Comparing PSA and SGC Card Values- What does the DATA actually say?

So many people swear by PSA as a grading company. Others prefer to use SGC. Both companies clearly have advantages. PSA seems to be the industry standard and has long been the "go to" grading company. SGC has a quicker turnaround time and many people prefer the look of their cases. Whether you're grading Baseball, Football, Basketball, or Soccer cards, we all want to make smart financial decisions for our investments. Nobody wants to be getting their cards graded by PSA if SGC holders add more value, and vice versa. In this video, I take a deep dive into the DATA and DATA ANALYSIS on whether the values of vintage sports cards is really affected by which grading company is used.
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#psa #sgc #sportscards #vintagecards

[@te2edgesportscards177]

Awesome data collection, disaggregation, and analysis...loved this!

[@MidLifeCards]

Thanks! I’ve been a subscriber of your channel for a while and love your content and vintage cards!! Thanks for watching. I hope you subscribe.

[@te2edgesportscards177]

@@MidLifeCards Oh wow - thank you for that! I thought this episode was one of the best analyses of the topic I've ever seen. Keep it rolling brother!

[@jpcards]

Really good information. Helpful and affirming. Thanks for putting in the time and compiling this research.

[@MidLifeCards]

I appreciate you taking the time to watch and comment.

[@jacopoleonardi3731]

This is a terrific analysis and quite insightful. I have become a SGC convert. Great customer service, turnaround times, and the tuxedos look great especially on vintage cards. Seems to me SGC is winning with vintage collectors (who are more likely to buy the card not the grade). PSA still winning with "investors" who tend to buy higher grade cards because of the perceived resale value strength of the PSA brand. But SGC is gaining ground.

[@MidLifeCards]

I agree that SGC great. PSA seems to have more value at the moment, but hopefully they can keep closing the gap. Appreciate the positive feedback. I’m hoping to provide analysis that can make this hobby more enjoyable for others as well.

[@Crownjewelcardz]

Yes that is true NEW SGC CONVERT HERE 🎉

[@laknicks]

Watch at 1.5 speed

[@MidLifeCards]

I like how that's an option. I try to keep my cadence at a speed that's easy to follow. But, I also know some want me to get to the point. If 1.5 speed works best, even better!!

[@mr.sandman7deuce]

Leave him alone, he got a Californian accent, I'm assuming his from California because they talk slow.

[@Mad_Money_Mike]

2x works too

[@David-fv7zg]

I had been wondering about this for a while now, and decided to take a look, the first place I went was here, I knew Dataman would come through. Thanks for doing this Graig. I have a few questions about this, but first a comment. This reminds me of the Yankees and Pirates WS in 1960. The Yankees clobbered the Pirates outscoring them 55-27, but the Bucs won in 7 on a home run by Maz. The Yanks couldn't put them away, and let them hang on to win it in the end. I think PSA is doing the same thing here, with their nonsense pricing, they are letting SGC hang on and pull ahead. Now with $15 flat grading fees, I think in a year your data may reflect a closing of this gap, because SGC will be flooding the market with graded cards. At least I hope it will be. 1. If a PSA 6 and SGC 6 are $500 apart, I wonder what the cost burden to get the PSA graded over the SGC would be. It may cut this margin with all their extra fees, it certainly makes a difference in the time it takes to grade. 2. I wonder if this is something that could be evaluated on an annual basis with the same cards, to see how the gap is holding up. I would certainly like to help with this analysis, reduce the burden on you. 3. I wonder if the selection of cards would make a difference, say picking the top 5 cards traded per decade discussed to get more data points. 4. I always question the grading consistency. IF I broke 10 SGC's and sent to PSA, how will these grade? Good work, as always Dave

[@MidLifeCards]

It's funny that you said that about closing the gap. I did a video a week or two ago where I ran data and it showed exactly that. The gap between SGC and PSA values is quickly closing.

[@carrigster]

Appreciate the time and effort that went into the research and video, great stuff. I've definitely seen a lot of vintage come through group submissions I've done for SGC, I think something needs saying about the visual of seeing vintage cards in the tuxedo slab (far more pleasing to the eye vs psa imo). PSA will be hard to budge as the top price but SGC has so much potential to close that gap with what they are doing at the moment with turnaround times and service overall vs psa.

[@MidLifeCards]

Appreciate the feedback, and I agree. In the video I mention that two of SGC's advantages over PSA is the turnaround time and superior look. I think SGC is quickly catching up, in part, because of their superior marketing. PSA has been living off of their past success and got lazy. SGC is utilizing KZbin and other platforms to market their company, and it's working.

