The most expensive Magic: The Gathering card ever sold is an Alpha Black Lotus graded CGC Pristine 10, which changed hands for $3 million in a private sale in April 2024. The highest public auction price is $2.208 million, paid in summer 2026 at Goldin for a PSA 10 Alpha Black Lotus. This top 10 ranks verified sales of individual Magic products, from signed proofs to sealed boxes, by price paid, as of October 2026.
| Rank | Item | Price (USD) | Sale date | Sold at |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Alpha Black Lotus, CGC Pristine 10 | $3,000,000 | April 2024 | Private sale via Pristine Collectibles |
| 2 | PSA Gem Mint 10 Alpha Black Lotus | $2,208,000 | Summer 2026 | Goldin, Summer Goldin 100 |
| 3 | The One Ring, serialized 001/001 | $2,000,000 | August 2023 | Private sale to Post Malone |
| 4 | Black Lotus Artist Proof (Rush-signed) | $800,000 | Reported June 2022 | Private sale (disclosed by the buyer) |
| 5 | Beta Proof Black Lotus, CGC 8.5 | $615,000 | March 2023 | Heritage Auctions, Jeff Ferreira Collection |
| 6 | Alpha Lotus, PSA 10, Rush-signed case | $540,000 | March 2023 | PWCC Marketplace, Premier Auction |
| 7 | Alpha Lotus, PSA 10, Rush-signed case | $511,100 | January 2021 | PWCC Marketplace |
| 8 | Sealed Unlimited Edition booster box (third printing) | $168,000 | November 2021 | Heritage Auctions, Trading Card Games Signature Auction |
| 9 | Alpha Black Lotus (Heritage lot) | $156,000 | November 2021 | Heritage Auctions, Trading Card Games Signature Auction |
| 10 | Alpha Edition sealed starter deck | $108,000 | November 2021 | Heritage Auctions, Trading Card Games Signature Auction |
1. Alpha Black Lotus, CGC Pristine 10: $3,000,000
Black Lotus is the card that started the legend: a one-mana spell that gives three mana of one color, printed in the first Magic set in 1993 and never reprinted in tournament-legal form. This copy is an Alpha, the smallest print run, and CGC graded it Pristine 10, the only Alpha Black Lotus to earn that grade in its population report.
The deal was brokered by Adam Cai of Pristine Collectibles and the buyer stayed anonymous. It reclaimed the record from the One Ring less than a year after that card sold, and no auction has beaten it since.
How we valued it: private sale price of $3 million, confirmed by the broker to a trading card retailer; no buyer’s premium applies.
2. PSA Gem Mint 10 Alpha Black Lotus: $2,208,000
Only three Alpha Black Lotus cards carry the PSA Gem Mint 10 grade, and this is one. It was the headline lot of Goldin’s Summer Goldin 100 auction, and bidding sat near $535,000 with weeks to go before late bidders took it past $2 million.
No Magic card has fetched more at public auction, and only one private deal ranks higher. The same sale series also moved a Pokémon promo for about $2.8 million, a sign of how much money is now chasing graded trading cards.
How we valued it: $2.208 million including buyer’s premium, from the auction’s reported result.
3. The One Ring, serialized 001/001: $2,000,000
There is exactly one of these. Wizards of the Coast made a single serialized One Ring for The Lord of the Rings: Tales of Middle-earth set and hid it in the packs. A Toronto player opened it in June 2023, and PSA authenticated it before the sale.
The musician Post Malone, who publicly confirmed he owned it, bought the card from its finder. Reports put the price at about $2 million, and the seller later cited a higher figure in Canadian dollars. It was the first Magic card to sell for more than $1 million.
How we valued it: private sale of about $2 million; the seller’s own quote of $2.64 million appears to be in a different currency, so we use the lower, widely reported US figure.
4. Black Lotus Artist Proof (Rush-signed): $800,000
An artist proof is a white-backed print sent to the artist before the card went to press. This one was signed by Christopher Rush, who painted Black Lotus. Proofs never came in packs, so far fewer exist than Alpha or Beta cards.
Post Malone told a radio host in June 2022 that he paid $800,000 for it. It was then the most anyone had publicly paid for a Magic card.
How we valued it: buyer’s own statement of the price; the grade and exact sale date were not published, so we treat the figure as approximate.
5. Beta Proof Black Lotus, CGC 8.5: $615,000
The seller, Jeff Ferreira, was a friend and former agent of Rush. The card came with that pedigree, a signature Ferreira verified, and the mystique of a proof that never reached a booster pack.
