25 Gifts For Trading Card Collectors To Fit Any Budget
Buying gifts for trading card collectors, but don't know exactly where to start? You are aware that they love the hobby, but you might not know the first thing about which cards to buy.
Related: 28 Sweet Gifts For Wrestling Fans
With that in mind, we put together this gift guide that would be great for all collectors, no matter the budget. Instead of buying actual cards, these accessories would be fantastic additions. Let’s jump right in and highlight the best gifts for trading card collectors this holiday season!
1. Zion Cases— $129.99
Image credit: The Collection Case
Coming in at the top on our list of gifts for trading card collectors is the Zion Case! This case will protect and hold up to 164 PSA, 112 BGS or 112 SGC slabs. Any collector with graded cards will love this case for safe traveling and storage.
2. Homage x Topps T-Shirt—$38
Image credit: homage.com
Homage produces some of the freshest threads for the hobby, including this ‘52 Topps Jackie Robinson tee. Some other hits include an ‘89 Topps Ken Griffey Jr. tee and an ‘84 Topps Don Mattingly tee. They also revamped old Topps logos in their designs, which will be a hit for any old school collector.
3. Stand Up Displays Customized Card Stand — $54.99
Image credit: standupdisplays.co
Want to put your collector’s name and logo on a holder? The people at Stand Up Displays have just the solution. This single card holder allows for a full view of the front and back of the card. Collectors will line these up on their shelves, in their office, or in their man-cave, which cleverly shows off their best cards.
4. Inked Gaming Custom Breaking Mat —$29.95
Image credit: InkedGaming.com
Every collector needs a clean surface to open packs and sort cards, so a breaking mat is essential. Inked Gaming allows customers to import a logo or picture onto their mat, which makes for an aesthetically pleasing place to look at collections.
5. PSA Card Display Case — $549
Image credit: PSAcard.com
This high-end display case will showcase up to 24 PSA graded cards and features a mahogany door with black suede matting. It comes with brackets for easy wall mounting. The UV-filtered conservation glass helps prevent fading.
6. Collectible Card Bin— $65.99
Image credit: BCWsupplies.com
This stackable collectible card bin holds up to 3200 loose trading cards. The rows are wide enough to hold top loaders and one-touch magnetic cases.
This may not be the most expensive or flashy item on our "top gifts for trading card collectors" list, but it will certainly be appreciated!
7. Light Box — $39.99
Image credit: Amazon
Any card collector will appreciate this light box, as it will greatly improve the photography of their cards. This will make their social media posts and eBay listings pop and accentuate the artwork on the cards.
8. Reebok Question Low “Panini Rookie Signature Prizm” — $115
Image credit: Reebok
Need some hobby-inspired kicks? How about Allen Iverson’s Reebok Question Low in a Prizm silver colorway? Yeah, we’re sold too. The Panini logo is brandished along the tongue and sole of these stunners, so it’s a subtle tribute to the hobby we all love.
9. Show Your Slabs Display — $189.99
Image credit: Show Your Slabs
This display fits either 9 or 25 PSA graded cards and flush mounts on the wall. The top can be personalized with the collector's name and social media handle.
10. Baseball Card: Flipping, Trading & Bubblegum Book — $6.25
Image credit: Etsy
Per Amazon: "A look at baseball in the 1950s presents more than two hundred cards, with amusing bios on some of the game's most colorful characters and observations on the baseball card phenomenon."
11. Michael Jordan 1986 Fleer Poster —$26
Image credit: Etsy.com
This pin-up of Jordan’s classic Fleer rookie card would look great in any office or man-cave. The same group also sells prints of the Mickey Mantle and Rickey Henderson rookie.
12. Mint Condition Book — $15.95
Image credit: Amazon
Per Amazon: "When award-winning journalist Dave Jamieson rediscovered his childhood baseball card collection he figured that now was the time to cash in on his “investments.” But when he tried the card shops, they were nearly all gone, closed forever. eBay was no help, either. Baseball cards were selling for next to nothing. What had happened?"
13. eBay Gift Card
Image credit: eBay
You can NOT miss with this gift. eBay is the home for all things sports cards, so an eBay gift card is like saying "go get yourself anything you want on me!" and the collector in your life will love you for it!
10. Topps Custom Baseball Cards — $9.99
Image credit: Topps
My own Topps card?! Sign me up!! These would be a really fun stocking stuffer for the entire family. There's just something cool about seeing your family and friends with the Topps logo and your favorite team's logo... and I will likely be buying some of these for my next family event!
