10 Best and Most Expensive Pokémon Scarlet and Violet TCG Cards

A new generation of the Pokémon Trading Card Game has begun with the launch of the Pokémon Scarlet and Violet Base Set. This brand-new set of over 250 cards has a ton of things for collectors and players alike to enjoy, including the long-awaited return of EX cards and the shift to format more similar to the Japanese sets. All cards now feature silver borders, as opposed to the classic yellow ones, and set symbols have been phased out for simpler set numbers, instead. 

With so many cards to collect and decks to build, obviously, some are going to be more valuable than others. Whether it’s thanks to their high-quality art, impressive potential in duels or just because they look pretty, there are certainly some Pokémon SV TCG cards that rise above the rest. 

Here are the 10 best and most expensive Pokémon Scarlet and Violet Base Set TCG cards. 

If you’re craving more Pokémon Scarlet and Violet, check out our various guides and articles on the games here. 

Top 10 Most Expensive Cards

Arven, Alternative Art

Heading up the rear at number ten is the Alternative Art version of Arven’s Trainer Card. This card is listed as number 249 in the set and is considered a special illustration rare. 

With a beautiful illustration by the artist kantaro, this card depicts Arven laying the table for his furry friend, Mabosstiff: Arven even makes a brief appearance in Mabosstiff’s own illustration rare card. Arven features prominently in the Pokémon Scarlet and Violet games as your guide through the Path of Legends storyline. His caring personality and the love he has for his Pokémon have been perfectly captured in this incredible Trainer card. 

Currently, Arven Alt Art is going for about £25 ($30).

Arven Alternative Art

Koraidon EX, Secret Rare

Next up is the first appearance of one of the Pokémon Scarlet and Violet Legendaries. Specifically, this card features the Scarlet exclusive Koraidon. The Koraidon EX Secret Rare is considered a hyper rare and it is number 254 in the set. 

This is the fourth version of Koriadon EX in the Pokémon Scarlet and Violet Base Set and it isn’t the last time the Legendary will be appearing on this list. The Secret Rare version of Koraidon belongs to a small subset of hyper-rare cards with golden borders and foil effects, marking them out as some of the rarest cards in the entire set. The Koraidon card, in particular, uses the same pose and composition as the Full Art Koraidon EX card, only now with a shiny golden finish. 

Currently, the Secret Rare version of Koraidon EX is going for upwards of £30 (about $35).

Secret Rare Koraidon

Penny, Alternative Art

In eighth place, we have another trainer card Alternative Art, this time featuring the shy and Eevee-loving Penny. Penny’s Alternative Art card is number 252 in the set and is another special illustration rare. 

Like Arven’s Alt Art card, Penny’s special card has a special way of translating her personality from Pokémon Scarlet and Violet. Illustrated by the talented OKACHEKE, Penny’s Alternative Art captures her softer side, depicting her quietly sitting in one of the Academy classrooms, basking in the sunset of another long day. It’s one of the most understated cards in the entire set, especially compared to some of the other Alternative Art Scarlet and Violet cards, but that’s what makes it so desirable. 

The Penny Alternative Art card is going for upwards of £30 (or around $35) as of the release of the Pokémon Scarlet and Violet TCG Base Set.

Penny Alternative Art

Great Tusk, Alternative Art

The next card on our list is the first appearance of an Alt Art Pokémon card, arguably the most desirable category of cards in all of the Pokémon TCG. The Pokémon SV TCG has a total of 6 Alternative Art Pokémon cards and 4 of them make this list. Number 246 is the Alt Art version of Great Tusk EX

This card comes as somewhat of a pair with the other Paradox version of Donphan, Iron Treads. Both cards feature the Past and Paradox Pokémon adrift in the Paldean desert where you first find them in the games. For Great Tusk, in particular, the foreboding and encapturing art by Pani Kobayashi perfectly encapsulates the primal energy of Past Paradox Pokémon as Great Task stands alone, undaunted by the desert storm swirling around it.

Great Tusk Alternative EX Alternative Art is going for over £35 (around $45) as of the set release.

Great Tusk Alternative Art

Miriam, Full Art

Finishing up the first half of the best cards list for the Pokémon Scarlet and Violet TCG is our first (and only) Full Art Trainer card. The number 6 spot belongs to the Full Art version of Miriam, an ultra-rare card which takes number 238 in the set. 

