Why Does a Card Get a PSA 9 Instead of a PSA 10?
Centering, surface, corners, and print defects: understanding why a card receives PSA 9 rather than PSA 10.
The difference between a card graded PSA 9 and a card graded PSA 10 can seem negligible to the naked eye. Placed side by side on a table, under ordinary living room lighting, many collectors would be unable to tell which is which. And yet, on the secondary market, this single point of difference can represent a considerable price gap, sometimes doubling or tripling depending on the card's rarity and current demand. Understanding why this one point exists, and above all why it is so difficult to anticipate, makes it possible to approach grading with more realistic expectations and to avoid disappointment.
PSA (Professional Sports Authenticator) describes the grade 10, called Gem Mint, as a virtually perfect card. The key word here is "virtually": this is not absolute perfection measured to the micron, but an assessment that remains, to a certain extent, subjective and governed by internal standards. The grade 9, called Mint, allows for one minor flaw, or an accumulation of very slight imperfections, that do not prevent the card from being considered nearly new. This nuance explains a phenomenon that often surprises newcomers to the hobby: a card fresh out of a booster pack, never touched by bare hands, kept with the utmost care, can still receive a 9 rather than a 10, with no trace of wear visible to the naked eye. The flaw that tipped the grade already existed when the card left the factory, or appeared during handling so minimal it went completely unnoticed.
It is important to keep this reality in mind even before considering a grading submission: systematically aiming for a 10 as the sole goal exposes you to repeated disappointment, whereas a 9 remains, in the vast majority of cases, an excellent result for a modern card.
Centering
Centering is undoubtedly the criterion best known to the general public, and also the one that most often tips a card from a 10 to a 9. PSA publishes centering tolerances associated with each grade, generally expressed as ratios between opposite borders of the card (for example the left margin compared to the right margin, or the top margin compared to the bottom margin). To achieve a grade 10, these ratios must stay within a very strict range. A card whose centering is slightly outside this range, even in a way barely perceptible to the naked eye, will automatically be capped at 9, regardless of the quality of its surface, corners, and edges.
This point deserves further detail, as it is a common source of misunderstanding among collectors. Centering is not judged by looking at the artwork or the colored frame of the card, but by measuring the actual white or colored borders surrounding the design, all the way to the physical edge of the cardstock. A card can visually appear perfectly centered when you look at its artwork, while actually being off by a few millimeters if the borders are measured precisely. It is this objective measurement, not the overall impression, that is taken into account by evaluators.
Another technical point worth knowing: the back of the card generally benefits from a wider centering tolerance than the front. This is due to constraints specific to the printing process for playing and collectible cards, where the back (often standardized across an entire product line) is printed using a different process than the front artwork. In practice, this means a card can display a nearly perfectly centered front, yet be limited by a slightly off-center back, or the reverse. Both sides are examined, and it is the combination of the two that determines the final grade.
For a collector who wants to assess their own cards before a potential submission, using a precise ruler or a centering gauge, combined with good natural light or neutral white lighting, provides a fairly reliable idea. But caution is warranted: without the same tools and experience as professional graders, a homemade estimate remains indicative, never definitive.
Surface Defects
The second major factor that distinguishes a 9 from a 10 concerns the condition of the card's surface. This category covers a range of flaws that may seem trivial in isolation, but weigh heavily when the goal is the maximum grade.
Among the most commonly encountered defects are the micro-scratch (often invisible to the naked eye and detectable only at a grazing angle of light), the print line (an artifact left by the industrial printing process, which can appear as a fine streak crossing all or part of the card), the white spot (a tiny area where the top layer of the cardstock is slightly altered, revealing a speck of white), the roller mark (a mark left by the production rollers during mass manufacturing of card sheets), or a small indentation, sometimes caused by pressure exerted during factory packaging, long before the card ever reaches the collector's hands.
What makes these defects particularly tricky to anticipate is that they are often invisible under normal viewing conditions. A collector examining their card in daylight, with the naked eye, may judge it flawless, while a professional grader, using powerful directional lighting and sometimes a loupe or optical magnification, will detect an imperfection that is otherwise completely undetectable. This is precisely why the grade received can sometimes come as a surprise, even to experienced collectors.
One point worth reiterating, as it is a source of false expectations: cards with textured or holographic finishes, or elaborate surface effects (embossing, spot varnish, raised patterns), are in no way exempt from these criteria. On the contrary, these particular finishes can sometimes make certain defects more visible under certain angles of light, or conversely hide others, adding a further layer of complexity to the evaluation. One should therefore never assume that a card with a "premium" look or sophisticated finish will automatically be easier to grade as Gem Mint.
