Comic Book Appraisal: Costs, Where to Go, What You Get

A comic book appraisal is a written opinion of value from someone qualified to give one. Most people asking about appraisals want to know whether their comics are worth selling, and for that a price check is enough: identify each book, grade it, and compare recent sold prices. A formal appraisal is worth paying for when a document is needed, which the American Society of Appraisers lists as insurance coverage, estate planning, tax purposes and charitable donations. For donations, it says to ask your accountant or read the current IRS Publication 561.

• Online photo appraisal: ValueMyStuff charges $28 for one appraisal returned within 48 hours and $56 for 24 hours. Credits get cheaper in bundles: $70 for 3, $99 for 5, $195 for 10 and $1,800 for 100, or $18 each (pricing page, checked September 25, 2026). You upload a photo, its specialists appraise it and send the result; its comics page says 756 appraisals have been done.
• A certified appraiser: fees are set by each appraiser and are usually hourly, half-day or full-day. The American Society of Appraisers says never to use an appraiser who charges a percentage of the item's value, or one who offers to buy what they appraise.
• Grading is not an appraisal. A grading company such as CGC certifies the grade and checks for restoration, which is often what decides the value, but it does not state a price. Fees are on our CGC grading cost page.

• For insurance, estates, taxes or donations: a credentialed appraiser. The American Society of Appraisers runs a find-an-appraiser directory. Before hiring, ask about designations and education, references, whether they belong to a society that tests and accredits appraisers, and whether the report will comply with the Uniform Standards of Professional Appraisal Practice (USPAP) (ASA).
• For a quick opinion: an online photo service such as ValueMyStuff.
• For selling: a dealer or auction house will tell you what they would pay or expect at sale. That is an offer or estimate, not an independent appraisal, and ASA's warning about appraisers who offer to buy applies.
• For confirming the grade: a grading service, before you sell a valuable book.

• Identify the exact book. The indicia on the first page or inside cover gives title, issue, date and publisher, and notes reprints.
• Check whether it is a key issue. First appearances carry most of the value; our first appearances list gives the issue for each character.
• Estimate the grade with our grading guide.
• Compare sold prices, not asking prices, in that grade. Our comic book value guide explains which price sources to use.

If a book turns out to be worth thousands, that is the point to consider grading or a formal appraisal.

Some are; most are worth modest amounts. Books from the early to mid 1980s, with PriceCharting values retrieved September 25, 2026:

• Batman #357 (March 1983), first Jason Todd and first full Killer Croc: $68.40 ungraded, $544.33 in 9.8
• Avengers Annual #10 (1981), first Rogue: $33 in CGC 2.0, $200 in 9.4
• The Uncanny X-Men #160 (1982), first adult Illyana: $18.24 ungraded, $154.16 in 9.8
• Magik #1 (1983): $10.06 ungraded
• The Amazing Spider-Man #300 (1988), first Venom: $162 in CGC 2.0, $725 in 9.4

Even the keys from this period mostly sell for tens to a few hundred dollars unless they are in top grade, which is why an appraisal fee rarely makes sense for a box of 1980s comics. Scan or look them up first.

• A list of every book: title, issue number, year, and any variant or printing note from the indicia
• Photos of each front cover, back cover, spine and indicia, in even light without glare
• Any grading labels, receipts or provenance, such as a known pedigree
• The purpose of the appraisal (insurance, estate, donation, sale), because it decides which value the appraiser reports

ComicLens reads the title, issue number and cover from a photo, matches the likely issue and printing with a confidence indicator you can correct by hand, and shows a reference price range that moves with the grade you pick. There are free scans every day, and scanned books go into a collection on your device with a running total. It is a way to sort a box into "common" and "worth a closer look"; the range is a reference estimate, not an appraisal or an offer.

Research and drafting were assisted by AI and checked line by line against the sources listed on this page. Prices are the figures shown by the named source on the date given; they change with the market.

The quickest way to find a comic book appraisal near you is CGC's Dealer Locator, which can be filtered to shops that list comics appraisals as a service. Search by city, state, country or postal code; each result shows the address, phone number, email, distance and today's hours, and says whether an appointment is required. Only the top 50 matches are shown, so narrow the location if you are in a large city. A listing means the shop offers the service, not that CGC has vetted the appraisal itself.

Before you go:

• Call first and ask whether they appraise or only make offers, what they charge, and whether you get a written value.
• Ask the questions the American Society of Appraisers recommends (see above): credentials, references, and whether the report follows USPAP, if you need it for insurance, an estate or a donation.
• Bring a list and photos of every book, so the shop can tell quickly which ones need a closer look.
• Treat a purchase offer as an offer. A shop that appraises and offers to buy in the same visit is making a bid, which the ASA warns is not an independent appraisal.

Some buyers give free valuations as a way to acquire collections. Sell My Comic Books, which now operates under Goldin Auctions, is one of the top results for this search and describes its process this way: you make a list of your comics, email it, and receive a free valuation with no obligation to sell. It asks people not to photograph every book up front and requests photos only after it has seen the list. It says sellers pay no fees because the buyer pays the fee, that already-graded comics typically take about three weeks and ungraded ones a couple of months, and that it pays by ACH, check or wire.

A free valuation from a company that wants to sell or buy your books is useful for a first number, but it is not an independent appraisal. Compare it with sold prices for the same issue and grade before you agree.

It depends on what the books are worth:

• Common issues worth a few dollars each: a local comic shop or a single bulk sale. Shops listed in CGC's Dealer Locator are a starting point.
• Keys worth tens to a few hundred dollars: an online marketplace where you can compare sold listings for the same grade, or a shop's cash offer checked against those sold prices.
• High-value keys: grade first, then consign to an auction house or a consignment buyer. The record sales on our most valuable comics page went through auction houses and specialist dealers.

Whatever the route, identify each book and check sold prices first, so you know which few books carry most of the value.