Where to sell some (ho-hum) Magic: the Gathering cards

redguardian

Hi forum folks,

I quit Magic: the Gathering quite a few years ago and am now looking to get rid of a pretty undistinguished collection of a few hundred cards (the best is probably a near-mint Energy Field and there's not much where that came from). What's the best way to go about selling my cards?

The first hit in Google turns up Alpha Beta Unlimited, which seems like a fine choice to me. Plenty of other online stores which buy M:tG cards show up too.

What sites have you all used to sell your cards, and what was the experience like? More important than price (I really don't expect a lot of cash from this) is the ease of the transaction -- did you get paid quickly, was there a big hassle over card condition, etc.?

Also, I'm OK with sorting my cards rather than selling in bulk.

Rye

Ebay. You'll get more return on individuals, but Ebay commissions and the hassle of listing a bunch of $1 cards will drive you nuts.

odiug

Starcitygames and Anycraze some times have buy lists posted. You might also want to try Troll & Toad.

Usually though, your best option is to hit up your local hobby-shops and see if there is anyone there who might be interested in buying your cards (Store Clerk/Store Customer).

If you strive to get as much money as you can, you will probably find yourself selling singles, and will eventually be left with a bunch of cards that will not even sell, even as a block of bulk cards.

Ebay can facilitate either a bulk sale, or singles, but as previously mentioned, selling the singles will be hard going.

I personally tell most people who are looking to get rid of their geekier goods, to keep in mind how little upkeep is involved, and how you may enjoy playing again some day.

2868

I too am interested in this answer, I've got cards dating back to 94.

Tejs

I put a bunch of my old Star Wars CCG cards on consignment with an iSoldIt on Ebay Store. They take some of the profit, but you dont pay any listing costs, or deal with shipping to people etc. You just get a signed check when it sells.

redguardian

Thanks for the replies so far. Sounds like eBay is the way to go for singles.

I'm thinking I should try unloading my commons and uncommons at Troll & Toad or another online store, though, to reduce the hassle. T&T's buylist suggests that they will take any cards in bulk, and ABU seems to accept all sorts of commons/uncommons, too. Does anyone here have experience dealing with those stores, or any other online store with a huge buylist? Or is it still better to unload these on eBay in a big set?

odiug, I appreciate your point on seller's remorse (one of my worst decisions ever was selling Suikoden 2 for the PS2), but I'm 100% sure about this one.

Hypatia

If you have a local gaming store, I'd check with them too to see if they're willing to buy cards in bulk. I was putting mine up on Ebay and craigslist, but the local store offered me more than it looked like either of the other options would go for, plus I didn't have to worry about figuring out shipping

Sharp10r

(I hope a followup question is ok in the thread) how do you know the worth of the cards? (going back to Ice Age and 3rd Edition).

Tejs

Peruse eBay and see if the specific card you are trying to sell is listed, and then copy that price. Otherwise, estimate what you would expect to buy it for. More than likely, 1 dollar per card is going to be the going rate except for the uber ultra rare cards.

The Crowing One

eBay, by far.

I've sold tons of TCG cards on eBay, and selling in playsets is the way to go. Take an afternoon to see what the going price is. Generally, offering "combined shipping" is the best means to lure people into buying lots of cards. It will cost to ship 1-4 cards on their own, etc..