FAQ

The AVA Price is what we charge for a single. It starts from TCGplayer's live market price for that card in Near Mint, or the middle of its recent TCGplayer sales when that is higher, and rounds down to the nearest price ending in .49 or .99, so it sits at or just under that number (a $46.42 card is $45.99). It never goes more than 10% under: when rounding down would cut deeper, it rounds up to the next .49 or .99 instead (a $0.94 card is $0.99).

• Minimums: never below $0.49, and some rarities have a higher minimum ($1.99 or $2.49).

Prices update through the day as the market moves. When the market for a $5+ item falls fast, our price comes down at most 10% a day, so for a day or two it can sit above market; a fall of 25% or more in a day takes the item off the site until it settles. Played copies (LP, MP) cost less and are labeled on the button. Sealed products follow the same rule: market, rounded down to .49 or .99.

Some are. Some TCGplayer links are affiliate links — AVA may earn a commission at no cost to you. You pay TCGplayer’s normal price either way.

Within 2 business days of your order. Once it ships: tracked mailers and boxes take 3–5 business days, and plain white envelopes take 5–8. Pre-orders ship on release day. Shipping policy →

Anywhere in the US, including Alaska, Hawaii, Puerto Rico, the other US territories and APO/FPO addresses. We don’t ship internationally yet.

One rate for the whole order, set by what’s in it:

• Small singles orders (up to 30 cards, under about $20 before deals): $2.49 in a plain white envelope (no tracking). Want tracking? Choose Tracked Shipping ($7.99) at checkout.
• Bigger singles orders (31+ cards, or about $20+ before deals) and Rip & Ship: $7.99, tracked.
• Any sealed product or slab: $9.99, tracked in a box.
• Large boxes (big flat premium collections, Ultra-Premium Collections, sealed cases and displays): $20 tracked.
• $1,000 and up: free.

Checkout shows the rate before you pay. Everything in the order ships together. Rip & Ship hits ship after the stream. Free local pickup in Aldie, VA: choose Pickup at checkout.

Yes, free. Choose Pickup at checkout (AVA | The Card Gallery, Aldie, VA). We’ll email you when it’s ready. Bring your order confirmation.

Orders with $500 or more of items ship insured, with signature required on delivery, at no extra charge. Smaller orders ship as listed in How Much Is Shipping? above. Picking up in Aldie? Nothing to sign for.

We’ll refund or replace it. Packages stolen after the carrier marks them delivered aren’t covered.

Sealed product can’t be returned. You can cancel before it ships — a 6% processing fee applies. Damaged or not as described? Email us and we’ll make it right. Returns →

Pre-orders ship when the product releases. If your cart mixes in-stock items and pre-orders, see the shipping policy for how they’re grouped. Shipping policy →

Buy 3, get 1 free (B3G1): on singles under $5, every 4th card is free. Buy 10, get 10 free (B10G10): pay for 10 singles under $5 and the next 10 under $5 are free, then it repeats at every 20. Whichever deal gives you more free cards is the one you get. The free cards are the least expensive qualifying cards in your cart, so your cheapest picks are the ones that go free.

Submit your lot and today’s rate locks right away. Pick how you want to be paid, or leave it on Trade · Unsorted (store credit, send it as is), where every lot starts. Every submission is accepted: print your packing slip and ship or drop it off within 14 days. Lots are worked in the order they arrive. Your report is ready within 48 hours of the day we start your lot (over $50k or vintage: up to 7 business days). Once it’s approved, you’re paid in cash or store credit within 24 hours. Sell your bulk →

Every bulk rate card pays five columns, left to right. Each step to the right pays more.

• Cash · Sorted: paid in cash. Sorted · no fee. Unsorted: we sort it, 10% fee.
• Trade · Unsorted: AVA store credit. Send it as is.
• Trade · Sorted: store credit for a lot sorted by card type.
• Active · Active Role: store credit for a sorted lot when you hold the Active role in the AVA Discord.
• Monitor · Best Rate: our best rate in store credit, unsorted welcome, with an active Discord Monitor subscription.