[@carrigster]

@@MidLifeCards I really hope SGC fully establish themselves as number 2 and then start to really make psa sweat. If it improves the performance of both companies it can only be good for all of us in the hobby. I agree with you on SGC social media, their ceo makes it easier to root for them imo 😅 I'd definitely be interested in seeing a similar breakdown of modern day sports and TCG cards if you ever follow up this video subject.

[@MidLifeCards]

@@carrigster You got it. I can definitely do that. I think that sgc already is the clear number two. Going to the San Francisco card show today and will be posting my vlog in a couple of days, but I will definitely work on a modern card SGC vs PSA comparison. Appreciate the feedback. Truly, it means a lot.

[@seamdiest]

agree about eye appeal in 3-4-5 but sgc eye appeal drops like a frog at prom for 2’s.Also SGC hammers the centering harder on 6/7/8 to 3/4/5s

[@vinnytompkins6898]

@@MidLifeCards hello midlife I agree with you on everything in your post. I would like to say I'm a new subscriber and can't wait to see next videos. Sgc in my opinion is silent underdog gaining traction in the hobby and im glad as a company name should not dictate pricing its a service thats all imo.

[@Razorbacks1]

As a predominantly pre-war collector, I have always submitted cards to SGC instead of PSA or Beckett. That said, when buying cards from the 50’s and 60’s I try to buy the card and not the holder so I find myself being drawn to SGC for 5s and 6s.

[@MidLifeCards]

No question it's about the card and not the holder. I'm a little OCD, so having lots of different cases tends to drive me a bit nutty. But, I do agree, the look of the SGC holder is the most eye appealing.

[@jamespinette9403]

As usual, outstanding video. Thanks for your research and time you took to share this info with us collectors.

[@MidLifeCards]

Appreciate the kind words. It really means a lot. I don’t just want to be a KZbin channel that shows off what I’m buying and selling. I want to be a resource for other collectors to pick up some ideas and information to make the hobby more enjoyable for themselves. If I can do things that make this more fun for others, then I’m accomplishing my goal.

[@seamdiest]

loved the data I found through online search and LCS transactions 1960-1980 sgc does better in 3-5s And get a bit of a bump on appearance value where PSA just gets grade value

[@MidLifeCards]

I definitely agree that SGC has better appearance of their cases. The lower grades aren't as much about value as they are of just collector appreciation, so it definitely makes sense. Appreciate your input/feedback. :-)

[@TheKneeGuy1]

Great work! Very interesting results

[@MidLifeCards]

Appreciate it Anthony. I hope you have a great Thanksgiving.

[@tobyduke1467]

Great video and I am sure lots of time and effort. Enjoyed. First time I saw your channel but not the last.

[@MidLifeCards]

I appreciate the kind words. It means a lot.

[@JeffreyStrain]

Always enjoy discovering new quality sports card channels. You have made it on my list of highly underrated channels. Can't wait to see this channel grow to 1000+ subscribers and beyond. Keep making quality content!

[@MidLifeCards]

This really means a lot, Jeffrey. Thank you. I love this hobby as it has brought so much joy to my life. Sharing what I've learned to help others in their hobby/investments is really enjoyable for me. I will continue to share anything that I learn through research and conversations to make the hobby more enjoyable for others. :-)

[@wilbertmatthews]

Next video. Spreadsheet. 5 major grading services across top. Pick one major card. 55 Clemente. List how much to get it graded How long did it take. Then list sales of card under each of the five. (I realize you probably won’t find enough). If using PSA only adds $25 to my sale price, why pay $200 to get it graded there ?

[@MidLifeCards]

That’s a good idea. Would be a long process for one video. Also would be impossible to find 5 cards that would be the same grade. But, if there was a way to do that, I think it’s a great idea.

[@markkindsvatter3058]

I truly love SGC for my PC stuff. Couldn't really care about PSA, BGS, SGC arguments...heck, give me a good condition PC card in a GMA slab...buy the card not the slab...either way maybe the resellers and flippers care, but the best deal on the best card gets my cash.

[@MidLifeCards]

That’s the best place to be is not caring. Collecting for your personal collection, what you like is really how it’s supposed to be. But for the investors and flippers, this data matters to them. I appreciate you watching and commenting.

[@kencargill7679]

Niiice job!!!

[@DerethAC]

I’ve just started the video, but am going to point out a major flaw right off the bat. PSA versus SGC is much closer for vintage. When you look at modern cards, the gap is huge.

