What the numbers mean
A quick key to the numbers and marks on Garbage Pail Kids cards, wrappers and price lists.
On the card
| You see | What it means |
|---|---|
| 1a, 1b | The card number. a and b are usually the same art with two different names, so 1a Nasty Nick and 1b Evil Eddie are one picture and two cards. |
| 1 to 620 | Numbers run in order across the 15 Original Series, so the number tells you the series. |
| One or two asterisks | Printing marks beside the copyright line on the back. Checklist makers usually don’t count them as separate cards, though a few errors appear only with one mark. |
| © 1985, © 1986 | The copyright year. Read this to tell an original from a Chrome or Flashback reprint with the same art. |
Which series a number belongs to
| Series | Card numbers |
|---|---|
| Series 1 | 1 to 41 |
| Series 2 | 42 to 83 |
| Series 3 | 84 to 124 |
| Series 4 | 125 to 166 |
| Series 5 | 167 to 206 |
| Series 6 | 207 to 250 |
| Series 7 | 251 to 292 |
| Series 8 | 293 to 334 |
| Series 9 | 335 to 378 |
| Series 10 | 379 to 417 |
| Series 11 | 418 to 459 |
| Series 12 | 460 to 500 |
| Series 13 | 501 to 540 |
| Series 14 | 541 to 580 |
| Series 15 | 581 to 620 |
Chrome reuses numbers from the series it remakes, so 1a can be an original or a 2013 Chrome card. Always check the set as well as the number. Other newer sets restart their own numbering.
Numbered cards on Chrome and newer sets
| You see | What it means |
|---|---|
| /299, /99, /50, /5 | A print limit. /50 means only 50 of that version were made. The card may be stamped with its own number, like 12/50. |
| 1/1, Superfractor | Only one exists. |
| Refractor, Atomic, X-Fractor, Prism | Finish names. Some are numbered and some aren’t. |
| Printing plate | The plate used to print the card, usually four per artwork, one for each ink color. |
Pull odds
| You see | What it means |
|---|---|
| 1:57 | About one card like this per 57 packs, on average. It doesn’t promise one. |
| Hobby 1:29, Value 1:71 | The same card can have different odds by box type. |
| About 1 in 5 boxes | The pack odds worked out for a whole box. |
Printed odds are often wrong, so treat them as a guide.
On wax packs and boxes
| You see | What it means |
|---|---|
| 25¢ | The original pack price. |
| 5 stickers, 1 stick of gum | What the wrapper says is in a Series 4 pack. Check the wrapper for other series. |
| 0-490-21-05-6 | A wrapper or box code, which can point to a print run. Collector sites tie this one to the Series 5 Green 10 error, and 0-490-21-04-7 to the Series 9 no-number Semi Colin. |
Grades and prices
| You see | What it means |
|---|---|
| Grade 1 to 10 | Condition, where 10 is the best. |
| PSA 10, CGC 10, SGC 10 | A 10 from that grader. They don’t sell for the same money, even at the same grade. |
| Cert number | The ID on a graded slab. Use it to look up the card on the grader’s site. |
| Ungraded | The usual price for a card that hasn’t been graded. |
| Declared value | What you tell the grader the card is worth. It sets your service tier and fee. |
Want more on grades? See what each grade looks for. Looking for a card? See the best cards and boxes.
Where to look next
These collector sites go deeper, and we used their checklists and research. All credit for their work and images goes to them.
- GeePeeKay: galleries ↗, checklists ↗, errors ↗ and find your name ↗
- GPK World: set-by-set checklists and print runs ↗
- GPK News: news, odds and set guides ↗
- WGPKR: checklists ↗
Checked November 1, 2026 against collector checklists. Series numbers matched on the checklists we compared. Not affiliated with or endorsed by Topps.