Grade Definitions
Use this page as a clear reference for what each CGZ grade represents.
GEM Pristine Diamond Perfect 10+
A truly flawless card with no visible imperfections. Perfect 50/50 centering, razor-sharp corners and clean edges. The surface is free of stains, scratches, print defects, gloss breaks, or wear—even under magnification.
GEM MINT 10
A near-perfect card with outstanding eye appeal. Centering is approximately 55/45 or better on the front (and strong on the reverse), with sharp corners, clean edges, and an exceptionally clean surface. Only extremely minor manufacturing imperfections may be present, and they should not be noticeable without close inspection.
GEM MINT 9.5
A Gem Mint 9.5 card is high-end with excellent eye appeal. Attributes include 60/40 or better centering, sharp focus, and crisp corners. Only very minor flaws may appear under close inspection. Examples may include (but are not limited to): a tiny nick on one corner, a small gloss break or light surface scratch, a minor print/refractor line, a slight focus or color imperfection, or a small print spot.
MINT 9
A Mint 9 card remains strong and clean, but may show slightly more noticeable minor issues than a 9.5. Centering is typically 60/40 or better with sharp corners and solid edges. Small flaws may be present upon closer examination such as light corner/edge wear, a faint surface scratch or gloss imperfection, a minor print/refractor line, mild focus/color inconsistency, or a small print spot.
NM-MT 8
A Near Mint/Mint 8 is a card with 70/30 or better centering, corners sharp to the naked eye, but may exhibit slight wear under closer examination. A few small flaws may exist upon close examination such as minor corner wear, a light surface scratch/gloss break, print/refractor lines, small print spots, or minor focus/color issues.
NM 7
A Near Mint 7 card’s attributes include 70/30 or better centering, slight wear on some corners, minor scratching, some print spots or speckling, and print lines or refractor lines are acceptable. The card may exhibit a slightly skewed (diamond) cut.
EX/NM 6
An Excellent/Near Mint 6 is a card with 75/25 or better centering. Slight fuzzing of corners may be evident, a skewed cut may be more noticeable, focus or registration may be off, and slight notching of edges may exist.
EX 5
An Excellent 5 is a card with 80/20 or better centering. Minor rounding or fuzzing of corners, roughness or chipping along an edge (no layering), and light surface wear may be present. One very slight surface (“spider”) crease may exist on one side. Gloss may show some loss with scratching that does not heavily detract from overall eye appeal.
VG/EX 4
A Very Good/Excellent 4 is a card with 85/15 or better centering. Corners are slightly rounded with modest surface wear. A light hairline crease may show on one or both sides. A light tear or surface break may exist.
VG 3
A Very Good 3 is a card with 90/10 or better centering. Corners are more rounded (but not excessive), stronger creasing may exist, and poorer focus/registration, discoloration, or staining are more noticeable.
GOOD 2
A Good 2 card is centered 90/10 or better and typically shows heavier flaws: heavy print spots, heavy creases, pinholes, discoloration, surface scuffing/tears, rounded or fraying corners, ink/pencil markings, and loss of some or all original gloss.
FAIR 1
A Fair 1 card typically exhibits many heavy flaws: heavy print spots, heavy creases, pinholes, discoloration, surface scuffing/tears, rounded/fraying corners, ink/pencil markings, and lack of original gloss. Small portions of the card may be missing.
Authentic
This designation may be used if a card has been altered or contains a foreign substance. Examples include (but are not limited to): trimmed edges, recoloring, pen/pencil marks, writing, glue/foreign residue, pinholes, or other alterations.
Additional Guidelines
Centering, corners, edges, and surface are evaluated together with overall eye appeal and print quality.
We evaluate paper stock quality. Standard sports-card sizing is the published size ± 2.5 mm; cards within this range are eligible to be graded.
We grade autographed cards from Panini, Topps, Leaf, Upper Deck, or other officially licensed manufacturers when the autograph was authenticated by the issuing company. We do not authenticate third-party autographs or trade-show autographs at this time.