Where To Buy Pokemon Cards In 2024 (Avoid Scams)

Finding the right place to buy Pokemon cards can be tricky, especially in 2024, with the rise of scams and fake products.

Pokemon Cards are a great hobby. However, buying these cards can be quite a struggle. There are hundreds of different ways to purchase cards. Only some are safe and trustworthy. This easy guide will help you safely purchase the Pokemon cards you want.

Contents

Where To Buy Pokemon Cards

Stores vs Online

Where To Buy Individual Cards

How To Check Fakes

There are numerous ways to purchase Pokémon Cards, along with a variety of available products. The Safest place to buy Pokemon cards is the Pokemon Centre Website. 

This is the official Pokemon site. It is owned and managed by The Pokemon Company International. But this site only sells the latest products. You can not buy older products here. Moreover, The Pokemon Centre website doesn’t sell singular cards. Pokemon Centre is the safest place to buy cards. Cards bought on this website will not be fake.

I would also recommend 2 other websites. Both TCGplayer and Magic Madhouse are Trading card sites that sell most Pokemon products and individual cards. TCGplayer is an American-based website where you can purchase trading card products. This is considered the premier destination for purchasing Pokémon cards. Additionally, in 2022, TCGplayer was acquired by eBay, further enhancing its credibility.

Where To Buy Pokemon Cards?

Magic Madhouse is a UK-located website. It's a similar website that offers a wide range of trading card products. Magic Madhouse has an excellent rating on Trustpilot and is another great option to buy Pokemon cards.

If you prefer buying products in physical stores, be careful. It's advisable to only purchase from well-established retailers with a trusted reputation. In the UK, trusted stores would include WHSmith, Argos and Ryman. In the USA, trusted stores would include Walmart, Gamestop and BestBuy.

Many smaller brands and stores that sell Pokemon cards could be selling Fakes. In many instances, sellers might not even be aware that the cards on sale are fake. You can check verified sellers of Pokemon products on their website.

Buying Pokemon cards online offers many advantages and disadvantages.

Early Access: When you purchase cards online you will have the earliest access to new cards and products. You can also pre-order unreleased products.

Exclusive Products: Websites like Pokemon Centre also have exclusive products only available there, like exclusive Elite Trainer Boxes and unreleased cards.

Large Variety: Purchasing on websites also gives you a larger variety of products and singular cards than most stores offer.

Cheaper: Products sold online tend to be cheaper.

On the other hand, buying online can have some downsides.

Shipping Payment: You will have to pay extra for shipping.

Waiting Time: Unlike in stores you won’t have your product for up to a week.

Order Errors: Online orders can be incorrect or missing certain items. However, all trusted sites have customer support to help with these rare instances.

Buying Pokemon Cards Online vs In-Store

Purchasing In-store is another option to buy Pokemon cards. Stores offer a few advantages and disadvantages compared to purchasing Pokemon cards online.

No Waiting Time: Purchasing Pokemon cards from stores allows you to open up products straight away.

No Shipping Payment: Products bought in stores can be more expensive. However, you don’t have to pay a large sum for shipping.

Purchasing Pokemon cards from local retailers can have disadvantages.

Smaller Variety: Shops only sell the most recent sets. They often lack a variety of products and rarely sell individual cards.

More Expensive: Most Pokemon TCG products are sold at a higher price in big brand stores.

Many Collectors and players of the Pokemon TCG may decide to purchase individual cards. This could be to complete a collection or to use in a competitive deck. But where can you buy single cards? Single cards can be purchased in stores. However, we would recommend buying them online.

In particular, I’d recommend TCGplayer. This highly trusted website offers the most Pokemon cards ever created for sale at a competitive price.

If you are looking for a specific Pokemon card go to TCGplayer. When purchasing single cards, it's common to turn to platforms like eBay or Facebook Marketplace. But I highly recommend against this. These websites aren’t as well equipped for selling Pokemon cards.

Where To Buy Rare Individual Cards

Checking for Fake Pokemon Cards can be difficult. Here are some tips and guidance.

If you purchase cards online, checking their authenticity is nearly impossible until they arrive. If you buy cards from a store, perform a few checks.

Firstly, read the text of the product. Check for spelling errors, grammar errors, references to incorrect dates or Pokemon sets and unoriginal artwork. 

If it’s a booster pack, look at the edges. Authentic Pokemon booster packs will have a flat edge along the seals. Booster packs will also have little air inside and the packaging will be quite tight. Fake packs can have a pointy and uneven edge along the seals and can have loose packaging.

You can also check the authenticity of individual cards. The safest and fastest way to check the legitimacy of a card is by simply comparing it to a card you know is authentic. You can compare the backs, fonts, logos, edges and thickness. It is unlikely that a Fake card can pass as a real card when directly compared to one. 

Another fast way to check authenticity is to compare it to an image of the actual card. Analyse the real card in the image and look for the correct HP, Attacks, stats, card text, energy type and artwork. You can find real card images on the Pokemon TCG Database. Check out this guide to Fake Pokemon Products for more.

How To Check For Pokemon Cards

Thank you for reading Where To Buy Pokemon Cards In 2024. Buying Pokemon cards can be difficult. But it is always worth it. I’d recommend purchasing from safe websites and stores mentioned in this article to avoid scams. You can take advantage of tools that we have linked to. These will help you make safe decisions and buy from trusted sellers. Check out our other guides on the latest Pokemon set Paldean Fates.

Conclusion

Join TheMaksNewsletter.

Don't be behind. Stay on top of the latest in the world of the Pokemon TCG.