The 5 Most Iconic and Valuable Pokémon Cards From POP Series 1-9
Pokémon cards have always been distributed in special promotions beyond the traditional sets that are produced and released multiple times a year. From Black Star Promos to McDonald's collaborations, there are so many unique Pokémon TCG releases out there in the catalog.
One promotion in particular stands out for its rarity in modern collecting because it wasn't necessarily easy to get upon release two decades ago either. These are none other than the POP Series cards.
The Pokémon Organized Play (POP) Series packs were distributed at events and tournaments in the mid-to-late 2000s as an extra reward for competitors at the time. Each pack only contained two cards, and the total number of unique pieces in a set was 17.
There are nine POP Series sets in total, and while each one is valuable and extremely rare these days, there are a few hold so much more weight. Here are the cards that defined the POP Series sets of the 2000s.
Rayquaza Holo - POP Series 1
Recent PSA 10 Price: $13,000 (all-time record)
Recent PSA 9 Price: $2,050
Recent Raw Price: $100 (on average, LP condition)
Total Population of PSA 10: 27
Total Population of PSA 9: 177
This is not even the most expensive raw card from POP Series 1, but if the first-ever entry of the nine sets had to be defined by a single collectible, it would definitely be the Holo Rayquaza. The art itself has become such an iconic illustration and, while dated in today's standards, it's still got that vintage appeal which really won't fade away soon.
The most recent sale for a PSA 10 version of this piece was $13,000, which also happens to be the highest amount ever paid for this card. With only 27 PSA 10 copies in the entire world and the growth of the Pokémon TCG not slowing down, the record sale for a POP Series 1 Rayquaza really won't stand at only $13,000 forever.
Chimecho - POP Series 4
Recent PSA 10 Price: $805 (record sale happened two weeks earlier for $3,240)
Recent PSA 9 Price: $1,075
Recent Raw Price: $1,000 (on average, varying condition)
Total Population of PSA 10: 8
Total Population of PSA 9: 44
There's really no way to properly explain this. The most valuable card from POP Series 4, a collection that includes multiple Deoxys prints, Mew, and Pikachu, is a simple Chimecho Delta Species card. It's not holographic, not even a reverse holo, and is still the most valuable of the bunch in raw condition.
The Deoxys #2 Holo is the most expensive of the lot in a PSA 10, sure, but that's not the only criteria for being on this list. The Chimecho card is celebrated for how absurd its price is for such a simple piece of collecting history.
Mew Holo - POP Series 5
Recent PSA 10 Price: $26,000 (all-time record)
Recent PSA 9 Price: $10,000
Recent Raw Price: $300 (on average, LP condition)
Total Population of PSA 10: 7
Total Population of PSA 9: 35
The least expensive of the POP Series 5 grails is still a high-end card that collectors would stop and stare at should they ever come across one in person. The Fire-type Mew Holo from POP Series 5 is one of the absolute grail Mew cards in the entire Hobby and one of the true collector's items from any POP Series release.
The card came with a printing error that caused the back to be inverted compared to its usual orientation, which makes a Mew from POP Series 5 with an upwards-facing backside even rarer than one with said printing error.
The most valuable copy of this card, a PSA 10 with the printing error, sold for $26,000 last January 2026. With an extremely low population count of seven, it's going to be a while before another copy hits the open market again.
Gold Star Espeon - POP Series 5
Recent PSA 10 Price: $90,000 (all-time record)
Recent PSA 9 Price: $15,351
Recent Raw Price: $6,600 (on average, varying condition)
Total Population of PSA 10: 58
Total Population of PSA 9: 156
Put the most famous chase line of the 2000s into one of the shortest-printed sets in all of Pokémon, and you'll get numbers like those for sure. The Gold Star Espeon is the second-most sought-after card from any of the POP Series releases and one of the most valuable Espeon releases ever.
A record $90,000 was paid for a PSA 10 Gold Star Espeon back in June, and for a month it stood as the most valuable Espeon card printed in English until a $96,000 HGSS Undaunted Espeon Prime PSA 10 sale took the top spot.
Gold Star Umbreon - POP Series 5
Recent PSA 10 Price: $168,000 (all-time record)
Recent PSA 9 Price: $32,400
Recent Raw Price: $1,000 (on average, NM condition)
Total Population of PSA 10: 53
Total Population of PSA 9: 147
The only reason why the Gold Star Espeon is not #1 on this list is that Umbreon exists. There really doesn't need to be any more introduction for Umbreon as a Pokémon at this point, and the most recent sale for a Gold Star Umbreon in a PSA 10 grade just proves that.
The most valuable English Umbreon card of all time is a PSA 10 Gold Star that sold for
$168,000. The most valuable Japanese Umbreon card of all time is a PSA 10 Gold Star that sold for $180,000. If this card existed in any more languages, there's no doubting that a PSA 10 of that would also shatter records.
Simply put, the Gold Star Umbreon from POP Series 5 is the very best card to ever come out of this limited run.
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Joaqin is a journalist with a strong passion for the Hobby. He has published work for HLTV.org, Rappler.com, and DLSU Sports. A decade-long Pokémon TCG collector, he recently shifted into sports cards to collect Lakers, Dodgers and Chargers players with growing PCs of Shohei Ohtani and Justin Herbert.