Drop-day prep guides
Get ready before a drop: accounts, saved details, apps and how each retailer's queue or drawing works. Rules change, so always check the retailer's own page too.
Pokémon Center
Sign in early, save your details and know how the virtual waiting room works.
Walmart
Enter the collectibles drawing during its window, then buy later if you win.
Target
Online drops and in-store restocks: get your account and the Target app ready.
Best Buy
Online drops and store restocks: sign in, save your details and watch for the queue.
GameStop
Check your account, your store and how GameStop handles hot releases.
Amazon
Some popular items use request invite: know how that works and have your account ready.
Drop day checklist
A short checklist that works for any retailer, from the night before to checkout.
Collecting guides
Starting out: a beginner's guide to collecting Pokémon cards
Everything a new collector needs in the first month, from a budget to sleeves to the words people use, without the hype.
ETB, booster box or bundle? What to buy, and what a fair price looks like
Every common box explained, with its pack count, its MSRP and what you pay per pack, so you can buy the right one at a fair price.
How to spot fake Pokémon cards and resealed packs and boxes
A calm, step-by-step way to check a card or a sealed box before you pay, using your eyes, your phone's light and a known real card.
How Pokémon card vending machines work, and how to use our machine timers
What collectors have learned about card vending machines, how to be a good neighbour at one, and how our free timers help you time a visit.
Protect your cards
Sleeves, toploaders, binders and storage, explained plainly, plus how to buy sealed product without paying a reseller's price.