CGC STANDARD GRADING

CGC Blue Label

Sin City Comics & Gaming are the only authorised CGC Dealer in Wales and the South West. This is a title we are proud of and as such we ensure the level of service you receive is exceptional. Our rates are competitive, and we have all the processes in place to ensure a smooth customer experience is had.

We are able to facilitate your grading needs for Comics, Magazines, Concert Posters, Trading Cards, Reholders and Lobby Cards. For anything other than Comics & Trading Cards please contact us on [email protected] to inquire.

CGC STANDARD GRADING / BLUE LABEL

Every comic book certified by CGC is graded by the most experienced and trusted team, according to well-established grading standards. Furthermore, every CGC-certified comic book undergoes a thorough restoration check by leading professionals during the certification process. When restoration is detected, it is fully noted on the certification label.

Once certified by CGC, a comic book is encapsulated in a state-of-the art, tamper-evident holder, providing superior protection and stability for long-term preservation.

Your books will be packaged then shipped fully insured on your behalf to CGC in Florida, USA. Once they reach destination, they will be officially graded, authenticated and encased. Once completed they are shipped back to us (still fully insured).

Once your books are back with us in the UK they will be posted back to you via a ‘signed for and tracked’ courier service or you can visit the store to collect.

The turnaround times vary considerably – please refer to CGC directly for turnaround times at the time of submission on the link here

CGC BLUE LABEL GRADING PRICES – Standard Comic Size (Magazine Size is +£5 to Tier Grade)

ServicePriceAgeMaximum Market Value
Modern£35.001975 to PresentUp to £150
Economy£40.00Any AgeUp to £300

All submissions we send have a minimum quantity before they meet our shipping criteria however this is NOT per customer and is across a group of submissions. We can inform you at the time of submitting of any waiting period currently in place.

POSTAGE PRICES – for comic books – this cost is for the return of your items once graded and holdered to you via post. This is not for any shipping fees overseas. If you are local to us in Newport, South Wales, you can drop off/collect your comics therefore no UK postage charges will apply.

LocationFirst BookAdditional Books
United Kingdom (Mainland UK)£15.00£2.00
Europe£30.00£3.50

OTHER OPTIONS

CLEAN & PRESS – £12.00 per comic

CGC offer a clean & press service with CCS. Comics submitted for C&P must be submitted separately and take substantially longer. Turnaround times vary so please check on the CGC website for latest times. They average over 200 days which is in addition to the grading turnaround time so a clean, press & grade would be around 12-18 months as a minimum in most cases.

CHARACTER LABELS – £10.00

CGC offer a custom character label which can be used on the label at the top of the holder. Custom labels are only available on Blue and Yellow labelled holders. To see the latest available labels please contact us on [email protected]

REHOLDER – contact us on [email protected] for a quote

If your current slab has a crack or scratch we can send it away to CGC and have it reholdered so it looks new once more. Please bear in mind this comes with risks and cracking a slab can damage the item – this is made clear by CGC upon submission and the risk sits with the customer. CGC do all they can to avoid any damage

CGC TRADING CARDS

The popularity of trading cards has grown significantly since the release of Magic: The Gathering in 1993 and Pokémon TCG in 1996.

With prices for many early and rare cards increasing substantially in recent years, trading card collectors want to be completely confident that their cards are genuine, accurately graded and preserved.

CGC Trading Cards provides this confidence through its expert and impartial authentication, grading and encapsulation services for virtually all Pokémon TCG and Magic: The Gathering cards.

As of December 2021, CGC extended their Trading Card grading services to all trading card games of standard size and Japanese size cards.

The only game current awaiting go ahead is Yu-Gi-Oh. The list of TCG that can be submitted for grading are as follows:

  • Pokemon
  • Magic the Gathering
  • Digimon (2020 to present)
  • Dragon Ball Super
  • Final Fantasy
  • Fire Emblem Cipher
  • Flesh & Blood
  • Force of Will
  • Harry Potter
  • MetaZoo
  • My Hero Academia (launched March 2022 in UK)
  • Weiss Schwarz
  • World of Warcraft
  • Coming Soon: Yu-Gi-Oh, Nostalgix

Only standard set sizes are currently accepted by CGC, no small, oversized or other non-standard sizes. Pokemon and MetaZoo cards produced by TOPPS are not accepted at present.

