If you collect Pokemon cards, you have probably heard about the Pikachu Illustrator card. It is one of the rarest and most valuable cards out there. People often compare it to the biggest prizes in sports card collecting, called grails. These are cards like a 1952 Topps Mickey Mantle or a 1910 T206 Honus Wagner, which are super hard to find and sell for millions. But how does the Pikachu Illustrator stack up in terms of how many copies exist? Let’s break it down in simple terms.[2][4]
First, the basics on Pikachu Illustrator. This card comes from a 1998 Japanese illustration contest run by CoroCoro magazine. Winners got these special promo cards as prizes. Experts believe only about 39 were ever made and given out. Some sources say the number could be as low as 13 to 100, but the most common estimate is around 39. Not all of them are accounted for today. Just a handful have shown up at auctions or grading services like PSA. For example, YouTuber Logan Paul bought one in PSA 10 condition for over 5 million dollars in 2022. That made huge news and put Pokemon cards on the map for sports collectors too.[2][3][4]
Now, think about sports card grails. The Honus Wagner T206 is the king. Experts say only around 50 to 200 copies exist from the original print run, mostly because Wagner did not want kids buying tobacco cards. A PSA 9 version sold for millions, and it is still the top dog in sports. The Mickey Mantle rookie has more out there, maybe a few hundred in high grades, but perfect copies are tiny in number. These cards draw crazy prices because so few survive in good shape after 100 years.[2]
Compared to those, Pikachu Illustrator is even scarcer in key ways. Sports grails have been around longer, so time has destroyed many copies. Pokemon cards are newer, from the late 1990s, so they hold up better. But Pikachu Illustrator started with a tiny print run, way smaller than most sports card rarities. Out of those 39, only about 12 to 15 have been graded by PSA or popped up in sales. That means most are still hidden in collections or lost. A PSA 9 sold for around 4 million recently, showing demand stays hot.[2][5]
Do not mix it up with newer Pikachu promos like the 2024 Illustration Contest #214. Those are common, selling for 15 to 20 dollars raw or up to 137 dollars graded PSA 10. They are fun chase cards but nothing like the original grail.[1]
What makes Pikachu Illustrator special is its combo of low supply and Pokemon hype. Sports grails rely on history and legends like Mantle or Wagner. Pikachu has that cute mascot power plus modern celebrity buzz from guys like Logan Paul. If you are hunting one, good luck. It is rarer than most sports holy grails in total copies made, and high-grade survivors are one in a million.[2][4]
