Here you will find a guide to better understand the different conditions of trading cards and how we at The Card Collective find the condition for the cards on our website. The condition of a Magic or Pokémon Card greatly influences the value of the card and it is therefore important to at least have a small amount of  knowledge about the different conditions and how to decide what condition each card have. This might seem like a daunting and confusing task, which is why we at the Card Collective have created this guide to help!

When people talk about the different conditions, they often use terms such as NM, LP, EX, GOOD and others, which can be a little confusing, an if that isn't enough, there is both an American and a European definition, where the same terms can mean different things. We at The Card Collective use the American definition for card condition on out website.  

 

American	European
Near Mint (NM)	Near Mint (NM)
Lightly Played (LP)	Excellent (EX)
Moderately Played (MP)	Good (GD)
Moderately Played (MP)	Lightly Played (PL)
Heavily Played (HP)	Played (PL)
Heavily Played (HP)	Heavily Played (HP)
Damaged (DMG)	Poor (PO)

A Lightly Played (LP) card on the American scale is a lot nicer than a European Lightly Played (LP) card.  

 

Mint (MT)

Mint is for the cards in perfect condition, with no flaws and must be perfectly centered. Even cards that has been opened straight out of a booster pack aren't necessarily in Mint condition as there can be difference in print qualities, even in the cards produced today. For these reasons, it does in most cases not make sense to use the Mint condition since it put sets an extremely high requirement for the condition of cards, this is almost only relevant for the biggest collectors.
In case you are interested in Mint cards, we have a large selection of both graded Magic and graded Pokémon cards on our website, which is cards that have been evaluated and graded by a professional grading company that gives the card a score based on its condition.
We do not use the Mint condition for the raw cards we sell.     

 

Near Mint (NM)

Near Mint cards are generally cards without scratches, though tiny errors along the edges or corners are allowed. A Near Mint card is not allowed to have a scratched or damaged surface, nor can it have any types of bending or damage from use. For Pokémon cards, the foiling cannot have scratches as it reduces the value of the cards. 

 

Lightly Played (LP)

Lightly Played cards are allowed to have the same sizes of damages as Near Mint cards, though they are allowed to have a bit more of them. They are allowed to have 2-3 smaller scratches or one larger scratch along the edges or corners. The surface is allowed to have tiny scratches that are only visible by closely examining the card. They are not allowed to have any types of bends or damage from use.  

 

Moderately Played (MP)

Moderately Played is a very wide category, which covers two of the European categories (GD and LP). Cards in this category are allowed to have the same type of damages as a Lightly Played card, but is also allowed to have more of them, as well as a bit larger damages. Clearly visible damages to the surface or plentiful scratches, places these types of cards in the MP-category even though their edges may be in Near Mint condition. A moderately played card is not allowed to have any bends but is allowed to have smaller damages from use e.g., if it has been played without the use of sleeves.  

 

Heavily Played (HP)

Heavily Played cards are clearly worn along the edges, corner, and on the surface. Even though Heavily Played cards are damaged they are still playable when carried in sleeves.

 

Damaged(DMG)

The Damaged category can be a bit confusing, as these cards can, at first glance, look like cards from every other category. Common for these cards though, is that they are all worn in some way. Some cards may be bent or buckled, or there may be drawings or writing on the surface (this is also called an inked card) etc.
The severity of the damage can vary greatly, which means that some DMG-cards can look a lot nicer than cards in the HP-category. Some Damaged cards has extensive defect such as water-damage or severe creases. The price for the card is determined based on how severe the damage is.  

 

Foils

• Bent Cards - Foil cards, also known as premium cards, can in some cases begin to bend. This occurs when the cards have been stored in an environment with a high or low humidity, which can affect the foil-layer applied to the card’s surface. A bent card can still be considered Near Mint if the rest of the card meets the criteria.
  Be aware that this can affect whether the card can be played at officially tournaments sanctioned by Wizards of the Coast, as a bent card can be categorized as a “marked card” and is as such not recommended for competitive play.
  
  
• Clouding - Dark areas can also occur on the card and is referred to as clouding. In case of noticeable clouding the card will not be able to be categorized as Near Mint even though the rest of the card may meet the required criteria. Depending on how severe the clouding is, it can still be considered a Lightly or Moderately Played card.

 

At The Card Collective we store all of our cards safely and responsibly under the correct conditions to make sure the cards are kept in the best possible condition.