How To Get Rainbow Pokemon Cards

Understanding The Rarities

Before proceeding further with this topic, you should get some idea about the different Pokemon card rarities. So, we’d strongly suggest going through this section, as it will help you to understand the subsequent discussions better.

Rarity is a common metric in almost all trading card games or TCGs. As you can guess, it determines the scarcity of the card with respect to the total number of cards available. In other words, the rarity of a card determines how often you will come across that particular card at any given time.

There are different tiers in the rarity of trading cards. In most cases, the rarity is closely associated with the significance or power of a card in the game. Therefore, weaker cards are easier to find, while powerful cards are relatively rarer by comparison. However, this is not a general rule, as there are many instances where weaker cards have a higher rarity and vice versa.

When it comes to Pokemon cards, you will notice that there are three primary rarities, which are common, uncommon, and rare. There are many other types of rarities besides these ones, such as holo rare, ultra rare, secret rare, promo cards, and so on. Any card belonging to a given tier of rarity has a distinctive visual appearance that sets it apart from the cards belonging to other rarities.

The rainbow rare is one such rarity type that you will come across. Rainbow rare cards were first introduced in the Pokemon Sun & Moon expansion.

What Exactly Are Rainbow Cards In Pokemon?

Now that you know about rarities, it is time to discuss the details of what rainbow rare cards actually are. As we have stated in the previous section, this rarity was introduced as a part of the Sun & Moon expansion, which was released in 2017. These cards had a distinctive rainbow color scheme (hence the name), which set them apart from the conventional color schemes used for the other rarities. 

On that note, the rainbow cards were further revamped in the Pokemon Sword & Shield expansion. Some changes were introduced in the visual appearance of these rainbow cards. To be precise, the colors are noticeably brighter and more vivid, and there is a glitter effect on the cards. This style has been followed for every rainbow card released since then.

Another distinctive feature of these rainbow cards is that they have a fine etching on the surface. If you gently run your fingers over the face of the cards, you will be able to feel the etched texture. This was added for authenticity, as fake cards do not possess any etchings.

It is interesting to note that most rainbow rare cards today are classified as secret rares. This is because many of the rainbow cards follow a numbering system similar to secret rares, where the card has a set number that lies beyond the total. The Pikachu VMAX rainbow card is one such example of this, as it is numbered 188/185.

How Can You Get Rainbow Pokemon Cards?

Every Pokemon card set released since the Sun & Moon expansion has included a few rainbow rares. So, your best bet to get such a card is to purchase these sets. 

However, as it goes with most TCGs, the cards are packaged randomly in each set. Thus, the likelihood of pulling one rainbow rare card is based entirely on chance. If you are lucky, you can pull more than one rainbow card from a set. But if you are not so fortunate, you may not get even one rainbow card from a given set.

That’s why many enthusiastic card collectors resort to buying booster packs in the hopes of getting a rainbow rare. This is because purchasing a booster pack is a lot more cost-effective than buying a whole new set. Booster packs are relatively smaller card packages, and they contain 36 Pokemon cards.

If you are just starting out in Pokemon TCG, we would not suggest purchasing multiple booster packs in one go. This is because the chances of getting a rainbow card from such sets are randomized too. 

Each booster pack may contain up to two rainbow rares, but if you are unlucky, you might not get even a single one from the set. Besides, purchasing multiple booster packs will be a pretty expensive affair.

Fortunately, there is an alternative, surefire way to get rainbow rare cards, and that is to purchase single cards instead of a set. There are several TCG platforms, offline card shops, as well as online retailing sites like eBay, where you can find these single rainbow cards. 

Sellers often put these cards up for sale, where interested buyers can purchase them. The only downside, though, is that the prices of these individual cards can be quite high.

How Much Are Rainbow Cards Worth?

Since they are difficult to come by, the prices for rainbow cards will naturally be higher than common or uncommon cards, as we mentioned above. So, if you intend to buy them individually, then you need to be ready to shell out quite a bit of money.

Usually, these cards may have prices ranging from a few hundred to even a few thousand dollars. However, the final price of a rainbow card is dependent on several factors, which we have discussed below.

1. Card Condition

The condition of a card is a major influencing factor when it comes to value. If a card has been used extensively, it will have visible signs of wear and tear, which will drive its price down. On the other hand, a card that is in mint or near-mint condition will obviously have a higher price.

2. Playability

Playability refers to the usefulness of a card in metagame tournaments. If the card is relatively powerful, it will be highly useful in a card game, and that will consequently drive its price upward. On the other hand, a weaker card will have lower playability, and thus, it will have a lower price.

3. Type

Another factor that determines the card’s value is its type. Generally, a card pack may include two different types of cards – Pokemon and Trainer. In most cases, the Pokemon-type cards have a higher value than trainer cards. However, there are some rare trainer cards that have a pretty high price on the market.

Apart from that, the art type needs to be considered as well. Full-art rainbow cards – such as Pikachu VMAX or Charizard VMAX – have a considerably higher price than conventional half-art cards.

Which Sets Have The Most Rainbow Cards?

There are several sets of Pokemon cards within the Sun & Moon and Sword & Shield Expansions. Each of these sets has a chance to include a rainbow rare card.

However, some sets have a higher number of rainbow rares than others, so the chances of pulling such a card from these sets will naturally be a bit higher. 

For instance, sets like Burning Shadows, Vivid Voltage, or Chilling Reign have a moderate to high number of rainbow rares. Conversely, the number of rainbow rares in sets like Shining Legends or Champion’s Path is fairly low. In any case, the total number of rainbow rares that you can get today is over 200.

Final Words

There is no denying the fact that the colorful rainbow cards will make a fine addition to any Pokemon card collection. After all, these rare cards will not only make your card deck stronger but will also grant you significant bragging rights!

Besides, if you want to make some quick cash, you can easily sell these cards on sites like eBay, TCGPlayer, or even at your local card shops. 

Rainbow cards are always in demand, so you won’t have a lot of trouble finding interested buyers (provided you have set the correct price). Then, you can use this money to buy more rainbow cards or packs.

Anyway, that’s about everything we have to say for now. Happy hunting!