Card Condition Guide: Near Mint to Damaged (NM, LP, MP, HP, DMG)
What Near Mint, Lightly Played, Moderately Played, Heavily Played and Damaged mean under TCGplayer's condition standards, and how raw conditions relate to graded scales.
By the PullMeter team · 5 min read · Updated October 23, 2026
Raw (ungraded) cards are bought and sold by condition labels. On TCGplayer, sellers can list cards as Near Mint, Lightly Played, Moderately Played, Heavily Played or Damaged. TCGplayer notes that it doesn't sell "Mint" or "Gem Mint" raw cards. Here's a summary of TCGplayer's official condition overview in our own words.
Near Mint (NM)
Minimal wear from handling. The surface is nearly unmarked, with crisp corners and clean edges. A few slight flaws, like a touch of edge wear or a couple of minor scratches, are acceptable.
Lightly Played (LP)
Minor edge wear, scuffs or scratches, with no major problems and no damage to the card's structure.
Moderately Played (MP)
Noticeable edge and surface wear, scratching, scuffing, and possibly creased bends, as long as the card's structural integrity is intact.
Heavily Played (HP)
A major amount of wear, such as creasing and whitening. The card must still be authenticatable and not structurally damaged.
Damaged (DMG)
Wear beyond the levels above, or damage to the card's integrity, such as tears, splitting or liquid damage. TCGplayer also treats some manufacturing defects (like crimping or significant miscuts) and alterations (like stamps, signatures or marker) as Damaged.
Foils
TCGplayer evaluates foil cards with the same criteria, but notes that some flaws are more visible on foil and that foils can curl.
Raw condition vs graded scales
Condition labels and numeric grades come from different systems, and there's no official conversion between them. In general terms, only clean Near Mint cards are realistic candidates for top grades like a PSA 10 or CGC Gem Mint 10. Both companies' standards require sharp corners and front centering within about 55/45 for a 10 (see PSA and CGC). Read our grading scales guide.
Market prices on PullMeter generally reflect Near Mint copies. Played cards usually sell for less. See how to read card prices.
General information only. It's not professional, financial or legal advice.