[@MidLifeCards]

I don’t disagree at all. I’m 100% with you and that’s why I’m planning to do a video of the 2000s, 2010s, and 2020s in the next couple of weeks. I didn’t want the video to go too long and also wanted to hear that one more towards vintage collectors. Look for the modern comparison soon!! Thanks for your input. 😁

[@milldude19]

My take is that rich people buy the highest grades, not the average collector. Secondly rich people (in general) like PSA better and drive up the prices for the higher grades. Same for the fifties cards, only the rich collector's can afford them and the rich collector favors PSA.

[@MidLifeCards]

I don't disagree. For some people, money isn't an issue. Must be nice, because it sure is for me. Lol. :-)

[@Cards-In-The-Closet]

Thanks for doing all that hard work! Can you do the same fo some iconic Football through the decades?

[@MidLifeCards]

I'm open to doing that, for sure. I know most of my subscribers are baseball collectors, but I'm into a variety of sports. But, yes...I'll look into that.

[@Cards-In-The-Closet]

@@MidLifeCards Thanks! It’s tough to find many good football content. I collected in the 70s and 80s, but most football channels are ultra modern 😩

[@MidLifeCards]

@@Cards-In-The-Closet Well, I’m not about modern cards at all. I have a few, but my focus on collecting is vintage stuff.

[@pyrobully_gaming9970]

Liked and Subscribed, Good stuff

[@MidLifeCards]

Thanks so much. I really appreciate it.

[@vinnytompkins6898]

I think there a couple of things that are not being thought of here but love the video and work done. First psa has the registry factor that sgc doesn't have a competitive equal of. Second psa has been known to be more valuable and a lot of flippers have been buying sgc to send to psa to make a profit which in fact may have boosted one more than the other in some ways. And third psa cases have been tested to be more durable and I believe many desire a look of psa slabs over sgc tuxedo and that to may have been another reason to resubmit to psa. And finally the last thing I want to mention is psa has been grading wildly good and bad in which can alter pricing. Some cards ive seen submitted have been either under valued or over valued in grade ratings. I can say sgc has shown more consistent grading from card to card and turn around time been better as well as service contacting on issues where psa has been having issues and scandals with cards being swapped and out right changed from what was submitted in which bothers me as well. All in all I like your video and work you did I just believe with hobby market volatility right now pricing is all over and many are going after best value in which many still consider psa to be better however I don't believe that is completely the case as I believe grading consistently ensures quality of value over popuarity.

[@MidLifeCards]

Good points. I appreciate the input.

[@JC-pe5fk]

Just watched this video and love your analytical mind - I wonder if you could or already did one adding BGS and CSG?Then you would have the top 4 in the hobby?

[@MidLifeCards]

Appreciate that a lot. Thank you. I wanted to do CSG and BGS, but there aren’t enough graded cards in vintage to be able to do a comparison. I wish I could but I was searching for cards that had examples in those holders, but couldn’t find many choices with large sample sizes.

[@commissionertom]

There’s another factor when comparing these 2 companies. First you have a significantly different turnaround time. What is the cost of waiting 4 months for your cards. If you happen to “hit” one of your cards at an 8 or 9 what is the up charge with PSA? And then you have the whole topic of the accusations of controlling the number of 9s and 10s issued. So I agree with your numbers that a graded PSA has a slightly higher return but what are your chances of getting those high grades. Nice job on the research.

[@MidLifeCards]

Well said. I totally agree. SGC definitely has some distinct advantages over psa, and turnaround time is FOR SURE one of them. I’ll be interested to do this same comparison with prices in a year, and see if sgc closes the gap. I’m hoping they do!

[@kennethmcgovern3137]

I can’t believe that because a grand is a grand no matter how you look at it . I feel that it’s the people who are doing this and PSA doesn’t grade good I see so many people who have card’s sent back that say something is wrong with them and there’s nothing wrong . We can fix this by sticking together and not sending cards to PSA

[@MidLifeCards]

There's no doubt that the market (us collectors) call the shots, as long as we're united.

[@Spongecore_Deathbob]

One of the biggest factors is due to the PSA Registry, where set collectors are looking to have the higher rated sets. You can sell for more on the higher grades because those will be more desirable.

[@MidLifeCards]

I completely agree. Great point. Sometimes people bud crazy amounts, even on commons, just to increase the rating on their set. Pop counts are obviously a big factor too!! Appreciate your comment, and it’s a great point!!

