Vintage Pikachu cards are having a moment as Pokémon turns 30, and many collectors are skipping the new 30th Celebration Pikachu cards to hunt down the originals instead. Most of the picks below come from the late 1990s and 2000s in both English and Japanese, from Wizards of the Coast sets to promos handed out on airline flights, at Pokémon League events, and at McDonald’s.
Disclosure: We use referral links to our partner marketplaces, such as eBay and TCGplayer, for some of the collectibles featured on this page. If you make a purchase through one of these links, we may earn a small commission at no extra cost to you. It's a simple way to support our writers.
Several were never sold in packs at all, which keeps supply small while demand for Pikachu keeps climbing. This list counts down 20 vintage Pikachu cards to buy, from friendly pickups for new collectors to true grails.
20. Pikachu 070/111
Neo Genesis was the first English set built around Pokémon Gold and Silver, and this Naoyo Kimura Pikachu welcomed collectors into that new era in 2000. It is one of the most affordable Wizards of the Coast Pikachu cards, and the 1st Edition stamp adds extra appeal for very little more.
19. Pikachu 012/017
This 2007 POP Series 5 promo came from the same small promo packs that hid the famous Espeon and Umbreon Gold Stars. It is illustrated by Naoyo Kimura, the artist behind the Neo Genesis Pikachu, and its holo version sells for several times more than the regular print.
18. Flying Pikachu (“Everyone’s Happy Campaign”) – 025
All Nippon Airways gave out this card in Japan from June 1 to July 31, 1999, to passengers who mailed in two domestic boarding pass stubs. It came in a set with Articuno and uses Japanese-exclusive artwork, so you literally had to fly to get one.
17. Pikachu RC7/RC25
This 2013 Legendary Treasures card belongs to the Radiant Collection subset and features art by Atsuko Nishida, the original designer of Pikachu. It ranks among the most valuable cards in the Radiant Collection, so Pikachu fans and set completionists keep demand steady.
16. Pikachu (Snap) – 26
This card comes from the Pikachu World Collection 2000, which reprinted favorite Pikachu promos in several languages with a gold foil Pikachu tail stamp. PSA has graded fewer than 900 copies, so clean ones are harder to find than its friendly price suggests.
15. Pikachu 131/091
The newest card on this list, this 2024 Paldean Fates Shiny Rare shows a tiny, baby-style Pikachu in its rare shiny colors. It has held its value better than most recent pulls, making it an easy bridge between new sets and the older cards on this list.
14. Pikachu (Baby) – 27
This is the Italian print of Black Star Promo #27 from the Pikachu World Collection 2000, a card that first came with the home video release of The Power of One in November 2000. Its Italian text sets it apart from the English copy, giving Atsuko Nishida’s Pikachu a fresh look in any binder.
13. Surfing Pikachu 114/111
Rising Rivals (2009) hid three Pikachu secret rares numbered past the set’s 111 cards, and this one revives the Surfing Pikachu that debuted as a 1997 CoroCoro Comic promo. Platinum-era secret rares were tough pulls, and this beach-ready Pikachu is now one of the most valuable cards in the set.
12. Pikachu 112/111
This secret rare brings back Mitsuhiro Arita’s original Base Set Pikachu, complete with the classic Gnaw and Thunder Jolt attacks. Seeing the most famous Pikachu art in a holo secret rare frame has made it a favorite with collectors who want a shiny tribute to 1999.
11. Flying Pikachu 113/111
The third Rising Rivals secret rare revives Toshinao Aoki’s balloon-riding Flying Pikachu, first seen as a CoroCoro Comic promo in 1997. PSA has awarded only 11 Gem Mint 10 grades to this card, which makes a perfect copy one of the toughest Pikachu finds of the Platinum era.
10. Pikachu 208/S-P
This Japanese promo features the minimalist line art of illustrator Yu Nagaba, a simple hand-drawn style that looks unlike any other Pikachu card. It was printed in Japanese only, so fans outside Japan have to import a copy, which keeps demand strong worldwide.
9. Pikachu – SM162
This 2019 Black Star Promo came in Team Up single pack blisters and features art by Saya Tsuruta. It has climbed far above its original blister price since release, turning a cheap retail promo into a real collector’s piece.
8. Pikachu 84/144
Skyridge, released in May 2003, was the last English set made by Wizards of the Coast, and this Pikachu features art by Yuka Morii, famous for her clay-model illustrations. Skyridge’s small print run has helped this common more than triple in value over the past year.
7. Birthday Pikachu – 24
Officially named “_____’s Pikachu”, this 2001 Black Star Promo came from a Pokémon League Create-a-Card activity and shows Pikachu with a cake and a present. Its Birthday Surprise attack can do extra damage if it is your birthday, a playful touch that makes it one of the best-loved promos of the Wizards of the Coast era.
6. Pikachu 004/P
All Nippon Airways passengers who flew between July 13 and September 30, 2001 received this card in an envelope with Larvitar as part of the Pokémon Card-e ANA campaign. Illustrated by Hironobu Yoshida and printed with e-Reader data, it rarely comes up for sale, so clean copies get snapped up fast.
5. Pikachu (Red Cheeks) 058/102
The first print of Base Set Pikachu shows Mitsuhiro Arita’s art with red cheeks, which later printings changed to yellow. Red cheeks only exist in 1st Edition and early Shadowless runs, never Unlimited, making the 1st Edition red-cheek copy one of the most important English Pikachu cards ever made.
4. Pikachu 044/P
This e-Reader era promo was one of six cards available through the Pokémon Happy Adventure Rally 2002 in Japan, reworking Midori Harada’s earlier 038/P art. It shows Pikachu and Mewtwo on a stage that looks straight out of Super Smash Bros., and its Smash Link attack skips its recoil damage when Mewtwo is on your Bench.
3. Pikachu 010/018
This holo Pikachu by Satoshi Ohta came from the McDonald’s Pokémon-e Minimum Pack, an 18-card set released only in Japan. PSA 10 sales in Japan are up more than 800 percent since mid-2023, a sign of how hard gem mint copies are to find.
2. Ooyama’s Pikachu – 025
Released in 1998 as part of Japan’s Vending Machine cards Series 3, this card is completely hand-drawn, right down to its HP, stats, and Energy symbols. Raw copies have more than tripled in value since 2025, and this cult classic now sits among the most wanted Japanese Pikachu cards.
1. Pikachu Star 104/110
This 2006 Holon Phantoms Gold Star is the crown jewel of EX-era Pikachu cards, and Beckett named it one of the five best Pikachu cards of all time. PSA has graded only 121 Gem Mint 10 copies, so a perfect example is a true grail for any Pikachu collector.
There are many more Pikachu cards to buy from the vintage collection beyond these 20. Promos alone could fill a binder, from Black Star Promos like Ivy Pikachu and Flying Pikachu to Japanese CoroCoro and Pokémon Center exclusives.
Fans of fun art can also chase Poncho-wearing Pikachu, the Japanese promos where Pikachu dresses as Pokémon like Mega Charizard, or Pretend Boss Pikachu, seven 2018 Japanese promos with Pikachu dressed as villain bosses like Giovanni. Whichever you pick, check the edition, language, and condition before buying, since those details can change a card’s value more than anything else.
Disclaimer: eBay links on this page use a referral system that helps support the content—at no extra cost to you.