Corners and Edges
The third pillar of evaluation concerns the condition of the card's four corners and edges. Here too, the gap between a 9 and a 10 can hinge on an extremely fine detail.
A typical example is "whitening," the phenomenon by which the colored surface layer of the cardstock wears slightly at a corner, revealing a spot of white (the color of the underlying cardstock). Even a tiny whitening spot, barely perceptible without magnification, can be enough to keep a card from grade 10. Similarly, a slightly raised fiber of cardstock on an edge, invisible to the touch for most people but detectable visually under good lighting, or an uneven cut (an edge that is not perfectly straight or perpendicular, resulting from imprecision during the industrial cutting of card sheets), can also make the difference.
An essential point to keep in mind, as it fundamentally changes how one should approach the subject: so-called "factory" defects, meaning those that already existed before the card was ever handled by anyone, are evaluated in exactly the same way as any other defect. In other words, grading does not seek to distinguish the origin of a flaw (factory, transport, collector handling), only the final condition of the card at the time of evaluation. A card with a slightly damaged corner straight out of a booster pack, with no human hand ever responsible for it, will be graded according to that condition, with no leniency related to its origin.
This reality has an important practical consequence worth remembering: a card straight out of a freshly opened booster pack is, at no point, guaranteed to receive the maximum grade. The randomness of industrial production plays a significant role, and two identical cards from the same booster pack, or even the same printing sheet, can receive different grades depending on the micro-defects unique to each copy.
The Human Element in Evaluation
While PSA's standards are written, documented, and theoretically objective, it should never be forgotten that final grading is carried out by human beings, trained professionals certainly, but who examine each card within a limited amount of time, with their own perceptual sensitivity, their own visual fatigue at the end of the day, and lighting conditions that, although standardized internally, are never rigorously identical from one session to the next.
This human dimension explains a phenomenon well known to collectors accustomed to grading: a card submitted once and graded 9 may later be submitted a second time (sometimes through a reconsideration service, sometimes through a full new submission) and receive a different grade, either higher or lower. This does not mean the first grading was "wrong" in the sense of an error, but simply illustrates the margin of judgment that inherently exists in any human evaluation process applied to such fine criteria. This possibility should absolutely not be seen as a guarantee or a reliable strategy: resubmitting a card in the hope of a better grade remains an uncertain approach, one that carries a cost (submission fees, delays, risks of additional handling) with no certainty of outcome.
This element of uncertainty has a very concrete practical implication for any buyer or collector: before paying a significant premium for a copy graded 10 rather than a graded 9 copy, it is always recommended to compare the two cards visually, if possible (high-definition photos, videos from multiple angles, or direct in-store observation). It is not uncommon to find that a PSA 9 is, to the eye, visually more pleasing and "cleaner" than a PSA 10 whose centering, while technically within the tolerances allowed for the maximum grade, remains noticeable and less harmonious to look at. The number printed on the protective case's label should never replace a careful examination of the card itself.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is a PSA 9 card a low-quality card? No, absolutely not. Grade 9 (Mint) remains a very high grade on PSA's scale, allowing for only one minor flaw or an accumulation of very slight imperfections. In the vast majority of cases, a PSA 9 card remains visually almost indistinguishable from a PSA 10 to an untrained eye, and represents an excellent state of preservation.
Can I know in advance whether my card will receive a PSA 10? It is possible to form an idea by carefully examining the centering, surface, corners, and edges under strong, grazing light, but no personal estimate can replace professional evaluation. Some defects are detectable only by experienced graders using specific tools and lighting.
Does resubmitting a card graded 9 make it possible to get a 10? That is a possibility, but it is by no means guaranteed. The element of human judgment in grading means that a new submission can produce a different result, either higher or lower. This approach also involves additional fees and delays, which must be weighed against the uncertainty of the outcome.
Are defects present from the moment the booster is opened treated differently during grading? No. PSA evaluates the card's final condition at the time of examination, without distinguishing between a defect of industrial origin (printing, cutting, packaging) and a defect that appeared during later handling. A card can therefore receive a grade below 10 even if it has never been touched since it was opened.
Key Takeaways
- PSA 10 (Gem Mint) means virtually perfect, which is different from simply new or never handled.
- Centering is measured on the card's actual borders, not on the artwork, and the back often benefits from a wider tolerance than the front.
- Micro surface defects (scratches, print lines, white spots) are sometimes invisible to the naked eye and only appear under professional lighting.
- Defects present from the factory count exactly the same as any other defect in the final evaluation.
- Grading always retains an element of human judgment: two submissions of the same card can, in theory, produce different results.
- Before paying a hefty premium for a higher grade, always compare the card itself rather than relying solely on the number shown. Check out our selection of graded cards at the shop.
