MaxMan101 Sports Cards

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Shipping sports cards safely is one of the most important steps in running a successful card business. Whether you’re selling on eBay, through social media, or your own website, ensuring your cards arrive in top condition can make the difference between a satisfied repeat buyer and a refund request.

Over time, I’ve tested different products and shipping methods to find the best balance between cost and protection. In this post, I’ll share the exact tools I use to protect, package, and ship my cards efficiently while keeping costs low. Many of the links are affiliate links, if you purchase through them, proceeds go to keeping this site going.

The links shared are for higher volumes of the product. I do this because the more you buy, the cheaper they are per unit. For example, the one touch cases I buy 100 at a time for $0.76 each. If I bought the same brand for 20 at a time, they would be $1.03 each. These amounts add up in the long run! Look around for the best quantity and products that meet your needs and budget; however, use these below to get you started.

1. Protecting the Cards: Sleeves, Toploaders, and Team Bags

Before a card goes into a package, it needs proper protection to prevent scratches, bends, and other damage. Here are the essentials:

• Penny Sleeves – Thin plastic sleeves that provide a basic layer of protection against dust and fingerprints.
• Toploaders – Rigid plastic holders that help prevent bending. A must for valuable or mid-tier cards. First put the card in a penny sleeve and then in a toploader. The toploaders could scratch the card if you don’t. The toploaders I linked here come with penny sleeves.
• One Touch Magnetic Cases – Solid plastic cases that are great for displaying your favorite cards.
• Card Savers – These semi-flexible holders are great for submitting cards for grading. Some buyers prefer them over toploaders, but I only use them to send cards off to be graded.
• Team Bags – Small resealable plastic bags that keep everything secure and prevent cards from slipping out during shipping. We always use these when shipping multiple cards.

2. Weighing & Printing Labels: The Right Tools for Efficiency

Getting shipping right means knowing the weight of your package and printing a label at home. This saves time and avoids unnecessary post office visits.

• Digital Postal Scale – One of the biggest mistakes we made in the beginning was messing up the weight of our packages. Several we claimed as too heavy and the shipping costs drove away a lot of buyers. Even worse, there were some we underestimated. These we had to cover higher shipping costs than expected and even had a couple of buyers who were forced to pay the post office to get their package! This was brutal to deal with. The BEST tool we bought was a digital scale to weigh my packages accurately. This solved ALL of those concerns.
  

• Thermal Label Printer – Instead of printing on paper and taping the label, I use a thermal printer. It’s fast, and I never have to buy ink. Admittedly, this is much less of a “need” and more of a luxury item. At $75, it was the most expensive tool and will take the longest to pay for itself. After printing labels from my other printer, cutting them to size, and then taping them onto the package took forever and probably costs a lot more over the long run. Honestly, this came with 500 labels…so it is really $0.15 per package. So not terrible, just a bigger upfront cost.
  

3. Packaging: Keeping Cards Safe in Transit

How you package a card is just as important as the protection inside. Here’s what I use to ensure safe delivery:

• Bubble Mailers – These padded envelopes add an extra layer of cushioning. I use 4″x8″ and 5″x10″ mailers depending on what we are sending. I do change the brand on these often based on the best deal at the time.
• Rigid Mailers (Cardboard Envelopes) – Perfect for shipping cards that don’t require a bubble mailer but still need some stiffness. I only use these for cheaper singles that I sell on eBay. There is a very cheap service offered through eBay that only costs $0.69, but the tracking is not as good.
• Cardboard Boxes – Ok, this one was a game changer for us. We sell a lot of blaster boxes and mega boxes and were saving amazon boxes for future sales. It was a mess! Then we found these and this 8″x6″x4″ are perfect for those needs. They come flattened and you tape them together when ready to use.
• Painter’s Tape – Unlike regular tape, painter’s tape holds things in place without leaving sticky residue on toploaders or team bags. We use this a lot to make sure things don’t shift around in the packages.

4. Bonus Tip: Shipping Smarter to Save Money

• If you’re shipping just one or two raw cards, consider using eBay’s Standard Envelope (if selling on eBay). It’s a cost-effective option for lower-value cards.
• For multiple cards or higher-value shipments, USPS First-Class Package or Priority Mail provides better tracking and protection.
• To add extra reinforcement around the card and prevent potential bending during shipping, use Foam or Cardboard Pieces you have around the house or from other packages. We did this for awhile, but it was very time consuming and didn’t give the professional feel we were working towards.

Final Thoughts

Investing in the right supplies makes shipping easier, faster, and safer. Buyers appreciate well-packaged cards, and positive feedback leads to more sales.

What shipping supplies do you use? Drop a comment below!