Magic: The Gathering Card Grading: Alpha vs Beta vs Unlimited and What Graders Look For

Magic: The Gathering cards are graded on the same ten-point scales as sports and Pokémon cards, but with early Magic the first question is which printing a card comes from. The 1993 Alpha and Beta prints, the white-bordered Unlimited reprint and the square-cornered Collectors' Edition share names and artwork, and the grader's label records which one you have. Sources were read on October 13, 2026; other graders are covered in our grader comparison.

The 1993–94 printings at a glance

Early Magic core-set printings (CGC, Wikipedia, MTG Wiki) — scroll sideways on small screens
Printing	Released	Front border	Corners	Print run	Notes
Limited Edition Alpha	August 5, 1993	Black	Steeply rounded, unlike every later set	2.6 million cards; about 1,100 of each of its 116 rares	295 cards. Circle of Protection: Black and Volcanic Island were left out because their art was not finished.
Limited Edition Beta	October 4, 1993 (Wikipedia: October 1993)	Black	Less rounded; later sets kept this shape	7.8 million (CGC; Wikipedia gives 7.3 or 7.8 million); about 3,300 of each rare	302 cards: adds the two missing cards and a third version of each basic land, and fixes several Alpha misprints.
Unlimited Edition	December 1, 1993	White	As Beta	35 million	Same 302 cards and the same misprints as Beta. Wizards had the border changed to white to protect the value of the Limited print.
Collectors' Edition / International Edition	December 10, 1993	Black (faces identical to Beta)	Square-cut	10,000 sets for the U.S. and Canada, 5,000 international	Sold as 363-card sets. Gold border on the back, printed “Collectors' Edition” or “International Edition”.
Revised Edition	April 11, 1994	White	As Beta	Estimated 150–250 million	Faded colors from worn printing films; the bevel framing the card was cropped off. The Moxes and Ancestral Recall were not reprinted.

Alpha and Beta together are the Limited Edition. According to Wikipedia, neither printing carries an expansion symbol, a copyright date or trademark symbols; the bottom left shows only the artist credit. That places a card in the Limited Edition but does not separate Alpha from Beta.

How to identify the printing

Turn the card over. A gold border on the back marks a Collectors' or International Edition card, which also has square corners. Wizards of the Coast's 2022 30th Anniversary Edition, a $999 product inspired by Beta, gave its retro-frame cards a different back; Wizards calls them not tournament legal.
Look at the front border. Black means Alpha or Beta (once Collectors' Edition is ruled out). White means Unlimited or a later core set such as Revised.
On a black-bordered card, compare the corners. Alpha's corners are steeply rounded; Beta's are less rounded. CGC calls the difference obvious side by side, so check against a known Beta or later card rather than judging one card alone.
Use card-specific tells. Circle of Protection: Black and Volcanic Island exist in Beta but not in Alpha. Several Alpha misprints were corrected in Beta, including Elvish Archers (power and toughness printed as 1/2 instead of 2/1) and Cyclopean Tomb (no casting cost).
On a white-bordered card, separate Unlimited from Revised. MTG Wiki notes that Revised cards often look faded and lack the bevel that frames Unlimited cards.

Alpha corners: steeply rounded, more than any later set (Wikipedia, CGC). The curve is exaggerated here so it shows at small sizes.
Beta corners: less rounded; later sets kept this shape (CGC). Alpha and Beta both have black borders.
Unlimited: white front border with Beta’s corners and the same 302 cards (MTG Wiki).
Collectors’ and International Edition: square-cut corners and a gold border on the back, which is printed “Collectors’ Edition” or “International Edition” (MTG Wiki). The dark center stands in for the card back; it is not a copy of the real design.
Print runs: Alpha 2.6 million cards and Beta 7.8 million (CGC; Wikipedia gives 7.3 or 7.8 million for Beta), Unlimited 35 million (MTG Wiki).

Generic card outlines and chart drawn by Crazy Uncle’s Card Notes from CGC’s, Wikipedia’s and MTG Wiki’s descriptions. Card outlines not to scale (bars are); no real card art, set symbols, card backs or grader labels reproduced.

What the graders publish about Magic cards

PSA and CGC on Magic cards (read October 13, 2026)
Grader	What it publishes	Notes
CGC Cards	Launched its trading card division on July 6, 2020, saying it “currently accepts Pokémon TCG cards and Magic: The Gathering cards.”	Its top grade, Pristine 10, is “reserved exclusively for the best of the best — cards that are flawless under 10-times magnification.” Gem Mint 10 is a 10 overall where one criterion falls short of Pristine. Perfect 10 is now listed as a retired grade whose cards keep Perfect 10 status.
PSA	“Whether vintage, modern or TCG, PSA authenticates and grades cards throughout the hobby.”	PSA cert records name the printing in the title line, for example “MAGIC THE GATHERING LIMITED EDITION ALPHA”, “MAGIC THE GATHERING LIMITED EDITION BETA” and “MAGIC THE GATHERING UNLIMITED EDITION”.

PSA's grading standards apply to Magic cards as to any other card. PSA will not grade cards that show evidence of trimming, re-coloring, restoration or other tampering, and its no-grade codes include N5 (altered stock), N6 (significantly undersized) and N8 (a factory cut that is abnormal for the issue). An altered card can be encapsulated as “Authentic Altered” only at the grader's discretion and only if AA was requested as the minimum grade on the form. Graders may also adjust a grade for eye appeal.

How rare high grades are

CGC has published counts and results for the most valuable early cards. CGC also states that a first Alpha Black Lotus graded Pristine 10 sold privately in April 2024 for $3 million, which it describes as a record.

Early Magic results announced by CGC (snapshots on the dates shown)
Card	What CGC reported	Date
Alpha Black Lotus	Third example graded Pristine 10; 43 numerically graded in CGC's population report	October 28, 2024
Alpha Time Walk	33 certified, one at Pristine 10	September 27, 2023
Alpha Mox Ruby	20 certified, one at Pristine 10	September 27, 2023
Alpha Mox Pearl	25 certified, one at Pristine 10	September 27, 2023
Alpha Shivan Dragon	Perfect 10, the first Alpha card to receive that grade	March 27, 2023
Beta Black Lotus	Graded Pristine 10, the highest-graded Black Lotus in CGC's report at the time	January 25, 2023

Considerations specific to early Magic

Age. CGC notes that a Pristine 10 “is not easy to accomplish, especially for cards that are nearly 30 years old.”
The Alpha corner is a factory trait. Wikipedia gives two explanations: the printer used different corner-rounding dies for the second run, or the Beta dies were sharpened. In early tournaments Alpha cards counted as marked in mixed decks, and sanctioned events still require opaque sleeves for decks containing Alpha cards.
Gold-bordered cards are not playable in sanctioned events. The Magic Tournament Rules exclude cards that, unaltered, have gold borders on the front or back; that is a rule about play, not grading.

Before you submit an early Magic card

Identify the printing with the steps above, and write it on the form the way the grader names it.
Check for alterations. Trimmed, recolored or otherwise altered cards fall under PSA's no-grade codes.
Measure centering with the centering calculator and look over corners, edges and surface under good light (the card condition glossary explains what to look for).
Estimate the graded value and choose a service level from it — see PSA fees and turnaround.
Pack and ship following how to submit cards for grading.
When it comes back, verify the cert number and confirm the printing on the record matches the card.