[@wilbertmatthews]

There is so much to discuss in this area of collecting. Much deeper than most people think about. I had a long conversation yesterday with a major auction house and came away more concerned. Everyone has different opinions. Cost is a MAJOR concern that seems to be ignored. I'm looking at Arena Club now because i'm not wealthy enough to send 100 cards to PSA and give them my entire bank account. Do buyers really care which one is more accurate? or do we care which one is cheaper? Can it really be that hard with today's scanning technology to judge four corners, centering, color, scratching, etc? Sound like a basic algorithm. We have also heard behind that scene that the upper echelon players can grade a 52 mantle as an 8, have a confederate buy it at auction, and the crack it and re grade at 9. I has and does happen. Be careful. There are no VIN#s on cards.

[@MidLifeCards]

Personally- I think high end buyers care that their set is in a psa holder. Low grade cards and middle tier players, people don’t care as much. I think going through psa and/or sgc is worth the cost. But I’d do it in phases. Use some of your profits from selling cards to pay for more grading. Just my two cents, but I agree…it can be complicated.

[@wilbertmatthews]

@@MidLifeCards I don’t disagree but has anyone done the math? Wouldn’t be hard. Might be expensive. How hard is it to evaluate a 3” piece of cardboard ? Don’t need college to do that. Another experiment that would be cool is to send a mantle to one company for grading, get it back, crack it, send it to the next company etc see who grades tough, who grades easy

[@MidLifeCards]

@@wilbertmatthews Another really good idea. I know others have done some of that, but documenting it would be very interesting. I may use that!!

[@FreshLikePack]

huge intel, def worth it to check out the best spot to grade the card when it comes to some of these older sports cards. I wonder how the modern market is with some of the more popular stuff/intermediate stuff. As a retail box breaker I would love to know how some of those 30-75$ raw card hits from retail look after being graded at different spots

[@Stackinginvestments1]

I like the way you laid this out and did the comps. I think there are a few things one cannot account for, that kinda skews the data.... 1) The "eye appeal" of the card -v- the slab type. Some don't want a "Frankenstein" slab collection. 2) The sheer volume of PSA slabs -v- other companies. This relates back to point 1. 3) The way the "registry sets" are set up for higher grade collections. I'm a coin collector first, and just got into cards. I'm almost finished with a 1975 Cincinnati Reds Team set, and have 3 SGC, 1 CGS with the rest being PSA. When I set out on putting this set together, I focused on 8's mainly for the "Great Eight", with the other players being the best eye appeal I could find. For most of the players, I looked at hundreds of slabbed options, with PSA being the only option for most. It's amazing to see all the centering issues and blemishes that still get an 8, and I saw 7's that had way better centering eye appeal (Front and back) than most of the 8's I looked at. I bought these cards for the eye appeal and NOT the slab type, which is the same thing us coin collectors do with numismatics. Now for my Topps Johnny Bench run, it's strictly "eye appeal" even though I'm building a 'Frankenstein" slab set.

[@MidLifeCards]

Eye appeal is what it's all about. Totally with you. For me, I'm ok with stuff that's a little beat up. I just love having it and wishing I knew the story of the hands it passed through to end up in mine.

[@GoldenSlumber474]

Thank you for your Herculean effort to produce this analysis. Very beneficial. I’m commenting before seeing the first data so I’m guessing SGC did better than expected. I’m not recommending too many more analyses like this bc it will leave precious little time for you to collect 😉😆 Edit: Having seen some results, PSA is still well ahead in $ but here’s some other mitigating factors: 1/ For low-mid grade cards, I suspect ppl have submitted to SGC due to lesser grading fees on lower conditioned raw cards, 2/ Higher graded PSA cards are targets for those registry builders willing to pay the higher $, 3/ The ongoing public perception that PSA grading is more stringent & thus collectors will pay the premium for a “better” graded PSA card, & 4/ The conventional wisdom that PSA graded cards are more valuable than similarly graded SGC cards is still prevalent among collectors, valid or not. The “force is strong in this one Obi-Wan Kenobi”. Regardless, a masterful comparison. 👏

[@MidLifeCards]

So, what I seem to have found is that on the lower end grades, the price between SGC and PSA isn't too much different. On the higher end ones it is. I think you make a great point about the PSA registry and the competition of the rich guys that can afford high grades may be making a major impact on those valuations. I'm a teacher by trade, but my education is in Business/Marketing. So, I enjoy data and collecting data and analyzing it. I also want to be creating content that is more than mental bubble gum of just commenting and giving my opinion. I'd rather make fewer videos that take a lot of time, but provide useful information to the collector. Anyone can put up a camera and give an opinion. But the time and effort it takes to make most of my videos takes quite a few hours. My hope is that people enjoy them and find them beneficial. I appreciate your continued support and kind comments. It means a lot that people out there appreciate the work I've put in. I hope others find my channel and do as well. :-)

