All Pokemon TCG Japanese Rarities Explained in Scarlet & Violet and MEGA Eras

Want to know how rare and valuable your pulls are? Well, the Japanese Pokemon TCG rarities are different from the English rarities we know about internationally. Of course, the cards are the same artworks so the rarities undoubtedly have correlation, but it can get confusing through multiple eras. Here's the breakdown of our current rarity system, which happens to be the simplest system to understand:

Last Updated 12/6/25

Basic Pokemon Rarities Throughout All Eras

All expansions of the Pokemon TCG have cards that make up the base set before any of the "hits" with extra numbering. These cards are often underappreciated half-arts, useful cards for playing the TCG, and most importantly are standard rarities consistent between all eras of Pokemon cards. The rarities are as follows:

Common (C) and Uncommon (U)

• Commons (C) are the lowest rarity of card that include many basic and Stage 1 Pokemon in each TCG expansion.
• Uncommons (C) can be basic, Stage 1, or even Stage 2 Pokemon, but most importantly they also encapsulate all trainer cards that are essential for playing the TCG!

At a glance, it is very hard to distinguish a common from and uncommon, and for collecting purposes, that detail is often not relevant. Both have some very cool or cute half-arts and you'll find yourself looking for a lot of these if you try to masterset a specific Pokemon or artist!

Rare (R)

Rares (R) are holo-bordered and/or have a holo finish for the half-art portion of the card. While holographic cards are the prized chases of vintage sets, nowadays these cards are found at the end of almost every English pack, and are quite common even for the slim 5-card packs that most Japanese booster boxes have.

Double Rare (RR)

Double Rares (RR) are a staple of both collecting and playing the TCG. These cards are V cards (Sword & Shield era) or ex cards (Scarlet & Violet / MEGA eras) that are the highest rarity Pokemon you can hit excluding secret rares beyond the main set numbering. For players, Double Rares are the focal Pokemon of many decks that you build around because of their high HP and game-changing abilities or attacks.

ACE SPEC (ACE)

ACE SPEC cards are trainer cards exclusive to certain Scarlet & Violet era sets. They are easily distinguished by the card's pink color and are important part of the Scarlet & Violet TCG metagame. They have very powerful effects, but only one ACE SPEC can be used per deck. Many collectors consider ACE SPEC cards "hits," but unless you're a big fan of these hot pink cards, they don't hold much value and you should donate or sell your English copies to players looking to build their decks!

Secret Rares: Cards Beyond the Main Set

Secret rares are the big hits of every expansion in the Pokemon TCG. They encapsulate every card beyond the main set numbering (e.g. 076/075). Although the Scarlet & Violet era pioneered a simple rarity system with clear guidelines, it didn't change the fact that there's still multiple different types of secret rare cards that all look different, and are worth more or less depending on the card. Here's a breakdown of each rarity:

Art Rare (AR)

Art Rares are a new addition formally introduced in the final Sword & Shield set VSTAR Universe, and since then, they've become a staple of every Scarlet & Violet / MEGA era set. These cards provide beautiful, full artworks for non-ex Pokemon with a holofoil finish. Bar some of the most popular Pokemon like Pikachu, Gastly, Charmander, Bulbasaur, Squirtle, etc. AR cards are generally affordable additions to any collector's binder.

Looking for Japanese Art Rares but don't know where to look? Mirai Card Shop's eBay imports AR cards directly from Japanese card shops for you to buy tariff-free! We also provide discounts for multi-card orders, making our store a gold mine for collectors looking to build out their binder pages.

Special Art Rare (SAR)

Special Art Rares are the modern chase cards and grails. Alternate artworks of ex Pokemon with a brilliant holofoil pattern unlike any other card; what's not to love? These cards vastly range in price with some of the cheapest SARs costing a few dollars, and the most expensive SARs commanding hundreds of dollars, depending on its popularity. Naturally, Special Art Rares have one of the lowest hit rates out of any rarity outside of a few set exclusive rarities, and the Ultra Rare which we'll talk about next.

Ultra Rare (UR)

Gold cards are officially Ultra Rares in modern Japanese Pokemon TCG sets. Specifically, the full art gold cards many are familiar with printed during the Sun & Moon era and ended after the Scarlet & Violet era. Gold cards come with a variety of possibilities, such as gold item cards, gold energies, full art Pokemon with a gold background, or even an artwork with both the Pokemon and background in a gold color.

