How to Value Your AFL and NRL Cards in Australia

MV Guides · AFL & NRL cards

Most card price tools are built for American sports, so working out what an AFL or NRL card is worth in Australian dollars can be tricky. The good news: the method is the same for any card, and it takes about five minutes.

Step 1: identify exactly which card it is

Write down the year, the set, the player, the card number, and any insert, parallel or colour. If it has a serial number (like 19/50), note that too. "2021 Select Daicos" isn't enough: the base card, a numbered parallel and a signature card of the same player can be worth wildly different amounts.

For AFL cards, our list of every Select AFL set by year helps you pin down the set. For NRL, Select made the official cards from 2000 to 2012 (sets such as NRL2000, Power, Invincible, Champions, Classic, Strike and Dynasty), followed by NRL Traders and Elite from ESP, and later Tap'n'Play.

Step 2: be honest about condition

Look at the four corners, the edges (white chipping on dark borders), the surface (scratches, print lines, dents) and the centring (are the borders even?). A raw card in genuinely excellent condition sells for more than a well-loved one. If a card is graded, the grade (PSA 10, BGS 9.5 and so on) does most of this work for you.

Step 3: check sold prices, not asking prices

An asking price is only what someone hopes to get. What a card is worth is what people have actually paid for the same card in the same condition. Use sold results only, and compare:

• the same set and parallel (not "any Daicos card"),
• the same grade, or a similar raw condition,
• recent sales (the last few months), in Australian dollars.

Prices from overseas sellers often leave out postage to Australia, which can add $20–$30 or more. Keep that in mind when comparing.

Step 4: decide how to sell

For cards with steady demand, an auction lets the market set the price. For rarer cards, or if you have a firm number in mind, a Buy It Now price (with offers allowed) works well. Either way, good photos of the front and back and an honest description of condition help it sell.