How to Get Started Flipping Sports Cards

Making money with sports cards is exciting, exhilarating…and nervewracking.

You’re probably worried about:

• How much money you need to start

• How to know when to buy/sell

• Which types of cards to invest in (among literally tens of thousands)

• Which players to invest in

I can’t answer all of that here in a single newsletter, but I want to give you my actual checklist that I use to find cards to buy for flipping.

Flipping Checklist

While there are plenty of ways to make money, I have an “ideal” process that a perfect card purchase follows.

The main strategy is this:

I buy raw cards for players that I think will go up in value. My ultimate goal is to send that card in to get graded. If I receive the card and I doubt it’s going to get a PSA 10, then at least I’ve got a card that I think will still increase in value significantly.

If it does gem (grade a 10), I make big profit.

Here’s my checklist:

1. Identify players primed to increase in value.

That’s a massive topic by itself! A few easy rules of thumb:

• Don’t buy when hype is strong, and everyone is talking about them.

• Don’t buy a player expecting an “awards bump.”

• Don’t buy recently released players.

• Don’t buy mid-career or later non-superstars.

• Do buy players in the offseason.

• Do buy players who are slumping, but there are legitimate reasons for a bounce-back.

I use Card Ladder to check that I’m buying at a low point. I also like to see they’ve hit semi-recent highs that would result in good profit.

2. Find popular / high quality cards of that player

In other words, I want cards that are liquid. Go for popular parallels, inserts, autos, and numbered cards from popular sets. I try to stay away from base, but there’s still money to be made there as long PSA 10s hold good value.

3. Check the “gem rate” of the card

In other words, what percentage of the time does that exact card grade out as a PSA 10 when submitted? Some sets are prone to bad grades, others to good ones.

Use gemrate.com and their Universal Search to check this out in seconds. I like to see 50% or higher.

4. Ensure PSA 10s are worth it

I like to go to Card Ladder or eBay to see values for raw, PSA 9, and PSA 10. I want to buy a card that will at least double my investment if it comes out as a PSA 10, but I also won’t get hosed if it’s a PSA 9.

5. Buy a clean copy

Honestly, it’s tricky to find super clean copies of cards on eBay because pictures aren’t always great. It’s worth spending more on a card with good pictures.

Worst case, you get the card, wait for a spike, and sell raw.

6. Grade the card

If you get the card and it’s in great condition, send off to PSA. If you’ve chosen well, the card will increase two ways:

• The player rises in value naturally due to strong play or season hype.

• The card grades a 10.

That’s the quick-and-dirty checklist for how I grade cards! Each of those points could have a whole book written about it.

If you’re looking for more info about getting started flipping, check out my well-reviewed book, Cards to Cash, on Amazon.

(Or, if you have any quick questions about flipping cards, hit reply to this email and ask!)

Buy/Sell Targets

This doesn’t constitute investment advice, more just a window into my overall strategy as well as for entertainment purposes. All pricing and screenshots are taken from Card Ladder—the only pricing & inventory tool I use.

✔️ Ronald Acuña Jr. ⚾ - At full strength, he’s a top MVP candidate. He played well in limited games last year, so combine a full season + a team primed for a bounceback and you could have the makings of a massive spike for him during the season. A fast start could see wonders. (He’s already starting to increase, so grab him fast if you’re interested).

✔️ Shai Gilgeous-Alexander 🏀 - I’ve been of the opinion that there’s a decent chance he’ll have 3 MVP awards and 3 Championships before he’s even out of his prime. That would put him… top 10 ever? If that’s a possible trajectory, then his recent abdominal strain resulting in a massive price drop is baffling to me. He’s still the overwhelming favorite to win MVP and a ring this season.

✔️ Bobby Witt Jr. ⚾ - With the second best MVP odds (behind Judge, of course), and his team favored to win the AL Central, he’s a good bet to increase over the season. Looking at his Bowman Chrome 1st: we saw a massive decrease throughout last season… which is strange for someone so good.

❌ Luka Doncic 🏀 - Luka’s PSA 10 Prizm cards fell to around $160 when the Lakers were bounced from the playoffs last season. Right now, they’re selling for around $220. I’m the biggest Lakers fan out there… and it’s clear they’re planning for next season. I doubt they win a round in the playoffs (and might even fall to the play-in). Sell now, and buy back in the offseason, even if you love Luka to death.

Quick Hits

News From Around the Hobby

+ 10 Most Expensive Sales of 2025 - “Sports cards set new auction highs in 2025, led by the $12.93 million MJ-Kobe Dual Logoman and multiple $4 million-plus icon sales.”

+ Next Insert Chase - “Topps hopes it has created the hobby’s newest chase in this golden age of insert cards after the debut of its "Alter Ego" set last month.” If it turns out to be the next Downtown, Kaboom, or Color Blast, expect these to be monsters. The Shohei 1/1 version already sold for over $100k.

+ Youth Movement - With football over, I’m turning more attention to NBA. This list of NBA Prospect Cards to Buy in 2026 is a good starting point. I’d add a few others like Derik Queen and Cedric Coward as future stars playing on (currently) irrelevant teams. I’ll quibble with their inclusion of a center on the Kings, though.

How To Pick the Best Sports Cards to Invest In (2026)

Today I’ll show you a few of the cards I’ve personally invested in recently….

But more than that, I’ll show you how I decide which cards to invest in! It’s different for everyone, but I’ll show you how to pick based on your specific goals, budget, and time frame… [Keep Reading]

Check Out My New Book, Now Available on Amazon

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The content in this newsletter is for entertainment purposes only and is not intended to be actual financial or investment advice.