A Pikachu Illustrator Leads Top 5 TCG Card Sales of the Week
Pokémon once again swept the five biggest TCG card sales of the week, but this time Pikachu returned to the top with one of the biggest sales of the year.
A PSA 9 Pikachu Illustrator changed hands privately for $2.7 million, while the Fanatics Weekly auction accounted for the other four spots. The week also brought some different characters to the party, including Palkia and Typhlosion, along with an unusual lot featuring 11 highly desirable Pikachu promo cards.
Without further delay, here are the five biggest TCG card sales of the week with sales data from Card Ladder.
5. 2008 Pokémon Diamond & Pearl Great Encounters Palkia LV.X #106 PSA 10
Palkia makes a rare appearance in the weekly top five with a smashing result. The 2008 Great Encounters LV.X, graded PSA 10, sold for $204,000 through Fanatics Weekly on August 30.
The card is particularly difficult in this grade, with only 13 PSA 10s currently recorded. That scarcity helped turn a card from the Diamond & Pearl era into a six-figure sale.
4. 2015-16 Pokémon Japanese XY Promo Poncho-Wearing & Mario/Luigi Pikachu Lot PSA 10
While not a single card, the fourth spot belongs to an impressive collection of 11 Japanese Pikachu promos.
The lot includes Poncho-Wearing Pikachu cards along with the popular Mario and Luigi Pikachu releases, with all 11 cards graded PSA 10. The group sold for $336,000 through Fanatics Weekly on August 30.
With the increased interest and cross-pollination of video game collectors, 90’s nostalgia, and Pokémon, it’s no surprise that this lot went for low six-figures to a lucky collector.
3. 2000 Pokémon Neo Genesis 1st Edition Typhlosion #17 CGC Pristine 10
Typhlosion has become one of the breakout vintage Pokémon cards of 2026.
This First Edition Neo Genesis holo, graded CGC Pristine 10, sold for $336,000 through Fanatics Weekly. The result more than quadrupled the $81,250 previous public benchmark for a CGC Pristine 10 set at Heritage in April.
2. 2000 Pokémon Neo Genesis 1st Edition Lugia #9 PSA 10
Lugia edged out Typhlosion in a huge night for Neo Genesis.
The First Edition holo graded PSA 10 sold for $360,000 through Fanatics Weekly, topping a $205,794 sale in June and establishing another major benchmark for one of Pokémon's most recognizable cards.
1. 1998 Pokémon Japanese CoroCoro Illustrator Pikachu PSA 9
And then there's the Pikachu Illustrator. A PSA 9 example of one of the most famous Pokémon cards ever produced sold privately for $2.7 million on August 31. PSA currently lists just 15 examples in this grade, with only one graded higher.
The sale alone accounted for more than two-thirds of the $3.936 million generated by this week's top five.
Another week, another Pokémon sweep—but with nearly $4 million changing hands and several new characters joining Pikachu near the top, this was hardly a typical week.
Add us as a preferred source on Google
Lucas Mast is a writer based in California’s Bay Area, where he’s a season ticket holder for St. Mary’s basketball and a die-hard Stanford athletics fan. A lifelong collector of sneakers, sports cards, and pop culture, he also advises companies shaping the future of the hobby and sports. He’s driven by a curiosity about why people collect—and what those items reveal about the moments and memories that matter most.
Follow sneakrz