Rarity levels: what the symbols on the cards mean

Every card has a rarity level that tells you how often it appears, and it is shown on the card, usually as a symbol or an abbreviation. The basis is the same in most games: common cards, uncommon cards, rare cards, and then a ladder of special versions. It is the ladder above rare that decides what a card is worth.

Quick facts

What rarity is	How often the card appears in packs, not how good it is
Where it is shown	Usually a symbol or letter at the bottom of the card, next to the card number
Highest level	Differs between games and between releases
Price drivers	Often special illustrations rather than the highest symbol
The odds	The same for everyone. Sports cards print them on the packaging, Pokémon publishes none

The basics, which apply in most games

Common, C	Common card. Most of every pack. Often called commons in the plural.
Uncommon, U	Uncommon card. A few per pack.
Rare, R	Rare card. Normally one per pack.

Pokémon

Reverse holo	Common card where the background is foiled instead of the image. Not a level of its own, the card keeps its symbol.
Double Rare, RR	Two black stars. This is where the regular ex cards sit.
ACE SPEC Rare	One pink star. Powerful trainer cards, at most one per deck.
Ultra Rare	Two silver stars. Full-art foil versions of ex cards and some trainer cards.
Illustration Rare, IR	One gold star. Special illustration where the Pokémon is shown in a setting and the artwork extends beyond the frame.
Special Illustration Rare, SIR	Two gold stars. The step above, usually an ex Pokémon or a trainer card in full art.
Hyper Rare	Three gold stars. Gold cards, last in the numbering.
Shiny Rare and Shiny Ultra Rare	One or two sparkling gold stars. Shiny versions of Pokémon, first in Paldean Fates.
Black White Rare	One black and one white star. Only in Black Bolt and White Flare.
Mega Hyper Rare	A yellow four-pointed star with a black border. Takes the Hyper Rare slot in the Mega Evolution sets.
Mega Attack Rare	One pink and one green star. Mega Pokémon ex with their own illustration, first in Ascended Heroes.
Secret Rare	Umbrella term for cards numbered higher than the set's stated size, for example hyper rares. No level of its own above them.

The symbols on the card are a circle for common, a diamond for uncommon and a star for rare. The number of stars and their colour tell you where on the ladder the card sits, and the symbol is at the bottom left, right after the card number. New levels sometimes arrive with new sets, and the set's own checklist shows which ones it has.

English cards from Scarlet & Violet onwards, most common first

• Commoncommon card
• Uncommonuncommon card
• Rarerare card
• Double Rarethe ex cards
• Illustration RarePokémon in a setting
• Ultra Rarefull art, textured
• Special Illustration Rareex or trainer, illustrated
• Hyper Raregold cards

Pokémon in Japanese

Japanese cards have letter codes instead of symbols, in the same place after the card number, for example 107/076 SAR. The codes correspond to the English levels, but the names are not the same.

C, U, R	Common, Uncommon and Rare.
RR	Double Rare.
AR	Art Rare. Corresponds to Illustration Rare.
SR	Corresponds to Ultra Rare.
SAR	Special Art Rare. Corresponds to Special Illustration Rare.
UR	Ultra Rare. Corresponds to Hyper Rare, that is, the gold cards.
ACE	ACE SPEC Rare, printed in magenta.
S, SSR	Shiny Rare and Shiny Ultra Rare.
BWR	Black White Rare.
MUR	Mega Ultra Rare. Corresponds to Mega Hyper Rare.
MA	Mega Attack Rare.

The trap is the names. Japanese UR is called Ultra Rare but is the gold cards, which in English are called Hyper Rare, while English Ultra Rare corresponds to Japanese SR. The sets are also divided and numbered differently, so the same card can have a different number in Japanese than in English. Older Japanese sets have their own codes, such as CHR and CSR for Pokémon shown together with their trainer and HR for rainbow-coloured cards.

Magic: The Gathering

Black symbol	Common
Silver symbol	Uncommon
Gold symbol	Rare
Orange-red symbol	Mythic rare, the rarest in regular packs
Special treatments	Extended art, foil treatments and serialized cards, mostly from collector boosters

The set symbol on the right of the type line. The shape belongs to the set, the colour is the level.

• Commonblack
• Uncommonsilver
• Raregold
• Mythic rareorange-red

Yu-Gi-Oh!

