← Glossary
What is a grading upcharge?
An extra charge for a card declared above what its tier insures, billed on top of the tier fee.
What it means
Each grading tier insures a card up to a set amount, its cover. Declare a card above that and the company does one of two things.
It bills the difference as an extra charge — an upcharge — or it grades the card at the tier’s price and insures it for less than it is worth.
In SlabScore
- PSA upcharges.
- TAG and ACE cap their cover instead, so a card declared above the most they insure ships under-insured.
- CGC and BGS each have a tier with no ceiling on cover.
- SlabScore picks a tier whose cover reaches the card’s value; when none does, it takes the one with the most cover and marks the card UPCHARGE or OVER CAP.
- The amount of an upcharge is not in any company’s published table, so it is named as missing from the total, never guessed.
Compare graders answers both questions for the five companies side by side.
At each company
Read from each company’s own published tiers; shut and members-only tiers are left out where an open one exists.
| Company | Declared above the cover | Most it insures one card for |
|---|---|---|
| PSA | It bills you extra · The card is graded; the excess is charged | $1M · Premium 10 · $9,999.00 |
| TAG | It insures less · The graded card ships under-insured | $5k · Premier · $299.95 |
| CGC | It insures less · The graded card ships under-insured | No ceiling · Cover is unlimited |
| BGS | It insures less · The graded card ships under-insured | No ceiling · Cover is unlimited |
| ACE | It insures less · The graded card ships under-insured | £5k · Luxury · £120.00 |
PSA
- Declared above the cover
- It bills you extra · The card is graded; the excess is charged
- Most it insures one card for
- $1M · Premium 10 · $9,999.00
TAG
- Declared above the cover
- It insures less · The graded card ships under-insured
- Most it insures one card for
- $5k · Premier · $299.95
CGC
- Declared above the cover
- It insures less · The graded card ships under-insured
- Most it insures one card for
- No ceiling · Cover is unlimited
BGS
- Declared above the cover
- It insures less · The graded card ships under-insured
- Most it insures one card for
- No ceiling · Cover is unlimited
ACE
- Declared above the cover
- It insures less · The graded card ships under-insured
- Most it insures one card for
- £5k · Luxury · £120.00