PSA gave collectors a rare piece of good news at the end of June: its grading backlog has dropped to roughly 12 million cards, down from a reported 14 million just weeks earlier, and the company says the number is trending down as its grading team works overtime and weekends to catch up.
That is real progress, but it comes with a catch that matters to anyone thinking about submitting cards right now. Value tier submissions, including Value Bulk, Value Plus, and Value Max, have been paused since June 2, 2026, and current projections point to a reopening around October at the earliest, once the backlog falls closer to 5 million cards.
This guide breaks down what's actually changed, what it means if you're planning a submission soon, and how to protect your cards through a longer wait either way.
The current backlog traces back to PSA's own success. On May 14, 2026, the company announced a $200 million investment into grading operations, infrastructure, and staffing. That announcement triggered a wave of new submissions, and initial backlog estimates of around 10 million cards were revised up to roughly 14 million by early June.
PSA responded by pausing its lower-cost Value tiers on June 2 to slow incoming volume while it worked through the existing queue. The company has continued posting regular updates, including a public backlog tracker, as the number has started moving back down.
With Value tiers paused, Regular service at $79.99 is currently the most affordable submission option PSA offers. For collectors who don't want to pay Regular pricing or wait for Value tiers to reopen, two things are worth knowing:
The PSA pause has pushed some collectors to look at alternatives for lower-value or bulk submissions. CGC remains the largest non-PSA grader and also handles comics and magazines. TAG continues to grade more than 50,000 cards a month but has reported being at capacity for its own lowest-priced tier. C3 Grading is currently the most accessible budget option while PSA's Value tiers stay closed.
None of these are a direct replacement for PSA's market recognition, especially for high-value cards, but they're worth knowing about if you have bulk or lower-value cards that don't need PSA specifically.
A card that used to spend a few weeks in PSA's queue can now sit for months before it ships back. That longer window means more time for a raw card to pick up handling damage before it's ever graded, and more time for a growing pile of submission-bound cards to sit around loosely instead of properly stored.
The practical takeaway is simple: whatever protection habits made sense for a fast turnaround matter even more now that turnaround times have stretched out.
If you're planning a submission once Value tiers reopen, or sending cards in now under Regular service, prep matters more when the card might sit in a warehouse for months. Sleeve cards immediately and use rigid protection for the trip.
Best protection option: a sleeve and toploader package gives raw cards a clean first layer of protection for submission prep and safe storage while you wait for a reopening window.
Cards that already came back graded still need protection, and a longer backlog means more collectors are holding onto slabs for longer stretches before deciding what to do with them.
Best protection option: a bumper slab protector for PSA cases helps guard against everyday scuffs during storage, transport, and handling.
For an individual slab you want extra confidence in, a magnetic PSA slab case adds a more rigid outer layer than the stock holder alone.
If you're accumulating raw cards while waiting for Value tiers to reopen, or slabs while deciding on your next move, an organized system matters more the longer that pile grows.
Best protection option: a multi-slot graded card display case keeps a growing slab collection organized and reduces the handling that comes with digging through a loose stack.
Whether you're prepping cards for a future submission or protecting cards you're already holding onto, these EVORETRO products cover both ends of the wait:
PSA paused Value Bulk, Value Plus, and Value Max submissions on June 2, 2026, after a surge in new orders following its $200 million investment announcement pushed the backlog toward 14 million cards.
There's no fixed date. PSA has said tiers will return once the backlog drops to roughly 5 million cards, which current projections put around October 2026 if grading pace holds.
Yes, Regular service at $79.99 remains open. Value tier submissions are the ones currently paused.
It depends on the card. CGC, TAG, and C3 Grading are all active alternatives, but PSA still carries the strongest market recognition for high-value cards.
A backlog dropping from 14 million to 12 million is genuine progress, but it doesn't change the reality that submissions are taking longer than they used to, and Value tier collectors are still waiting on a reopening window. The best move right now is to plan around the current timeline rather than the one from a few months ago.
Whatever you decide about submitting, the cards sitting in your collection right now, raw or already slabbed, deserve the same level of protection you'd want them to have on the day they eventually ship out.
If you want to learn more about protecting cards through the grading process, these guides may also help:
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