Comic Book Grading

Our grading standards are based on the standards laid out in the Overstreet Grading Guide. However, grading is an inherently subjective process and there will always be small differences in opinion. Please request more photos if unsure of specifics.

Comics listed for sale are listed with one two types of grades:

• The basic grading scale, also known as letter grades, uses the grades from Near Mint (highest) to Poor (lowest):
• • NM Near Mint
  • VF Very Fine
  • FN Fine
  • VG Very Good
  • GD Good
  • FR Fair
  • PR Poor
• The ten-point grading scale assigns grades ranging from 10.0 (highest) down to 0.5 (lowest)
• • 10.0 GM Gem Mint
  • 9.9 M Mint
  • 9.8 NM/M Near Mint/Mint
  • 9.6 NM+ Near Mint+
  • 9.4 NM Near Mint
  • 9.2 NM- Near Mint-
  • 9.0 VF/NM Very Fine/Near Mint
  • 8.5 VF+ Very Fine+
  • 8.0 VF Very Fine
  • 7.5 VF- Very Fine-
  • 7.0 FN/VF Fine/Very Fine
  • 6.5 FN+ Fine+
  • 6.0 FN Fine
  • 5.5 FN- Fine-
  • 5.0 VG/FN Very Good/Fine
  • 4.5 VG+ Very Good+
  • 4.0 VG Very Good
  • 3.5 VG- Very Good-
  • 3.0 GD/VG Good/Very Good
  • 2.5 GD+ Good+
  • 2.0 GD Good
  • 1.8 GD- Good-
  • 1.5 FR/GD Fair/Good
  • 1.0 FR Fair
  • 0.5 PR Poor

We use the basic grading scale for most of our single comics priced up to about $15. We use the ten-point scale to grade most individual comics valued $15.00 or more and those.

Very few comics are returned due to grading discrepancies, but should you receive a comic that you believe is not properly graded, please contact us from the eBay Message Center & We will gladly work out a solution that meets your needs and concerns. Please note that unauthorized returns are returned at the sender's own expense.

Grading Standards:

When reviewing the possible defects a comic may have as shown below for the various grades, please keep in mind that while a single defect may not reduce a comic's grade, that defect if repeated and/or combined with other accumulated defects, may push the grade down by one or more grades.

Near Mint (NM) condition

A nearly perfect copy that looks brand new with only a few very minor defects. Acceptable minor defects on a NM copy include: A very small amount of spine stresses without color breaks, very minor instances of denting (two or three at most), slight corner blunting, and minor (less than 1/8") bends without color breaks.

On the ten-point grading scale, a lower grade like 9.2 will allow these defects in a greater quantity and degree than a higher grade like 9.8, which sometimes may have no discernible defects at all. We do not assign the grades 9.8, 9.9 and 10.0 to any unslabbed "raw" comics. You will only see these ultra-high grades on comics slabbed by one of the grading services. There is such a small degree of separation between the grades 9.8, 9.9, and 10.0 that even the most experienced comic graders may disagree on which of these three grades to assign to an apparently flawless comic, so the highest grade we will assign to a comic is 9.6.

In some cases it is possible for a comic shipped brand new from the publisher, or purchased new from a comic store's shelves, to already be in less than near mint condition due to the way the comic was produced, shipped, stored, or handled prior to purchase.

Very Fine (VF) condition

A VF copy has minor defects, but is in overall excellent condition. Most well-kept modern comics (especially if they have been read) fall into this grade. Acceptable defects on a VF are minor and include: Minor corner wear, a light accumulation of spine stress that may include color-break, a light accumulation of dents, and bends or folds less than 1/4" (note that on a VF copy, some color-break is allowed in a bend/fold).