Pokémon Pikachu cards saw a massive surge of more than 180% in value during 2025, driven by high demand for rare versions from new sets like Scarlet & Violet – Surging Sparks, grading hype, and collector excitement. Fans and investors chased after standout cards such as the Pikachu ex Special Illustration Rare, which hit top prices thanks to its eye-catching artwork and limited supply.
One key reason for the boom was the release of the Surging Sparks set in late 2025. This set introduced the Pikachu ex Special Illustration Rare (238/191), often nicknamed “booty hole Pikachu” for its unique design. Market data shows this card reached a value of $339.75 on TCGPlayer, even after some dips in December. For more details, check out https://bleedingcool.com/games/pokemon-tcg-value-watch-surging-sparks-in-december-2025/. Videos from collectors noted raw copies selling around $286, with graded PSA 10 versions jumping to $850-$900, more than doubling or tripling initial prices. See this analysis in https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bC_Jc35VJQc.
Grading played a huge role too. In 2025, sending cards to PSA became a smart move for profit. A raw Pikachu ex from Surging Sparks could return over double its cost as a PSA 10. Population reports showed low numbers of top grades, like 3,295 PSA 10s for one Pikachu variant, keeping values high even as some peaked at $200 and settled around $164. Investor talks highlighted cards hitting 5x to 10x returns. Watch https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oFl5uAaGSVg for pop reports and trends.
Other Pikachu ex cards fueled the surge. Japanese 20th Anniversary Pikachu EX (094/087) raw versions hit €746.52, with PSA 10s at €3,045.37 by early December. Lists of top expensive cards placed multiple Pikachu ex entries high on 2025 rankings. Details here: https://rarecards.nl/en/blogs/tcg-blogs/top-7-duurste-pikachu-ex-kaarten and https://www.tcgplayer.com/content/article/The-10-Most-Expensive-Pok%C3%A9mon-Cards-of-2025/7f39e243-6210-44e0-9fe2-0e62d6ca83fb/.
Renewed interest in modern sets, gold hyper rares, and Pikachu’s iconic status kept the market hot. Even with some December price dips on top cards, the overall 180%+ rise from earlier 2025 lows came from hype around new art, low-grade pops, and investor flips.
Sources
https://bleedingcool.com/games/pokemon-tcg-value-watch-surging-sparks-in-december-2025/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bC_Jc35VJQc
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oFl5uAaGSVg
https://rarecards.nl/en/blogs/tcg-blogs/top-7-duurste-pikachu-ex-kaarten
https://www.tcgplayer.com/content/article/The-10-Most-Expensive-Pok%C3%A9mon-Cards-of-2025/7f39e243-6210-44e0-9fe2-0e62d6ca83fb/
