01 — FAQ
Questions people actually ask
Twenty-two questions, answered in a paragraph each. No jargon assumed, nothing inflated, and a link to the full page wherever the short answer is not enough.
By Brijon M.Published
02
How to use this page
These are the questions that arrive by email and the ones search data says people type before they buy anything. The answers below are short on purpose — each links to the page that covers it properly if you want the long version.
Nothing here assumes you know the jargon. If a term throws you, the glossary decodes the whole vocabulary in one page, and the start-here guide for parents is the orientation we would give a friend who got asked for Pokemon cards on a Tuesday.
03
What we cannot answer
- What your cards are worth. We do not publish card values. Condition decides most of the price and no photograph settles condition.
- Whether cards are a good investment. Out of scope. We write about what to buy to enjoy the hobby, not about speculation.
- Whether one specific card is fake. The fake-spotting guide gives you the physical checks, which beat anything we could judge from an image.
- Order and delivery problems. We are not a retailer and have no visibility into any purchase. Contact whoever you bought from.
04
Still stuck
If your question is not below, email contact@pullandbinder.com or use the contact form. Questions the site does not answer are the most useful mail we get — a good number of the pages here started as one.
05
Questions people actually ask
What should I buy if this is my first Pokemon purchase?
An Elite Trainer Box. It is around $50 and contains 8 to 10 packs plus 65 card sleeves, dice, energy cards and a storage box — the accessories a new collector needs and the thing every other format leaves out. Our picks are here, and the format comparison explains why it beats the cheaper-per-pack option.
Is a booster box better value than an Elite Trainer Box?
Per pack, yes — 36 packs for roughly $155 to $165 is the cheapest way Pokemon sells cards. As a first purchase it is usually a mistake: no sleeves, nowhere to store anything, and 36 packs of one expansion produces a great many duplicate commons. The full argument.
How many packs are in an Elite Trainer Box?
It varies by expansion — 8, 9 or 10, depending on the set. Pack counts shifted when the cards-per-pack count changed, so check the box rather than trusting a number you read once. Details by set.
What is the difference between a booster box and a booster bundle?
A bundle is 6 packs. A box is 36. They sound like the same product and differ by roughly a factor of six in both pack count and price, which is the most common mix-up in this hobby. Side by side.
Are Pokemon tins worth buying?
As a cheap gift, yes — a mini tin is two packs and a metal box for not much money, and the tin itself gets used. As a way to buy cards it is poor value per pack. Our read on tins.
Do binders damage Pokemon cards?
A bad binder does. Ring binders let the rings press into cards, and top-loading pages let cards slide out when the binder is tipped past vertical. A zippered, ringless binder with side-loading pockets does not damage cards, and that is the format we recommend. The long answer.
What size binder should I get?
A 9-pocket binder for a collection you want to look at, because 9-pocket matches how cards are laid out in a set. 4-pocket suits a small traveling collection, 12-pocket suits bulk you want compact. The comparison.
How many cards fit in a binder?
A 9-pocket binder with 20 pages holds 360 cards double-sided, and a 480-card binder is the common larger size. Sleeved cards take more room than the pocket rating suggests, so buy more capacity than you think you need. Capacity by binder.
Do I need to sleeve every card?
No, and trying to is how people give up. Sleeve the cards you care about — holos, full arts, anything going in a binder or to a game night — and keep the commons loose in a storage box. Which cards to sleeve.
What is the difference between a penny sleeve and a deck sleeve?
A penny sleeve is a thin, soft, open-topped sleeve for storage, costing about a cent each. A deck sleeve is thicker, has a printed back and is built to be shuffled in a game. They are not interchangeable. Side by side.
What is a toploader for?
A rigid plastic holder that stops a single valuable card from bending. The card goes in a penny sleeve first, then into the toploader. Standard Pokemon cards need the 3x4 inch, 35pt size. Sizes explained.
What does double-sleeving mean?
Putting a card in a penny sleeve, then into a second deck sleeve facing the other way, so no edge of the card is exposed. It is what people do before grading, or for cards they play with. How to do it.
What is the best way to store a large collection?
Split it. Cards you want to see go in a binder; the bulk goes in a cardboard or plastic storage box, sorted by set. Trying to binder everything costs a fortune and takes forever. Storage box vs binder.
How should I store cards long term?
Cool, dark and dry, standing upright rather than stacked flat, away from exterior walls and sunlight. Humidity and UV do more damage over years than handling does. Long-term storage.
Are starter decks or theme decks worth it?
If the goal is to actually play, yes — a Battle Deck is a complete, legal, ready-to-play 60-card deck for around $25, which no amount of pack-opening gets you. If the goal is collecting, skip them. Our read.
What is the difference between a Battle Deck and a theme deck?
Battle Decks are the current, still-printed version: 60 cards, one strategy, playable out of the box. Theme deck is the older name for roughly the same idea, and those are now mostly out of print. Compared.
How much should I spend to get started?
Around $50 to $80 covers a complete, well-protected start: an Elite Trainer Box at about $50 plus a zippered side-loading binder at about $25. If the budget is tighter, roughly $25 buys either the binder or a battle deck, and spending more at the outset does not improve things much. Budget breakdown.
What should I buy for a child of a specific age?
Roughly: under six, cards to look at and not much else; six to nine, an Elite Trainer Box plus a chunky zippered binder they can handle; ten and up, a Battle Deck so they can play with friends. Age by age.
Where is the best place to buy Pokemon cards?
Big-box retail and Amazon for current sealed product at or near retail price, a local game store for singles and advice, and the Pokemon Center for its exclusives. Avoid marketplace sellers with no feedback history. Where to buy.
How can I tell if Pokemon cards are fake?
Check the light test, the texture of the card back, the font on the energy symbols and the sharpness of the bottom text. Fakes usually fail two or three of these at once. Full checklist.
Do you get paid for these recommendations?
We earn a commission when you buy through our links, at no extra cost to you. Nobody pays to be recommended and no brand sees a page before it publishes. Affiliate disclosure and editorial policy spell out exactly how that works.
Do you test the products you recommend?
No, and we will not claim otherwise. We score products against a published rubric using manufacturer specifications, retailer listings and independent sources, all cited on the page. Our methodology explains what that does and does not get you.