Common	No foil.
Rare	Silver card name.
Super rare	Foiled illustration.
Ultra rare	Foiled illustration and gold name.
Secret rare	Rainbow-shimmering foil over the name.
Ultimate rare	Embossed, raised illustration.
Ghost rare	Three-dimensional effect.
Starlight rare	The rarest modern treatment.

One Piece and Lorcana

One Piece	C, UC, R, SR, SEC for secret, plus L for leader cards, alternate art and manga rare.
Lorcana	Common, uncommon, rare, super rare, legendary and epic, with enchanted and iconic as the two top levels.

One Piece: the letter next to the card number

• CCommoncommon card
• UCUncommonuncommon card
• RRarerare card
• SRSuper Rarefoiled card
• SECSecret Rarethe secret level
• LLeaderthe leader card

Lorcana: the colour of the symbol, at the bottom centre

• Commongrey
• Uncommonwhite
• Rarebronze
• Super Raresilver
• Legendarygold
• Enchantedrainbow

Riftbound

The level is shown in two ways, on the frame and on a gem in the middle of the card's bottom edge.

Common	Bronze frame and round gem.
Uncommon	Silver frame and triangular gem.
Rare	Gold frame with full art and foil, square gem.
Epic	Simple gold frame that shows the artwork, foil and pentagonal gem.
Alt-art	The champion's card in a different skin, with finer foil and hexagonal gem. The number is followed by an a.
Overnumber	Cards numbered above the set's size, drawn by Riot's own artists.
Signature	An overnumber with the artist's signature in foil. The number has an asterisk.
Ultimate	Introduced in Unleashed, with Baron Nashor as the first card. Not in every set.

In Riot's card gallery, alt-art, overnumber and signature are sometimes grouped under the name Showcase, but that is not printed on the cards. More about the game in the Riftbound guide.

Flesh and Blood

Common, C	Grey symbol. The basic cards.
Rare, R	Blue symbol.
Super Rare, S	Purple symbol. Used in the first sets and in some later ones.
Majestic, M	Red symbol. The rare card above rare.
Legendary, L	Orange symbol. Rarer than majestic and usually equipment.
Fabled	A diamond in gold and orange, without a letter. Normally a single card per set and the highest level in packs.
Marvel	A purple triangle, without a letter. Collector versions of existing cards, usually in cold foil and with a larger or different image. Introduced with Uprising in 2022.
Basic, B	Cards that are in play from the start. Called Token, T, until 2025.
Promo, P	Green symbol. Promotional and event cards.

The symbol is at the bottom of the card, before the collector number. On the very first printings there is instead a letter after the number. Rarity belongs to the printing and not to the card, so the same card can be majestic in one set and legendary or fabled in another. Cold foil and rainbow foil are foil treatments, not levels, and gold foil cards are tournament prize cards that are not found in packs. The word Legendary in a card's rules text is something other than the rarity and means you may only have one copy in your deck.

Weiss Schwarz

The rarity is shown as a code right after the card number, in the strip above the name, for example RZ/S55-060 RR. The basic cards have the codes C, U, R and RR, and the climax cards CC and CR. On top of these come parallel versions of the same card, with the same number and a suffix after it.

C, U, R, RR	Common, Uncommon, Rare and Double Rare. The basic cards.
CC, CR	Climax Common and Climax Rare.
SR	Super Rare. Glossy parallel version.
RRR	Triple Rare. Parallel version with a special treatment.
SP	Special. The voice actor's signature in foil print.
SSP	Super Special. Signature in foil print.
SEC	Secret. The special treatment differs between sets.
OFR	Over Frame Rare. Frameless card.
SIR	Serial Rare. Serial-numbered card.
AGR	Autograph Rare. Handwritten signature.
TD, PR	Cards from trial decks and promo cards.

The signature on SP and SSP is printed in foil, and only AGR has a handwritten one. On English cards the signatures are the same as on the Japanese ones, that is, those of the Japanese voice actors. English cards have an E before the number. Rarity does not affect gameplay.

Grand Archive

The rarity is shown on the bottom edge together with set, edition, language and number, for example DOA 1st • EN-004 C.

C, U, R	Common, Uncommon and Rare.
SR, UR	Super Rare and Ultra Rare.
PR	Promotional Rare. Promo cards.
CSR	Collector Super Rare. Artwork beyond the frame and the illustrator's signature in gold stamping.
CUR	Collector Ultra Rare. Unique signature and serial number.
CPR	Collector Promo Rare. Prizes from special events.

