Nobody opens a booster box chasing Charmander. They open it chasing Charizard — and Charmander is the card that gets left in the box, worth a fraction of the price, art rare next to secret rare, common next to chase card. But that gap is exactly the opportunity. Charmander is the cheapest, most legitimate way onto the Charizard family tree, and one specific Japanese printing has quietly become one of the best-value Illustration Rares in the entire “Pokemon Card 151” set.
This guide covers every confirmed Charmander printing worth knowing from the Japanese card game — from the 2023 “151” Illustration Rare to a 2016 concept-pack Common that’s turned into a genuine vintage curiosity — with current PSA10 asking prices and what we actually stock out of Tokyo. None of these are secret-rare grails. That’s the point: a starter Pokemon rarely gets the chase-card treatment, so the printings that do exist tend to be genuinely undervalued relative to the sets and eras they come from.
The Charmander AR [SV2a 168/165] from Pokémon Card 151 is the standout buy right now. PSA10 copies are currently asking ¥16,000–¥24,800 on the secondary market (SNKRDUNK, August 6, 2026). Our own PSA10 copy is priced at ¥16,438 (update: currently sold out — restock requests via Quick Order) — the bottom of that ask band, on a card whose raw copies still trade under ¥2,000.
Why Buy Charmander If You Want Charizard
Charmander is the first stage of the most valuable evolution line in the Pokemon TCG. Every Japanese Charizard chase card — the kind we cover in our top 10 Charizard cards ranking and our PSA10 Charizard buying guide — sits at the top of a three-stage line that starts with Charmander. Collectors building a complete evolution set, or a graded PSA10 run of the whole line, need a Charmander regardless of what a Charizard slab costs.
That makes Charmander the entry point in two senses. It’s the cheapest card in the line to buy raw or graded, and it’s the card most collectors buy because they already want the Charizard on the other end of the set. The 2023 “Pokemon Card 151” set (SV2a) is the clearest example: its Charizard ex Special Art Rare is one of the most expensive cards of the era, while the set’s Charmander Illustration Rare — same set, same release, same artist pool — is a two-figure raw card and a sub-¥20,000 PSA10.
If you’re assembling a 151 PSA10 run, our SV2a 151 pull rates and best cards guide and the wider Pokemon Card 151 pull rates guide both cover where Charmander sits in the set’s rarity structure relative to the chase cards around it.
There’s also a simpler reason Charmander sells: starter Pokemon carry a first-game nostalgia that Charizard’s own chase cards don’t need to lean on, because Charizard already sells on rarity and price alone. Charmander is the card people buy because it was the first Pokemon they picked, long before they cared what an Illustration Rare was — and that’s a demand driver that doesn’t depend on secondary-market speculation.
Every Confirmed Japanese Charmander Card
Four Charmander printings are confirmed and traceable in the Japanese card game, spanning 2016 to 2023:
| Card | Set | Released | Rarity |
|---|---|---|---|
| Charmander AR [SV2a 168/165] | Pokémon Card 151 | 2023-06-16 | Art Rare (Illustration Rare) |
| Charmander C [SV2a 004/165] | Pokémon Card 151 | 2023-06-16 | Common (base print) |
| Charmander [051/049] | Venusaur & Charizard & Blastoise ex Special Deck Set | 2023 | Full Illustration Card (promo-style) |
| Charmander C [CP3 003/032] | Pokekyun Collection | 2016-01-29 | Common (32-card concept pack) |
All four are Fire-type Basic Pokemon, and all four are genuine, verifiable card-number-and-set combinations — there’s no scarcity myth or grail-hunting story here. What separates them is age, print run, and how they’re currently graded and sold, which is exactly what the sections below walk through.
The Lead Card: SV2a Charmander AR [168/165]
The card everyone means when they say “the good Charmander” is the Art Rare (Illustration Rare) from Pokémon Card 151, numbered 168 out of the set’s 165-card base run — a Fire-type, 70 HP Basic that sits in the set’s extended illustration-rarity block. Pokémon Card 151 released in Japan on June 16, 2023, and this Charmander is one of the set’s full-scene art cards, the same treatment applied to its Charizard, Blastoise, and Venusaur counterparts.
Raw copies are inexpensive — asking around ¥1,980 on the secondary market as of early August 2026, with the occasional single listing priced higher. Graded PSA10 copies are a different story: the current asking spread on the open market runs from about ¥16,000 up to ¥24,800, with two listings clustered right at ¥16,000 and others at ¥17,800 and ¥24,800 (SNKRDUNK asking prices, August 6, 2026).
Our own PSA10 Charmander AR [SV2a 168/165] is priced at ¥16,438 (update: currently sold out — restock requests via Quick Order) — the bottom of that band. For a card from one of the most in-demand modern Japanese sets, that’s a low bar to grading entry: a genuine 151-set Illustration Rare, gem-mint, for less than most raw copies of the set’s headline Charizard.
The Vintage Angle: Pokekyun Collection “1ED” Charmander
If the SV2a Illustration Rare is the modern buy, the Pokekyun Collection Charmander is the vintage one. “Pokekyun Collection” (コンセプトパック「ポケキュンコレクション」, product code CP3) was a 32-card Japanese concept pack released January 29, 2016 — illustrated by Akira Komayama, with this Charmander sitting at card #3, Common rarity. It’s nearly a decade old at this point, from a small-format product that never had the print volume of a mainline expansion.
