Anyone who has survived the gauntlet of an elite-level Pokémon TCG or Video Game Championship (VGC) tournament doesn’t just collect a sizable cash price and a brand new addition to the trophy cabinet—these victorious players also stand to pick up one of the rarest Pokémon TCG cards ever created.

Cards created as prizes for major Pokémon tournaments are the rarest of all Pokémon TCG cards—as they are custom-made for the event and only distributed to those who have come out on top, there are very, very few copies of those cards in existence. On the rare occasions that one of them has been sold, it has gone for a massive amount of money.

In addition, there have also been some campaigns and promotions held which have ultimately led to the creation and distribution of cards which have ended up being just as ridiculously rare and thus mega-expensive.

These are the rarest Pokémon TCG cards in existence to have ever been sold, listed with their prices (all prices shown are the highest recorded sale price of that card).

10. Wonder Platinum 033/DPt-P DPt-P Promotional Cards (2009) – 20 Copies, US$51,250

Wonder Platinum: PROMO[DPt-P 033](WCS Japan Representative Selection Tournament Winning Card)

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The Pokémon Japan Championships—then known as the Japan National Championships—serve as the means by which Japan’s finest Pokémon TCG and VGC players attempt to punch their ticket to the World Championships by making a deep run at the country’s biggest tournament. Of all the cards that have ever been awarded as prizes at Japan’s Nationals, by far the standout was Wonder Platinum from the 2009 edition.

Named after Pokémon Platinum, the “extension” to fourth-generation main series video games Pokémon Diamond and Pearl, just 20 copies of the card were ever put into circulation with a sale value that so far has topped out at US$51,250.

9. Bulbasaur/Gyarados/Magikarp/Pikachu CoroCoro Best Photo Contest (1999) – 20 Copies, US$80,520/US$87,500/US$136,000/US$270,000

Bulbasaur : Old Back [PMCG-P](Promotional Cards “Pokemon Snap Contest Sponsored By Shogakukan Corocoro Comics”)

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Pikachu P : Old Back [PMCG-P](Promotional Cards “Pokemon Snap Contest Sponsored By Shogakukan Corocoro Comics”)

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In 1999, a contest was jointly run by animanga magazine CoroCoro Comic and Nintendo-centric variety TV program 64 Mario Stadium. Entrants of the “Best Photo Contest” would submit an in-game photograph of a Pokémon from Pokémon spin-off video game Pokémon Snap. Winners of the CoroCoro division would receive 20 copies of their respective card while winners of the 64 Mario Stadium division would be awarded 15 copies of theirs. 

Among the winning cards of the CoroCoro division, by far the most valuable was the Pikachu card, clocking in at an impressive US$270,000 when purchased in 2023. After all, Pikachu is the face of the Pokémon franchise; as such, it was always the most likely to fetch the highest price.

8. Articuno/Chansey/Squirtle/Charmander 64 Mario Stadium Best Photo Contest (1999) – 15 Copies, US$58,560/US$63,000/US$73,200/US$79,300

Chansey : Old Back [PMCG-P](Promotional Cards “Pokemon Snap Tv Tokyo 64 Mario Stadium Sponsored Contest”)

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Squirtle : Old Back [PMCG-P](Promotional Cards “Pokemon Snap Tv Tokyo 64 Mario Stadium Sponsored Contest”)

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Charmander : Old Back [PMCG-P](Promotional Cards “Pokemon Snap Tv Tokyo 64 Mario Stadium Sponsored Contest”)

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Although fewer copies of winning cards were awarded to winning cards of the 64 Mario Stadium division of the Best Photo Contest, it’s somewhat surprising to note that none of them outvalue the slightly more plentiful CoroCoro cards. Nonetheless, these rarer cards all rank as some of the most valuable Pokémon TCG cards ever.

Once again, the Pokémon that’s been found to have topped this list should come as no surprise. Charmander has always been the most popular of the original three Gen 1 starters, leading to the value of that particular card to have surged in comparison to those of the other three.

7. No. 1 Trainer/No. 2 Trainer (Lizardon Mega Battle) (1998) – 14 Copies, US$128,900/US$444,000

No.1 Trainer : Old Back [PMCG-P](Promotional Cards “Charizard Mega Battle / Blastoise Mega Battle Winner”)

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No.2 Trainer : Old Back [PMCG-P](Promotional Cards “Charizard Mega Battle / Blastoise Mega Battle”)

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The Lizardon Mega Battle Pokémon TCG tournaments were held across Japan in 1998; as some of the earliest Pokémon TCG tournaments in history, it’s only to be expected that its prize cards would go on to be some of the rarest and most coveted cards ever. Just 14 copies of the No. 1 Trainer, No. 2 Trainer, and No. 3 Trainer cards were ever made.

