A beginner's guide to collecting TCG cards online
New to collecting trading cards online? This is the short version of how it works, what to check before you buy, and where to read more.
What you are buying
PackLab sells sealed booster packs from trading card game sets, opened online. Each pack holds real cards at the set's published odds, and every card you pull is yours: it sits in your vault until you decide what to do with it. Opening a pack is buying a sealed product at published odds and keeping real cards. The full walkthrough is on how it works.
Sparks are store credit
Everything in the shop is priced in Sparks, PackLab's store credit. You buy Sparks to open packs, and the Sparks you get from selling a card back can also pay for shipping and singles. Sparks have no cash value: they are never paid out as money and can only be spent in the shop.
Read the odds before you open
Every set publishes its pull rates by slot and rarity, along with the live pack price. The pack odds guide explains what those numbers mean, and the glossary covers the terms collectors use, from reverse holo to chase card.
Check that it is fair
Each box of packs is committed before any pack is sold and revealed after it sells out, so you can prove the packs were not changed after you bought them. Read how on the provably fair page, then check any finished box yourself on the verify page.
What to do with your cards
Keep a card in your vault, ship the real card to your door (the shipping guide covers fees, tracking and Canada), or sell it back instantly for Sparks at 85% of its live market value. The sell-back guide compares that with selling a card yourself.
Is it legit?
Before you spend anything, read is PackLab legit for who runs the shop and how your cards are handled, see about PackLab for the company behind it, and check the FAQ for everything else. PackLab is for adults (18+) in the US and Canada.