Poliwhirl 151: raw, PSA 9 or PSA 10?

For the English Poliwhirl 176/165 from 151, the biggest price step is from PSA 9 to PSA 10. PSA 8 and PSA 9 sit much closer to raw Near Mint. If you want this card in your collection, those options are worth comparing before making a 10 the goal.

Prices consulted on 22 October 2026, in USD, for the English holo Illustration Rare printing: raw Near Mint and the specified PSA grades. These are guide prices, not guaranteed sale prices. Raw means ungraded; Near Mint describes its condition and does not predict a PSA grade.

Choose the grade you actually want

The chart compares an ungraded Near Mint copy with three PSA grades of the same printing. It makes the extra cost of choosing a higher grade easy to see.

A useful collecting approach is to start with where the card belongs. For a binder, comparing raw copies lets you focus on the card and the condition you find acceptable. If a known certified grade matters to your collection, compare already-graded copies bearing that exact PSA label. PSA 9 can be a deliberate collecting choice without needing to be a stepping stone to PSA 10.

What the PSA population adds

PSA 9 is the largest recorded grade group in this report, followed by PSA 10 and PSA 8. The remaining group includes the other recorded grades, including half grades. Here is how the counts compare.

These counts describe the results recorded by PSA, not the print run or copies currently for sale. They do not tell you why PSA 10 costs more, or how likely your own card is to receive that grade: submitted copies are not a random sample of every raw Poliwhirl.

Buying a grade and submitting raw are different decisions

Buying an already-graded copy lets you choose a known grade. Sending in a raw copy leaves the result open. Before deciding whether grading makes sense, weigh the fees, shipping and any selling costs against lower-grade and no-grade outcomes too. The gap between raw and PSA 10 is only the starting point, not a profit calculation.

Compare the available choices in Acorn TCG

In Acorn TCG card details, choosing an available variant, grading company and grade changes the displayed reference price. For this Poliwhirl, the example shows Holo with PSA and grade 10 selected. Choosing Raw returns to the ungraded reference, helping you compare the form you actually want.

In Population reports, you can also see the counts and shares for each available grade. For this Poliwhirl, the larger PSA 9 group is easy to spot alongside PSA 10; the close-up below shows that part of the card details.