After a trading card has been authenticated and graded by CGC Trading Cards, it is encapsulated in the CGC Trading Cards holder, which provides the best in protection and display while being portable and easy to store.

Trading Cards have the same grading scale as used in Comics but with different criteria of course, however in addition you can request a sub-grading which in addition to the cards overall grade CGC Trading Cards will assign sub-graders for Centering, Corners, Edges & Surface for an additional fee. If you card achieves a 10 grade, CGC will sub-grade your card for free. This will happen automatically and be returned to us with sub grades on the holder.

Turnaround times vary however CGC currently boast an extremely fast turnaround due to efforts and resources put in to streamlining their grading process and expanding the expertise in-house. Regardless of which TCG brand the turnaround remains the same. Turnaround time is from when CGC open and log submissions, it does not include the time with us or shipping.

ServicePriceMax Market Value (Per Item)Turnaround Time **
Economy£30.00Up to £30025 Business Days
Standard£38.00Up to £75015 Business Days
Sub GradingGrading Fee + £10Tier +5 Business Days
Reholder *grade will not changeRequest a quote

*grade will not change **Estimates

Postage Prices

For Trading Cards – this cost is for the return of your items to you via post. This is not for any shipping fees overseas.

LocationFirst Trading CardAdditional Cards
United Kingdom (Mainland UK)£10.00£2.00
Europe£20.00£3.50

HOW TO SUBMIT

Email us on [email protected] – or use the “contact us” form on our website. Please ensure the subject is “CGC Grading Request”. Whether it is Comics or Trading Cards please ensure you provide the following as appropriate:

  • Submission Details
    • Name of Comic/Card
    • Issue/Card Number
    • Date of Release (Comic – month/year only)
    • Set and Year of Release (TCG)
    • Any special variations to be noted e.g artist, ratio, key appearances, cover type for comics and holo reverse, secret rare etc for trading cards
  • Tier Required
  • Services Required
  • UK Postage Required or if you will be dropping off/collection your submission

You will be responded to by one of the team with a quote for your requirements. If you wish to go ahead you will be able to pay either by online payment link or instore depending on circumstances.

We are happy to discuss payment plans, deposits or if you are local we can offer payment on collection.

Once your submission order is complete you can drop in or send your submission items to us as soon as you are able to. We will advise of any waiting time due to our minimum submission criteria at the time of your order.

After this we will let you know once your submission has been sent and will be in touch whenever we receive updates from CGC as per the progress.

TERMS & CONDITIONS

  • Please note that Comic Book and Trading Card Grading is conducted solely by CGC. Sin City Comics & Gaming does not guarantee and is not responsible for any grading discrepancies. Should you be unhappy with the Grade of your book and/or card, please contact CGC directly. Contact details can be found of their website cgccomics.com.
  • Sin City Comics & Gaming is an authorised dealer and facilitator for CGC. Liability commences with Sin City Comics & Gaming when your submission items are in our possession and until they are returned and ‘signed-for’ by you or others authorised by you at the address provided on your Submission order. Sin City Comics & Gaming is not responsible for any damage, loss or negligence which occurs outside of this time period.
  • Damage during transit must be reported to Sin City Comics & Gaming ([email protected]) within 5 working days of delivery to the address you provided.
  • Customers who choose to ship items to Sin City Comics & Gaming will do so securely so that items do not incur damage through inadequate packing. We advise that you send these items ‘signed-for’ in order to track your items journey to us.
  • CGC ‘Turn-around’ times are correct at time of going to press. CGC ‘turn-around’ times are subject to change and are dependent on CGC’s workload. Sin City Comics & Gaming does not have any influence on these ‘turn-around’ times and are therefore not responsible for any changes. We will endeavor to keep you up to date with any changes, but please see the CGC website for further information. 
  • Should you be dissatisfied with any aspect of the service provided by Sin City Comics & Gaming, please contact us via [email protected] within 5 working days of receipt of goods and we will endeavor to address the problem.
  • Prices are correct at time of going to press but are subject to change.
  • Customers agree that when accepting a quotation and/or payment is made for any Sin City Comics & Gaming service, they are agreeing to all terms and conditions laid out in this document.