TCGplayer is excited to unveil our Conditioning Guide, a new and improved card conditioning standard that was developed in partnership with our sellers. With this guide, we’ve taken the best practices we developed through our Direct by TCGplayer program and input from our seller partners, and codified it for the broader TCG community –– allowing sellers and hobbyists to speak the same “quality” language when it comes to determining the condition of a card. As a result, we’re enabling a more consistent customer experience. Hobbyists get exactly what they ordered regardless of whether they are shopping online or in-stores and sellers are empowered with a clear set of definitions, and easy-to-use training materials. It’s a win-win for everyone! 

This conditioning standard reinforces TCGplayer’s unwavering commitment to authentication and has already been adopted by TCGplayer’s state of the art Authentication Center, which has authenticated approximately 115 million cards to date. We’ve embraced the best practices developed through our Direct by TCGplayer program and rolled out a new rigorous training process led by 300 authentication experts.

What exactly is conditioning? 
TCGplayer uses the term “conditioning” to describe the act of evaluating a product and categorizing it with a non-numeric quality label. We use the terms “condition” or “conditioning” instead of “grade” or  “grading,” for one simple reason: because grading already has a definition. It’s a numerical system that you see Beckett and PSA assign to cards when they slab them.

What we’re focused on instead is organizing the many millions of non-slabbed cards in a way that allows us to identify and evaluate cards against specific and defined quality labels or card conditions. That way, customers have confidence when they shop; they get exactly what they ordered every time with no surprises. And, in our never-ending quest to help our sellers run the best businesses possible, we are sharing our Conditioning Guide, training tips and authentication best practices so you can also condition your cards like TCGplayer, enhancing our ability to consistently meet our shared customers’ expectations.

What does the TCGplayer Conditioning Guide mean for you?
A clearly defined and universally adopted conditioning standard is the best way to create an informed TCG community where sellers and hobbyists can trade even better.

Our Conditioning Guide provides a clear set of quality definitions and easy-to-use training materials. This means fewer conditioning errors, a straightforward and easily trainable conditioning process, fewer returns, and more repeat business for you. To put it simply, we’re sharing our conditioning standard with you so that you can better delight your customers and consistently meet their expectations.

What are the different conditioning standards? 
TCGplayer uses five categories with clearly defined descriptions to sort cards: Near Mint, Lightly Played, Moderately Played, Heavily Played, Damaged. The condition of a card is determined by the number and extent of imperfections that a card exhibits. Imperfections are any atypical printing or manufacturing defects, and any wear or damage to the card after the printing process. Imperfections are characterized by both a type and a severity.

Our Conditioning Guide is more than just a standardization of language. It also includes tools and objective methods like our controlled points system, which help you measure a card’s imperfections and properly classify them. Please see our Conditioning Guide for best practices on conditioning your cards. 

Additionally, TCGplayer has released easy-to-use condition verification tools that enables sellers to easily train in-store staff, reduce errors and set clear definitions to meet their customers’ expectations. You can also watch the Card Conditioning Standard training video. 

Learn more about our conditioning standard by reading our official announcement.

FAQ 

1. Why should sellers adopt this conditioning standard?
   Our Conditioning Guide provides a clear set of quality definitions and easy-to-use training materials. This means you will: 
   • Establish a straightforward and easily trainable process;
   • Allow for fewer conditioning errors;
   • Ensure fewer returns; and  
   • Generate more repeat business.
     
     
2. What are the benefits for hobbyists?
   With a universally adopted conditioning standard, customers are more likely to receive exactly what they ordered, consistently, regardless of whether they’re shopping online or in-store. Long story short: the customer receives the card they ordered, no surprises.
   
   
3. How are cards conditioned?
   TCGplayer uses five categories with clearly defined descriptions to sort cards: Near Mint, Lightly Played, Moderately Played, Heavily Played, Damaged. The condition of a card is determined by the number and extent of imperfections that a card exhibits. For more information, see our Conditioning Guide here.
   
   
4. What changed compared to your previous conditioning standard?
   The TCGplayer Conditioning Guide aims to minimize subjectivity from the conditioning process. The guide includes exact definitions and measurements to evaluate a card against each specific condition: Near Mint, Lightly Played, Moderately Played, Heavily Played and Damaged. But our Conditioning Guide is more than just a standardization of language. It also includes tools and objective methods like our controlled points system, which help you measure a card’s imperfections and properly classify them.