Last updated: July 10, 2026
Sending cards to PSA for the first time is more confusing than it should be, service levels, declared value, packaging rules, and a status page that reads like an assembly line. This guide walks through the whole process end to end: how to actually do a PSA submission, how to check its status, and how to keep track of several at once without living in a spreadsheet.
Whether you're grading a single rookie or shipping fifty cards a week, the mechanics are the same. This guide is written for dealers and serious resellers who care about turnaround, cost basis, and getting slabs back without surprises, but a first-time submitter will find every step here too.
Everything starts online. Create a free account at PSA (Collectors), you'll build and pay for your submission through the site, then print the paperwork that goes in the box. There is no paper-only path anymore; the online form is what generates your order number and the address you ship to.
This is the step people get wrong. PSA's price is tied to the declared value of each card, your honest estimate of its market value, and each service level has a maximum declared value it will accept. Declare too low for a valuable card and PSA will bump (or reject) it; pay for a high tier on a common card and you've overspent.
The tiers generally run from cheapest/slowest to most expensive/fastest:
PSA changes pricing, turnaround estimates, and level names periodically, plus runs bulk specials, always confirm the current levels on PSA's site before you commit. The rule that never changes: match the service level to your most valuable card in the order, since one order uses one level.
In your account, start a new submission, pick your service level, and add each card as a line item: description, and its declared value. Accuracy here matters, the description is what prints on your order and what you'll match against when the graded cards return. When you're done, PSA generates an order number and a printable submission form / packing slip.
Keep that order number. It's how you'll check status, and, if you track submissions in software, it's the key you'll search by later.
PSA is strict about this, and damage in transit is on you. The standard, PSA-accepted method:
Need supplies? Penny sleeves and Card Saver I holders are cheap and worth buying in bulk if you grade regularly.
Ship to the address printed on your submission form, and always use tracking and insurance for the full declared value of the package. This is raw cardboard worth potentially thousands, don't send it uninsured. Save the tracking number; delivery confirmation is your proof PSA received the order before their system updates.
Once PSA logs your package, your order moves through a series of stages you can watch from your account under your orders. The workflow generally looks like:
Turnaround is an estimate, not a promise, the clock generally starts when PSA processes the order, not when you drop it off, and busy periods (big releases, the run-up to card shows) stretch every level. Higher service levels move faster because they're prioritized, not because grading itself is quicker.
One submission is easy to babysit. Five open orders, different service levels, different ship dates, cards you paid different amounts for, is where dealers lose the thread. A spreadsheet tells you an order exists; it doesn't tell you whether that $180 in grading fees turned into a profit when the slabs came back.
A proper PSA tracking tool keeps each submission, its cards, and its cost in one place, and answers the question grading is actually about: did it pay off? In SportsCardNetwork you drop in a submission, the status tracks itself, and when the graded cards return you see per-card ROI, pre-grade value versus the graded comp, minus what you paid PSA. That turns grading from a gut call into a number.
Turnaround depends on the service level you pay for. Bulk and value tiers can run many weeks to a few months, mid tiers are faster, and Express, Super Express, and Walk-Through move fastest. The estimate is not a promise, and the clock generally starts when PSA processes your order, not when you drop it off. Busy periods like big releases and the run-up to the National stretch every level, so treat PSA's posted timelines as a moving target and confirm the current estimate for your tier at submission time.
Log in to your PSA (Collectors) account and open your orders to watch the submission move through Order Received, Research and ID, Grading, Assembly, Quality Assurance, and Shipped. The catch is you see one order at a time with no cost or ROI context. Dealer tools like SportsCardNetwork mirror every submission on one screen and add per-card grading ROI when the slabs come back, so you know whether the fees you paid actually turned into profit.
Match the service level to the most valuable card in the order, because one order uses one level. PSA's price is tied to each card's declared value, and every level has a maximum declared value it will accept. Declare too low on a valuable card and PSA can bump or reject it; pay for a high tier on a common card and you have overspent. Bulk and value tiers suit modern commons in volume, mid tiers suit cards worth a few hundred dollars, and the express tiers are for high-dollar cards where speed matters.
The per-card grading fee ranges from a few dollars on a bulk tier up to $25, $75, $150 or more as declared value and speed rise, and PSA runs bulk specials periodically. On top of the fee, budget insured shipping both ways for the full value of the package. PSA changes pricing and level names regularly, so always confirm the current numbers on PSA's site before you commit.
Yes. The PSA-accepted method is each card in a soft penny sleeve, then inside a semi-rigid card saver (Card Saver I is the common choice), not a hard top-loader, which PSA discourages for submissions. Keep the cards in the same order as your form, bundle them snugly in a small sturdy box with no room to shift, and include your printed submission form in the box.
Once your cards are at PSA, the next question is what to do with the results. Our guide on how to track PSA submissions covers the grading-ROI math and the full submission workflow, and the sports card dealer software guide covers the rest of the back office. More questions? The FAQ has quick answers for dealers.