Category: Guides

In the Digimon Card Game, the alternate-art (alt-art) versions — Secret Rare and Special Rare printings with full-art or textured foiling — are where the real money sits. Same card, same playability, but a far smaller print run and a much prettier finish. Here is how to read their value.

Why alt-arts cost more

Every big chase card has a “normal” version and one or more alt-arts. The alt-art typically has a lower pull rate, a full-bleed illustration and premium foiling, so it carries both collector demand and gem-mint scarcity. On the biggest names the alt-art can be worth many times its standard counterpart.

The headline alt-art: Omnimon BT1-084

The Omnimon [Alternate Art] – BT1-084 is the game’s signature alt-art and its most valuable card, with graded sales around $2,600 in BGS 10. First-set, fan-favourite fusion, tiny gem-mint population — it ticks every box that makes an alt-art expensive.

Other alt-arts and chase treatments worth knowing

• WarGreymon printings (ST1-11, BT12-070, BT14-101): the franchise mascot shows up across sets, and his premium versions range from roughly $490 up to $935 graded.
• Omnimon: Merciful Mode – BT9-083: around $585 graded — a later Omnimon variant that kept the name’s premium.
• MetalGarurumon – BT15-101 and MagnaAngemon ACE – BT14-037: around $325 graded, strong mid-tier alt-art chase.
• Kuwagamon (X Antibody) – BT9-049: around $1,755 graded — proof that a low-print treatment can outvalue far more famous Digimon.

How to tell what yours is worth

• Check the exact print. The set-and-number code (for example BT1-084) decides everything — the standard and the alt-art of the same Digimon are different cards with different prices.
• Raw versus graded. Alt-arts gain the most from a high grade; a clean copy is worth grading, a played one usually is not.
• Look it up here. Open the card on this site to compare its live raw and graded prices before you buy or sell.

The takeaway

Alt-arts reward iconic Digimon in top condition — an Omnimon or WarGreymon alt-art in a gem-mint slab is the ceiling, while the standard version of the same card is a fraction of the price. Know your exact print, and check the numbers before you trade.

A graded card is sealed in a tamper-proof slab with an official condition score from 1 to 10. For the right Digimon card it can multiply the value; for the wrong one it just costs you money and months of waiting. Here is how to decide.

The three grading companies

Three names matter for Digimon cards, each with its own reputation and turnaround:

• PSA — the market standard. A PSA 10 (“Gem Mint”) carries the biggest premium and the deepest buyer demand. Tiers run roughly from $15–19 per card at the cheapest bulk level to far more for high declared values, with turnaround from a few weeks to several months.
• BGS (Beckett) — known for its subgrades (centering, corners, edges, surface) and the coveted “Black Label” BGS 10 where all four subgrades are perfect. Popular with collectors who want detail.
• CGC — the newer challenger, usually cheaper and faster, with a clean slab. Buyer premiums are catching up but still trail PSA on most modern TCG.

For Digimon specifically, PSA has by far the most sold-graded history, so a PSA slab is the easiest to price and to sell.

When is grading worth it?

The simple rule: grade a card only when the graded price minus grading cost and shipping is clearly higher than the raw price. That almost never holds for bulk commons and uncommons. It usually holds for:

• Alternate-art and secret-rare cards from sought-after sets
• Special Rare (SR) and Secret Rare (SEC) chase cards of popular Digimon
• Tournament promos and low-print gift-box exclusives
• First-wave BT1 / ST1 cards with nostalgia value

A raw card in visibly played condition is a bad grading candidate — a low grade often prints less than the raw card would have sold for.

The PSA 10 premium

The whole economics of grading rests on the jump from raw to Gem Mint. On strong Digimon chase cards a PSA 10 commonly sells for several times the raw price, while a PSA 9 sits much closer to raw. That gap is exactly why centering, corners, edges and surface matter so much before you submit — a card that “looks fine” but grades 8 or 9 rarely covers its cost.

How to decide, card by card

1. Check the raw price first. Look up what your exact card and print sell for ungraded (our card pages show this per card).
2. Look up the graded price. Compare the recent PSA 10 and PSA 9 sales for that card.
3. Be honest about condition. Inspect centering and corners under good light. If it is not near-perfect, assume PSA 9 at best.
4. Do the math. Grade only if (expected graded price − grading fee − shipping both ways) comfortably beats the raw price, with margin for a grade coming back lower than hoped.

The bottom line

Grading rewards a small number of high-value Digimon cards in genuinely excellent condition, and quietly loses money on everything else. Use the raw-versus-graded numbers on the card pages to pick your spots — grade the grails, sell the rest raw.

These are the Digimon cards collectors chase hardest. The prices below are recent top graded sales (BGS 10 / PSA 10 level) in US dollars — raw copies sell for less, but these numbers show where the ceiling sits.

Tier 1: The grails ($500+)

• Omnimon [Alternate Art] – BT1-084: around $2,600 in BGS 10. The single most iconic chase card in the game — the first-set alt-art of the fan-favourite fusion, with a tiny gem-mint population.
• Kuwagamon (X Antibody) – BT9-049: around $1,755 graded. A low-print X-Antibody card that became a surprise grail.
• WarGreymon – ST1-11: around $935 in PSA 9.5. A starter-deck WarGreymon whose early print and mascot status keep demand high.
• WarGreymon – BT14-101: around $684 graded.
• Omnimon: Merciful Mode – BT9-083: around $585 graded.

Why so expensive? Iconic Digimon plus a small gem-mint population. WarGreymon and Omnimon are the faces of the franchise, so their best cards carry both playability and pure collector nostalgia.

Tier 2: Strong chase cards ($150–$500)

• WarGreymon – BT12-070: around $494 graded.
• MetalGarurumon – BT15-101: around $325 graded.
• MagnaAngemon ACE – BT14-037: around $325 graded.
• MetalGreymon – BT7-013: around $325 graded.
• Tyrannomon – EX1-005 and Greymon – EX1-004: around $180–$212 graded, from the Classic Collection.
• Leviamon – EX6-061, DeathXmon – BT9-112, Magnamon – BT8-038: roughly $160–$195 graded.

What makes a Digimon card expensive?

• Iconic Digimon — WarGreymon, Omnimon, MetalGarurumon and other anime mascots command a premium over equally-rare but lesser-known Digimon.
• Rarity and treatment — Secret Rare, Special Rare and Alternate Art printings with textured or full-art foiling.
• Low print / early set — first-wave BT1 and ST1 cards, and limited promos, have the smallest supply.
• Grade — a BGS 10 or PSA 10 can be several times the raw price; condition is half the value.

How to check your own cards

Open the card on this site to see its live raw and graded prices side by side. If you own an early WarGreymon, Omnimon or a first-set alt-art in clean condition, it is worth checking the exact print and its graded numbers before you sell.