What Are the Rarities of Pokémon TCG Cards?

Every Pokémon card has a collector card number. It’s usually formatted as XXX/YYY, where XXX is the card’s number and YYY is the advertised number of cards in the set. This may not be the actual number of cards in the set; see Secret Rare below.

There are many different rarities in the Pokémon TCG, and not every set includes cards of every rarity. To determine a card’s rarity, first check its rarity symbol on the bottom right or left of the card.

Cards printed for certain products do not have a rarity symbol. Instead, they have a colored silhouette of the main Pokémon associated with the product.

Promo cards have a black star with the word “PROMO” printed over it.

Common cards have a black circle.

Uncommon cards have a black diamond.

Rare cards have a black star.

Rare Holo cards have a black star and a “shiny” (foil) illustration. In many English sets, for every rare holo card there is another card at a lower rarity that is identical in terms of gameplay, but has a different collector card number.

Any card at Rare Holo rarity or lower can also come with a “Reverse Holo.” These cards are foil on every part of the card except the illustration. This only changes the physical appearance of the card and does not change its rarity or collector card number. Because every pack contains one Reverse Holo card, they are not usually much more valuable than their regular versions.

Note: Some deck-exclusive and league promo cards are reprints, with their original expansion symbol and collector number but a different rarity. Rare Holos can be reprinted as Rare, and Rares can be reprinted as Rare Holo. In the second case, the new Rare Holo has a different foil pattern from other Rare Holo cards in the same set.

Ultra Rare cards are foil and feature a specific game mechanic and/or appearance that distinguishes them from Rare Holo cards. There are many types of Ultra Rare cards, including:

Pokémon ex
Pokémon (star)
Pokémon LV.X
Pokémon LEGEND
Pokémon Prime
Pokémon-EX
Pokémon-GX
Pokémon V
Pokémon VMAX
Pokémon VSTAR

Secret Rare cards have a collector number higher than the advertised number of cards in the set. They are usually foil with a unique appearance. Like Rare Holo cards, in many sets for each Secret Rare card there is another card at a lower rarity that is identical in terms of gameplay but has a different collector card number.