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The 10 Most Graded Sports Cards of All Time

Jason Koeppel // ONE37pm

Published Jul 15, 2021

With the hobby swelling in size and card companies wanting to expand their products and print runs, population counts have been a focal discussion in the collecting community for the past few years. A population count is the number of a particular card in a specific grade.

This “pop count” provides the supply of a particular card and, typically, the higher that number, the more volatile the price of the card.

We’re going to use Cardladder to look at 10 cards that rank the highest in the population count.

1. Ken Griffey Jr. 1989 Topps Traded Base PSA 9 #41T - Pop: 42,970

CardLadder

With a population of 42,970, this Ken Griffey Jr. 1989 Topps Traded PSA 9 leads the way as the most graded sports card of all time.

Despite the enormous number of these cards in circulation, the total population grew by 1.28% in the past month. This means that in the last 30 days, there have been 692 new copies graded a PSA 9!

The card is currently valued at $28 and sold as high as $66 in March of 2021.

2. Ken Griffey Jr 1989 Upper Deck Star Rookie PSA 8 #1 - Pop: 33,037

CardLadder

In second place is another Griffey Jr. card, this time one with a population of 33,037 in a PSA 8.

The card is currently valued at $86 and once got as high as $163. There have been 700 new copies of this card graded in the past month.

Despite this card (and others from this list) being 30 years old, there are still plenty of copies making their way to PSA.

3. Ken Griffey Jr 1989 Fleer PSA 9 #548 - Pop: 27,220

CardLadder

We have yet another Griffey Jr. rookie with a high population count of 27,220, this time his Fleer 1989 PSA 9 rookie.

The card is currently worth $20.50 and has sold as high as $51. 749 new copies have been graded in the past month.

4. Ken Griffey Jr 1989 Upper Deck Star Rookie PSA 9 #1 - Pop 26,069

CardLadder

The PSA 8 version of the card came in at number 2 on this list, so it’s not surprising to see the PSA 9 version within the top 5. There are 80,801 copies of this card across all PSA grades.

Despite the card’s high population count, it currently sells for $248.50 and once got as high as $460. 535 copies of the card in a PSA 9 have been graded in the past month.

The PSA 10 version of this card has 3,936 copies graded and is currently valued at $2,175. Perhaps the high value of a PSA 10 is the reason so many copies of this card are still being submitted to PSA.

5. Barry Bonds 1986 Topps Traded #11T PSA 9 - Pop 21,475

CardLadder

Our first non-Griffey Jr. on this list is fellow baseball star, Barry Bonds. His 1986 Topps Traded PSA 9 population has a whopping 21,475 copies.

The card is currently valued at $49.50 and got as high as $112. 390 new copies of this card have been graded a PSA 9 in the past month.

6. Ronald Acuna Jr. 2018 Topps Update #US250 PSA 10 - Pop: 18,479

CardLadder

Our first modern card to make this list has a population count of 18,479. It’s important to note that this is in a PSA 10 grade. It’s typically difficult for any card to get a grade of 10, which makes Acuna’s Topps Update even more interesting that its high population is in Gem Mint 10 condition.

The card is currently valued at $130 and sold for as much as $295. There have been 623 new copies graded a PSA 10 in the past month.

7. Zion Williamson 2019 Prizm #248 PSA 10 - Pop: 18,287

CardLadder

Zion Williamson takes 2nd on this list for modern players with PSA 10 copies in a high population count. His flagship Prizm base rookie has a population of 18,287.

The card is currently valued at $402 and sold as high as $999 on December 25th, 2020.

1,505 new copies of the card have been graded a PSA 10 in the past month.

8. Juan Soto 2018 Topps Update #US300 PSA 10 - Pop: 17,453

CardLadder

Another 2018 Topps Update baseball card makes our list with young star Juan Soto and his Topps Update PSA 10 with a population count of 17,453.

The card is currently valued at $145 and sold for as much as $380.

875 new copies of the card have been graded a PSA 10 in the past month.

9. Luka Doncic 2018 Prizm #280 PSA 10 - Pop: 17,284

CardLadder

Our most expensive card on this list is currently valued at $730. Doncic burst onto the scene in 2018 and became one of the most collectable NBA players in the market.

This card sold for nearly $2,000 last August, and while it’s lost significant value, for most of 2019 this card could be had for about $70.

606 new copies have been graded as PSA 10 in the past month.

10. Ja Morant 2019 Prizm #249 PSA 10 - Pop: 16,726

CardLadder

Another young NBA star from the 2019 class, Ja Morant rounds out our list of the top 10 most graded sports cards. His Prizm Base 2019 is currently valued at $207.50.

The card sold as high as $831 in early 2021.

In the past month, 1,541 new copies of this card have been graded a PSA 10.