What Was the First Pokémon Card? The Story of CoroCoro Pikachu

First pokemon book tcg 1996

A single Pokémon card can be worth millions today – but the most valuable superlatives do not belong to the card that actually came first. The first real Pokémon TCG card is significantly older, significantly more obscure, and has a history at least as odd as any price record: a pair of glossy cards that children once literally had to peel out of a comic magazine.

This is the story of the Pikachu and Jigglypuff cards from CoroCoro Comic, October 1996.

What was the first Pokémon TCG card?

The answer depends on how one defines "card." Three different answers circulate, and all three are true in their own way:

  • First Pokémon collectible cards sold: Bandai Carddass, released in late September 1996 – sold from vending machines for 20 yen each. However, they had no gameplay value: no HP, no attacks, no rulebook. The images were taken straight from the Pokémon Red/Green games, and the cards functioned more like stickers or souvenirs than playing cards.
  • First Pokémon TCG cards: the glossy Pikachu and Jigglypuff cards in CoroCoro Comic, published on October 15, 1996. These had full gameplay statistics – energy types, HP, attacks, retreat costs – just like any other card game card.
  • First complete Pokémon TCG set: the Japanese Base Set (officially called "Expansion Pack"), which launched five days later, on October 20, 1996.

So, when someone asks "what was the first Pokémon card?" the most accurate answer depends on what the person means. Bandai Carddass came first as a collectible card, while the CoroCoro Pikachu and Jigglypuff were the first publicly distributed cards for the actual Pokémon Trading Card Game.

Also worth mentioning: incorrect information that the Topsun cards are from 1995 still circulates widely. The year 1995 printed on the Topsun cards is the Pokémon brand's copyright year, not the cards' release year. Topsun did not even sign their licensing agreement until 1997, and the cards hit store shelves in March of that year – nearly half a year after the TCG game had already launched. PSA updated its own labeling from "1995" to "1997" in March 2024 to reflect this. A detailed review of the timeline can be found in Bank TCG's guide to the earliest Japanese Pokémon cards.

CoroCoro Comic number 223

CoroCoro Comic was (and still is) one of Japan's most popular manga and children's magazines, published by Shogakukan. During the 90s, the magazine had an enormous circulation and often served as a launch platform for new Nintendo products aimed at children – Pokémon was no exception.

In the November 1996 issue, number 223, a removable, glossy card sheet was included as an insert. It is this issue that collectors refer to today when talking about "CoroCoro 223" – and which makes a preserved, complete copy of that specific magazine a coveted collector's item in itself, with or without the cards remaining.

Pikachu and Jigglypuff, 1996

CoroCoro Pikachu och Jigglypuff från 1996

On October 15, 1996 – five days before the Base Set launched in Japan – CoroCoro number 223 contained a two-card glossy insert sheet. One card showed Pikachu standing in grass, the other Jigglypuff. Both cards were unnumbered special promos: they were not part of any set, were not sold in stores, and could only be obtained by the children who happened to buy that particular magazine issue.

Unlike the Carddass cards, these were full-fledged playing cards with energy type, HP, attacks, and retreat costs – identically structured to the cards in the upcoming Base Set. They were intended as a teaser to build hype for the launch the following week, but by pure temporal coincidence, they became the first Pokémon TCG cards to ever reach the public.

Why were the cards stuck in the magazine?

This is the detail that makes the cards difficult to find in good condition today. Just like with several later CoroCoro inserts (and the so-called "Vending Machine" cards of 1998, which were distributed on sheets of three cards sold for 100 yen and had to be torn apart by hand), the Pikachu and Jigglypuff cards were glued to a print sheet inside the magazine. Children who wanted the cards as playable cards had to physically peel or cut them from the page.

The consequence, 30 years later, is two-fold:

  1. Most copies in circulation have some form of edge damage, glue residue, or surface damage from the peeling – making high-graded copies extremely rare.
  2. A complete, never-peeled copy of the magazine (with the cards still attached) is in itself a rarer and more valuable collector's item than the loose cards, as it proves that no one has ever attempted to detach them.

