised the 1st Edition ‘Zard didn’t take top billing? Although this card was dethroned earlier this year as the record-selling Charizard, it still commands massive money even with its population report. The English 1st Edition Base Charizard is easily the most popular of all the Charizard’s ever printed. Actually, it’s the most popular Pokémon card ever. The 1st Edition Base Pokémon cards were released at a time when Pokémon was catching fire. By the time the Base Unlimited cards were released, packs were selling out everywhere. The 1st Edition Charizard has always been the price leader of the Base 1st Edition cards, and that will never change, due to demand. While the biggest recent confirmed sale for a PSA 9 is $75,000.00, most are selling today under $32,000.00. That’s a major discrepancy between the two, but if someone wanted to cross-grade a very clean PSA 9 Charizard with Beckett Grading Services, in hopes of a BGS 9.5, the value could jump north of $80.000.00, depending on the sub-grades. Make sure to check out 365 Days of 1st Edition Pokémon Cards for a deeper dive on Charizard.
Recent Sales:
PSA 10: $399,750.00 3/7/21
PSA 9: $75,000.00 7/14/21
PSA 8: $11,233.00 7/28/21
PSA Population Report:
PSA 10: 122
PSA 9: 679
PSA 8: 564
When it comes to original Pokémon cards, the 1995 Topsun set is the pinnacle. This No Number PSA 10 Charizard is a POP 1, and warranted such a sale due to its rarity and originality. The Topsun Blue and Green Back Charizard’s are the rookie card for ‘Zard and will command premium money due to ultra low populations and massive demand. The difference between the Blue & Green Back’s is the Blue Back Charizard’s are much more rare and the ones with no number on them are the rarest Charizards to be produced. There have only been 4 total No Number Blue Back Charizard’s graded with PSA.
Recent Sales:
PSA 10: $493,230.00 – Goldin Auctions 1/31/21
PSA 9: $98,850.00 – PWCC 2/28/21
PSA 8: N/A
PSA Population Report:
PSA 10: 1
PSA 9: 1
PSA 8: 1