Price Trends: Pokémon Cards Climbing in Price – 5/20/24
By Peter Day •
We want you to have the best information available when you price cards on the TCGplayer Marketplace. So to help you get the most from your inventory, we’ve put together a downloadable CSV report of Pokémon cards that have dramatically increased in Market Price since the start of May 2024.
(Note: This report only considers Near Mint copies of cards with at least five sales between May 1 and May 14, 2024.)
Here are ten highlights from that report. First, we have the five cards that gained the most value in May 2024 after starting with a Market Price of $10 or less.
Top 5 Price Increases—PKMN Cards $10 or Less
- Set: Astral Radiance
- Increase: +$3.49
- Current Market Price: $7.57
Every version of Origin Forme Dialga V spiked in value after Andrew Hedrick came in first place at the 2342-player Indianapolis Regional playing a Dialga VSTAR deck. That deck runs three copies of Dialga V, which can evolve into Dialga VSTAR and take an extra turn using its Star Chronos VSTAR Power.
This version of Dialga V is the cheapest, lowest-rarity version, and the one that players who are just testing the deck now are most likely to seek out.
#4 Skuntank V (Alternate Full Art)
- Set: Silver Tempest
- Increase: +$3.69
- Current Market Price: $10.22
This version of Skuntank V was the target buyouts on April 30 and May 1, when the average copies per buyer spiked to 6.2 and 4.4 respectively, up from 1.0 on April 29. Speculators were most likely hoping that Skuntank V would follow the trend of other alternate art cards from the Sword & Shield Series and become more popular over time, especially as packs from that era become harder to find and less likely for The Pokémon Company to reprint. So far, their gamble has paid off, and Skuntank V has continued to climb.
- Set: Prize Pack Series Cards
- Increase: +$3.91
- Current Market Price: $10.34
Like the original version of Origin Forme Dialga V, this version from Play! Pokémon Prize Pack Series Three has also become more valuable as players try to assemble the Dialga VSTAR deck that won the Masters-division Indianapolis Regional Championship.
- Set: Paldean Fates
- Increase: +$7.64
- Current Market Price: $11.06
This fancy, collectible version of the Xatu card that was originally printed in Paradox Rift became much more valuable after the deck it’s played in did much better than expected at Regional Championships in Sao Paulo (April 20th) and Indianapolis (May 4th). The original printing of Xatu is a tiny fraction of the price of this one, but because so many Pokémon players are collectors too, they enjoy sleeving up the rarest versions of the cards in their decks.
- Set: Paldean Fates
- Increase: +$8.70
- Current Market Price: $12.78
Like Xatu, Natu is played in the Espathra ex deck and saw a big spike in value after players piloting the deck placed 20th at Sao Paulo and 25th at Indianapolis.
Next, these are the five cards that gained the most value in May 2024 after starting with a Market Price over $5.
Top 5 Price Increases—PKMN Cards Over $5
#5 Gengar VMAX (Alternate Art Secret)
- Set: Fusion Strike
- Increase: +$85.95
- Current Market Price: 413.52
All the alternate art cards from 2021 have been trending upward since April 5, when cards with the “E” regulation mark rotated out of Standard, ending any chance that The Pokémon Company would reprint them. Normally, you’d expect cards to lose value when they rotate out of playability. In the case of cards like Gengar VMAX however, their value has always been set by demand from collectors rather than players, so rotation makes them more valuable rather than less.
Gengar VMAX got an extra push on May 1 when a buyout caused the average copies per buyer to spike to 8.0 for the day, up from 1.0 the day before.
#4 Rayquaza VMAX (Alternate Art Secret)
- Set: Evolving Skies
- Increase: +$87.12
- Current Market Price: $464.98
Like Gengar VMAX, Rayquaza VMAX has been trending upward since Standard rotation on April 5th. It also got an extra push in its ascent when one buyer bought seven copies of the card on May 3. This soft buyout shrunk the number of copies left for sale on the Marketplace, enabling Rayquaza VMAX to soar even higher.
#3 Giratina V (Alternate Full Art)
- Set: Lost Origin
- Increase: +$91.58
- Current Market Price: $477.13
This version of Giratina V was the most valuable Pokémon card printed in 2022, and it’s been trending upward throughout 2024 despite not rotating in April. Like Rayquaza VMAX and other high-rarity cards, it was also targeted for a soft buyout in May, which boosted its Market Price by about $50 in one day.
#2 Leafeon VMAX (Alternate Art Secret)
- Set: Evolving Skies
- Increase: +$104.11
- Current Market Price: $326.88
This card’s value was flat in 2024 until a series of small buyouts in April sent its price into the $200 range. Two more buyouts sent it over $300 in May, starting with a buyer who purchased 10 copies of the card on May 2.
Despite the somewhat artificial nature of this price spike, there’s a good chance that Leafeon VMAX will hold its new value, just based on the enduring popularity of Eeveelutions and the way Evolving Skies Booster Boxes are still climbing in price.
#1 Umbreon VMAX (Alternate Art Secret)
- Set: Evolving Skies
- Increase: +$154.91
- Current Market Price: $997.19
Like other cards on this list, Umbreon VMAX was already trending upward due to Standard Rotation before some soft buyouts in early May sent it to the stratosphere. On May 2, one buyer bought 9 copies of this card, triggering a run on the card that briefly sent its Market Price over four figures.
“Moonbreon” was already the single most valuable card of the Sword & Shield Series, and this latest milestone could change how fans evaluate cards from that era of the TCG.
By selling these cards online, you can reach a broad audience of customers who are willing to pay what these cards are truly worth. Download the May 2024 Price Trends Report to review every Pokémon card that went up in value this month. Then list those cards on TCGplayer so your inventory can do more for your business.
Download the Pokémon Price Trends Report
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