Why Are Pokémon Cards So Popular Again?

(PriceCharting.com and Kiplinger/gettyimage)

By: Taran Nulu

Hundreds of adults line up outside of stores around the nation to fight each other, and even children, at a chance of buying one thing—Pokémon cards. Why have Pokémon cards blown up in popularity, and why are some packs of 10 cards north of $20?

Pokémon has been a large part of pop culture ever since the release of its first game, Pokémon Red and Green in 1996. Riding on the success of the franchise, the companies who made Pokémon created Pokémon cards, which was released in 1996 in Japan with a western release later in 1998. Although the popularity of the cards fluctuated over the next two decades, they remained a large part of pop culture and the childhood of many, including mine. During the pandemic, they rose in popularity due to increased free time and popular influencers like Logan Paul spending thousands of dollars on cards, which brought attention to the hobby.  Now, around 2 years later, the hobby of collecting Pokémon is bigger than ever.

One theory I have for the spike in popularity for Pokémon cards is the rise of a mobile game, Pokémon TGC Pocket. Releasing in October of 2024, the game was the mobile adaption of the physical card game. The game quickly grew at an astronomical rate, with hundreds of millions of earnings upon release. 

https://www.statista.com/statistics/1557698/pokemon-tcg-pocket-player-spending-app
Income generated from Pokémon TGC Pocket

The game is free-to-play, meaning you can enjoy the full experience without spending any money. The game also gives players two free packs of cards a day. This, compounded with the nostalgia a lot of people have for Pokémon, contributes to the games success. I believe this popularity funneled several people into the hobby of collecting physical cards. According to Google Trends, there was a spike in popularity for pokemon cards ever since the release of the mobile game in October of 2024.

From Google Trends

Frequency of searching “pokemon card(s)” over time. 

Further evidence of Pokémon TGC Pocket impacting the demand of physical cards can be seen with the price of the coveted 1st Edition Charizard card. The card’s price had a dramatic increase around the same time as the release of the mobile game, even surpassing its price during the pandemic.

https://www.pricecharting.com/game/pokemon-base-set/charizard-1st-edition-4
Price over time of 1st Edition Charizard Pokémon card

While the mobile game, Pokémon TGC Pocket seems to be dwindling in popularity, the fans who moved over to the physical card game remain infatuated with the hobby. The game’s immense popularity attracts people seeking to make a profit. Hundreds if not thousands of people often “scalp” Pokémon cards, preventing anyone else from buying them at their market price and then reselling them  at a large profit. At one point, one set of packs, Prismatic Evolution, was priced close to $20. The Pokémon Company has noticed the scalping, and has said they will print more cards to keep up with the demand. With more cards, new sets coming out for the physical card game, major updates coming to the mobile game to draw new players in, and a growing competitive scene for the card game, it seems that the growth of Pokémon cards will not slow down any time soon.