Grade Definitions
GEM-MT
PSA 10
A PSA Gem Mint 10 card is a virtually perfect card.
Attributes include four perfectly sharp corners, sharp focus and full original gloss. A PSA Gem Mint 10 card must be free of staining of any kind, but an allowance may be made for a slight printing imperfection, if it doesn't impair the overall appeal of the card. The image must be centered on the card within a tolerance not to exceed approximately 55/45 percent on the front, and 75/25 percent on the reverse.
MINT
PSA 9
A PSA Mint 9 is a superb condition card that exhibits only one of the following minor flaws: a very slight wax stain on reverse, a minor printing imperfection or slightly off white borders. Centering must be approximately 60/40 or better on the front and 90/10 or better on the reverse.
NM-MT
PSA 8
A PSA NM-MT 8 is a super high-end card that appears Mint 9 at first glance, but upon closer inspection, the card can exhibit the following: a very slight wax stain on reverse, slightest fraying at one or two corners, a minor printing imperfection, and/or slightly off-white borders. Centering must be approximately 65/35 or better on the front and 90/10 or better on the reverse.
NM
PSA 7
A PSA NM 7 is a card with just a slight surface wear visible upon close inspection. There may be slight fraying on some corners. Picture focus may be slightly out-of register. A minor printing blemish is acceptable. Slight wax staining is acceptable on the back of the card only. Most of the original gloss is retained. Centering must be approximately 70/30 or better on the front and 90/10 or better on the back.
EX-MT
PSA 6
A PSA 6 card may have visible surface wear or a printing defect which does not detract from its overall appeal. A very light scratch may be detected only upon close inspection. Corners may have slightly graduated fraying. Picture focus may be slightly out-of-register. Card may show some loss of original gloss, may have minor wax stain on reverse, may exhibit very slight notching on edges and may also show some off-whiteness on borders. Centering must be 80/20 or better on the front and 90/10 or better on the reverse.
EX
PSA 5
On PSA 5 cards, very minor rounding of the corners is becoming evident. Surface wear or printing defects are more visible. There may be minor chipping on edges. Loss of original gloss will be more apparent. Focus of picture may be slightly out-of-register. Several light scratches may be visible upon close inspection, but do not detract from the appeal of the card. Card may show some off-whiteness of borders. Centering must be 85/15 or better on the front and 90/10 or better on the back.
VG-EX
PSA 4
A PSA 4 card's corners may be slightly rounded. Surface wear is noticeable but modest. The card may have light scuffing or light scratches. Some original gloss will be retained. Borders may be slightly off-white. A light crease may be visible. Centering must be 85/15 or better on the front and 90/10 or better on the back.
VG
PSA 3
A PSA 3 card reveals some rounding of the corners, though not extreme. Some surface wear will be apparent, along with possible light scuffing or light scratches. Focus may be somewhat off-register and edges may exhibit noticeable wear. Much, but not all, of the card's original gloss will be lost. Borders may be somewhat yellowed and/or discolored. A crease may be visible. Printing defects are possible. Slight stain may show on obverse and wax staining on reverse may be more prominent. Centering must be 90/10 or better on the front and back.
GOOD
PSA 2
A PSA 2 card's corners show accelerated rounding and surface wear is starting to become obvious. A good card may have scratching, scuffing, light staining, or chipping of enamel on obverse. There may be several creases. Original gloss may be completely absent. Card may show considerable discoloration. Centering must be 90/10 or better on the front and back.
FR
PSA 1.5
A PSA 1.5 card's corners will show extreme wear, possibly affecting framing of the picture. The surface of the card will show advanced stages of wear, including scuffing, scratching, pitting, chipping and staining. The picture will possibly be quite out-of-register and the borders may have become brown and dirty. The card may have one or more heavy creases. In order to achieve a Fair grade, a card must be fully intact. Even though the card may be heavily worn, it cannot achieve this grade if it is missing solid pieces of the card as a result of a major tear, etc. This would include damage such as the removal of the back layer of the card or an entire corner. The centering must be approximately 90/10 or better on the front and back.
PR
PSA 1
A PSA 1 will exhibit many of the same qualities of a PSA 1.5 but the defects may have advanced to such a serious stage that the eye appeal of the card has nearly vanished in its entirety. A Poor card may be missing one or two small pieces, exhibit major creasing that nearly breaks through all the layers of cardboard or it may contain extreme discoloration or dirtiness throughout that may make it difficult to identify the issue or content of the card on either the front or back. A card of this nature may also show noticeable warping or another type of destructive defect.
HALF-POINT
Cards that exhibit high-end qualities within each particular grade, between PSA 2 and PSA 9, may achieve a half-point increase. While PSA graders will evaluate all of the attributes possessed by a card in order to determine if the card may be eligible, there will be a clear focus on centering.
Qualifiers
MK
Marks
Any and all cards with writing, ink marks, pencil marks, etc. or evidence of the impression left from the act of writing will be designated "MK."
MC
Miscut
Any and all cards that exhibit an atypical cut for the issue, which may result in portions of the subject card being cut off or more than one card being visible, will be designated "MC."
Ungradable Cards
PSA will not grade cards that bear evidence of trimming, re-coloring, restoration, or any other forms of tampering, or are of questionable authenticity.
No Grade Definitions
If your card is returned without a numeric grade in a card saver sleeve, that determination was made based on one of the following reasons:
N1 Evidence of Trimming - When a card's edge appears to have been altered. A card doctor may use scissors, scalpel, cutter, or any other sharp instrument. A card that appears trimmed: A hooked appearance along the edge, unusually sharp or uncommon edges for the issue, an inconsistent tone to the color of the edge in question or a wavy, unnatural look to the edges. Note that this designation can qualify for encapsulation as "Authentic Altered" at the grader's discretion and if "AA" is listed on the submission form as the desired minimum grade. You will be charged the applicable grading fee in either case.
