Magic: The Gathering was the first modern collectible card game (1993) and remains the deepest secondary market in the hobby by product variety. Unlike Pokemon — where Charizards dominate — MTG value distribution is spread across dozens of archetypes: the Reserved List, Power Nine, Commander staples, Modern staples, Standard chase mythics, Secret Lair drops and Universes Beyond crossovers.
CardMarks pulls MTG pricing live from the Scryfall API. Scryfall is the de-facto standard card database for the MTG community: every card face, every printing, USD from TCGplayer, EUR from CardMarket, and MTGO tix prices all in one feed.
The Reserved List — Alpha, Beta, Unlimited
In 1996 Wizards of the Coast committed to never reprinting a list of several hundred specific cards from the game's first three sets. That promise underpins the entire high-end MTG market. Reserved List cards can't be functionally reprinted, so supply is frozen forever — while demand grows.
The Power Nine — Black Lotus, Time Walk, Ancestral Recall, Timetwister, and the five original Moxes — are the most famous Reserved List cards. An Alpha Black Lotus in BGS 10 pristine has sold for $540,000; a signed PSA 10 copy crossed $3M in a private sale reported in 2022. Beta and Unlimited copies are more accessible: expect $8k–$30k for a played Beta Lotus and $25k–$80k for Unlimited in high grade.
Commander is the engine
Commander (EDH) is the most-played format worldwide and the single biggest demand driver for MTG singles. When a card sees play in popular Commander decks, prices move fast. Staples like Sol Ring (the cheap ubiquitous one), Command Tower, Mana Crypt, Jeweled Lotus, Dockside Extortionist and The One Ring have all seen tripling or more in three-year windows.
In 2026, the Commander ban announcements (Nadu, Mana Crypt, Jeweled Lotus and Dockside all shook the format) are still reshaping pricing. Stay aware of EDH rules committee activity if you're investing in format staples.
Modern & Standard staples
Modern — Magic's older Constructed format — has its own tier of expensive staples: original-printing fetch lands (Scalding Tarn, Polluted Delta), shock lands in borderless, and chase mythics like Ragavan, Nimble Pilferer. Expect $40–$300 for original Modern staples in NM.
Standard prices collapse every fall rotation, which is both a risk and an opportunity. Buy Standard staples the week after they rotate out — the cheapest moment in their lifecycle — if you believe a card has Modern or Commander legs.
Foils, etched foils, and Secret Lair
Foiling has evolved. Old-border foils command enormous premiums for Reserved List cards. Modern printings include Double Rainbow (Showcase), Etched, Surge and Oil Slick Raised foil treatments — each with its own pricing multiplier. Secret Lair drops (limited-print alternate-art boxes sold direct from Wizards) have become their own collector category — some sealed Secret Lairs have 5×'d their original $30 price within a year.
Foil multipliers at a glance
- Modern regular foil: 1.5×–3× the nonfoil.
- Old-border (pre-2003) foil: 5×–20× nonfoil.
- Reserved List foil (From the Vault, etc.): 3×–10× nonfoil.
- Collector Booster exclusives (borderless, extended art): 1.2×–2× regular.
How to use the MTG search
Scryfall supports rich search syntax. You can paste queries like t:creature c:r cmc=2 directly into the search bar and filter to a specific printing with set:lea (Alpha), set:leb (Beta), etc. Our search also accepts plain English card names and returns all printings sorted by EDHREC popularity.