Every lot starts on Trade · Unsorted unless you pick another column on the Sell form.

Every bulk card has all five, Vintage and Chinese & Korean included. Collection (sealed and singles) and Slabs use three columns: Cash · Trade · Monitor. See the rate cards →

Your lot is paid at Trade · Unsorted: AVA store credit for your lot as is, no sorting and no fee. That’s where every lot starts on the Sell form. Want cash, a sorted rate, Active or Monitor? Pick it before you submit, because your tier locks when you submit.

Sent a lot that isn’t bulk (sealed, singles or slabs only)? Sorting doesn’t apply, so it’s paid at the Trade column for that rate card.

Individual collectors selling or trading their own cards. Active needs the Active role in the AVA Discord, and Monitor needs an active Discord Monitor subscription. Either way, sign in with Discord when you submit. The Sell form checks your role on the spot and locks your tier.

Your tier locks when you submit, so losing a role later never lowers a lot you already submitted. No sign-in, or no role, and the lot is paid at Trade (Sorted if you said sorted, Unsorted if not). Active is for sorted lots: an unsorted Active lot pays Trade · Unsorted, or Monitor if you’re a subscriber. One Discord account covers one person. Discord roles and tiers →

Run an LCS or a Rip & Ship? Active and Monitor are for individuals, not stores or businesses. Let’s partner on your bulk exit instead, for cash or trade. Contact Us →

Let’s partner. If you’re an LCS or Rip & Ship and want to exit your bulk for cash or trade, reach out and we’ll set it up. Contact Us →

The moment you submit. Your rate and your tier lock together, and the rate holds for 14 days, while you ship or drop off your lot; a lot that arrives later is paid at the rate card on the day it arrives.

We start with two TCGplayer numbers at the time we review your product: the market price and the most recent completed sale. We use whichever better reflects the market right now.

We then apply the published buy rate for that product type, the same rates shown on our rate card.

Store credit on Flagship sealed is never more than 20% under its original retail price (MSRP). Warehouse-club exclusives, such as Costco and Sam’s Club products, are priced from secondary market pricing and our buy rate based on product type. Store credit offers on items over $100 are rounded up to the nearest $5.

Match pays a base rate on every card. Your rate goes up as you do more with AVA, and your seller badges show what you’ve earned. The more you sell, trade and stick with us, the higher your Match rate climbs.

Match trades speed for a better rate. It waits on a buyer, so it can take time. The buyer pays first; you’re paid the moment they do, in cash or credit, your pick, and then you ship the item to AVA at your own shipping cost. Sell to AVA Today pays right away at its own rate. Compare on the Sell page →

Near Mint, unsleeved, no toploaders or rubber bands. Keep each language in its own stack; Vintage takes LP. Follow the packing guide in the submission form.

Ship full boxes. Fill every box all the way so nothing shifts. Code cards ride along in a box with cards, not in a box of their own.

Hits: pre-pulled and separated from your bulk. Cards worth $20 or more go in a sleeve and toploader.

Cards worth $5 or more must arrive pre-pulled and separated from your bulk. Each one is reviewed for condition and priced at TCGplayer market or last sold at the time we review your lot.

Cards worth $20 or more must arrive in a sleeve and toploader.

Hits mixed into a bulk submission are paid as bulk, regardless of value.

No. Trade · Unsorted and Monitor take your lot as is, with no fee. Sorting pays more: Cash · Sorted, Trade · Sorted and Active are the sorted columns. A Cash lot sent unsorted is still paid in cash: we sort it and take a 10% sorting fee off the cash for its bulk cards (hits, slabs and sealed never carry it). An unsorted Active lot is paid at Trade · Unsorted (or Monitor if you’re a subscriber).

