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The best places to buy Pokémon cards in the UK
Lars is a bloodhound when it comes to sniffing out bargains, including on major sales events such as Black Friday and Amazon Prime Day. He is also handy at unravelling tech jargon and anything related to gaming.
Despite the popularity of Pokémon booster packs, special sets, and trainer boxes, stock isn't the easiest to find as cards fly off shelves. Here's where you can find cards online in the UK.
The Pokémon trading card game (TCG) has gone through a renaissance in recent years. This is due to rising popularity and the high resale value of some second-hand cards. As a result, many UK retailers have set restrictions on ordering booster packs and bundles.
Ahead of the new expansion, Mega Evolution: Perfect Order, we've rounded up where you can easily find stock on all Pokémon cards in the UK.
Want to play the new video games instead? Check out our round-up of the best Nintendo Switch deals – including deals on the occasional Pokémon game.
Where can you buy Pokémon cards in the UK?
There are dozens of retailers that stock booster or trainer packs of the card game. We've looked at the most popular below:
- Amazon: There is a wide variety of booster packs, collector tins and trainer boxes available from Amazon. However, most are 'available by invitation' items, meaning you'll need to sign up using your Amazon account if you want to buy packs. If you're accepted, you'll get an email with a timer to complete your purchase. Amazon sometimes places these restrictions on 'high-demand, low-supply' products to limit bot activity and 'ensure fairness'.
- Asda: Had a wide range of cards but orders are limited to two per person. The new Mega Evolution Perfect Order Elite Trainer box is also available for just less than £50.
- Chaos Cards: This Kent-based trading card retailer carries thousands of Pokémon booster packs, cards, trainer boxes, and accessories. Like other retailers, some products (like the newest Pokémon TCG packs) are sold via a 'drop', where you'll need to create an account and wait to receive an email invitation before buying.
- Currys: You can sometimes find online stock of trainer boxes, booster packs and special sets. Some Currys locations stock packs in-store, so it might be worth stopping by your local shop to see what they have.
- Debenhams: While you can find a wide variety of booster packs online, it's worth noting that buying from Debenhams can cost more than from other retailers. For example, popular Mega Evolutions: Ascended Heroes boosters sell for £17 per pack, instead of the £10 per pack found from other retailers.
- Forbidden Planet International: There are Pokémon cards available online. However, you won't be able to get booster packs or trainer boxes as they only sell individual Pokémon cards.
- Magic Madhouse: A popular UK online retailer for trading card and tabletop games, Magic Madhouse stocks a wide selection of new and discontinued booster packs, boxes, sets or individual cards.
- Smyth's Toys: There are sometimes Pokémon cards available online, but many packs, sets and boxes are only available for in-store pickup and have order limits. For example, you can only buy one elite trainer box per customer.
- The Pokémon Center (Nintendo): Buying directly from Nintendo gets you the widest available options for packs, bundles and collectors' packs – including the newest card expansions. However, stock often sells quickly, and some items have limits on how many you can buy.
- Total Cards: Like other online trading card shops, Total Cards carries a wide selection of trainer boxes, booster packs and individual cards. You can pre-order new expansions from them, although each customer is limited to 36 packs.
- Zavvi: You can mainly find special edition sets and trainer boxes from Zavvi, but its stock is often sold out. There are some pre-order options, though.
Pokémon cards are great to give, but if you're looking for something else, read our roundup of the best gifts for kids.
Can you buy Pokémon cards at supermarkets?
Some UK supermarkets stock Pokémon cards online, but you may find a wider selection in-store.
- ASDA stocks some booster pack bundles online, but do not expect to find a wide variety.
- Sainsbury's carries some collector tins and packs online, although its selection is quite limited.
- Tesco has Pokémon cards online; however, most of these are marketplace sellers – meaning they're sold from a third-party.
Should you buy from Tesco's new marketplace? Here's everything you need to know before shopping.
How can I find Pokémon card shops near me?
There is a wide variety of board game and trading card shops across the UK that host events and game nights, and will often stock both individually sold Pokémon cards as well as booster packs.
Use online tools such as CGC Cards' online locator to find local shops.
What comes in an Elite Trainer box?
These are collectable boxes that include several booster packs, some special cards, and a variety of accessories. Here's everything you get in one:
- 11 Pokémon booster packs (a total of 110 random cards plus 11 Basic Energy cards)
- A promo card (which varies by TCG set)
- 65 card sleeves
- 40 Basic Energy cards
- A player's guide to the card game
- Six 'damage counter' dice
- One coin flip die
- One plastic coin
- A box with six dividers
Elite trainer boxes typically cost £55, and you can buy special edition packs from the Pokémon Center.
Thinking about picking up other collectables? Here's where you can buy Jellycats, and where to find Labubu toys.
What do you get in a Pokémon booster pack?
Each booster pack of the Pokémon trading card game contains:
- 10 random cards
- One Basic Energy card
- One Pokémon TCG Live code card
Each booster pack typically costs between £4 and £10, although older packs might be more expensive. There are also several bundles available that include certain accessories.
