PSA Pauses Value Tiers as Grading Backlog Hits 10 Million Cards
PSA temporarily paused its four Value service tiers on June 2, 2026, as it works to cut a backlog of roughly 10 million cards in half. Here is what changed, why, and how to decide whether your cards are still worth grading.
PSA Hits Pause on Value Tiers as the Backlog Swells
If you have cards waiting to be graded, or were about to send some in, there are important changes at PSA you need to know about. A combination of price increases and a record submission surge has pushed the company to temporarily pause part of its service menu while it works through a backlog measured in the millions.
The Value Tier Pause
Effective June 2, 2026, PSA temporarily paused new submissions for its four Value service tiers: Value Bulk, Value, Value Plus, and Value Max. The stated goal is to bring the active backlog down from roughly 10 million cards to about 5 million, a process the company expects to take around four months.
How We Got Here
After PSA announced infrastructure investments on May 14, collectors responded with a roughly 20 percent spike in submissions, which added an estimated 1.6 million cards to the queue almost overnight. The irony is hard to miss: the very news meant to reassure collectors triggered the rush that deepened the backlog.
Prices Are Up Too
A May 2026 price hike raised the baseline Value tier from $25 to $30 per card and tightened maximum declared values. The Express tier now runs $175 per card. These follow earlier February 2026 adjustments, and together they are reshaping which cards are even worth grading.
What It Means for Your Cards
The new math penalizes high-population, low-margin modern cards while rewarding genuine scarcity. One widely cited example: a 2024 Elly De La Cruz Bowman base PSA 10 reportedly slid from around $60 to $42, because a $30 grading cost erases the flipping margin.
- Grade with intent. Reserve submissions for cards where a high grade clearly clears the grading cost plus a margin.
- Mind the tier pause. With Value tiers paused, bulk submitters may need to wait or weigh a higher-cost tier.
- TCG is surging. Trading card game submissions now outpace sports submissions more than two to one, driven by Pokemon, Magic, and Yu-Gi-Oh.
Before sending anything in, run the numbers: estimated PSA 10 value, minus grading cost, minus the realistic chance of a 9 instead of a 10. If that math is thin, raw may be the smarter hold.