PSA cert lookup: how to verify a graded Pokémon card

A graded card’s slab carries a certification number, and every major grader lets you look it up for free on its website. The lookup tells you what card and grade that number was issued for. It does not tell you the slab in front of you is the one that number belongs to, because counterfeiters copy real numbers onto fake labels. PSA says so on its own lookup page.

So a cert check is step one. Matching the card to the record, and checking the label and holder, are steps two and three.

Key takeaways

Look up the number on the grader’s own site: PSA, Beckett, CGC, and SGC each run a free lookup, linked below.
Match everything: the year, set, card number, name, variety (1st Edition, Shadowless, holo), and grade must all match the slab.
Compare the photos. PSA has imaged every card from submissions it received from Dec 15, 2022 on; CGC shows its own images too. Centering and small flaws should match exactly.
A matching number isn’t proof. Fakes reuse real cert numbers. Check the label against a light and the holder’s seams.
Buy graded cards from trusted sellers. PSA’s own advice is to avoid marketplaces like Craigslist, Mercari, and OfferUp for valuable slabs.

Where to look up a cert number#

Grader	Lookup	What to enter	What you’ll see
PSA	psacard.com	the certification number in the lower right of the label	front and back images for cards from submissions received from Dec 15, 2022 on, and for many earlier ones; the PSA app scans the label or its QR code
Beckett (BGS, BVG, BCCG)	beckett.com	the serial number on the label	the grading record for that serial number; Beckett lets sellers link to it from listings
CGC	cgccards.com	the certification number, or scan the QR code on the back of the label	images of the holdered card taken by CGC
SGC	gosgc.com	all 7 digits on black labels; all 11 characters (XXXXXXX-XXX) on green and white labels	the record for that code

Lookup details checked Oct 20, 2026 on each grader’s site.

How to check a PSA slab, step by step#

Find the number. It’s printed in the lower right of the PSA label. You can also scan the label or the QR code on its back with the PSA app.
Enter it at psacard.com/cert. If PSA has flagged the number, the page says so. PSA deactivates numbers it has seen on known counterfeits.
Match every field. Year, set, card number, card name, variety, and grade. A record for a lower grade, or for a cheaper version of the same card (Unlimited instead of 1st Edition, say), means the slab isn’t what it claims to be.
Compare the images. PSA has scanned the front and back of every card it graded from submissions received Dec 15, 2022 on, and of many earlier ones through its SecureScan service, which started in 2019. Line up the centering, edge wear, and print marks with the card in the slab. A different copy of the same card won’t line up exactly.
Check the label and holder (next section).

If anything doesn’t match, don’t buy. If PSA has flagged a number on a slab you already own, it asks you to contact its customer care team.

Physical checks that catch fake slabs#

PSA’s buyer’s guide and security pages describe what a genuine label and holder should do:

Hold the label up to a strong light. On a real PSA label you can see through it enough to make out the print on the other side. Forgers sometimes glue a fake front onto a real label, and the extra layer blocks the light.
Tilt it. Labels since 2017 carry PSA’s LightHouse logo, which switches on and off as you tilt the label.
Use a UV light. On the back of current labels, the PSA logo lights up under UV to show a pattern of smaller logos.
Check every seam. PSA holders are sealed with a sonic weld designed to show tampering. Gaps, pry marks, glue, cracks, or a cloudy line along an edge mean the holder may have been opened and the card swapped.
Does the card look like its grade? A PSA 10 should have four sharp corners and close centering. If a “10” looks like an 8, stop.

The same logic applies to every grader: CGC says its lookup and the QR code on the back of its labels are there to help confirm a holder is genuine and hasn’t been tampered with.

After the lookup#

Check the population. The same grader’s population report shows how many copies earned each grade, which tells you how scarce the grade on your slab is. Our guide to reading the PSA pop report explains how.
Price the exact card. Graded prices differ by grade and by printing. Ungraded prices for the sets we track are in our price tracker.
Thinking of grading your own? See how to get Pokémon cards graded, what grading costs, and how PSA compares with CGC and BGS.
Checking a raw card instead? Our guide on how to tell if Pokémon cards are fake covers the light test and the other checks.

Sources#

Checked Oct 20, 2026: