Pikachu Illustrator cards are among the rarest Pokemon treasures ever made, with only 39 known to exist in total from a 1998 Japanese illustration contest. Out of these, just a handful have been professionally graded by services like PSA, leaving most ungraded and tucked away in private collections.[2][4]
This promo card was a prize for the top winners of CoroCoro magazine’s contest, where kids drew their dream Pokemon artwork. The very first place winner got one, along with smaller prizes for runners-up, making the total print run tiny at 39 copies. No more were ever produced, and Wizards of the Coast printed them as one-of-a-kind rewards.[2]
Grading means sending a card to experts who check its condition under magnification, scoring it from 1 to 10 based on edges, corners, surface, and centering. High grades like PSA 10 skyrocket value, as seen when Logan Paul bought one for over 5 million dollars in 2022. That card was pristine, but not every owner wants to risk the process.[3][4]
So how many Pikachu Illustrators will never see a grade slab? Reports point to only about 20 to 25 having been graded so far, mostly by PSA. That leaves roughly 14 to 19 copies ungraded forever. Owners of these ultra-rares often keep them raw to avoid any handling damage during shipping or inspection. Some collectors prefer the card’s natural state, grading lowers resale liquidity for others, or they simply do not trust the process after hearing stories of cards arriving back scratched.[2][4]
Prices tell the story too. Ungraded Pikachu Illustrators have sold for hundreds of thousands, but graded gems hit millions. For everyday collectors eyeing modern Pikachu promos like the 2024 Illustration Contest #214, recent sales hover around 15 to 20 dollars raw and up to 137 dollars for PSA 10s. Those are reprints celebrating the original’s legacy, far more common with steady market action.[1]
The ungraded originals stay hidden because their value explodes with gem mint status, yet the risk keeps them off grading tables. Spotting one pop up raw on auction sites is like winning the lottery twice. For price trackers, this scarcity drives endless buzz in the Pokemon card world.