N2 Evidence of Restoration - When a card's paper stock appears to have been built up - for example, when ripped corners are built up to look like new corners. Note that this designation can qualify for encapsulation as "Authentic Altered" at the grader's discretion and if "AA" is listed on the submission form as the desired minimum grade. You will be charged the applicable grading fee in either case.
N3 Evidence of Recoloration - Where a card's color appears to have been artificially improved. Note that this designation can qualify for encapsulation as "Authentic Altered" at the grader's discretion and if "AA" is listed on the submission form as the desired minimum grade. You will be charged the applicable grading fee in either case.
N4 Questionable Authenticity - This is the term used when a card appears to be counterfeit or when the autograph is deemed to be not genuine. This designation would never qualify for encapsulation under any circumstance and applicable grading fees would still apply.
N5 Altered Stock - This includes, but is not limited to characteristics on the card that appear to show some form of alteration such as paper restoration, crease/wrinkle pressing, scratch removal, or enhanced gloss. Additionally, when any foreign substance is applied to the surface of a card such as cleaning spray or wax. Note that this designation can qualify for encapsulation as "Authentic Altered" at the grader's discretion and if "AA" is listed on the submission form as the desired minimum grade. You will be charged the applicable grading fee in either case.
N6 Minimum Size Requirement - When a card is significantly undersized according to factory specifications. You will not be charged the grading fee in this instance. Note that this designation can qualify for encapsulation as "Authentic" only at the grader's discretion and if "Auth" is listed on the submission form as the desired minimum grade. You will be charged the applicable grading fee in the latter case.
N7 Evidence of Cleaning - When a whitener is used to whiten borders or a solution is used to remove wax, candy, gum or tobacco stains. Additionally, when any foreign substance is applied to the surface of a card such as cleaning spray or wax. Note that this designation can qualify for encapsulation as "Authentic Altered" at the grader's discretion and if "AA" is listed on the submission form as the desired minimum grade. You will be charged the applicable grading fee in either case.
N8 Miscut - This term is used when the factory cut is abnormal for the issue, causing the card's edges to deviate from their intended appearance. You will not be charged the grading fee in this instance. Note that this designation can qualify for encapsulation as "Authentic" at the grader's discretion and if "Auth" is listed on the submission form as the desired minimum grade. You will be charged the applicable grading fee in the latter case.
N9 Don't Grade - The term is used when we do not grade or cannot encapsulate an issue. The cards may be oversized or an obscure issue. This designation does not qualify for encapsulation, and you will not be charged the grading fee. Note: If additional information from two or more verified or hobby-approved resources are provided for the issue, the decision could be reversed upon resubmittal. Submit a "Research Request" in advance through the Customer Request Center (CRC) to inquire about a specific item.
The Importance of Eye Appeal and Subjectivity in Grading
Over the years, more and more collectors have come to understand the basic guidelines behind PSA grading. After grading for well over a decade, PSA grading standards have truly become the official standard for the most valuable cards in the hobby. That being said, there are a host of grading questions that arise and the one basic question that comes up the most has to do with eye appeal and centering.
While it's true that a large part of grading is objective (locating print defects, staining, surface wrinkles, measuring centering, etc.), the other component of grading is somewhat subjective. The best way to define the subjective element is to do so by posing a question: What will the market accept for this particular issue?
Again, the vast majority of grading is applied with a basic, objective standard but no one can ignore the small (yet sometimes significant) subjective element. This issue will usually arise when centering and/or eye appeal are in question. For example, while most cards fall clearly within the centering guidelines for a particular grade, some cards fall either just within or just outside the printed centering standards. The key point to remember is that the graders reserve the right, based on the strength or weakness of the eye appeal, to make a judgment call on the grade of a particular card.
What does this mean exactly?
Well, take this example. Let's say you have a 1955 Topps Sandy Koufax rookie card that is right on the edge of the acceptable guidelines for centering in a particular grade. The 1955 Koufax card has a yellow background that tends to blend with the border of the card. In other words, the contrast isn't great, so poor centering may not be much of an eyesore – the borders are not clearly defined. In this case, if the card exhibits extremely strong characteristics in other areas (color, corners, etc.), an exception may be made to allow an otherwise slightly off-center card to fall within an unqualified grade (no OC qualifier). This is a rare occurrence but it does happen.
On the other hand, there are cards that technically fall within the printed PSA Grading Standards that may be prevented from reaching a particular unqualified grade because the eye appeal becomes an issue. For example, a 1957 Topps Sandy Koufax card has great contrast between the white borders and the picture because the background is very dark. It is possible that a 1957 Topps Sandy Koufax, one that technically measures for a particular grade – let's say 70/30, may be prevented from reaching that unqualified grade because the market would view that card as off-center – based on eye appeal issues. Again, this is a rare occurrence but it does happen from time to time when a judgment call has to be made on a card that pushes the limits for centering.
In conclusion, the issues discussed do not apply to the vast majority of cards that filter through the PSA grading process each day but this is an issue that needed some clarification in the marketplace. The bottom line is that there are times when a PSA grader must make a call on a card that falls on the line between two grades and that final determination is made based on experience, eye appeal and market acceptability.
*Centering Note:
At the grader's sole discretion, a small variance may be permitted on occasion based on the card’s overall eye appeal.
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