Standards · Trading Cards
The 10-Point Scale
The 10-point scale is the universal grading system for modern trading cards, used by PSA, BGS, CGC and Xene. It runs from 1 (Poor) to 10 (Gem Mint), with intermediate half-grades on some services and a 'Pristine' or 'Black Label' designation above 10 for cards achieving perfect subgrades across centering, corners, edges and surface.
Subgrades
Xene reports four subgrades — centering, corners, edges and surface — on every card certificate. The lowest subgrade typically determines the overall grade, but a single low subgrade does not automatically cap the global figure where the remaining three are perfect. BGS pioneered the published-subgrade practice in the 1990s; Xene maintains it because it gives the market real information rather than a single opaque integer.
Centering tolerances
For Gem Mint 10, Xene requires 55/45 or better on front centering on both axes, and 75/25 or better on back centering. Mint 9 allows 60/40 front and 80/20 back. Near Mint–Mint 8 admits 65/35. Centering is measured digitally from a flatbed scan of the encapsulated card at 1200 dpi, with the border edges detected algorithmically and the ratio computed to a 0.5 mm tolerance. The reported figure is the worse of the two axes.
Half-grades and the 9.5 question
Xene issues half-grades from 1.5 through 9.5 to provide finer market resolution between Mint 9 and Gem Mint 10 — the price discontinuity at that boundary is steep enough to justify a published intermediate. A 9.5 indicates a card that exceeds Mint 9 on at least two subgrades but does not meet the centering or surface threshold for a full 10. PSA does not issue half-grades; BGS and CGC do.
Pristine / Black Label
A card achieving a 10 in all four subgrades may receive the Pristine designation — equivalent to the BGS Pristine 10 and PSA Gem Mint 10 with perfect subs. This is materially rarer than a standard 10 and commands meaningful premiums in the secondary market, often 3–10× the standard-10 figure for modern issues. Xene's Pristine designation requires unanimous agreement of two senior graders working independently; a single dissenting subgrade collapses the designation to a standard 10.
Cross-grader comparisons
Cards submitted to Xene already encapsulated by PSA, BGS or CGC are removed in our grading room under controlled conditions and re-examined fresh. Our graders work without sight of the prior grade until their independent assessment is recorded. Approximately 60% of PSA 10s receive a Xene 10; 25% receive 9.5; 15% land at 9. The most frequent reason for a downgrade is centering measured under our digital protocol rather than visual judgement.
Population reporting
Every encapsulation updates the Xene population report in real time. Pop reports are searchable by set, player or subject, year, parallel, and grade. The pop figure is the single most important variable in pricing high-grade modern cards: a 10 with a pop of 3 trades fundamentally differently from one with a pop of 3,000. Xene publishes pop deltas (the number of new submissions per quarter) to help collectors model future supply.
Reference table
At a glance.
| Grade | Name | Brief description |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Poor | Major damage; identifiable only |
| 1.5 | Fair | Heavy creasing, surface loss, image present |
| 2 | Good | Heavy wear, creases, surface loss |
| 3 | Very Good | Significant wear, soft corners |
| 4 | Very Good–Excellent | Visible wear but presentable |
| 5 | Excellent | Light wear, minor corner softness |
| 6 | Excellent–Mint | Very light wear; sharp corners with slight whitening |
| 7 | Near Mint | Minor surface wear, light corner wear |
| 7.5 | Near Mint+ | Sharper than NM but with one defect blocking NM-MT |
| 8 | Near Mint–Mint | Sharp corners, minor centering issues |
| 8.5 | NM-MT+ | Sharper than NM-MT, falls short of Mint on one criterion |
| 9 | Mint | Tight centering, sharp corners, minimal print defects |
| 9.5 | Mint+ | Exceeds Mint on most subs; not quite a 10 |
| 10 | Gem Mint | 55/45 centering or better, perfect corners, original gloss |
| Pristine 10 | Pristine | Perfect 10 across all four subgrades |
Questions
- Why are subgrades sometimes lower than the overall grade?
- Modern practice allows minor subgrade variations under the overall grade ceiling: a card with corners 9.5, edges 10, surface 10, centering 10 may receive an overall 10 if no single flaw materially detracts. Xene publishes the underlying subgrades transparently.
- How are sealed product grades determined?
- Sealed boxes, ETBs, packs and tins are weighed, dimensioned and inspected for seal integrity under raking light and UV. No internal grading is possible without breaking the seal; the grade reflects external condition only, with a separate scale recorded on the certificate.
- Will my PSA 10 cross to a Xene 10?
- Not automatically. Xene re-examines the card fresh against our own rubric. Roughly 60% of PSA 10s receive a Xene 10; the remainder grade between 9 and 9.5, most often due to centering reassessed under our digital measurement protocol rather than visual estimation.
- Are autographed cards graded differently?
- Autograph cards receive two grades on the certificate: the card grade (1–10 on the standard scale) and a separate autograph grade (1–10 based on ink quality, placement and pressure). Both are computed independently. A card with a 10 image but a smudged autograph might read '10 / Auto 7'.
- Do you grade vintage cards on the same scale?
- Yes — the same 1–10 scale applies, but the tolerances are adjusted for era. A 1952 Topps with 60/40 centering may receive a 9 where a 2024 issue with identical centering would receive an 8.5, in line with established practice across PSA, SGC and the market's understanding of what 'mint' means for vintage stock.
- What is a qualifier and when do you apply one?
- A qualifier is a label appended to the numeric grade describing a single overriding defect: OC (off-centre), MK (mark), ST (stained), PD (print defect), MC (miscut). Xene uses qualifiers sparingly; in most cases we prefer to issue the appropriate lower numeric grade with the defect described in the certificate notes.
- How long does the holder remain rigid and clear?
- Xene holders are manufactured in Surrey from optical-grade UV-stable acrylic with a documented 100-year clarity warranty. The holder is ultrasonically welded — there is no adhesive in the seal — and includes embedded NFC and laser-etched serial number for cross-verification against the public registry.