This creates a paradox that is rare in the card hobby: the more "intact" the magazine is, the more it is worth as a whole – but the moment you detach the cards to have them graded separately, the value of the remaining, now incomplete magazine drops significantly.

The incorrect illustrator name

Beyond the peeling issues, the original 1996 card has a print detail that makes it extra interesting for collectors: an incorrect illustrator credit.

Down in the bottom right corner of the very first Pikachu card, it says "Illus. Ken Sugimori" – but Sugimori, who is the art director for the entire Pokémon franchise and designed most of the original 151 Pokémon, did not actually paint this image himself. The true artist was Keiji Kinebuchi.

The error was discovered and corrected relatively quickly. This means there are three distinguishable versions of the card:

  • Original, October 1996 (glossy): incorrectly credits "Ken Sugimori." This is the true first printing.
  • Reprint, November 30, 1996 (matte): correctly credits "Keiji Kinebuchi," distributed in a booklet roughly titled "Learn how to play Pokémon cards easily."
  • Reprint, September 15, 1998 (glossy): also correctly credits "Keiji Kinebuchi," sent out to 2,000 winners in a competition via CoroCoro.

The most important identifying detail for collectors is therefore the name in the illustrator field – not just the surface (glossy or matte), as both the original and the 1998 reprint are glossy. A card that lacks the "Sugimori" credit is, no matter how authentic it otherwise looks, not the first printing.

Why is PSA 10 so difficult to obtain?

PSA (Professional Sports Authenticator) grades cards on a 1–10 scale, where 10 ("Gem Mint") requires virtually perfect corners, edges, centering, and surface condition. For the original CoroCoro Pikachu card, it has proven extremely difficult to achieve that grade.

The reason lies in the production method: the cards were glued to a paper sheet, pressed between hundreds of pages in a magazine for nearly 30 years, before they could even be submitted for grading. That combination of glue residue, pressure from surrounding pages, and the physical stress of being peeled away means that even fundamentally nice copies rarely meet the strictest grade requirements for surface condition and edges.

Current population numbers must be verified directly with the grading company and matched against the correct print version. Misidentified reprints can make a simple search misleading. The data should, however, be read with some caution, as population reports can change and there is a known discussion regarding misidentified reprints.

A side note worth including: there is an ongoing discussion among collectors that certain cards sold or listed as "PSA 10 CoroCoro Pikachu" may actually be mislabeled copies of the 1998 reprint rather than the authentic 1996 original. That is another reason why the illustrator credit is the deciding detail in authenticity assessment – not just the grade number on the slab.

Do you want to understand how centering, edges, corners, and surface affect a card's grade? Read our guide to grading collectible cards.

What are the cards worth?

Here it is important to distinguish between documented sales and hypothetical estimates, as very little public sales data exists for top-graded copies of the 1996 CoroCoro Pikachu.

What can be said with greater certainty:

  • The price varies greatly depending on whether it is the 1996 original or a later reprint.
  • Condition, centering, glue residue, surface damage, and grading have significant importance.
  • A complete CoroCoro 223 with the card sheet remaining is a different collector's item than two loose cards and should not be valued in the same way.
  • The market is limited. Individual listings show what sellers are asking, while completed sales show what buyers have actually paid.

It is therefore inappropriate to provide a general value without first identifying the correct print version and checking recent closings. Anyone wanting to estimate the value should compare several verified sales and not rely on a single advertised price. Also read our guide on how to value your collectible cards.

What is speculation, not established market value: A claim that PSA 10 copies are missing requires a current check of both the population report and the print version. A hypothetical copy has no documented sale price before a verifiable sale has occurred. The multi-million dollar estimates that have circulated in connection with the hunt for such a copy are the speculative valuations of collectors and commentators – not an established market price. If a copy is ever actually graded as a PSA 10, the price will effectively be set only at an actual sale or auction, not before then.