Despite a grade well below perfect, it set the Heritage record for any Magic card and the highest auction price paid for a Black Lotus up to that point.
How we valued it: Heritage’s realized price of $615,000, which we take to include buyer’s premium.
6. Alpha Lotus, PSA 10, Rush-signed case: $540,000
The card is a perfect-grade Alpha. The case carries Rush’s signature. Only a handful of Alpha Lotuses ever earned a 10.
Bidding closed on March 16, 2023 and beat the previous record by $28,900. The consigner was the same owner who sold the next card on this list two years earlier.
How we valued it: final auction price of $540,000 as reported for the sale.
7. Alpha Lotus, PSA 10, Rush-signed case: $511,100
This was the first Magic card to cross $500,000. The auction ran ten days, and bidding was restricted to approved bidders on the last day. The price jumped in the closing seconds.
At the time, it reset what collectors thought a Magic card could be worth, and it set up the 2023 sale of its sibling.
How we valued it: final auction price of $511,100 as reported for the sale.
8. Sealed Unlimited Edition booster box (third printing): $168,000
Sealed boxes from early Magic print runs are scarcer than singles, because almost everyone opened their packs. Collectors pay for the chance that every card inside is still untouched.
This was the top-selling Magic lot of that Heritage sale.
How we valued it: sale price of $168,000; our source did not state whether the buyer’s premium was included.
9. Alpha Black Lotus (Heritage lot): $156,000
The price looks small beside the records above. It shows the gap between a perfect-grade Alpha Lotus and one in ordinary condition: a lower grade can cost a fraction as much.
It sold at the same Heritage event that took in about $4.06 million across all games.
How we valued it: sale price of $156,000; the grade and premium treatment were not stated in our source, so treat it as approximate.
10. Alpha Edition sealed starter deck: $108,000
A starter deck from Magic’s first print run, still sealed in its original packaging after more than 28 years. Nobody can know exactly what is inside, and that uncertainty is part of the appeal.
It rounds out the list as the cheapest sale we rank, at about a twentieth of the record.
How we valued it: sale price of $108,000; our source did not state whether the buyer’s premium was included.
Records set in 2025 and 2026
The big change came in summer 2026. Goldin sold a PSA 10 Alpha Black Lotus for $2.208 million with buyer’s premium, the first Magic card to pass $2 million at public auction. It trails only the $3 million private deal.
2025 was quieter. A CGC 8.5 Alpha Black Lotus reportedly realized $75,000 at Heritage in June 2025, the top price for a certified card in that sale, and a worn Unlimited Black Lotus brought about $10,600 a month later. Both show how steeply prices fall once a Lotus leaves perfect grade. We found no verified 2025 sale that cracked this top 10.
What drives these prices
- Grade beats everything. The same card can sell for $75,000 or $2 million depending on whether a grading company calls it a 10.
- Population is tiny. The top three Alpha Black Lotus sales are all perfect-grade copies from a population of a few cards.
- One-of-one status works like fine art. The One Ring and the artist proofs have no peers, so the buyer sets the price rather than the market.
- Fame helps. Public buyers with big audiences turned an obscure hobby deal into a news story and reset what other owners ask.
- Sealed product is a bet on the unknown. Boxes and starter decks sell on scarcity alone, which is why they cluster just below the Lotus tier.
FAQ
What is the most expensive Magic: The Gathering card ever sold?
An Alpha Black Lotus graded CGC Pristine 10 sold for $3 million in a private sale in April 2024. No auction result has topped it.
What is the most expensive Magic card sold at auction?
A PSA 10 Alpha Black Lotus sold for $2.208 million including buyer’s premium at Goldin’s Summer Goldin 100 auction in 2026.
Who bought the One Ring card?
The musician Post Malone bought the serialized One Ring 001/001 in August 2023 for a reported $2 million, and he confirmed it publicly.
What is the most recent record?
The Goldin result in summer 2026 is the newest top-tier sale, and the first auction price above $2 million for a Magic card.
What is the cheapest entry on this list?
A sealed Alpha Edition starter deck at $108,000, sold at Heritage in November 2021.
What should I expect to pay for a good Black Lotus?
Prices swing by grade. A mid-grade Alpha copy reportedly brought $75,000 at auction in 2025, while perfect copies cost seven figures. Worn Unlimited copies have sold for about $10,000.
How we put this list together
We ranked each product by its verified sale price, using auction results and disclosed private sales compiled in an internal valuation model. Prices are approximate, several early sales did not state whether a buyer’s premium was included, and the market keeps moving.
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Last updated: October 2026.
