eBay Drops Its Authenticity Guarantee Threshold to $200 for Trading Cards
The program that routes eligible cards through third-party authentication before delivery now kicks in at a price point that covers a far larger share of everyday transactions.
What Happened
eBay has expanded its Authenticity Guarantee program for trading cards, lowering the threshold that triggers mandatory authentication to cards selling for $200 or more. The program sends eligible cards to Certified Collectibles Group (CCG) for verification before they reach the buyer. The service has been in place in various forms since January 2022, when it launched in the U.S. for ungraded cards priced above $750, and has been progressively extended in scope and geography since then, including a Canadian rollout for cards at $250 and up. This latest threshold reduction brings a meaningful portion of mid-tier singles into the program's coverage.
Why Collectors Should Care
A $200 floor is a genuinely different animal than $750. At $750, the program mostly touched high-end graded cards and premium rookies. At $200, it now covers a wide range of raw autos, short prints, and mid-grade singles that move in volume every day. For buyers, that means authentication on cards where fakes and trimmed copies have historically been a real risk. For sellers, it means added friction and a longer fulfillment window on a much larger portion of their listings. Anyone selling raw cards in the $200-to-$500 range needs to factor the CCG routing step into their timelines and customer expectations.
How It Developed
eBay launches Authenticity Guarantee in the U.S. for ungraded trading cards priced above $750.
Program expands to graded, autographed, and patch cards above $250; PSA partnership added for graded cards at $2,000 and up.
eBay rolls out Authenticity Guarantee in Canada for ungraded cards at $250 and up, via CCG.
eBay lowers the Authenticity Guarantee threshold for trading cards to $200.
Questions Collectors Are Asking
What happens to my card after I sell it on eBay under the Authenticity Guarantee?
Instead of shipping directly to the buyer, you send the card to CCG. CCG authenticates it, then forwards it to the buyer. The process adds time to fulfillment, so build that into your listings.
Does the $200 threshold apply to graded cards too?
The program has historically covered both raw and graded cards above certain price points. The specific scope of this latest expansion to $200 has not been broken out by card type in available details.
Who is CCG and why does eBay use them?
Certified Collectibles Group is the parent company of several grading and authentication services in the collectibles space. eBay has used CCG as its primary authentication partner for trading cards since the program's launch, with PSA added for high-end graded cards at $2,000 and above.
Does this affect Pokémon and other TCG cards, or only sports cards?
The Authenticity Guarantee program covers trading cards broadly on eBay, not exclusively sports cards. Any eligible card hitting the $200 threshold would fall under the program.
Sources
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