Illustrated by Sanosuke Sakuma, Miriam’s Full Art card is another that manages to capture her playful personality in a single image. From the bright colours to the lively pose and framing, Miriam’s Full Art joins the long list of other fantastic Full Art cards that collectors and players around the world want in their collections. It doesn’t hurt that Miriam is a pretty good card in the TCG, too.

Miriam’s Full Art is going for around upwards of £45 ($55) right now. This isn’t the last time Miriam will show up on this list, though. 

Miriam Full Art

Miraidon EX, Secret Rare

Starting the top 5 list is the counterpart to our previous Secret Rare card, Secret Rare Miraidon. This hyper-rare card is number 253 in the set and shares a lot of similarities to the Koraidon Secret Rare we previously discussed. 

Once again, the gold borders and finish mark out this card as one of the few Secret Rare cards in this set. And, just like the Koraidon card, Miraidon here is in the same pose as seen in the Full Art Miraidon card (which also happens to be one of the more valuable cards in the Scarlet and Violet TCG). One benefit Miraidon has over Koraidon is its usability, as several decks are already springing up that make fantastic use of Miraidon’s Tandem Unit ability.

Secret Rare Miraidon is going for roughly the same price as the Full Art Miriam, so upwards of £45 (or $55). 

Secret Rare Miraidon

Koraidon EX, Alternative Art

The fourth spot on the list is once again taken by Koraidon, only this time it is the Alternative Art version of the Scarlet Legendary. From this point on, all of the cards featured will be Alternative Art versions of their original variants, being special illustration rares in regards to their rarity. Koraidon Alternative Art is number 247 in the set. 

The art, illustrated by Ryota Murayama, depicts Koraidon stalking through a lush jungle of the distant past. The Legendary is joined by a cute little Dedenne, running around the dense foliage while the Scarlet Paradox Pokémon stands on edge, sitting at the full height of its power. This is a beautiful card that perfectly showcases the differences between Koraidon and Miraidon and one any collector will be happy to have.

Alternative Art Koraidon is currently going for about £55 (or about $65) as of set release.

Koraidon Alternative Art

Gardevoir EX, Alternative Art

Heading into the top three is one of the most anticipated cards in the entire set, Alternative Art Gardevoir EX. This card sits as number 245 in the set.

This card, along with the illustration rare variants of Raltz and Kirlia, make a pretty big splash when they were revealed before the release of the Pokémon SV TCG. All three cards were illustrated by the immensely talented Jiro Sasumo who managed to encapsulate a short story of a Gardevoir and their family all within three cards. Each one is gorgeous and incredibly detailed, filled with details that carry over from card to card, and the Alt Art Gardevoir is the pinnacle of the one. It well deserves its place as one of the best cards in the set.

Alternative Art Gardevoir is currently running for around £60 (or $60 to $70) as of release. 

Gardevoir Alternative Art

Miraidon EX, Alternative Art

Miraidon EX makes its return to take the silver medal for the Scarlet and Violet TCG base set. This time, it’s the Alternative Art version of Miraidon, card number 244.

Just like how the Alt Art Koraidon card perfectly presented the Past Paradox Pokémon, Alt Art Miraidon does the same for the future. Bathed in futuristic neon lights and patrolling a near cyberpunk-esque city, Miraidon hovers elegantly, joined by a nearby Daschbun. 

Alt Art Miraidon is going for anywhere between £65 to £90 (expect to see it around $80). 

Miraidon Alternative Art

Miriam, Alternative Art

Last, but certainly not least, is the most expensive card in the entire Pokémon Scarlet and Violet TCG set: Alternative Art Miriam. 

While her Full Art card showed off her playfulness, Miriam’s Alt Art card shows off her clumsier side, as he fumbles with a large stack of papers. The style of this card is likely one of the biggest reasons it’s such a hit: there’s so much to take in between the pop-art approach, the cutesy pastel palette and even the dopey-looking Pikachu at the corner of the card. This card is incredibly pleasing and one of the best-looking in the entire set.

Alternative Art Miriam is going for between £90 to £150 (or about $90 to $110) depending on the retailer, but sales tend to lean on the lower end thanks to some higher pull rates. 

Miriam Alternative Art

Those were the top 10 most expensive cards in the new Pokémon Scarlet and Violet TCG Base Set. As always card prices, they will likely fluctuate as time goes on, increasing or decreasing based on demand and availability.