March GemRate Report: PSA, TCG & Rookie Hype Drive Record Card Month
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The hobby is stronger than ever.
According to data compiled by GemRate, 2.97 million cards were graded across the major grading companies in March. That's up nearly 19% from February, or roughly 480,000 additional cards. PSA, Beckett, and CGC all saw record highs for grading card volumes.
An even more impressive data point emerges when you look at the year-over-year trend. Last March, about two million cards were graded, meaning year-over-year volume is up nearly 50%.
The latest report should give collectors renewed faith in the space. Despite price hikes, consolidation, and broader macroeconomic factors like a spike in energy costs, collectors still see a lot of value in the services these companies provide.
PSA graded over 2.1 million cards
PSA graded 2.17 million cards, up 16% from February and up 47% compared to last March. CGC processed 600K cards, up an incredible 141% year-over-year. Beckett graded 106K cards, up over 50% in a year. TAG continued its steady climb at 47K cards, up nearly 200% from a year ago.
The only grading company that saw a year-over-year decline was SGC, which was down 73% compared to this time last year but up 14% compared to February.
What stands out is not just who graded the most. It is that collectors continue to spread submissions across companies depending on the card and the goal. Presentation, subgrades, and technology all factor into that choice now more than ever. Soon, newcomers like C3 will likely start appearing in GemRate reports.
Duke Duo & Dart Dominate Recent Demand
While Michael Jordan and Shohei Ohtani remain at the top for the most graded players, the demand stories belong to former Duke roommates Cooper Flagg and Kon Knueppel, as well as Jaxson Dart. All three have seen grading volumes pop by over 50% in March.
For graded athletes, Shohei Ohtani led the way with roughly 30.6K cards graded. Michael Jordan followed at 28.8K. Cooper Flagg was a close third with 26.1K, followed by Drake Maye with 13.9K.
The bigger story in the data is the month-over-month growth story. Kon Knueppel led the way with a massive 145% pop, surpassing LeBron James. Knueppel's former Duke teammate, Cooper Flagg, also saw great gains with a near 70% pop. The only other top player in this month's report with over a 50% gain was New York Giants quarterback Jaxson Dart, with 56% growth.
Flagg, Knueppel, and Dart represent the future of basketball and football. Those submissions are very forward-looking and built around hope. This is a very different mindset compared to collectors submitting Jordan and Ohtani cards.
What also stands out is the drop in grading demand for LeBron James. Could the LeBron faithful be losing faith? Do the GOAT narratives no longer feel as strong as they once did with Luka Doncic and Austin Reeves carrying the team to 50 wins? The LeBron grading trend could pivot sharply if Luka and the Lakers help LeBron capture his fifth ring this summer.
TCG is back on growth trajectory
Trading card games are back in the driver's seat in March. After a slight dip in February, March saw over 2.1 million TCG and non-sport cards graded, which is roughly 70% of all grading volume in March.
Like we saw in February, nine of PSA's top ten most graded TCG cards were Pokémon, with Pikachu and Charizard leading the way.
However, Monkey D. Luffy from One Piece continues to hold onto that number three spot. In fact, for all the top TCG cards, it was the Luffy cards that saw the greatest growth with 42% month over month. If Luffy cards represent a broader signal of One Piece strength, it's just a matter of time before we see more One Piece cards cracking into the top TCG list.
The only top TCG card down month over month was Pikachu, which is unexpected. This could reflect a pull-forward effect, where earlier grading demand spiked in February before settling back down in March. Who knows, but it's something for Pokémon collectors to keep an eye on as the year progresses.
Conor is a life long sports card enthusiast who started collecting in the early ’90s, inspired by hometown heroes like Larry Bird, Paul Pierce, Tom Brady, and David Ortiz. Like many ’90s hoops fans, he also started building (and continues to build) a modest Michael Jordan collection.