Value lookup
What is my game worth?
Type a title to see its current market value for loose, complete in box, and sealed condition. The same data NOSTOS prices against at the counter, covering over 90,000 titles. Underneath each result you also see what NOSTOS pays, in cash or store credit. Store credit pays 15% more.
Ready to sell? Build a full offer and a prepaid USPS label arrives when your total clears $50. Prefer to read first? See how collection value is calculated or what actually determines a game's price.
How the value is set
Three things move a retro game's value: the title, the platform, and the condition. Condition is the one most people underestimate. A loose cartridge is the floor. The same game complete in box, with the manual and inserts, commonly sells for 2x to 8x the loose price. Factory sealed sits higher still.
The market value shown here is the retail resale price, the number a collector pays for a copy in that condition. What a store pays is a share of that, because the store carries the cost to acquire, grade, guarantee, and hold the item until it sells. NOSTOS shows both figures on every result, so the gap is never hidden.
That share is not a secret, so here it is. This is where an offer starts. The rate climbs with the value of the item, because a $400 game costs about the same to grade, guarantee, and shelve as a $4 one.
| Market value | Cash | Store credit |
|---|---|---|
| $497+ | 75% | 86% |
| $100 to $496 | 69% | 79% |
| $97 to $99 | 60% | 69% |
| $37 to $96 | 55% | 63% |
| $12 to $36 | 50% | 57% |
| $2 to $11 | 45% | 52% |
Store credit is worth 15% more than the cash column, which makes it the higher-return option for anyone planning to buy something back.
What moves the rate off that table
Two identical prices do not always earn the same offer, and it would be misleading to print the ladder without saying why. Four things adjust it:
- Genre. Sports and educational titles pile up on the shelf and sell slowly, so they are paid 50% lower. Role-playing and platform titles move quickly and are paid 5% higher.
- How fast the title actually sells. Real sales velocity moves the rate from -13% for a slow mover to +10% for a proven one.
- High demand. Anything over $100 in value, or with heavy sales volume, earns another 15% on top.
- A ceiling. However the adjustments stack, a cash offer stops at 75% of market value.
Under $2 in market value we decline and say so, rather than making an offer that wastes the trip. Sports and educational titles are declined under $5 for the same reason. The offer you get from the sell flow has all of this already applied, with the reasoning shown next to each line.
Imports are priced against their own region, not their North American twins. If you are valuing a Super Famicom or PC Engine title, add the region to your search so the right variant surfaces. When you are ready, the sell flow turns any list into a confirmed offer with a free prepaid label over $50.
Common questions
- How much is my retro game worth?
- A retro game's value depends on the title, the platform, and the condition. Loose (cartridge or disc only) is the floor. Complete in box (CIB) with the manual and inserts sells for roughly 2x to 8x loose. Factory sealed sits highest. Type a title into the lookup above to see current market value for each condition, drawn from the same price data NOSTOS uses at the counter, covering over 90,000 titles.
- What is the difference between loose, CIB, and sealed value?
- Loose means the cartridge or disc with no box or manual. CIB means complete in box: the box, the game, the manual, and any inserts that shipped with it. Sealed means factory sealed and never opened. Each grade has its own market price, so a title with a $12 loose value can carry an $80 CIB value when the box and manual survive.
- Does NOSTOS pay the full market value?
- No, and no store does. Market value is what a game sells for at retail. A shop pays a share of that because it carries the cost, the risk, and the time to grade, list, and stand behind the item. NOSTOS shows both numbers side by side so nothing is hidden: the market value, and what NOSTOS pays in cash. Store credit pays 15% above the cash rate.
- How current are these prices?
- The lookup runs on a regularly refreshed snapshot of fair market data across over 90,000 titles. Fast-moving titles are priced conservatively, and the final offer is always confirmed once an item arrives and is graded in hand. Prices move, so treat the figure as a current estimate, not a locked quote.
- How do you value Japanese import games?
- Imports are priced against their own region's market, not the US number. Super Famicom, Famicom, PC Engine, Neo Geo, and other imports carry different values from their North American twins. Add JP or the region to your search, for example 'Super Famicom Chrono Trigger', so the correct variant surfaces.