No big store has fair online card sales solved yet: as of our November 2026 review, Pokémon Center comes closest, selling at MSRP behind a waiting room with purchase limits, and Best Buy sold the Delta Reign Booster Box at MSRP by invitation. Walmart and Target ran drawings but last charged well over MSRP for the Elite Trainer Box, and Dick's is held at 50 while it prices far over MSRP. Here's how Pokémon Center, Best Buy, Walmart, Target, Dick's, Amazon and GameStop each score, with the sources behind every mark.
Store scores
Last reviewed November 11, 2026, with data verified through November 10, 2026. Scored on the November 6, 2026 Pokémon wave (Mega Evolution—Delta Reign, and the 30th Celebration Ultra-Premium, Ditto and figure collections). How each score is worked out is below the cards.
Sells its own exclusives, like the Pokémon Center Elite Trainer Box (11 packs instead of 9) source
Since April 2026, it can offer items by emailed invitation to selected newsletter subscribers (Early Access); each link is single-use and tied to one email source
It doesn't share how invitees are chosen, and there's no way to request an invitation source
How the points add up
Price: at MSRP
40 / 40
A queue, drawing, lottery or invitation for the release online
Yes Documented
12 / 12
A per-customer purchase limit
Yes Documented
6 / 6
No marketplace resellers above MSRP on the store's own product page
Yes Observed
6 / 6
The item sold on its own, with no deposit or forced bundle
Yes Documented
6 / 6
Regular buyers had a real chance: the timed online drop didn't sell out within minutes, and the item showed in stock
Partly Observed
4 / 8
Checkout worked: no widespread cart or checkout errors during the drop
No Observed
0 / 7
Drops announced ahead of time with a date and time
Partly Documented
2.5 / 5
Drops at waking hours (6 AM to 10 PM CT, 7 AM to 11 PM ET)
Yes Observed
3 / 3
The price in the cart holds at checkout
No reports found
1.5 / 3
Published stock counts or how orders were allocated
Not found
0 / 4
Best Buy
75/100First score
Price
40/40
Fair access
21/30
Drop reliability
7.5/15
Transparency
6.5/15
Evidence: 5 of 10 checks documented or observed · 4 no reports found · 1 not found
Price
Delta Reign Booster Box (36 packs) at $160.99 against a $161.64 MSRP source
Fair access
Invitation requests ("Ask for an invite") on the Delta Reign Booster Box page from Nov 3, three days before release source
Listed on its own at its regular price, no deposit source
Transparency
The page gave the release date (Nov 6) but not when requests open or close, when invites go out, or how often you can request; restocks are not announced source
Requests open in the daytime (checked 10:28 AM CT, Nov 3), and invitees get 24 hours to buy source
Says supply is limited and selection "may include purchase history, membership status, and other factors"; no count source
Also noted
Its 30th Celebration Ultra-Premium Collection page listed $179.99, the MSRP (Nov 4) source
How the points add up
Price: at MSRP
40 / 40
A queue, drawing, lottery or invitation for the release online
Yes Documented
12 / 12
A per-customer purchase limit
Not found
0 / 6
No marketplace resellers above MSRP on the store's own product page
No reports found
3 / 6
The item sold on its own, with no deposit or forced bundle
Yes Documented
6 / 6
Regular buyers had a real chance: the timed online drop didn't sell out within minutes, and the item showed in stock
No reports found
4 / 8
Checkout worked: no widespread cart or checkout errors during the drop
No reports found
3.5 / 7
Drops announced ahead of time with a date and time
No Documented
0 / 5
Drops at waking hours (6 AM to 10 PM CT, 7 AM to 11 PM ET)
Yes Observed
3 / 3
The price in the cart holds at checkout
No reports found
1.5 / 3
Published stock counts or how orders were allocated
Partly Documented
2 / 4
Walmart
61/100Up 2 from 59
Price
24/40
Fair access
18/30
Drop reliability
7.5/15
Transparency
11.5/15
Evidence: 7 of 10 checks documented or observed · 3 no reports found
Price
30th Celebration Elite Trainer Box (September launch price; no Walmart page price on record for the Nov 6 wave) at $69.97 against a $49.99 MSRP (40% over) source
Fair access
Pokémon drawings on its own drawing page, including Nov 4, 4 to 5 PM CT (5 to 6 PM ET) source
No per-customer limit stated; reported as allowing more than one (September launch) source