[@GoldenSlumber474]

@@MidLifeCards Well, I click “like” on most of my viewed videos so that should help grow your channel. Maybe I’m a YT viewer “influencer” 😆. More hobby ppl need to see videos like yours 👍

[@MidLifeCards]

@@GoldenSlumber474 That really means a lot to me. Truly, it does. Thank you for the kind words. 🙂

[@forourtroopssake7373]

👍🇺🇸

[@MidLifeCards]

Appreciate it!!

[@mwdollar]

I think if you went up to 8s you would see the difference be greater yet in PSA's favor. I think that SGCs keep up in the prewar market better where they seem to specialize.

[@MidLifeCards]

I agree, completely. The only reason I didn't go higher on the grades is because of the lack of a sample size in those grades from SGC. There wasn't really any recent sales, so there was nothing to compare. The pre-war market definitely seems like their specialty. Personally, I really like the SGC holders and ability to get sub grades. But, the data speaks volume about value and demand. Appreciate your input.

[@Georgieboy_4]

Nice vid. Thanks! Shouldn’t grading fees be taken into consideration here as well when determining the bottom line?

[@MidLifeCards]

Good point. The grading fees and specials have the bottom line changing a lot. I have another video that was recently posted that does exactly that. It’s the video about “which cards are worth getting graded.” Appreciate you watching.

[@martinearhart]

I prefer the old SGC labels so I will lean towards that as apposed to the new style. Am I alone ?

[@MidLifeCards]

I personally like the old labels better as well. The 100 pt scale instead of the 10 point scale seemed superior. Because not all 5 or 6 grades (for example) are equal.

[@martinearhart]

@@MidLifeCards Yeah, those old funky green labels are fun as well

[@ultimatecardguides]

You really need to be using a t-test when comparing means of two samples

[@MidLifeCards]

I don’t disagree, and you make a great point. Generally the standard deviation from the mean isn’t significant, but there are a couple that are. To be totally honest, I think I’d lose most of my audience if I got too much more complex with my analysis and people may be bored. But your point is valid and outliers can create issues as does sample size. I created a more recent video than that one that looks specifically at vintage cards and because the sample size is so small, I do a side by side picture analysis with it as well. Check it out and let me know what you think. I appreciate your input and watching!!

[@mestizo3113]

I think the grade population counts and registry could be why psa card values are higher. Frankly, I can't believe how much cards are being priced at currently. I can understand the vintage cards commanding higher pricing, but with the current day cards being priced ridiculously high, it's hard to take these grading companies seriously.

[@MidLifeCards]

Modern card prices are insane in my opinion. I totally agree with you on that. Especially since newer players have so many different "Rookie" and "1st" cards. You make a good point about population counts and registries. That's one of the areas that I think PSA is actually "better" than some of the others. But, vintage is MUCH "safer" in my opinion. I wish companies had 100 pt scales instead of 10 and I wish they all had a breakdown of corners, edges, surface, and centering. I just bought a 1959 Jim Brown in a PSA 6, and because it was centered so well, I value it above most others in a 6 holder.

[@mestizo3113]

@@MidLifeCards I feel exactly the same way about today's cards. I fell away from the hobby for almost 20 years. Now, thinking that I'll just jump back into it again, I had to figure this whole thing out again. It's mind blowing!

[@MidLifeCards]

@@mestizo3113 Exact same for me.

[@user-ks2dc5ob4s]

0/7

[@MidLifeCards]

Brutally tough, right?

[@ohdontchaknow]

Seems like people are getting smarter. I buy SGC probably 9 of 10 times. And never use PSA to grade my cards. Too much BS and inconsistency

[@MidLifeCards]

I hear ya. I think we’re all pulling for SGC to catch up on values. If they do, it’ll make a LOT of people happy.

[@nicholasmantia9052]

How come Beckett grades aren't considered in this video?

[@PropiaPersona]

Beckett is there and does their job. Don't worry

[@MidLifeCards]

The majority of the grading that people have asked me about include comparing SGC and PSA, which seem to be the two most common, especially for vintage cards. I think Beckett is fine and am open minded to all grading companies, but chose these two based on what people have asked me about.