PSA reopens Value grading at $39.99 and trims Standard and Priority wait times

PSA is reopening its Value grading service today, Oct. 29, at $39.99 per card, up from $32.99 before the June shutdown. It also cut turnaround estimates for its Standard and Priority tiers by about 20 business days each.

The company announced the changes Wednesday, Oct. 28. Value submissions open at 8 a.m. Pacific across PSA’s U.S., Canadian, European and Japanese operations, according to Sports Collectors Daily. The reopening ends a pause that began June 2, but the price is up $7, roughly 21%, from the last Value rate, and new orders join the line behind everything already at PSA’s facilities.

What changed

Value carries a $500 maximum insured value per card and a turnaround estimate of 90 to 100 business days, or 120 in Japan. Standard front and back images are included. International prices are C$56.99 in Canada, €39.99 in Europe and ¥5,980 in Japan, Sports Collectors Daily reported.

Two other tiers got faster estimates for new submissions starting Oct. 28:

• Standard ($59.99, $1,000 max value): 70 to 80 business days, down from 90 to 100
• Priority ($79.99, $1,500 max value): 50 to 60 business days, down from 70 to 80

PSA says the turnaround figures are estimates, not guaranteed delivery dates. Orders already in process keep their original terms, though Sports Collectors Daily notes some of them could still finish early.

Value Bulk is still closed. That tier was the cheapest regular option before the pause, at $24.99 for Collectors Club members. PSA has not given it a reopening date or a new price.

The backlog behind the decision

PSA’s active backlog is about 7.2 million items. Heavy.com reports that is down roughly 42% from 12.4 million on July 28. The company’s stated target before fully reopening every service level, Value Bulk included, is 5 million, which leaves about 2.2 million items to clear.

PSA blames the congestion on April and May submissions that ran 2.5 times the volume of the same months in 2025. It says weekly graded output is up nearly 50% in 2026, and that it has graded 59 million items over the last three years. That is more than the 57 million it graded in the 23 years before that.

“We have added an incredible amount of capacity, but we still have work to do,” Ryan Hoge, president of PSA and Grading at Collectors, said in Wednesday’s announcement, as quoted by Heavy.com.

Why it matters

For anyone sending in modern cards in bulk, the cheapest way into a PSA slab now costs noticeably more. Heavy.com’s example: 20 cards through Value cost $799.80 before shipping and fees, against $659.80 at the old $32.99 rate and $1,199.80 through Standard. With a $500 insured-value cap, Value is built for the mid-tier cards that make up most submissions.

The price increase plus the “behind everyone else” queue rule suggest PSA is easing demand back in on purpose, not reopening the floodgates. That reading is ours, but it fits the company’s description of a phased return.

By the numbers

• $39.99: new Value price per card, up from $32.99
• 90–100: Value turnaround estimate in business days
• 7.2 million: PSA’s active backlog
• 5 million: backlog target before Value Bulk returns
• 2.5x: April–May 2026 submission volume compared with the same months in 2025

What collectors should do

• Do the math by card value: Under $500 declared value, Value is the cheapest current option. Above that, Standard’s new 70-to-80-day estimate may be worth the extra $20.
• Expect to wait in line: New Value orders go behind everything already in-house, so plan on the full estimate.
• Consider waiting for Value Bulk: If you’re grading big stacks of low-dollar cards, Heavy.com notes that holding off for Value Bulk could save money. PSA hasn’t said when it returns or at what price.

Sources: Sports Collectors Daily (Oct. 28, 2026); Heavy.com (Oct. 28, 2026)

Featured image: Photo by Mick Haupt on Unsplash