We list our graded copy as PSA10 Charmander C 1ED [CP3 Pokekyun], and it’s worth being precise about what “1ED” means here: it isn’t an official Pokémon TCG print-run marking the way “1st Edition” is on classic English-language cards. Limitless’s card database doesn’t show a distinct edition stamp on the card itself. In practice, “1ED” on graded Japanese concept-pack cards like this one functions as a collector and grading-label convention for early CP3 print stock, not a separate officially numbered variant — treat it as a vintage-era descriptor rather than a rarity tier.
What isn’t in question is the card’s age and identity: a genuine 2016 Pokekyun Collection Charmander, PSA10, in stock at ¥36,524 (update: currently sold out — restock requests via Quick Order). For collectors who want a Charmander with a print date well before the current SV-era boom, this is the one on the shelf.
Special Deck Set and Base 151 Printings
Two more confirmed printings round out what’s available right now. The first is Charmander [051/049] from the Venusaur & Charizard & Blastoise ex Special Deck Set, a 2023-era Japanese structure product. Bulbapedia lists it as a “Full Illustration Card” — a promo-style treatment without a standard numbered rarity symbol, distinct from both the SV2a 151 set and any 25th Anniversary product despite the similar high card-number slot. We carry a PSA10 copy at ¥54,549 (update: currently sold out — restock requests via Quick Order), the most expensive Charmander in this guide and the rarest of the four by print context — a special-deck exclusive rather than a mainline set pull.
The second is the base-print Charmander from Pokémon Card 151 itself, card #4 of 165, Common rarity — the standard, ungraded-rarity print that sits opposite the Illustration Rare in the same set. We list our graded copy as PSA10 Charmander Master Ball [004/165], in stock at ¥25,462. It gives you a second, differently priced way into the same 151 set as the AR above, at the same card number as the set’s regular print.
For broader context on where Common and Art Rare grading prices land across the Japanese market generally, our Japanese PSA10 Pokemon cards price guide covers the pricing bands by rarity tier.
View Product → (update: currently sold out — restock requests via Quick Order)
View Product → (update: currently sold out — restock requests via Quick Order)
If the goal is a matched PSA10 evolution run, pair whichever Charmander fits your budget with a graded Charmeleon and Charizard from the same era. Our Charizard ranking is the fastest way to see which SV2a-era Charizard printing matches the AR Charmander above by set and release date.
Laid out by spend, the four in-stock PSA10 Charmander cards break down like this:
- ¥16,438 — Charmander AR [SV2a 168/165] (update: currently sold out — restock requests via Quick Order), Pokémon Card 151. The cheapest entry and the most in-demand set of the four.
- ¥25,462 — Charmander Master Ball [004/165], the base 151 print at the same card number as the regular #004/165 Common.
- ¥36,524 — Charmander C 1ED [CP3 Pokekyun Collection] (update: currently sold out — restock requests via Quick Order), the oldest confirmed printing at nearly ten years old.
- ¥54,549 — Charmander [051/049] (update: currently sold out — restock requests via Quick Order), Special Deck Set exclusive and the rarest by product context.
Where to Buy Japanese Charmander Cards
We ship graded singles and sealed Japanese product out of Tokyo with tracked delivery worldwide. Every PSA10 Charmander in this guide — the ¥16,438 AR (update: currently sold out — restock requests via Quick Order), the ¥36,524 Pokekyun 1ED (update: currently sold out — restock requests via Quick Order), the ¥54,549 Special Deck Set copy (update: currently sold out — restock requests via Quick Order), and the ¥25,462 base 151 copy — ships the same way.
Browse the full graded lineup on our PSA10 collection page, or use Quick Order to build a mixed order across raw singles, graded slabs, and sealed product in one checkout. If you’d rather chase your own Charmander AR straight from a box, sealed Pokémon Card 151 (SV2a) booster boxes are the set it comes from, alongside the set’s Charizard ex chase cards.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the best Charmander card to buy from Japan?
The Charmander AR [SV2a 168/165] from Pokémon Card 151 (released June 16, 2023) is the standout. It’s a full-scene Illustration Rare from one of the most in-demand modern Japanese sets, and PSA10 copies currently ask ¥16,000–¥24,800 on the secondary market — our own graded copy sits at the bottom of that band at ¥16,438.
How much is the SV2a Charmander AR (168/165) worth in PSA10?
As of August 6, 2026, PSA10 asking prices on the open market run from about ¥16,000 up to ¥24,800, with listings clustered at ¥16,000 (x2), ¥17,800, and ¥24,800. Raw ungraded copies trade around ¥1,980.
What does “1ED” mean on the Pokekyun Collection Charmander?
“1ED” on this 2016 Pokekyun Collection (CP3) Charmander is a collector/grading-label convention for early print stock, not an official Pokémon TCG print-run marking — Limitless’s card database shows no distinct edition stamp on the card itself. Treat it as a vintage-era descriptor rather than a formal rarity variant.
Is Charmander a good way to start a Charizard collection?
Yes — Charmander is the first stage of the Charizard evolution line, and it’s consistently the cheapest card in that line to buy raw or PSA10-graded. Collectors building a complete evolution set or a matched-set graded run typically buy the Charmander from the same set as the Charizard they’re chasing, such as SV2a’s Pokémon Card 151.
Where can I buy Japanese PSA10 Charmander cards?
We ship graded Japanese Charmander singles and sealed product from Tokyo with tracked delivery. Browse the full lineup on our PSA10 collection page, use Quick Order for a mixed cart, or buy a sealed Pokémon Card 151 booster box to chase your own copy of the Illustration Rare.
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