11. One Month Subscription to Cardladder — $15
Image credit: CardLadder
Trading card collectors like to look at data that helps them make decisions when buying or purchasing items to help build their collection. For a long time, this data existed in different places — sold/completed eBay listings, hobby group threads, Goldin Co. sold data, etc.
Cardladder costs $15 per month and allows collectors to add cards to their collection, track sales data, sales volume, sale prices, and estimated card values.
For just $15, you can give a collector access to Cardladder for an entire month so they can try it out and see if it’s a fit for their hobby needs.
16. Brothers in Cards Pack Plus Program — $85
Image credit: Brothersincards.com
Opening boxes and packs of sports cards have gotten expensive, but Brothers in Cards offers a more affordable option for collectors.
Starting at just $85, you can pick a sport and a box level you’d like a gift. Brothers in Cards will include between 3 and 9 packs of cards (based on the selected product level) from different sports card products at an affordable price. Card packs are randomly sorted and distributed into the boxes. It’s one of the best ways for collectors to scratch the itch of opening fresh wax without breaking the bank and makes for a perfect holiday gift.
13. Legends Card Grading Centering Tool with Cleaning Cloth Kit Material — $12.99
Image credit: Amazon
If you ever see a trading card collector staring at their cards and holding them at different angles, it’s likely because they are trying to figure out how well centered the card is. Centering is a major factor in how grading companies assign the numeric condition of the card and this centering tool is a life-saver.
You can purchase the Legends Card Grading Centering Tool on Amazon to help your collector better estimate the centering on raw cards before they spend money to submit them for grading.
14. Slab Savers — $29.99
Image credit: Protectyourslab.com
Slab Savers are humidity-controlled storage for a single graded card that can preserve the card in its current condition. UV rays, humidity, and cracked slabs can ruin a collector’s day, and for just $29.99, a collector’s most prized possessions can be stored safely and confidently.
19. Rally “Ungraded Rookie Cards” Hat — $54.99
Image credit: RallyRd.store
This corduroy cap comes from Rally, a platform built for alternative investing. The cursive embroidery pays homage to the Starter NFL caps of the early 90s, and it’s a neat piece to wear at a card show or trade night.
20. Portable and Flexible Adjustable Cell Phone Tripod Holder with Remote and Universal Clip — $14.99
Image credit: Amazon
Opening fresh packs of sports cards can be a lot of fun. It’s more fun when you live stream it to your followers on Instagram. It’s not as fun if you don’t have a tripod to hold your phone (as you need two hands to open a pack of cards). For just $14.99, you can buy a tripod on Amazon so that your favorite collector can film opening card packs, or can share their PC (personal collection) via video without trying to hold their phone and shuffle through cards.
21. HP — LaserJet Pro M15w Laser Printer — $119.99
Image credit: BestBuy.com
Trading card collectors who buy and sell cards to build their collections are constantly printing shipping labels and a printer becomes a necessary part of their operation. Best Buy has a few options, but this HP Laserjet is just $119.99. While it’s a bit pricier than the other gifts on this list, a printer is a must-have for any collector.
22. Bubble Mailers — $7.97
Image credit: Amazon
There is nothing worse for a trading card collector than running out of bubble mailers to help ship cards they sell to build their collection. This may seem like a plain holiday gift, but its utility is what keeps the hobby moving. It’s the standard way to pack cards and prepare them for shipping to make sure they arrive protected and undamaged.
23. Steel City Collectibles Box Cutter — $1.95
Image credit: Steelcitycollectibles.com
Here’s a hobby essential that will only cost you $2! Custom box cutters are often used for breaks and openings. This Steel City cutter is an inexpensive way to help a collector out.
24. Collector Caps — $8.50
Image credit: collectorcaps.shop
Anybody who buys cards online knows that there is nothing more annoying than receiving the card in a top loader with a piece of scotch tape on it. It ruins the top loader, and looks awful.
If you are selling cards, sticking one of these Collector Caps on your top loader instead of tape will go a long way towards making sure that your customer is happy and leaves positive feedback, while also doing an amazing job of protecting the card in shipping.
25. Toploaders/Sleeves Bundle — $29.99
Image credit: Ultrapro.com
Last but not least, we have the biggest must-have in the hobby: toploaders and sleeves. Having a couple of these handy is always important in card collecting, and you can never go wrong adding more of them.
Did we miss something that would make for great gifts for trading card collectors? Shoot us a message on twitter @cardtalkpod and let's talk about it!
