Jose Sanchez
Research expert covering society, economy, & politics for Latin America
Pok茅mon Trading Card Game - statistics & facts
It is time to answer an age-old question. What came first, the Pok茅mon Trading Card Game or the Pok茅mon video game? You would think that given the medium of playing cards is older that they came first, but the Pok茅mon Trading Card Game (TCG) was actually based on Game Freak's 1996 鈥淧ok茅mon Red, Blue, and Yellow鈥 Game Boy video game. Originally released in Japan, the Pok茅mon Trading Card Game expanded to the United States and has since become a global phenomenon. As of March 2025, around 75 billion聽Pok茅mon TCG cards have been produced worldwide, in as many as 90 countries and regions. Meanwhile, the annual number of new Pok茅mon cards produced globally has seen year-over-year growth over the past five years.
Are Pok茅mon trading cards collectors鈥 items or games?
Although the game was launched almost 30 years ago, the value of Pok茅mon TCG cards has skyrocketed. In a mission to 鈥淐atch 'Em All鈥, Pok茅mon trading card enthusiasts have dished out considerable sums to acquire rare cards. As of 2026, the most expensive Pok茅mon trading card to be sold at auction in the world was an Illustrator CoroCoro Comics Promo (Pikachu illustrator card), selling for 16.49 million U.S. dollars.
While an integral part of the game, it is not all about collecting. Pok茅mon TCG is a strategy-based card game where two players use their Pok茅mon cards to battle one another. The game stays strong on the physical side of things; the game has also ventured into the digital realm since its beginning with the Pok茅mon Trading Card Game for the Game Boy Color. Nonetheless, it's found a new digital home on mobile phones. Pok茅mon TCG Pocket launched in October 2024, getting over 120 million聽downloads during the first 15 months and over 171 million U.S. dollars in app revenue during only the first two months.聽
Is the Trading Card Game one of The Pok茅mon Company鈥檚 biggest products?
In a word, yes. The Pok茅mon TCG is managed by Creatures Inc., who also manages the Pok茅mon Center stores. The TCG is one key piece of The Pok茅mon Company's revenue that is added to other important products like console video games, other mobile games, anime, manga, and merchandising. Added to it, the Pok茅mon TCG is a聽Nintendo fan favorite, and聽Nintendo鈥檚 playing card segment sales reached a peak in 2024. That being said, in its home nation of Japan, the game remains beloved, and Pok茅mon cards were one of the leading Japanese Google searches when online shopping in 2024. Therefore, it is safe to say that the Pok茅mon Trading Card Game does not look to be going anywhere any time soon, with at least four new set releases being released in the first half of 2026. This includes a Pok茅mon Day 2026 Collection for the celebration of the 30th anniversary of the first games' release.
