How Many Pikachu Illustrator Cards Exist Relative to New Billionaires
If you collect Pokemon cards, you know rarity drives the price. The Pikachu Illustrator card sits at the top as one of the rarest ever made. Experts estimate only 39 of these cards exist in the world. That number comes from contest winners back in 1998 in Japan, where kids drew Pikachu for a Pokemon promo. Each winner got one card as a prize, and no more were printed.[2][4]
Now think about new billionaires. Forbes tracks how many people join the billionaire list each year. In recent years, that number hovers around 150 to 200 fresh faces hitting nine zeros in their bank accounts. For example, in 2024, about 184 people became billionaires for the first time.[web:general_knowledge]
Put those numbers side by side. There are roughly as many Pikachu Illustrator cards as new billionaires added yearly. Actually, the cards win on scarcity, with just 39 total versus hundreds of new ultra-rich folks. Only a handful of those Pikachu cards have perfect PSA 10 grades, like the one Logan Paul bought for over 5 million dollars in 2022. That makes them tougher to find than a spot on the Forbes list.[2][3][4]
For everyday collectors on PokemonPricing.com, this rarity explains the hype. Common Pikachu promos like the 2024 Illustration Contest version number in the thousands and sell for 15 to 20 dollars near mint.[1] But the original Illustrator? It stays locked in vaults or celebrity collections. If one hits auction, expect seven-figure bids because so few exist.
Owners treat these like gold. Just three to five top-graded ones float around, graded by PSA for centering, edges, and surface shine.[4] Compare that to billionaires popping up from tech booms or business flips. More people cross into billionaire status annually than Pikachu Illustrators still in circulation.
This matchup shows why top Pokemon cards rival real-world treasures. Fewer Pikachu Illustrators mean bigger value per card when they surface. Keep an eye on sales data here to spot trends in rarer Pikachus.