The collector versions, CSR, CUR and CPR, are the highest levels and have the same number as the regular card. 1st and Alter on the edge indicate the edition, not rarity. More about the editions in the Grand Archive guide.

Gundam Card Game and Union Arena

In Gundam Card Game the level is in the top right corner, after the card number: C, U, R and LR, Legend Rare. A plus sign after the code, as in LR+, means a parallel version with different art, and LR++ is the next level, with a gold frame. SP before the number means a reprint with a special illustration, and LK before the number Link Rare, parallel cards where a unit and a pilot are shown together. P is promo cards.

In Union Arena the level is at the bottom left, after the card number. The basic levels are C, U, R and SR, Super Rare, and the AP cards appear rarely. The parallel versions get stars after the letter, as in R★ or SR★★, and those with two or three stars can carry the voice actor's signature in foil print. AP★ are hand-signed, serial-numbered AP cards. More about the games in the Gundam Card Game and Union Arena guide.

Digimon, Dragon Ball and Star Wars: Unlimited

The levels in these three games are covered in each game's own guide: Digimon, Dragon Ball and Star Wars: Unlimited.

Sports cards work differently

Sports cards have no printed rarity symbol. Instead, value depends on whether the card is a base card, an insert, a colour parallel, a numbered card or a card with an autograph or memorabilia. Read more in the guide to parallels, refractors and numbered cards.

What the level means for the price

1. The rarity level tells you how often the card appears, not how sought after it is.
2. A rare card of an unpopular character can be worth less than a common card of a popular one.
3. The two factors together decide the price: how few exist and how many want one.
4. Condition comes on top of that and can multiply or halve the value.
5. On modern cards, special illustrations are almost always the most expensive, not the highest rarity symbols.

Where the level is shown on the card

At the bottom of the card you find the set symbol, the card number and the rarity symbol, usually on the same line. The number is written as 123 of 197, where the second number is the set's size. If the first number is higher than the second, you have a card from the secret part of the set.

Frequently asked questions

• What does SIR mean? Special Illustration Rare, one of the highest levels in modern Pokémon sets.
• Is secret rare always the most expensive? No. Special illustrations of popular characters often sell higher.
• How many rare cards per pack? Normally one, plus foiled cards in fixed slots.
• What does SAR mean on Japanese Pokémon cards? Special Art Rare, which corresponds to Special Illustration Rare in English.
• What does the purple triangle on a Flesh and Blood card mean? Marvel, the collector version of a card.
• Why is my card number 201 of 197? It is a secret rare, printed beyond the set's stated size.
• Does higher rarity mean a better card to play? No, rarity and playing strength are two different things.

How rarity affects a whole box

1. The distribution between levels is decided by the manufacturer.
2. The highest levels are so uncommon that they do not appear in every box.
3. That is why one display is not enough for a complete set with all variants.
4. The share of rare cards is the same no matter where you buy the box.
5. A set's popularity affects the price of the box, not the odds inside.

Common misconceptions

• That more stars always means more expensive. Special illustrations often beat high symbols.
• That rarity says something about playing strength. It does not.
• That secret rare is the rarest. It depends on the game and the release.
• That reverse holo is a rarity level of its own. It is a surface treatment on a common card.
• That Japanese and English releases have the same levels. They often differ.

The levels ranked, most common first

1. Common. Most per pack. The backbone of every set.
2. Uncommon. A few per pack.
3. Reverse holo and similar surface treatments. A parallel version of a common card, not a level of its own.
4. Rare. Normally one guaranteed per pack in most games.
5. Super rare, double rare and equivalents. Several per display, not per pack.
6. Ultra rare and secret rare. A few per display.
7. Special illustrations. Among the most sought after in regular packs, and often the most expensive of all.
8. Numbered and serialized cards. Printed quantity, down to a single copy.

The names differ between games, but the order rarely does. Check your own game's list for the exact designations.

Read more about what ex, GX, V and VMAX mean, the most expensive cards and the glossary.

Shop: Pokémon, trading card games and sports cards at Bangerpack.

Written by those of us who run Bangerpack. Range and prices change continuously. What applies when you read this is shown in the category.