The difference between CoroCoro Pikachu and Pikachu Illustrator

This is perhaps the most important distinction to get right, as the two cards are often confused in headlines and searches:

Comparison CoroCoro Pikachu Pikachu Illustrator
Year 1996 1997–1998
Origin Insert in CoroCoro Comic no. 223 Prize in illustration competitions organized by CoroCoro
Type of card Pokémon card (playable) Trainer card, not a playable Pokémon card
Artist Keiji Kinebuchi, incorrectly credited as Ken Sugimori on the original Atsuko Nishida
Number of known copies Exact number unknown Traditionally 39 distributed copies stated; more known copies have emerged
Highest PSA grade Check current population and print version Check current population
Record sale No comparable documented top sale $16,492,000, February 2026

The Pikachu Illustrator is often called the "holy grail" of the hobby and is the card that sold for $16.49 million in February 2026. Guinness World Records confirmed the sale as the most expensive public auction of a collectible card. The buyer was venture capitalist A.J. Scaramucci. It is, therefore, not the same card as the 1996 CoroCoro Pikachu, even if both have links to the same magazine and the same era.

Confusing the two in a headline ("the first Pikachu card that sold for $16 million") is thus factually incorrect – they are two separate cards with different backgrounds, functions, and collector values.

Current: renewed interest via a high-profile hunt

Interest in the 1996 CoroCoro card has increased during the summer of 2026, since collector and YouTuber Logan Paul – whose Pikachu Illustrator set the auction record in February – publicly initiated a hunt to become the first to have an original CoroCoro Pikachu graded as a PSA 10. According to his own account, he has purchased several copies of CoroCoro 223 as well as rare pre-production sheets and has personally tried peeling cards for grading. The two cards from a previous attempt received PSA 2 and PSA 5, respectively.

Regardless of how one views the hunt, it shows why the card's history is so special: the collector must choose between keeping a rare sheet intact or peeling the card and hoping for a high grade. A failed attempt can both damage the card and reduce the value of the original collector's item.

How to protect older and valuable Pokémon cards

Older cards are especially sensitive to scratches, moisture, sunlight, and damaged corners. Start with a soft card sleeve and supplement if necessary with a toploader, semi-rigid holder, or magnetic card holder. Never store the card loose and do not attempt to clean an older surface with liquid.

See our selection of card protection and storage for collectible cards. If you have a collection but are unsure which cards might be valuable, you can also read more on our page for selling Pokémon cards.

Frequently Asked Questions

What was the very first Pokémon card?

If referring to the first card with full gameplay value, the answer is the glossy Pikachu and Jigglypuff cards from CoroCoro Comic number 223, published on October 15, 1996. The Bandai Carddass cards came a few weeks earlier but lacked gameplay functionality.

Are CoroCoro Pikachu and Pikachu Illustrator the same card?

No. CoroCoro Pikachu is a Pokémon card from 1996, while Pikachu Illustrator is a trainer card from 1997–1998 that was given to winners in illustration competitions. It is the Pikachu Illustrator, not the CoroCoro Pikachu, that sold for $16.49 million.

Why is CoroCoro Pikachu in PSA 10 so difficult to find?

The card was attached to a sheet inside a magazine. The physical stress of detaching it, combined with pressure, glue, and wear from the surrounding pages, makes a perfect copy very hard to find. Among graded cards, there are also later reprints that may be mislabeled, making identification extra important.

What is a CoroCoro Pikachu card worth today?

The value depends on the print version, condition, grading, and current demand. Check completed sales of the same version in comparable condition. Since no confirmed PSA 10 of the 1996 original has been sold, there is no established market price for that grade – estimates of millions are speculative.

How to identify an authentic 1996 CoroCoro Pikachu?

The deciding detail is the illustrator text: the original from October 1996 incorrectly credits "Ken Sugimori." Later reprints (November 1996 and September 1998) correctly credit "Keiji Kinebuchi." Since both the original and the 1998 reprint are glossy, looking only at the surface is not enough.

Sources

See also Pikachu Illustrator and its documented sale to distinguish the history of the cards.