Marketplace sellers listed the same box at up to $194.99 on Walmart's product page (September launch) source
One box per entry, no deposit (September launch) source
Transparency
The Nov 4 drawing time was on its drawing page from Nov 3 source
The pre-order price rose from $130 to $169.99 after pre-orders opened source
Also noted
The price moved from $130 to $169.99, then $99.99 after complaints, and $150 at launch source
How the points add up
Price: 200% over MSRP
0 / 40
A queue, drawing, lottery or invitation for the release online
No Documented
0 / 12
A per-customer purchase limit
Yes Documented
6 / 6
No marketplace resellers above MSRP on the store's own product page
No reports found
3 / 6
The item sold on its own, with no deposit or forced bundle
Partly Documented
3 / 6
Regular buyers had a real chance: the timed online drop didn't sell out within minutes, and the item showed in stock
No reports found
4 / 8
Checkout worked: no widespread cart or checkout errors during the drop
No reports found
3.5 / 7
Drops announced ahead of time with a date and time
No Documented
0 / 5
Drops at waking hours (6 AM to 10 PM CT, 7 AM to 11 PM ET)
No reports found
1.5 / 3
The price in the cart holds at checkout
Partly Observed
1.5 / 3
Published stock counts or how orders were allocated
Not found
0 / 4
What this is
The report card grades how the big stores treat regular people buying sealed trading cards online. Part of Printed Price's mission is pushing big retailers to protect regular buyers, and the stores that already do some of this show it can be done. A public score makes it easy to see who is doing better, who is doing worse, and what each store could fix.
How a store is scored
Each store is scored out of 100 on how it handled the latest big release, the November 6, 2026 Pokémon wave (Mega Evolution—Delta Reign, and the 30th Celebration Ultra-Premium, Ditto and figure collections). Every point comes from something a shopper can check: the store's own price and what the press and buyers reported, with a source link for each fact.
What we check
Points
Price, 40 points
The store's own price for the Elite Trainer Box during launch week (sold and shipped by the store, not a marketplace seller), compared with its MSRP. At or under MSRP earns all 40; each 1% over costs 0.4, so double MSRP or more earns 0. We price the Elite Trainer Box because it is the most popular thing people buy at a launch, and the item stores mark up the most. A store with no Elite Trainer Box price on record for the release is priced on its main sealed box, named on its card.
40
Fair access, 30 points
A queue, drawing, lottery or invitation for the release online
12
A per-customer purchase limit
6
No marketplace resellers above MSRP on the store's own product page
6
The item sold on its own, with no deposit or forced bundle
6
Drop reliability, 15 points
Regular buyers had a real chance: the timed online drop didn't sell out within minutes, and the item showed in stock
8
Checkout worked: no widespread cart or checkout errors during the drop
7
Transparency, 15 points
Drops announced ahead of time with a date and time
5
Drops at waking hours (6 AM to 10 PM CT, 7 AM to 11 PM ET)
3
The price in the cart holds at checkout
3
Published stock counts or how orders were allocated
4
How sure each check is
Evidence
Credit
Documented: the store's own policy or announcement, such as a stated purchase limit or a published drawing time.
Full
Observed: what happened during the drop, reported by the press or many buyers, with a source.
Full
No reports found: we looked for a problem and found no reports either way. Nobody reporting a problem isn't proof that it didn't happen.
Half
Not found: no source shows the good practice.
None
Partly true earns half. A problem costs points when the press or many buyers reported it, so a store is never marked down for something nobody saw, but it isn't given full credit for it either. Each card says how many of its checks rest on documented or observed evidence. The total is rounded to a whole number. The cap: A store whose own price for a release's popular items is 50% or more over MSRP scores at most 50, however well it runs its drawings, until it sells at MSRP. A capped card shows the total it would have had.
What we would like to see from every store is on For retailers. We re-score each store after every big release. Stores, and anyone with a better source, can write to info@printedprice.com.