Although Ultra Rares have lower hit rates than SARs in the Scarlet & Violet era, these cards usually do not command as much value because SARs include alternate artworks that are far more popular among collectors. However, the MEGA Evolution era changed everything with its replacement for the traditional UR cards...

Exclusive Rarities and Secret Rares

There are certain rarities that have an official rarity symbol, but do not appear in every single modern set. Typically, exclusive rarities are introduced for a specific era of TCG expansions, or for a specialty set with a theme. Let's review all of the exclusive rarities up to this point, starting with the recent replacement for traditional UR cards.

Mega Ultra Rare (MUR)

Mega Ultra Rare cards are The Pokemon Company's new take on gold cards. They boast unique portraits of full-gold Mega Evolution Pokemon with much lower hit rates than Special Art Rares or Ultra Rares from the Scarlet & Violet era. This scarcity bump and (subjective) improved design allows these cards to command as much attention and value as some of the top SAR hits of the MEGA Evolution era.

Mega Attack Rare (MA)

Mega Attack cards are an entirely new rarity introduced in the Japanese high class pack MEGA Dream ex. They feature Mega Pokemon with impact text of one of their moves in another language. For Japanese cards, the attack on the artwork is in English, and for English cards it is the opposite with Japanese attack names. MA cards replace Pokemon full art cards (SR) in MEGA Dream ex, and the only SR cards in that set are either full art items, stadiums, or trainers.

It is currently unknown how many of these cards will be included in the English specialty set Ascended Heroes. We know that the Mega Charizard X ex of this rarity is a part of an Ultra Premium Collection as a black star promo card, and the Mega Lucario & Mega Gardevoir will be included as black star promos of the Ascended Heroes Poster Collection as well.

Shiny (S) and Shiny Super Rare (SSR)

Shiny (S) and Shiny Super Rare (SSR) are self-explanatory, and can only be found in specialty sets focused on shiny Pokemon. Shiny (S) cards are called "baby shinies" and are for non-ex, non-V, and non-GX Pokemon depending on the era. Shiny Super Rare (SSR) cards are shiny variants of the aforementioned ex, V, and GX cards.

• GX Ultra Shiny is the Sun & Moon era specialty set for shiny Pokemon and features both baby shinies and GX shiny Pokemon.

• Shiny Star V is the Sword & Shield era specialty set for shiny Pokemon and features both baby shinies, V shiny Pokemon, and VMAX shiny Pokemon.

• Shiny Treasure ex is the Scarlet & Violet era specialty set for shiny Pokemon and features both baby shinies and ex shiny Pokemon. 

It is currently unknown whether or not The Pokemon Company will create a specialty set for shiny Pokemon in the MEGA era.  

Black White Rare (BWR)

Last but not least, we have the most exclusive rarity of recent times, the Black White Rare (BWR). The Victini is technically not a BWR in Japanese and instead a Scarlet & Violet promo, but in English it is obtainable from packs and the same rarity as the Zekrom and Reshiram. All three cards are a callback to the original Black & White era full art cards, which also boasted a bold, monochromatic look. These cards have incredibly difficult pull rates in the Black Bolt & White Flare specialty sets, and personally I think the cards are incredible and worthy of their high prices.

Now That You're and Expert, Upgrade Your Collection

Is there a specifc rarity you're looking to chase? Mirai Card Shop has you covered with the most recent Japanese booster boxes from the MEGA and Scarlet & Violet eras. You can always refer back to this blog to get updated information on any new rarities or changes to existing rarities, but here's an easy recap of everything you should know before you collect Japanese Pokemon cards:

• The common rarities are Common (C), Uncommon (U), Rare (R), and Double Rare (RR).

• Secret rare cards typically follow a rarity system with Art Rares (AR) for alternate artworks of non-ex Pokemon; Super Rares (SR) for standard full art cards; Special Art Rares (SAR) for alternate artworks of ex Pokemon; and Ultra Rare (UR) or Mega Ultra Rare (MUR) for gold cards.

• There are rarities like Shiny (S), Shiny Super Rare (SSR), and Black White Rare (BWR) that appear in specialty sets centered around a certain theme.

If you're looking to buy sealed Japanese booster boxes, look no further than Mirai Card Shop. Guaranteed hits are per sealed booster box, and Mirai Card Shop ensures that all booster boxes are imported directly from Japanese card shops. We pay the tariffs, handle 100% authentic product, and ship booster boxes in their original factory shrink wrap for collectors across the United States. Click on any links you see in the article or visit here to start shopping Japanese booster boxes.