The best Pokémon booster boxes 2024

Closing out an era, Pokémon Crown Zenith released January 2023, and is the last Sword and Shield set to come out before Scarlet and Violet. Pokémon Crown Zenith is a ‘high class’ set, where every pack features a V, VSTAR or VMAX card or a super-rare card.

As well as some powerful Pokémon cards, it stars hits like Arceus VSTAR and Mewtwo VSTAR, and cool cards like Glaceon and Leafeon. Plus there’s all the fantastic different art cards we’ve come to expect from a modern Pokémon set, including some basic ‘mons that combine to form a sweet collage.

Sword & Shield’s era is over, so now it’s time for Scarlet & Violet. The first Scarlet & Violet base set Pokémon booster box launched on March 31, 2023 and provided our first look at the Paldea Pokémon (Oh, god how many Pokémon are there now?) in trading card art.

If you’re buying Pokémon cards just for their monetary value, the Scarlet & Violet base set isn’t the best Pokémon booster box to open. However, it’s great if you’re looking for a fun opening experience, with all kinds of alternate arts and card varieties to collect. Hit rates seem to be really high for this Pokémon booster box too – which is perhaps one reason for the lower card prices.

Another high class pack that promises a holo card in each pack, Pokémon Hidden Fates is a much-touted set for a few reason. It boasts the first triple tag team Pokémon, featuring Articuno, Zapdos, and Moltres, and also more than 75 shiny Pokémon. Some of these shiny cards, like Umbreon GX and Charizard GX are getting pretty damn expensive now, too.

The Pokémon GO Elite Trainer Box, released July 2022, is another one that many fans are going to want to get their hands on. This merging of  Pokémon GO and the Pokémon TCG is really cool to see. Not only do the cards in this expansion feature beautiful artwork that captures the feeling of Pokémon appearing in the real world, but you also get items and characters from the mobile game as Trainer Cards.

A few highlights include: Poké Stops, Lure Modules, and Blanche as Trainer Cards, with Pokémon including Mewtwo, Radiant Blastoise, Melmetal, Alolan Exeggutor V, and many others.

Elite Trainer boxes like this one, and others on our booster box list, include a few extras that players may find handy. In addition to ten booster packs, it also includes six damage-counter dice, one competition-legal coin-flip die, two acrylic condition markers, and one acrylic VSTAR marker.

While Elite Trainer Boxes come with a few extra bells and whistles alongside their booster packs, we’re back to just booster packs with the Brilliant Stars Booster Box. Released in February 2022, it features the introduction of the new VSTAR mechanic, which allows for more powerful abilities and evolutions.

The selection of Pokémon includes many from Pokémon Sword & Shield, as well as a few found in Pokémon Diamond & Pearl. Highlights include Arceus VSTAR, Charizard V, and Charizard VSTAR –  the main chase cards from the set.

This was the final expansion based on Pokémon X & Y, and it was also a special expansion made to celebrate the 20th anniversary of the Pokémon TCG. Because of this, Pokémon XY Evolutions featured many iconic Generation I Pokémon, and it remains a sought after set for fans. While you can still find booster boxes, they’re quite expensive (although still under a thousand dollars, unlike many of the older sets).

Highlights of this expansion include: Mewtwo-EX, Machamp BREAK, Starmie, BREAK, Zapdos, and Porygon. For those looking to build up a deck filled with nostalgic childhood favourites, the XY – Evolution booster boxes are going to be a good choice… if you can afford them.

This is another Elite Trainer Box. That means it only comes with eight booster packs, but it does also include all of following: 65 card sleeves featuring Lunala, 45 energy cards, a player guide to the Sun & Moon expansion, six damage-counter dice, a competition-legal coin-flip die, two acrylic condition markers, and an acrylic GX marker. It’s definitely a good buy for anybody who’s just starting out with Pokémon TCG.

Cards you might get in this expansion include: Umbreon GX, Espeon GX Lapras GX, the Supporter card Lillie and many more. As the name gives away, this expansion was made to tie in with Pokémon Sun & Moon – indeed, it was the first of the expansions to include elements from those games.