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Holo vs reverse holo vs non-holo

Updated: 2026-10-15

On a holo card, the artwork is what shines. On a reverse holo, everything else shines: the background, the frame and the text, but not the artwork. A non-holo doesn't shine at all. The same card can exist in two or three of these finishes, and each one has its own price, sometimes very different.

The three finishes

Finish	Where it shines	Which cards
Non-holo	Nowhere	Commons, uncommons and many rares.
Holo	Only the artwork	Holo rares, one per pack in many sets.
Reverse holo	Everything except the artwork	Shiny versions of cards of almost every rarity. Most modern sets have one per pack.

Full art, illustration and gold cards have their own textured finishes and aren't classified this way: for those, see the rarity symbols.

How to tell them apart at a glance

• Tilt the card under the light and watch which area changes color.
• If the art box shines and the rest is matte: holo.
• If the art is matte and the rest shines: reverse holo.
• A holo and its reverse share the same number, so the number alone won't tell you which one you have.

Why the price changes

The price depends on how many copies of each version exist and how many people want them:

• A holo rare is usually worth more than the same card non-holo, when both exist.
• A reverse holo of a common is usually worth a bit more than the regular common, because there are fewer. On cheap cards the gap is small.
• A reverse of a rare can be worth more or less than the holo; it depends on the set and the Pokémon. There's no fixed rule.
• Special patterns: some sets have reverses with their own designs. In 151 and Prismatic Evolutions there are Poké Ball and Master Ball pattern reverses, and the Master Ball ones, being scarcer, are worth much more than the regular reverse of the same card.

That's why you should never compare your card's price with another finish. It's one of the most common mistakes when buying and selling.

A bit of history

• The first English sets only had holo and non-holo.
• Reverse holos came later (Legendary Collection was one of the first English sets to have them) and stayed for good.
• Over the years more variants appeared: "cosmos" holo on many promos, set-exclusive patterns, textured finishes on full art cards.

Holo and condition

The shiny finish scratches more easily and scratches show a lot under light. For grading, holos are less forgiving: a fine scratch on the artwork can lower the grade. A slight curl on a holo is normal and isn't a defect; a dent is. See what PSA grade your card would get.

And watch out for fakes: an even rainbow shine over the whole card, text included, doesn't match any official finish. More signs in how to tell if a Pokémon card is fake.

How to find the price of your version

On CardFolio's price pages each version is listed separately: non-holo, holo, reverse and special patterns, each with its own price and chart. That way you don't get the holo price when you have the reverse, or the other way around. For more on how value works, read how much a Pokémon card is worth.

Let the AI tell them apart

CardFolio's AI analysis recognizes the finish in the photo (non-holo, holo or reverse) and gives you the price of that version, along with the estimated PSA grade and whether grading pays off.

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