Glossary
Common trading card grading terms, grouped by topic. Each entry explains what it means and how Gemix handles it.
43 terms
Criteria
9 terms
Verifying that a card is genuine, assessing its condition, and expressing that condition as a number (the grade). Cards that receive a grade are sealed in a tamper-evident slab.
At Gemix
Certified graders and AI assess every card on four criteria: centering, corners, edges and surface.
How far the printed border or artwork is off the center of the card, expressed as the ratio of the margins left/right and top/bottom. Both the front and the back are checked.
At Gemix
Scored from 8 to 10. A 10 does not require a strict 50/50; there is a set tolerance, which is wider on the back than on the front. The Grading Report shows the direction of the shift with an arrow.
A card whose centering is significantly off.
At Gemix
Cards with centering below 8 are considered abnormally off-center and are marked OC.
The condition of the card face: scratches, fine scratches, stains, wear, discoloration, creases, dents, and water or ink damage.
Separate scores for each grading criterion, showing which one held the grade down.
At Gemix
Four subgrades — centering, corners, edges and surface — shown in the Grading Report. Scores of 9 and above are given in half steps.
The overall grade of the card, decided from the subgrades.
At Gemix
Not a simple average: it is based on the lowest of the four criteria. If only one criterion is lowest, one grade is added; if two or more share the lowest score, nothing is added. Decimals are rounded down. Grade 10 (10, 10 Gold and 10 Black) is decided by separate conditions.
Grades
5 terms
A number expressing a card’s condition; the higher, the better. Standards differ between grading companies, so the same number does not necessarily mean the same condition.
At Gemix
Grades run from 1 to 10, and 10 comes in three tiers: 10, 10 Gold and 10 Black.
A label showing only that the card is genuine, with no numeric grade. “A” stands for Authentic.
At Gemix
Used for authentication-only submissions, and when a card falls below the minimum grade and you choose to have it encapsulated as authentication (a cert number is still issued in the latter case).
Grading Report
9 terms
Gemix’s own patent-pending grading report. Beyond the grade, it records the type, location and severity of each defect to show why the card received its grade.
At Gemix
Recorded with 12+ grading codes and high-resolution images, viewable online with the cert number. For cards below Grade 9 with many flagged codes, a simpler, easier-to-read layout is used.
Symbols in the Grading Report that identify each type of defect. Impact on the grade, from highest: C > S > D > T = I >> FD.
At Gemix
Corner and edge defects are marked directly on the diagram, and centering is shown with an arrow. If there are too many marks, only those with the highest impact are listed.
A crease or fold in the card. The deeper it is, the greater the impact. Three levels: C1 (minor), C2 (moderate), C3 (severe).
A scratch across the card surface. Three levels: S1 (minor), S2 (moderate), S3 (severe).
A dent or pressure mark left on the card surface.
Dirt or stains on the card surface, including liquid damage.
Clouding of the surface, loss of clarity, or fading color.
A defect from manufacturing, such as misprints or ink gaps.
At Gemix
Minimal impact on the grade.
Symbols added to grading codes to show severity or extent: L for light impact (e.g. T-L), ! for intense impact (e.g. D!), Z for a zone (e.g. I-Z), and G for global (e.g. S1-G).
Submission
7 terms
The market value of the card in raw (ungraded) condition. It sets the grading fee and is also the upper limit of coverage if anything goes wrong.
At Gemix
Use recent prices on marketplaces and auctions as a guide, and declare an amount close to the market value.
An optional minimum grade you set when submitting.
At Gemix
If the grade falls below your MG, you can choose to have the card returned as-is (MG Not Met) or encapsulated as authentication (A). Either way, the service-level fee applies, and no grade or Grading Report is issued.
A service that only verifies whether a card is genuine, with no condition grade.
At Gemix
The card is returned encapsulated, labeled “A” instead of a numeric grade.
Removing a card from another grading company’s slab and having it graded again by a different company.
At Gemix
Accepted from PSA, BGS and CGC slabs. Because Gemix grades to its own standards, the original grade is not guaranteed. The card is always removed from its slab before grading, and if it falls below the MG it is returned without a slab.
The language of the information printed on the slab label.
At Gemix
Japanese or English. Japanese is available only for Japanese-language cards.
The symbol printed on a card identifying the set it was released in (e.g. sv8a, OP05). Its position differs by game.
At Gemix
Type it into the pack name field when submitting to choose from suggestions. For reprints, promos and similar cards, the code may not match the pack the card actually came from.
Shaping the corners of the slab to match the rounded corners of the card, so card and slab look like one piece.
At Gemix
Not available for Dragon Ball Heroes, Super Dragon Ball Heroes and Dragon Ball Super Divers.
Results
8 terms
The tamper-evident case a card is sealed in after grading.
At Gemix
Made in Japan, with a stainless-steel label carrying anti-counterfeit laser engraving that changes appearance with the viewing angle.
A number assigned to each graded card, used to look up that card’s grading result.
At Gemix
12 digits. Enter it in Cert Verification to see the grade and the Grading Report.
Shows that the grade fell below the minimum grade set at submission and the card was returned as-is.
Shows that the card was judged ineligible for grading and was not graded.
At Gemix
The service-level fee applies, and the card is returned as-is.
Shows that authentication found the card may be counterfeit.
At Gemix
The service-level fee applies, and the card is returned as-is.
Shows that the card appears to have been altered by hand, such as ink touch-ups or trimmed edges.
At Gemix
The service-level fee applies, and the card is returned as-is.
Shows that the card exceeds the maximum size for grading and was not graded.
At Gemix
Accepted sizes are up to 63 × 88 mm and 59 × 86 mm, and up to 0.5 mm thick. A card too warped to fit in a slab may also be returned as Oversized. The service-level fee applies.
Cards
5 terms
A card that is not in a grading slab.
Early Japanese Pokémon cards from around 1996 to 2001, named for their back design, which differs from today’s.
At Gemix
Old-back cards can be graded (Carddass and similar cards are not accepted).
A version of the same card with a different finish (such as foil) or artwork, usually with a lower pull rate than the regular version.
A previously released card included again in another product, sometimes with the same number or code as the original.
A card distributed or sold outside regular packs — as a product bonus, at events, in magazines and so on.