Hi.
I was wondering whether there is actually a value difference between PSA cards with old cases and certs (2xxx…) and those with the new case and certs (>3xxx…)?
Cheers!
New certs sell for 2.5%-5% greater on average. The actual monetary difference for most cards is quite small.
Hi. I would say there’s a tiny premium on newer certs as dyl said because it’s been their standard for a few years now. I’ve seen some posts where newer collectors even question the authenticity of some PSA cards since it has the old label.
Another possible reason (tin hat coming on): the average “grading standard” was a bit lower than it is now.
I’d like to add that no 2 cards are alike. One might have a swirl in a better location. One slab may have been in better condition than the other even though they have the same grade. There are many cogs to this machine to consider.
I bet in exact this Moment there is at least 1 Person pulling the Trigger to have the Card. Meanwhile Dozens overthink so long (Cert/Swirls something else) and miss the opportunity.
If i see a card i want thats somehow “rare” and its in the condition i want i take it. No matter if old or new cert. ive seen to often i consider small details too long and smarter People get it.
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I’d recommend doing a search on the site for this one, there have been many threads on it before with some great insights and opinions!
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To me they don’t make a difference. Condition > Grade. As long as you aren’t buying cert 2s that are PSA 10s that look like they barely deserve a 9 you’re bing chilling
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This was a topic that was much bigger in 2020 and 2021 during the boom. It seems like people don’t care as much about cert numbers in 2023, which could have a lot to do with the fact that most of those people who made a big deal about them a couple of years ago have exited the hobby.
I could be wrong, but I don’t remember cert numbers ever being an issue before 2020.
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Agreed with @Cerulean that this was a bigger perceived problem in 2020 and 2021.
Tinfoil hat conspiracies of PSA’s standards changing have been around forever. Every time there is a change in the leading number 2XXXX, 4XXXX, 5XXXX, 6XXXX, 7XXXX, etc. a new wave of disgruntled collectors claim that the newest cert is best and everything older is trash.
Here’s a thread from 6 years ago (2017, wow time flies!) questioning whether PSA changed their standards.
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I saw this post and I decided to run the numbers again. Last post was made July-2022.
Data used up to Feb-28-2023.
Conclusion: results are the same as last time,
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2XXXX (Old) PSA 10 is around 2.5%-5% less than Cert > =4XXXXX (New)
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2XXXX (Old) PSA 9 is around 4%-5% less than Cert > =4XXXXX (New)
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2XXXX (Old) PSA 8 is around 2 % less than Cert > =4XXXXX (New)
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I love this data so much. Both the direction and effect size feel very appropriate
“Yes, certs matter. No, not to a degree where you should care”
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I’ll pay a small premium for having the lighthouse label so that my collection is matching for the most part. However, I have many cards from other grading companies or 0xx-2x PSA certs because of great deals at the time. At the end of the day I’d rather have a card in the condition I enjoy than pay significantly more for a label.
That 5% more for a lighthouse label matches my spending but most cards have the lighthouse label anyways at the cheapest to most expensive options.
Thank you for all the responses. I have a couple of old certs 2xxxxx, and I have to say these are one of the best cards I have. I can’t see any difference in grading quality.
@TCGFish Where did you pull the data from? That’s quite an interesting analysis
It is interesting to me how the New Certs have the higher value, because I’ve always been more about buying the card itself over the Cert # on the slab. I have seen strong/weak examples across all Cert #'s, and so I honestly don’t mind buying an old cert at all for this reason and appreciate how the market discounts them. I think what happens is people will come across some weak old cert # they just jump on the bandwagon with it all, but in reality it’s most likely just an outlier among the range of that cert #, and in reality the vast majority of slabs were/are graded accurately in that range overall.
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I see it this way: On the one hand, this is a positive thing. You can get a specific card with an old cert 5% cheaper!
On the other hand, there is some concern, as there is the trend that the price difference between old and new cert becomes larger over time. So hopefully the old certs won’t get “worthless” over time.
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I remember doing a call with someone during 2020 who wanted to get a card that only had a handful of psa 10 examples. This was when the cert noise was louder; ironically the apparent “stronger” certs then are now the “weaker” certs today. One appeared for sale and was a 0 cert, so they declined. I explained to them this card is most likely not going to have many more gem mint copies.
Fast forward to today, they still don’t have the card, and most likely never will.
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skill issue
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That is rough. They had the bird in their hand, but didn’t take it 
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