What sorted means: one card type per stack. Each rate card says exactly how. For Pokémon: commons apart from holos and hits, energy and code cards pulled, English only.

How we check: we sample every sorted lot. If more than 5% is off, the lot pays one column to the left (Active to Trade · Sorted, Trade · Sorted to Trade · Unsorted), and your report says so. No rejections and no partial credit: every lot is accepted.

Store credit never carries a sorting fee. The only sorting fee is 10% on an unsorted Cash lot.

We sample every sorted lot. If more than 5% of the sample is off, the lot pays one column to the left: Active moves to Trade · Sorted, and Trade · Sorted moves to Trade · Unsorted. A Cash · Sorted lot stays at Cash, and the 10% sorting fee comes off its bulk cards. Your report shows the re-tier and why.

That’s it: no rejections and no partial credit. Store credit never carries a fee, and every lot is accepted.

Every submission is accepted, and lots are worked in the order they arrive. Your report is ready within 48 hours of the day we start your lot (over $50k or vintage: up to 7 business days). Once it’s approved, you’re paid in cash or store credit within 24 hours.

Every submission gets its own lot page with live status: submitted, shipped, received, in progress and paid. Look it up anytime with your lot number (it starts with SUB) and the email you submitted with, or open it from your AVA Vault when you are signed in. Once you ship, add your tracking number there so we can watch for your box.

Yes. Once your lot is within the first 50 spots in our Live Intake Queue, you can give up 15% of that lot's payout to move it into the top 6, the lots we count first. Your lot slots in right behind anyone who already skipped, never ahead of them.

There are 6 priority spots at a time. When all 6 are taken, skipping reopens as soon as one of those lots is finished. Lots outside the top 50 can skip once they move up, and the queue shows how many spots you have to go. To skip, find your lot in the queue (or sign in and it shows automatically) and tap Move Me Into the Top 6.

Example: a $1,000 lot that skipped the line pays $1,000 − $150 priority = $850. Your payout receipt shows each line.

Every sealed product you sell or trade to AVA needs to be in good condition: factory sealed, with no broken, crushed or dented boxes, no tears, holes or re-seals in the wrap, and no water damage. Clean, intact product is what lets us pay full rate.

If a box arrives damaged, you choose: take an offer of 50% of the original offer, or have it returned to you with return shipping paid by you.

Choose Trade, Active or Monitor when you sell to us, or take credit on a Trade Desk offer. It posts within 24 hours of our team approving your report.

Anything in the shop — sealed, singles and slabs — except items marked Trade Exclusive, which are trade only. Shop →

Sign in to your account. Your balance applies at checkout.

In Search Of. Post the card you want and the most you’d pay. When another collector has it, AVA checks the card, locks in the deal and ships it to you. Auto-Buy takes the first match that fits your price; Just Post waits for you to say yes. Open the Market →

Want To Sell / Want To Trade. Post what you’re moving once. When a buyer pays, we pay you cash or store credit at our rate card, or swap it for what you want. You ship only after the buyer has paid; if the card fails our check it comes back at your cost.

The board shows masked names only — never contact details. Every match is brokered by AVA, so you never deal with a stranger directly and the card is checked before money moves.

Buyers pay by card: market × your rate, plus a Processing line for card fees and the Market shipping shown on the deal, with tax at checkout (so a $96 card is Item $96.00 · Processing $3.41 · Shipping $7.99). No store credit or gift cards on Market purchases. Sellers pay nothing to post.

