What Is a Reverse Holo Pokémon Card? How to Spot One and Find It on Cardmarket
Where the foil sits on a normal, holo and reverse holo card, which cards come as reverse holos, the Poké Ball and Master Ball patterns, and how Cardmarket lists them.
Last updated 2026-10-27.
A reverse holo is a normal card printed with its foil around the picture instead of on it. In recent main sets, every common, uncommon and rare card also comes as a reverse holo.
Same number, same artwork, another finish: on Cardmarket it is sold on the same page as the normal card.
Normal, holo or reverse holo: how to tell
Look at where the card shines.
- Normal: no foil.
- Holo: the picture shines, the rest of the card is plain.
- Reverse holo: the picture is plain, the rest of the card shines.
Where reverse holos come from
The first English set with reverse holos is Legendary Collection, released on 24 May 2002: every card in the set also came as a reverse holo, with a fireworks-like pattern. Reverse holos have been part of most English sets since, with patterns that change from era to era.
Which cards come as reverse holos
In main Scarlet & Violet sets, every card of Rare rarity or lower.
Cards above that (ex cards, Illustration Rare, Special Illustration Rare, Hyper Rare) have no reverse version. In a set like Surging Sparks, 165 of the 252 cards are commons, uncommons or rares. A collector who also wants every reverse holo needs at least 417 cards, and the room for them in a binder.
Poké Ball and Master Ball patterns
Some sets add patterned reverse holos, rarer than the usual one.
- Prismatic Evolutions (January 2025): besides the usual reverse holo, a Poké Ball pattern and a Master Ball pattern. Common, uncommon and rare Pokémon come in all three; common and uncommon Trainer cards only in the usual one and the Poké Ball one. The Pokémon Company describes the Poké Ball as rare and the Master Ball as even rarer.
- Black Bolt and White Flare (July 2025): three parallel finishes per set, two of them with a Poké Ball or Master Ball pattern.
Finding a reverse holo on Cardmarket
| Finish | Where it is sold | How to spot it |
|---|---|---|
| Usual reverse holo | The normal card's page | Finish icon on the listing; Reverse Holo filter on recent sets |
| Poké Ball, Master Ball | A separate page, in the set's "Additionals" expansion | Search the card's name in that expansion |
On Manakodex, prices don't separate finishes yet: the price shown for a card is the cheapest copy, normal or reverse. Check the finish on the listing before you buy.
Frequently asked questions
What is a reverse holo Pokémon card?
A reverse holo is a card printed with its foil on the body of the card instead of the picture: the artwork stays plain and everything around it shines. It is a version of a common, uncommon or rare card, with the same number.
When did reverse holos start?
The first English set with reverse holos is Legendary Collection, released on 24 May 2002, with a fireworks-like pattern. In main Scarlet & Violet sets such as Surging Sparks, every card of Rare rarity or lower also comes as a reverse holo.
How do I find a reverse holo on Cardmarket?
It is sold on the same page as the normal card. Each listing shows a finish icon, and the pages of recent sets have a Reverse Holo filter. Poké Ball and Master Ball patterns are sold on separate pages, in the set's "Additionals" expansion.
Is a reverse holo worth more than the normal card?
Our prices don't separate finishes yet: the price shown is the cheapest copy, normal or reverse. So we can't give a measured gap yet; check the finish on the listing before you buy.
Method and limits
- Facts on Legendary Collection, Surging Sparks and Prismatic Evolutions: Bulbapedia; Poké Ball and Master Ball patterns: The Pokémon Company's official websites; read on 27 October 2026.
- How Cardmarket files finishes: our own captures of Cardmarket pages.
- Cards per rarity: our catalog on 27 October 2026.