Short answer: with TCGplayer Direct you keep your cards until they sell. TCGplayer ships Direct orders from its own stock, then sends you a Reimbursement Invoice (RI) listing the cards to send back. Fees are per item: 50% of the price for cards $0.40 to $2.49, or $1.12 per item plus 8.95% commission and 2.5% transaction fees for cards $2.50 and up. Sources: TCGplayer Direct - Direct Fee and About Direct Reimbursement Invoices (checked November 1, 2026).
How Direct works
TCGplayer's How do I get started with TCGplayer Direct? explains it: you list and price your cards as usual. "As orders come in, TCGplayer will ship out cards on your behalf, using our own carefully managed inventory." Later TCGplayer asks you to ship your copies of the sold cards, which go back on its shelf. TCGplayer also handles customer service, refunds and requests on Direct-fulfilled orders.
- Games: Magic: The Gathering, Pokémon and Yu-Gi-Oh! singles.
- Whole orders only: an order ships through Direct only if Direct inventory can fill the entire order. Otherwise you ship it yourself, as normal.
- In the Orders tab: Direct orders carry the TCGplayer Direct symbol. You don't ship them one by one; their cards go back to TCGplayer on your next RI (How do I handle my TCGplayer Direct orders and Reimbursement Invoices?).
Direct is not "send your inventory first"
Sending your cards to TCGplayer ahead of any sale is a different program. That was Store Your Products (SYP), which TCGplayer says is not accepting new seller applications, and a new Managed Inventory program is on a waitlist (What Is Store Your Products (SYP)?, checked November 1, 2026). With Direct, your inventory stays with you until it has sold and an RI asks for it.
Direct fees, per item
Since June 18, 2026, Direct fees are worked out for each item rather than per order (TCGplayer Direct Reimbursement Invoice and Store Your Product fee update FAQ). The rate card in TCGplayer Direct - Direct Fee:
| Item price | Direct fee |
|---|---|
| $0.40 to $2.49 | 50% of the item price; commission and transaction fees are waived |
| $2.50 and up | $1.12 per item + 8.95% commission + 2.5% transaction fees (Pro tool fees extra if they apply) |
- Worked examples from TCGplayer: one $4.50 card costs $1.64 in fees ($1.12 + $0.40 + $0.11). One $25.00 card costs $3.98. Twelve $0.50 cards cost $3.00 (50% each).
- No $0.30 fixed fee on Direct orders where commission-based fees apply; it was removed in the June 2026 change.
- Low-value cards: cards fulfilled by Direct with a value under $0.40 are rounded up to a minimum price of $0.40 (How do I handle my TCGplayer Direct orders and Reimbursement Invoices?).
- Many cheap cards add up: because the fee is per card, TCGplayer notes the change "may increase fees in some low-priced, multi-card scenarios."
Reimbursement Invoices (RIs)
An RI lists the cards TCGplayer shipped for you, so you can send the same cards in the same condition back in one box. Per About Direct Reimbursement Invoices (checked November 1, 2026), there are two kinds:
| RI type | Min value | Card quantity | Generates on | Forced after |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Preferred RI | $1,200 | 90 to 600 | Wednesdays and Saturdays | 14 days |
| Standard RI | $600 | 900 to 3,000 | Wednesdays | 21 days |
- Separate boxes: Preferred and Standard RIs go to different addresses printed on the packing slip and can't be combined into one shipment.
- Getting paid: payment is released for the next scheduled payment period once an RI containing any part of an order is checked in at TCGplayer's Authentication Center.
- Mistakes cost money: for a missing, wrong or off-condition card, TCGplayer buys a replacement and charges the greater of your sale price or the card's average price over its 50 most recent sales (How do I handle my TCGplayer Direct orders and Reimbursement Invoices?).
Who can join
Per How do I get started with TCGplayer Direct? (checked November 1, 2026), you can sign up once you have all of these:
- Level 4 seller (see seller levels explained).
- 99.5% feedback rating over the past 30 days.
- Direct-eligible inventory of about 3,000 unique products.
- 100 sales per month, averaging $600 per week.
Is it worth it?
Direct takes buyer packing and customer service off your desk for the orders it covers, and TCGplayer says cards from Direct sellers "are featured items on the TCGplayer Marketplace." In return you pay the per-item fee, keep an RI-ready inventory, and pack accurate RIs on TCGplayer's schedule. For cards under $2.50, half the price goes to the fee. Work out what you sell most with the fee table above, and remember that any order Direct can't fill in full still ships from you.
FAQ
How much does TCGplayer Direct cost?
Fees are per item. Cards priced $0.40 to $2.49 pay 50% of the item price, with commission and transaction fees waived. Cards $2.50 and up pay $1.12 per item plus 8.95% commission and 2.5% transaction fees, plus Pro tool fees if they apply.
Do I send my cards to TCGplayer before they sell?
Not with Direct. TCGplayer ships Direct orders from its own stock, then sends you a Reimbursement Invoice listing the sold cards to send back. Sending inventory in advance was the separate Store Your Products program, which is not taking new applications.
When does TCGplayer generate a Reimbursement Invoice?
Preferred RIs ($1,200 minimum, 90 to 600 cards) generate on Wednesdays and Saturdays, or are forced after 14 days. Standard RIs ($600 minimum, 900 to 3,000 cards) generate on Wednesdays, or are forced after 21 days.
Who can join TCGplayer Direct?
Level 4 sellers with a 99.5% feedback rating over the past 30 days, about 3,000 unique Direct-eligible products, and 100 sales per month averaging $600 per week.
Which games does TCGplayer Direct cover?
Magic: The Gathering, Pokémon and Yu-Gi-Oh! singles. An order ships through Direct only if Direct inventory can fill the whole order.
Sources
- TCGplayer Help: TCGplayer Direct - Direct Fee (checked November 1, 2026)
- TCGplayer Help: TCGplayer Direct Reimbursement Invoice and Store Your Product fee update FAQ (checked November 1, 2026)
- TCGplayer Help: About Direct Reimbursement Invoices (checked November 1, 2026)
- TCGplayer Help: How do I get started with TCGplayer Direct? (checked November 1, 2026)
- TCGplayer Help: How do I handle my TCGplayer Direct orders and Reimbursement Invoices? (checked November 1, 2026)
- TCGplayer Help: What Is Store Your Products (SYP)? (checked November 1, 2026)