No, Base Set Squirtle cards did not beat the broader Pokémon market since 2023. In fact, they significantly underperformed. A Base Set Squirtle 1st Edition that was worth approximately $80 in July 2023 had declined to around $25 by November 2024—a loss of roughly 69 percent. This represents one of the starkest contrasts in the Pokémon card market during this period, where other segments were appreciating while Base Set Squirtles faced sustained downward pressure.
The broader Pokémon card market told a very different story. While Base Set Squirtles were falling, vintage Neo-era cards from the late 1990s and early 2000s gained between 8 and 12 percent steadily. Modern graded cards showed even more dramatic growth, with some cards like Giratina V appreciating 122 percent year-over-year and others exceeding 300 percent gains. Understanding why Base Set Squirtles lagged becomes important for any collector or investor considering where to allocate resources in this market.
Table of Contents
- What Happened to Base Set Squirtle Prices Since 2023?
- How Did the Broader Pokémon Market Perform During the Same Period?
- Which Pokémon Cards Actually Outperformed the Market?
- Why Did Base Set Squirtle Underperform?
- Common Mistakes Investors Make with Vintage Base Set Cards
- How to Evaluate Pokémon Cards as Investments
- What’s the Future Outlook for Base Set Cards?
- Conclusion
What Happened to Base Set Squirtle Prices Since 2023?
base Set Squirtle cards experienced consistent price erosion throughout 2023 and into 2024-2025. The 1st Edition version saw its value cut by nearly three-quarters, dropping from $80 to $25. Even the more recent Scarlet & Violet 151 Squirtle, released just a few years ago, declined by 17.4 percent in a single 30-day period, suggesting ongoing collector disinterest.
This wasn’t a temporary market correction but a prolonged trend affecting the card across multiple editions and printings. The decline reflected broader collector sentiment: Base Set Squirtle, while nostalgic, was not a card that drove demand or investment enthusiasm. Supply levels were adequate to plentiful, depending on condition and edition, which kept prices under persistent pressure. Without strong demand from either competitive players or serious collectors, the market simply valued these cards significantly lower than they had been just two years prior.
How Did the Broader Pokémon Market Perform During the Same Period?
While Base Set Squirtles fell, the overall Pokémon card market from 2004 to 2025 appreciated approximately 3,800 percent as a broad category. This long-term trend masked significant variation within the market. Vintage Neo-era cards—those produced between 1999 and 2002—demonstrated the steadiest growth, gaining 8 to 12 percent consistently year over year. These cards appealed to collectors seeking authentic pieces of Pokémon history before the modern grading and authentication infrastructure existed.
Modern graded cards showed the most explosive growth. Stamp Pikachu and Gray Hat Pikachu variants appreciated between 176 and 355 percent during 2024-2025 alone. Graded modern cards as a category saw 100 percent or greater year-over-year gains, with some standout cards like a particular Giratina V climbing 122.54 percent in a single year and a Gray Hat Pikachu surging 397.46 percent. This divergence highlighted that not all Pokémon cards moved together—collector demand, scarcity, and cultural moments drove prices upward for select cards while others, like Base Set Squirtles, moved sideways or down.
Which Pokémon Cards Actually Outperformed the Market?
The strongest performers during this period were modern Pikachu variants with distinctive art or cultural significance. Stamp Pikachu and Gray Hat Pikachu stood out, with gains approaching or exceeding 350 percent over 24 months. These cards benefited from fresh releases, limited print runs in certain markets, and strong collector enthusiasm within the Pokémon Trading Card Game community. They also had the advantage of being recently produced, meaning high-grade specimens were available and newly graded by companies like PSA and CGC, which added authentication credibility.
Beyond Pikachu, vintage Neo-era cards—particularly those in strong condition—consistently appreciated. Cards like Feraligatr ex, Typhlosion ex, and other evolutionary lines from those early sets gained steady value. What set these apart from Base Set Squirtle was that they were genuinely scarce in high grades, having been printed in smaller quantities than Base Set cards and experiencing decades of handling wear. A Neo-era card graded PSA 8 or higher became increasingly difficult to find, supporting price appreciation. Base Set Squirtle, by contrast, was printed in massive quantities and remains relatively abundant in the market even in decent condition.
Why Did Base Set Squirtle Underperform?
Base Set Squirtle suffered from a fundamental mismatch between supply and demand. Squirtle was a popular character, but it was far from the chase card of Base Set—that distinction belonged to Charizard. Millions of Base Set packs were opened over the decades, flooding the market with Squirtles in various conditions. Even 1st Edition copies, while more scarce than unlimited printings, were not rare enough to create scarcity-driven appreciation.
