Nobody opens a booster box chasing Charmander cards. 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.
Four confirmed Charmander printings from the Japanese card game run from the 2023 “151” Illustration Rare to a 2016 concept-pack Common that has turned into a vintage curiosity. 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: the set’s Illustration Rare Charmander, from the same set as its Charizard ex Special Art Rare.
- Set reference: Pokemon card list.
- Graded Japanese Charmander singles and sealed Pokémon Card 151 booster boxes are listed on our store as of this update.
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 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 graded and sold.
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 cards are inexpensive — asking around ¥1,980 on SNKRDUNK on August 6, 2026, with the occasional single listing priced higher. Graded PSA10 examples are a different story: the asking spread ran from about ¥16,000 up to ¥24,800, with another listing at ¥17,800 (SNKRDUNK asking prices, same date).
The PSA10 Charmander AR [SV2a 168/165] is currently listed at ¥18,663 (~$121) (update: currently sold out — restock requests via Quick Order). For a card from one of the most in-demand modern Japanese sets, that’s a low bar to grading entry: a 151-set Illustration Rare in gem-mint condition.
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 comes from a small-format product that never had the print volume of a mainline expansion.
The PSA 10 listing carries a “1ED” tag, 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 2016 Pokekyun Collection Charmander, PSA10. For collectors who want a Charmander with a print date well before the current SV-era boom, this is the one.
Special Deck Set and Base 151 Printings
Two more confirmed printings round out the four. 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. It is 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.
The PSA10 Charmander C 1ED [CP3 003/032] and the PSA10 Charmander Full Illustration [SVG 051/049] are offered as PSA 10 back orders at ¥30,737 (~$200) and ¥42,436 (~$276) respectively — sourced to order; the product page shows the current terms.
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.
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 shows which SV2a-era Charizard printing matches the AR Charmander by set and release date.
Where to Buy Japanese Charmander Cards
We ship graded singles and sealed Japanese product out of Tokyo. The PSA10 Charmander Master Ball [004/165] sold out at the time of this update — sourcing requests go through Quick Order.
Browse the graded lineup on our PSA10 collection page, including the PSA10 Charmander AR [SV2a 168/165] (update: currently sold out — restock requests via Quick Order). 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. USD figures convert at ¥154/USD, approximate.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the best Charmander card to buy from Japan?
The Charmander AR [SV2a 168/165] from Pokémon Card 151 is the standout. It’s a full-scene Illustration Rare from one of the most in-demand modern Japanese sets, and it comes from the same set as the Charizard ex Special Art Rare.
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. Browse the full lineup on our PSA10 collection page, or buy a sealed Pokémon Card 151 booster box to chase your own copy of the Illustration Rare.
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