Both sides climb with every deal they complete. Buyers: every completed deal lowers your price, from market down to 90%. You start at market, and step to 98% after your first deal, 96% after 5, 94% after 10, 92% after 15 and 90% after 25. A deal counts the moment it ships to you. Sellers: cash and store credit both climb with every deal you complete. On singles over $10: Vendor 75% cash or 77.5% credit, First Deal (1 paid deal) 76% / 78.5%, Dealer (5) 77% / 79.5%, Broker (10) 78% / 80.5%, Merchant (15) 79% / 81.5% and Mogul (25) 80% / 82.5%. A seller’s deal counts once it has shipped to the buyer and you’re paid. What counts: deals of $25 or more closed in the last 90 days. Each trading partner counts once every 30 days, and higher steps need deals with different people (5 deals needs 2 people, 10 needs 4, 25 needs 10). Each step is a badge: Window Shopper, Regular, Insider, Floor Trader and House Rate for buyers; First Deal, Dealer, Broker, Merchant and Mogul for sellers. Your rate and the deals to your next step show on the Market, in every Deal Room and in your Vault.

Yes. Any For Sale post priced at market shows Buy at $X: market × your rate, plus card processing and shipping. Tap it, confirm the terms, and you’re locked in with no charge yet. The seller has 24 hours to lock in too; then you get a card checkout. The card ships to AVA first, we check it, and it ships to you. No ISO needed.

Everyone pays their own leg. Anything coming to AVA ships at your cost (a sale, or your side of a trade). Anything AVA sends you is charged the Market shipping shown on the deal (a purchase, or the other side of a trade) before you pay. AVA checks every item in between and never covers freight.

Paste a decklist, drop a deck link, or pick one of today’s top decks and we match every card to what’s on our shelves. Buy everything we have in one tap, then finish the rest: post an ISO and we hunt the missing cards, or open TCGplayer with just those cards filled in. Try it →

Moxfield, Archidekt, MTGGoldfish, Limitless, Dreamborn, OPTCG Sim exports, Pokémon TCG Live exports and plain lists like “4 Dreepy TWM 128” all paste straight in. Top decks come from current tournament results for Pokémon, Magic, One Piece, Riftbound and Lorcana.

The cheapest legal version of each card. When prices tie, the most base printing wins — the printing the deck names, a regular set over promos and prize packs, the plain printing over foils. Switch to Premium for the priciest legal version, or pick any printing by era in the quick view.

Because it’s in your imported collection or you bought it from AVA. It’s a reminder, never a block — buy another any time. The × hides that card if you no longer have it. Import your collection from Collectr, ManaBox, Moxfield, Dreamborn and more under Master Sets.

A single that’s in one of today’s top decks. They carry a Top Deck pill in the shop and have their own filter under Singles.

Pick a set, tap the cards you own (or import your collection), and we show what you’re missing, what it costs to finish from AVA or TCGplayer, and the value of what you hold. Progress saves to your AVA account. Open Master Sets →

Yes — Collectr, TCG Collector, pokedata.io, Rare Candy, ManaBox, Moxfield, Archidekt, Deckbox, Dragon Shield, Delver Lens, TCGplayer, Dreamborn, Piltover Archive or any CSV with a card name column. Choose “All games” and every card lands in the right set.

TCGplayer market prices, refreshed through the day. Items without a live market price show a dash and count as $0 in your totals. Values are for tracking only, not an offer.

A big release with a set number of units and two weeks to fill. Drops are entered with store credit only — no cash, cards or gift cards. Winners pay standard shipping by card. Enter with store credit that covers the full price; the draw is random. Your credit stays locked until the drop completes — win and it’s spent on the unit, miss and it unlocks. See open drops →

Sell or trade bulk, singles, sealed or slabs to AVA and take store credit. It lands in your Vault and is ready for the next drop.

No. Drops and every other credit-only AVA event are store credit only. Your entry is taken from the credit on your AVA account. If you win, you pay standard shipping by card. If you don’t have enough credit, sell or trade to AVA first.

+1 per card tracked in Master Sets · +500 per completed master set · +0.1 per bulk card sold to AVA · +50 per Trade Desk entry or ISO post · +1 per dollar spent · +25 per Drop entry and +250 per win · +200 per referred Bulk Out lot that settles · +100 for showing your name on the boards. See the ladder →

Rookie (0), Trainer (100), Collector (500), Veteran (1,500), Elite (4,000), Champion (10,000) and Legend (25,000 points). Your Vault shows your rank and how far you are from the next one.

