What is the best way to find out what a card is worth?
 

Hey Fellas,

How do you guys go about determining what a card is worth? Other than watching auction sites and comparing what dealers are asking, is there a better way? Appreciate your thoughts and suggestions.

-Mark

A card is only worth what someone is willing to pay for it. If you start an auction at .99¢, you'll find out the true value of a card.

Browse completed listings on Ebay

I can't say that I agree with Jeff. There are too many variables to just start a card at $.99 at any time of the day, any day, etc. The final price realized for a card is determined by who wants it, who is paying attention at that time, the cards rarity, etc. Completed auction results over time is a good way to find out a value of an item. Price guides are good on some items but not on others. So, there is not an absolute definitive answer. It just depends. And remember that any kind of guide is just that.

If it's high end cards, you could track it over the years from the auction house sales. Say a particular card is in auction house sells for some price. The exact same card gets reconsigned to a different auction house a year or two later. Sells for a different price & so on. You could see the value that way. For the lower end cards, there's too many variables as has been pointed out earlier. For example, not too long ago, a card of a Jewish player sold for a rediculously high price only because two Jewish players collectors wanted it that night. If one of those collectors didn't see it on eBay, it would have sold for much, much less.

Alan