Set ↗30d−6.4%not clear yet90d+2.2%not clear yet1y+30%
This card30d 90d 1y All-time 

Swell Mel #20a 1985 Garbage Pail Kids Series 1 · PSA 5

View all Swell Mel cards →
PSA pop19

PSA 5 · 1985 Garbage Pail Kids Original Series 1 →

⤴ Buy · next 3 monthsIts two sales in the last 3 months ran $12 to $25, below the about $25 it sold for in the nine months before, while most cards in its set sold higher. Cards with a dip this size usually sold back close to their earlier price within 3 months, a little under it (577 cards since 2019).
PSA pop · this parallel
19
Card # 20a⇄ 20BDressy Jesse
GPK Price Guide Value iBased on this card’s sales at this grade: 2 older sales from 2024-2025 near $16, about $24 after the set's rise since; similar cards point lower ($21); and 5 sales in 2026 near $25.
$22
PSA 5 · from 8 real sales · last sold Oct 9▲ +144%
PSA 10 comp $660
no PSA 5 listed on eBay right now
RAW (UNGRADED) — NOT A GRADED VALUE
$11
134 raw sales used for this value view raw sales →
● real comps ● est. — own older sales ● est. — never sold ● unsold
Price history · PSA 5
On-the-record sales go back as far as PSA reports them — late 2017 for GPK — plus eBay-tracked and raw sales as they land.
DatePriceGradeCertType
2026-10-09$25PSA 572472185 ↗FixedPrice
2026-09-28$11.50PSA 557143152 ↗Auction
2026-08-09$25PSA 573395047 ↗
2026-07-04$25PSA 591917437 ↗
2026-01-01$10PSA 573329112 ↗BestOffer
2025-03-20$10.50PSA 5100700714 ↗
2024-12-05$21.50PSA 557143152 ↗Auction
2023-03-26$9.99PSA 563255692 ↗Auction

🗑️ The Garbologist says…

Trending Up
The Garbologist has been digging through this one's trash.
  • 8 recorded sales · 5 in the last year · trades only a few times a year · moderate-confidence sample.
  • Its last few sales went $10 → $25 → $25 → $12 → $25 — a clear march higher.
  • Median moved +144% across the window ($10 → $25).
  • Census check: PSA has graded 515 of this card, and only 5.0% come back a 10 — tough to gem.
  • Net-net, the momentum points up — real buyers are paying more, more often. Not a promise, just what the garbage is telling us.

Automated analysis generated from this card’s real recorded sales and PSA population data — no opinions, no predictions guaranteed. Entertainment and research only, not financial advice.

Swell Mel — across every card

Subject page →
Every Swell Mel card we track — how the character is moving, not just this one grade.

🧬 Should I slab it?

Only if you're confident it's a 10

Only about 1 in 20 copies of this card get a 10. A 10 is worth $660, but after the $92 cost it barely beats the $11 raw copy.

Expected value if graded$0 (after $92 all-in cost)
Raw value today$11 (from 134 raw sales)
VerdictOnly if you're confident it's a 10

Break-even: you need about a 7% chance of a PSA 10 (this card: 5%).

Chance of a PSA 10
5%
this card · 515 graded
PSA 10 value
$660
today · ~$660 by Feb 12, 2027
PSA 9 value
$105
today · ~$105 by Feb 12, 2027
All-in cost
$92
PSA fee $60 + shipping both ways $32
How these numbers work
All-in cost $92: PSA Standard tier fee $60 per card, insured shipping to PSA ~$12, PSA insured return shipping ~$20. Sending it to your PSA Vault instead skips return shipping (vault intake and storage are free): ~$72 all-in, so a graded copy would net ~$20.
Grade odds (this card, 515 PSA-graded): 10 · 5%, 9 · 26%, 8 · 35%, 7 or lower · 34%. People send their best copies, so a random raw copy usually grades a bit lower.
Values when it comes back (~95 days, about Feb 12, 2027): today's values (the set has no clear 3-month trend).
Expected value if graded = each grade's chance × its value, minus the all-in cost. A guide, not a guarantee — centering and corners on your copy decide the grade.

Swell Mel #20a 1985 Garbage Pail Kids Series 1 value by grade

GradeValueSalesPSA pop
PSA 10$6601126
PSA 9$10559133
PSA 9 (OC)$738—
PSA 8.5$5623
PSA 8$5664178
PSA 8 (ST)$47 est.0—
PSA 8 (OC)$362—
PSA 7$482279
PSA 6.5$37 est.01
PSA 6$321054
PSA 5$22819
PSA 4.5$20 est.01
PSA 4$15213
PSA 3.5$15 est.01
PSA 3$1516
PSA 2$10 est.01

Every grade of this card on one page. Est. = no sale at that grade yet. Tap a grade above to switch the whole page to it.

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