No. The boards show masked names (“Ry•••”) unless you choose “Show My Name” on the Leaderboard page and pick a handle. Turn it off any time.

Approved affiliates get a personal code and link. When a seller submits a bulk lot with your code, the lot is tied to you. Once we settle that lot, you earn 5% of its cash value in AVA store credit — even if the seller chose a store credit tier. Affiliate Terms →

Sign in to your AVA account and apply from the Affiliate Dashboard. Pick the code you want (3–20 letters or numbers) and agree to the Affiliate Terms. Every application is accepted: your code is live the moment you apply, and your dashboard opens right there.

Yes. When a seller's very first settled lot with AVA is 5,000+ cards and it came through your code, you get an extra $25 in store credit on top of your 5%.

Credit earned through the end of each month posts to your AVA store credit on the 1st at 12:01 AM Eastern. Monthly payouts over $250 get a quick manual review before they post. Store credit applies automatically at checkout and has no cash value.

Once a seller submits with your code, every lot they send after that credits you — they don't have to re-enter it. The only way that changes is if the seller chooses to switch to a different code on a later submission.

No. Codes can't be used on your own lots or on lots from your household or business accounts. Self-referred lots don't earn credit.

Your Affiliate Dashboard shows every referred lot and its status, what's pending vs. paid, each monthly payout, link clicks, your leaderboard rank and ready-to-use marketing assets. Seller names are never shown — only lot details.

Yes. Whenever you share your code or link, say clearly that you earn store credit from AVA (for example, "I earn AVA store credit when you sell with my code"). It's required by the FTC and spelled out in the Affiliate Terms.

Pick an open offer and enter with your email to hold a spot. Bring the product sealed — it is handed off, or credit posts within 24 hours of our team approving it. Open trades →

Everything you bring for a Trade Desk offer must be factory sealed and in good condition: no broken or crushed boxes, no seal tears or re-seals, no water damage. A box that arrives damaged gets an offer of 50% of the original offer, or it is returned to you at your cost. Condition details →

Each offer is capped so we can honor every trade. When the spots are gone, the offer closes.

You buy a sealed box or pack, we open it live on our Rip & Ship stream, and we ship you the cards.

When you order, pick which bulk you want back (all cards, a middle cut like reverse holos or rares and up, or only the top rarities; the choices match your game) and the rip speed (fast for hits only, or normal to go through every card). Rip & Ship →

It’s a pre-order — we rip it on the next live show. When we’re live, the red Rip & Ship link shows in the menu.

Yes. Restocks are free and simultaneous for everyone, forever. Enter the Discord →

Supporter, Intel and Monitor add tools and perks on Whop. Monitor also unlocks the Monitor rate, our best bulk rate, and comes with a 3-day free trial. Roles, Rewards & Tool Guide →

The Active column on every five-tier bulk rate card. Hold the Active role in the AVA Discord when you submit, sign in with Discord on the Sell form, and your sorted lot locks at the Active rate. It’s for individual collectors, not stores or businesses. Roles, Rewards & Tools →

An earned role for members who report restocks. Informants get free access to Intel and Monitor tools.

It’s our program for giving back to those in need. We deliver packs to kids at Children’s National.

You can donate packs directly on our site or as you turn in your bulk through the Pack Out Program.

Packs donated this month and all time. Pack Out →

No. Adding a pack is a purchase from AVA TCG LLC, not a gift to a charity, so it isn't tax-deductible. For every pack added, we buy one sealed pack and deliver it to kids at Children's National.

Tap the heart on any card or product to save it. We flag price drops and sales on anything you’ve saved. Your wishlist →

Yes — you’ll need a free AVA account to check out. It keeps your orders, submissions and store credit in one place. Sign In or Create an Account →