If you’re a comic book buyer, seller or avid collector, you’re probably always wondering what a particular comic book is worth. One of the biggest factors that determine a comic book’s value is the condition it’s in.
Comic book conditions are standardized into “grades” to make this process a bit easier to compare comic books to each other and therefore determine pricing premiums or discounts.
While there are some nuances and deviations between how people grade comic books that come down to individual preference, below is a general guideline on how to grade comic books.
In this article
Get Familiar With Comic Book Grades
Below is a general framework of the most commonly used comic book grades in descending order from best to worst:
Gem Mint (Mint)
Near Mint (NM+, NM, NM-)
Very Fine (VF+, VF, VF-)
Fine (FN+, FN, FN-)
Very Good (VG+, VG, VG-)
Good (GD+, GD, GD-)
Fair (FR+, FR, FR-)
Poor (PR+, PR, PR-)
Examine The Comic Book’s Condition Closely
Sometimes it’s difficult to examine your own comics. We may see what we want to see. We may become used to blemishes that are glaring problems to others. When you’re examining a comic, be sure to take your time to slowly and carefully review every detail and imperfection. Keep an eye out for how sharp the colors are and how crisp the edges of all the pages are.
It may be helpful to Google for the same comic online to see exactly what other CGC certified conditions look like.
Determine The Lowest And Highest Realistic Grade
Once you’ve closely reviewed the comic book, compare your perceived condition to the descriptions of each comic book grade. Much of the grading process is qualitative, so it’s typically easy to start off by determining the highest and lowest possible grades to set a baseline, then narrowing in on a specific grade from there.
Seek Advice From Comic Book Experts Like Sparkle City For An Appraisal
There is nothing easy about grading a comic book. Even if you can come up with your own grade somewhat accurately, having an independent third party grading and certifying your comic book can go a long way when it comes to selling it. That independent appraisal will give potential buyers peace of mind that they are buying what you describe and you aren’t leaving out any damaging details.
If you’re interested in getting a comic book appraised, check out the Sparkle City Comics appraisal services we offer.
Ready To Sell Your Comics? Sell Them To Sparkle City Comics And See Why We’re One Of The Most Popular Buyers And Sellers!
If you’ve already gone ahead and graded your comics, or you simply want to go ahead and start the selling process, we can help with that too! We are one of the largest buyers of comic books in the nation because we pride ourselves on customer service, fast and easy transactions and all-cash offers on comics we like. Ready to get started? Simply give us a call at 800-743-9205 or fill out our brief seller inquiry form and someone will be able to help!
