Card Grading Calculator & Break-Even Terminal
Determine whether sending a card to Cardinal's Grading app will net a profit or burn cash. Select from the four official service tiers (Value, Standard, Express, Premium), enter raw market value, and calculate expected return (EV), Grade 10 odds, and the minimum break-even price.
Grading fee ($10) plus shipping ($1.25/card in 8-card batch) requires a minimum raw card market price of $13 to produce positive mathematical EV.
96% of cards enter the High Quality pool. 38.40% return as Grade 10, with sequential odds dropping through Grade 9 (23.04%) and Grade 8 (17.28%). Turnaround speed buys time only, without altering grade roll odds.
Submissions cap at 8 cards per order and 4 simultaneous active orders. Orders submitted after 1 PM process starting the following in-game day.
Evaluating card market value against fee structure and 10-grade probability distributions.
Interactive Batch Submission Simulator
Simulate an in-game 8-card Cardinal's Grading run with real 96% high-pool / 4% low-pool odds
Cardinal's Grading Odds & Value Matrix
Verified from Update 0.60 Game LogicInitial Submission Probabilities
| Grade | Label | Probability | Market Impact |
|---|---|---|---|
| 10 | Gem Mint | 38.40% | Peak Premium (Highest Save Multiplier) |
| 9 | Mint | 23.04% | High Premium |
| 8 | Near Mint | 17.28% | Moderate Premium |
| 7 | Excellent | 8.64% | Par Market Value |
| 6 | Fine | 4.32% | Slight Discount |
| 5 | Good | 5.92% | Moderate Discount |
| 4 | Fair | 1.20% | Heavy Discount |
| 3 | Poor | 0.60% | Heavy Discount |
| 2 | Damaged | 0.30% | Severe Reduction |
| 1 | Heavily Damaged | 0.30% | Floor Liquidation |
Regrading Probability Odds
If you re-submit an already graded card, the game does not re-roll from scratch. Instead, it applies a 3-way variance check:
Turnaround Strategy
Standard ($40), Express ($200), and Premium ($1,500) do NOT improve grade roll chances. They only purchase faster in-game turnaround times. Only choose Express or Premium when high-value cards are needed immediately to fill an active tournament customer demand before nightly price drift adjusts values.
Frequently Asked Questions: Card Grading
What is the break-even card price for Value grading in TCG Card Shop Simulator?
At Value service ($10 fee plus $1.25 per-card share of the flat $10 shipping in a full 8-card batch), the break-even raw card price is approximately $13. Grading any card with a raw market value below $13 yields a negative expected return because the grading and shipping fees exceed the expected value gain.
How are card grades calculated in TCG Card Shop Simulator?
When a card is graded, 96% enter the High Quality Pool (Grades 5 to 10) and 4% enter the Low Quality Pool (Grades 1 to 5). The final probabilities are: Grade 10 (38.40%), Grade 9 (23.04%), Grade 8 (17.28%), Grade 7 (8.64%), Grade 6 (4.32%), Grade 5 (5.92%), Grade 4 (1.20%), Grade 3 (0.60%), Grade 2 (0.30%), and Grade 1 (0.30%).
How many cards can I send to Cardinal's Grading at once?
The Cardinal's Grading app allows up to 8 cards per submission batch, with a hard maximum of 4 active submissions at the same time. This sets a hard ceiling of 32 total cards in transit simultaneously.
How does regrading work in TCG Card Shop Simulator?
Regrading an already-graded card has three equal-variance outcomes: a 30% chance to increase by +1 (capped at Grade 10), a 40% chance of no change, and a 30% chance to drop by -1 (floored at Grade 1). Regrading requires paying the full service fee and shipping fee again.