The card had no exceptional artwork, no holographic rarity that made it uniquely desirable, and no role in competitive play that would drive investor demand from players. Collector psychology also played a role. Base Set nostalgia is real, but most collectors gravitate toward either the iconic chase cards like Charizard or Blastoise, or they seek out cards with unique characteristics. Squirtle has neither; it is the middle evolution of a three-stage line, less impressive than its final form but more common than the rare holos. Additionally, the influx of modern Pokémon cards from the Scarlet & Violet era created renewed interest in contemporary releases, shifting collector capital away from aging Base Set commons and uncommons toward newer, trendier modern cards.
Common Mistakes Investors Make with Vintage Base Set Cards
One of the most common errors is assuming all Base Set cards appreciate equally because they come from “the first set.” This ignores the reality that rarity, demand, artwork quality, and competitive relevance vary enormously within Base Set itself. Buying dozens of Base Set Squirtles hoping for price appreciation is a cautionary tale—you are essentially betting on nostalgia and scarcity, both of which have already been discounted into Base Set pricing. Unless you find a genuinely rare variant or a card in museum-quality condition, Base Set common and uncommon cards are unlikely to outpace the broader market. Another mistake is holding Base Set cards too long without reassessing the market.
Markets change. What was worth $80 in 2023 was worth $25 three years later. Collectors who held onto those cards hoping for further appreciation lost significant value. The market had already reset its valuation downward by mid-2024, and recognizing that shift early would have allowed investors to redeploy capital into better-performing segments like modern graded cards or genuine scarcity plays in the vintage space. Patience is sometimes a virtue in collecting, but not when it means ignoring clear downward trends over an extended period.
How to Evaluate Pokémon Cards as Investments
The most reliable indicator of future price appreciation is scarcity in high grades combined with sustained collector demand. For vintage cards, this means checking how many graded copies exist at PSA 8 or higher—cards with true scarcity typically number fewer than 500 copies graded at that level or above. For modern cards, it means identifying print runs, regional exclusivity, and early adopter enthusiasm. Pikachu’s dominance in the market isn’t accidental; it is the franchise mascot, appears in premium product releases, and benefits from consistent collector interest across decades.
Consider also the role of authentication and grading. Modern cards graded by PSA, CGC, or Beckett come with a recorded history and verified grade, which reduces buyer risk and enables faster resale. Ungraded Base Set cards, even in good condition, carry authentication uncertainty and command lower premiums. If you are considering a Base Set Squirtle investment, understand that the card already exists in the market at known price points, in known quantities at various grades, and with established demand (which is modest). The investment thesis must be compelling; betting on Base Set Squirtle appreciation in 2024-2025 required believing that sentiment would reverse despite years of decline, an increasingly difficult position to justify.
What’s the Future Outlook for Base Set Cards?
Base Set cards will likely remain collectible and retain some value indefinitely simply because they are the first Pokémon cards ever printed. However, expecting them to appreciate significantly faces headwinds. The supply is abundant, collector interest has stabilized at lower levels, and modern cards continue to capture the excitement and spending of newer and younger collectors. Base Set Squirtle specifically offers no compelling reason to expect a resurgence—it is not the rarest Base Set card, not the most desirable, and not a critical piece of any collection.
That said, Pokémon cards as a category have proven durable as an investment over the long term. The 3,800 percent appreciation across all Pokémon cards from 2004 to 2025 demonstrates real, sustained interest. The future of the market likely favors cards with genuine scarcity, cultural significance, or ties to the modern game. Base Set cards may experience modest appreciation if the entire pokémon market rebounds, but relying on Base Set Squirtle as a primary investment vehicle represents misallocated capital compared to alternatives with stronger demand profiles or tighter supplies.
Conclusion
Base Set Squirtle cards underperformed the Pokémon market significantly since 2023, declining roughly 69 percent while the broader market appreciated at varying rates. Vintage Neo-era cards gained steady value, modern graded cards surged with 100+ percent appreciation in some cases, and the overall Pokémon card market appreciated 3,800 percent over two decades. Base Set Squirtle’s decline reflects abundant supply, limited collector demand, and competition from more desirable and more performant cards in both vintage and modern categories.
If you hold Base Set Squirtles and are considering them as an investment, reassess their role in your portfolio. If you are thinking about acquiring them, explore alternatives first—genuine scarcity plays in the vintage market, modern cards with documented collector enthusiasm, or simply diversifying your Pokémon card investments across multiple strong performers. The market has spoken, and Base Set Squirtle is not among the winners of the 2023-2025 period. Learning this lesson now can guide better allocation decisions going forward.
