Before You Submit: Grading Submission Checklist
A quick reference for what to buy and do before shipping a card to PSA, CGC, BGS, or SGC.
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This is the same checklist we run through before a card leaves the shop — nothing here is optional if you want the card to arrive the way it left your hands.
Supplies You’ll Need
- Penny sleeve — shop penny sleeves
- Toploader (35pt fits most modern cards) — shop toploaders
- Semi-rigid card saver or team bag — shop card savers
- Painter’s tape (to secure the toploader shut without leaving residue) — shop painter's tape
- Bubble mailer or small shipping box — shop bubble mailers
Before You Package It
- Check the card under a single, direct light source, tilted at an angle — this “raking light” trick reveals scratches and surface issues a straight-on look misses.
- Confirm the card hasn’t been cleaned, pressed, or otherwise altered. Graders flag this fast, and it’s a bigger problem than honest wear ever is.
- Double-check that the declared value and service tier on your submission form actually match what you intend to send.
- Photograph the front and back before it leaves your hands — useful for your own records, and for insurance if anything goes wrong in transit.
- Not sure a card’s even worth the fee? Run it through CrackorKeep first for a free estimate before you pay to find out the hard way.
How to Package It
- Card goes into the penny sleeve.
- Sleeved card goes into the toploader.
- Tape the toploader shut along the open edge with painter’s tape — enough to secure it, not so much it’s hard to remove on the other end.
- Place the taped toploader into a semi-rigid card saver or team bag.
- Wrap in bubble wrap and pack it so it can’t shift inside the mailer or box.
- Ship with tracking, and insure it for what it’s actually worth — not what you paid for it.