Interestingly, the No. 2 Trainer card from a Lizardon Mega Battle card is the most expensive out of all the cards that made this list. This might be due to the fact that tournament runners-up might be more likely to sell their card as they see it as memorializing a loss and thus be less inclined to keep it around as a keepsake in the way that tournament champs might.

6. Tropical Wind (1999 Tropical Mega Battle) – 12 Copies, US$65,100

Tropical Wind : Old Back [PMCG-P](Promotional Cards “Tropical Mega Battle Final Tournament Participation Card”)

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From 1999 to 2001, an annual Pokémon TCG tournament known as the Pokémon Tropical Mega Battle was held at the Hilton Hawaiian Village in Honolulu, Hawaii. While short-lived due to a licensing dispute between Wizards of the Coast and Nintendo, the Pokémon Tropical Mega Battle did go on to serve as the foundation for what we know today as the Pokémon TCG World Championships which began in 2004.

Ahead of the inaugural tournament in 1999, 12 copies of a promotional Tropical Wind card were produced. A Japanese copy sold for the largest sum among those which have ever been purchased, going for US$65,100.

5. No. 1 Trainer (1999 Secret Super Battle) – 9 Copies, US$90,000

The Secret Super Battle tournament, held in an undisclosed location in Tokyo (hence its name) in 1999, brought together the top four players of the 15-17 age division from nine regional tournaments across Japan for a shot at what was then the de facto national championship title. This card, however, wasn’t awarded to the Secret Super Battle champion—but instead to the players who finished in first place in each of the nine regional Challenge Road tournaments which served as qualifiers.

In addition to the card’s extreme rarity, the covert nature of the Secret Super Battle tournament contributes to the mystique and allure of this card.

4. No. 3 Trainer (1997) – 8 Copies, US$324,000

The very first Pokémon TCG tournaments took place in Japan in 1997. These tournaments were a four-tournament series; only those aged 15 or under were permitted to compete. These tournaments also saw the distribution of the very first tournament prize cards in Pokémon TCG history: No. 1 Trainer, No. 2 Trainer, and No. 3 Trainer cards. This No. 3 Trainer card’s name is something of a misnomer as both third-place and fourth-place finishers were awarded it; as such, eight copies of this card are in existence.

Since this card dates back to the days of the first Pokémon TCG tournaments ever held, this card can be regarded as a true historical artifact of the Pokémon TCG. Today, it ranks second in sale price among all No. 1 Trainer, No. 2 Trainer, or No. 3 Trainer cards ever sold.

3. No. 1 Trainer (2013 World Championships) – 6 Copies, US$63,000 / No. 1 Trainer (2012 World Championships) – 6 Copies, US$72,000 / No. 1 Trainer (2006 World Championships) – 3 Copies, US$110,100

The Pokémon World Championships is the tournament for which every Pokémon TCG and VGC player aspires to qualify. Becoming the world champion is unquestionably the pinnacle of any Pokémon player’s career.

Every year at Worlds, Creatures Inc. awards No. 1 Trainer, No. 2 Trainer, and No. 3 Trainer cards to the top three finishers in each age group of the TCG and VGC tournaments. The most expensive of these prize cards from Worlds to date have all been No. 1 Trainer cards—from 2006, 2012, and 2013 respectively. Of the trio, the 2006 card is easily the most expensive because it’s the rarest. There are only three copies of the 2006 card instead of the six which the other two have because in 2006, Worlds only included a TCG tournament; VGC wasn’t added until 2009.

2. No. 1 Trainer (2002 Neo Summer Battle Road) – 1 Copy, US$31,200 / No. 2 Trainer (2002 Neo Summer Battle Road – Tomoki Fukinishi) – 1 Copy, US$34,100 / No. 2 Trainer (2001 Neo Summer Battle Road – Takahiro Ikeda) 1 Copy, US$132,000

In the Japan-exclusive Neo Battle Road tournaments held in the spring and summer of 2001 and 2002, all prize cards awarded were truly one-of-ones because they came customized with the victorious player’s name on each respective card. To date, no Pokémon TCG prize cards have retained this feature.

It’s also worth noting that of the three cards listed here, by far the most expensive is one of the two No. 2 Trainer cards—specifically, the one which Takahiro Ikeda won in the summer of 2001. This lends further credence to the previously-mentioned theory that prize cards for runners-up are often more valuable than those for champions.

1. No. 1 Trainer (1999 Tropical Mega Battle) – 1 Copy, US$48,125

The Tropical Mega Battle tournament was held on just three occasions—annually from 1999 to 2001; the latter two editions separated players into three different age groups. In each of these tournaments, the champion was awarded this card. The only No. 1 Trainer card from the 1999 tournament fetched the highest price among all copies of this card which have ever been sold.

This card isn’t just the only No. 1 Trainer card from the 1999 tournament—it’s also the first-place prize card awarded to the champion of the first major Pokémon TCG tournament to take place outside Japan. This makes the card not only the sole one of its kind, but also a piece of Pokémon TCG history in and of itself.

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