New to Pokémon cards? Good news: there’s no correct way to collect them — and you definitely don’t need to buy everything.
Pokémon card collecting can look slightly overwhelming from the outside.
Hundreds of sets. Different rarities. Booster packs, boxes, tins, promos, Japanese cards, English cards, graded cards, sealed products — and seemingly everyone online has a different opinion about what you should be buying.
The reality is much simpler.
A good collection is one you actually enjoy owning.
Start with what you like
Before worrying about value, rarity or what everyone else is chasing, work out what actually interests you.
Maybe you want every card featuring a particular Pokémon. Perhaps you like full-art cards, older cards, certain illustrators, or completing an entire set.
You might not even want individual cards at all. Plenty of collectors enjoy keeping sealed products such as Elite Trainer Boxes, Booster Bundles and special collections.
There’s no hierarchy to it. A binder full of £2 cards you genuinely love is a better collection than a pile of expensive cards you bought because somebody on YouTube told you to.
Learn how sets work
Most Pokémon cards belong to a particular expansion or set.
Each expansion has its own card list, artwork and products. If you buy booster packs from that expansion, you're opening cards from that set.
Before buying heavily into one, it’s worth looking through the card list first.
If there are only two cards you actually want, opening £200 worth of booster packs probably isn't the most sensible route to getting them.
Which brings us neatly to...
Packs are fun. Singles are sensible.
Opening packs is one of the best bits of the hobby.
There’s something undeniably enjoyable about cracking open a booster and having absolutely no idea what's going to be inside.
But if you’re chasing one specific card, buying that card individually is often much cheaper.
Most collectors end up doing a mixture of both: packs for the fun of opening them, singles for cards they specifically want.
That tends to be a much healthier relationship with your bank account.
Card Avenue tip: You don't need to complete every new set. Pick the ones you genuinely like and let the others pass you by. There will always be another release.
Look after the cards you care about
You don't need to turn your house into a climate-controlled archive.
For most cards, a decent sleeve and a good binder are absolutely fine.
Cards you particularly value can be put into a sleeve and then a rigid holder such as a top loader for a bit more protection.
The important things are simple: keep them dry, keep them away from direct sunlight, and don't chuck them loose into a drawer underneath three old phone chargers.
Don't get dragged into the hype
Pokémon releases move quickly.
One week everyone desperately wants one product, and three weeks later the internet has moved on to something else entirely.
You don't have to follow it.
If you like a release, brilliant. If you don't, skip it.
Collecting becomes much more enjoyable once you stop treating every new product as something you're obliged to own.
Build the collection you actually want
That really is the whole thing.
Pick a direction. Learn as you go. Protect the cards you care about. Open some packs when you fancy it.
And above all, don't worry too much about whether you're collecting Pokémon cards “properly”.
Nobody is marking your homework.
Looking for somewhere to start?
Have a browse through the latest Pokémon TCG products and upcoming releases at Card Avenue.