Collect-A-Con Hits the Bay Area for the First Time This Weekend: 900 Tables in San Mateo
The first-ever Collect-A-Con San Francisco runs September 12 and 13 at the San Mateo Event Center with more than 900 vendor tables. PSA, CGC and Heritage are on site, and the guest list runs from Charles Martinet to Waka Flocka Flame.
Collect-A-Con runs its first-ever San Francisco Bay Area show this weekend, September 12 and 13, at the San Mateo Event Center. It is a first for the tour, and for a region that has never had a convention of this size dedicated specifically to trading cards.
The Basics
- Where: San Mateo Event Center, Expo and Fiesta Hall, 1346 Saratoga Dr, San Mateo, CA 94403
- When: Saturday 10am to 6pm, Sunday 10am to 5pm
- Size: 900-plus vendor tables
- Admission: Free for children seven and under; tickets otherwise sold in advance and at the door
- Host hotel: Hyatt Regency, 1333 Old Bayshore Hwy, Burlingame
San Mateo puts the show almost exactly between San Francisco and San Jose, right off the peninsula corridor, which is about as accessible as a Bay Area venue gets for a two-day event.
What Is on the Floor
Collect-A-Con's format is deliberately broad - it is a trading card show wrapped inside a pop culture convention. Expect vendor coverage across:
- Pokemon, one week before the 30th Celebration set releases worldwide on September 16
- One Piece, Yu-Gi-Oh!, Magic: The Gathering, Lorcana and MetaZoo
- Sports cards, vintage through modern
- Funko Pop, anime merchandise, comics, vintage toys and video games
PSA, CGC/JSA and Heritage Auctions are all listed among the show's partners, which typically means on-site submission and consignment options. If you have been sitting on cards waiting for a grading window, a show table can save you the shipping leg in both directions - and with PSA's new $59.99 Standard tier opening September 14, this is a well-timed weekend to ask questions in person.
Guests
The guest list leans heavily on voice actors and pop culture personalities rather than athletes. Announced names include Charles Martinet, the longtime voice of Mario; Veronica Taylor, the original English voice of Ash Ketchum; Erica Schroeder; Bryce Papenbrook; Kaiji Tang; Erika Harlacher; Christopher Judge of Stargate and God of War; Chumlee from Pawn Stars; and Jason Paige, who sang the original Pokemon theme. Waka Flocka Flame is booked for a live performance.
Hobby content creators on the list include Goat Breakers, Dr. Applesauce, PokeeTris and El Poke Collects.
Note: Sean Schemmel, listed earlier in the promotional cycle, has been cancelled. Autograph and photo-op schedules on shows this size change up to and during the weekend - check the official celebrity schedule the morning you go, not the week before.
How to Actually Work a 900-Table Show
A floor this size punishes wandering. A few things that consistently help:
- Do one full lap before buying anything. Prices on the same card can vary 40 percent across a room this large, and the vendors at the back are often the ones who need to move inventory.
- Bring cash. Card fees get passed along at most tables, and cash is still the fastest way to get a price moved.
- Bring your want list and your trade stock, sorted. Nobody at table 700 wants to dig through a shoebox on a Saturday afternoon.
- Go Sunday if you want deals, Saturday if you want selection. That tradeoff has not changed in 30 years of card shows.
- Set a budget before you walk in. Conventions are engineered to separate you from more money than you planned to spend.
Elsewhere on the Tour
Collect-A-Con's remaining 2026 schedule includes Atlanta later in September, then Chicago and Dallas in October, Houston and New Jersey in November, and Los Angeles in December.
Cannot make the show, or want somewhere to go the other 51 weekends? Find a card shop near you - local shops are where the Bay Area hobby actually lives between conventions.