The Pokemon Trading Card Game has been one of the most popular card games on the planet for over two decades now. That has a lot to do with how the franchise swept the whole world in Poke Mania and the great marketing through several different venues, ranging from anime to mobile games, and adding more with each installment.
One thing the Pokemon TCG can claim to do better than most other card games is the card arts. Some Pokemon cards capture your attention at first glance with full art and holographic designs. While Pokemon have been featured in gorgeous pieces of cardboard, a lot of value is also found in Pokemon Trainer cards, specifically Supporter Trainer cards.
Updated on January 16, 2023 by Doruk Kaptan: With the Sword and Shield era of the Pokemon TCG in our rear window, it's as good a time as any to look back and appreciate some of the most sought-after cards in the game. Trainers are a crucial part of the game and can shoot up in price like few Pokemon, especially when considering full-art Trainers.
As they are popular characters anyways, and they have some of the most expansive art in the whole game, the most valuable Trainers end up being of the Supporter subtype. It's just as exciting to look forward and anticipate the full-art Trainer cards of Scarlet and Violet as it is to look back and see how the old ones are faring in the marketplace.
The prices taken from tcgplayer.com during January 2023 are subject to change.
15 Sabrina's Suggestion - SM - Team Up
- Market Value: $66.59
Sabrina's Suggestion is one of those cards that make you wonder if the effect of a card actually factors into its price. This card, despite having a very high-risk, low-reward effect, has managed to be really valuable. The effect lets you see the opponent's hand and choose a Supporter to use the effect of. It gives you very situationally useful knowledge and potentially a random effect that you may not even want to activate at that moment.
Despite the lackluster effect, Sabrina's Suggestion is a popular card. Sabrina herself is beloved by many, thanks to her intriguing personality and psychic powers, as well as her iconic appearance in the anime. The art is great, too, showing Sabrina with her psychic powers in action, with her outfit from the Let's Go games. Sometimes, the card's look is enough to make it expensive, and Sabrina's Suggestion is the perfect example.
14 N - Noble Victories
- Market Value: $69.92
N is one of the older cards on this list, as it was released way back in 2011 within the set Noble Victories. It's both weird and respectable that such an old card manages to stay relevant to this day. That is largely due to the popularity of the character, as N has captured the hearts of many fans with his unique backstory and philosophy regarding Pokemon.
The effect is not bad either, and it allowed N to be played on many decks for years. The card makes both players shuffle their hands into their deck and draw cards equal to their remaining Prize cards. This is both a useful draw effect and a disruption tool at the same time. It takes both a great artwork of a popular character and a useful effect to stand the test of time, and N does just that.
13 Cynthia - Hidden Fates: Shiny Vault
- Market Value: $71.97
Cynthia is by far the most popular champion in the Pokemon franchise. While she's rivaled in popularity by some, such as Lance and Leon, Cynthia is loved by the majority of the fanbase. This is great, as Cynthia also has a decent effect, despite being a bit slow.
Cynthia has a simple effect, you shuffle your hand into the deck and draw six new cards. While this kind of effect is definitely good and did see play, it is somewhat power crept. Marnie allows you to draw a fresh hand while also disrupting your opponent's, and you could draw more cards with Professor's Research. Yet again, the character's popularity and the illustration's quality carry a mediocre card into a high price point.
12 Lillie's Full Force - SM - Cosmic Eclipse
- Market Value: $72.95
Lillie is quite possibly the best-written character in all the Pokemon games. She struggles with self-doubt but evolves into a very realized character. Thus, her cards tend to have a higher price point, even if the effect isn't spectacular. That's the case with Lillie's Full Force, as it's valuable despite its lackluster effect.
Lillie's Full Force allows you to draw four cards. If you have three or more cards at the end of this turn, you have to shuffle cards into your deck until you have two left. This effect is far from useful and can even end up being detrimental to your future turns. In a game where there are amazing draw cards, Lillie's Full Force is never worth including. At least the card looks amazing with bright colors and impeccable line work, making it worthy of a full-art collection.
11 Erika's Hospitality - SM - Team Up
- Market Value: $74.59
Erika is the Grass-type gym leader of Celadon City. Having been around since the beginning, the Grass-type master has amassed an impressive fanbase. She is modest and humble and wears traditional clothes that set her apart from other, more contemporary Gym Leader styles.
Erika's Hospitality allows you to draw a card for each of your opponent's Pokemon in play, provided that you have less than five cards in your hand. So on top of looking amazing, Erika's Hospitality is a useful draw card fit for many decks.
10 Cynthia & Caitlin - SM - Cosmic Eclipse
- Market Value: $91.75
Tag Team cards were among the more exciting and powerful card types. These cards combined two iconic characters, Pokemon or trainers, into one really strong card. Obviously, when you combine two very popular characters into a single card and make the effect amazing, you get a valuable card; such is the case for Cynthia and Caitlyn.
This Tag Team Supporter allows you to put a Supporter from your discard pile into your hand. You may additionally discard another card as you play it and draw three cards. The draw effect is the cherry on top of an already amazing effect. Supporter recycling can be game-winning with power cards such as Boss's Orders or Professor's Research. The card looks amazing, too, justifying its price in more ways than one.
9 Iris - Plasma Blast
- Market Value: $98.20
Unlike many other Pokemon characters, Iris has become more popular thanks to the anime. As she was a central character during the generation five anime, many fans grew attached to her and felt close to the young champion. Her aspirations to become a champion at such a young age were also admirable.
Unfortunately, Iris in the TCG is a little underwhelming in terms of power. She lets you deal ten extra damage to your opponent's Pokemon for each prize card they've taken for a turn. This was never substantial, to be honest. However, it became valuable due to the gorgeous art and the fact that it's a semi-old card, which almost always increases value.
8 Misty's Favor - SM - Unified Minds
- Market Value: $100.04
Misty is possibly one of the most popular female companions in all anime, let alone Pokemon. Her tomboyish attitude and passion for Water-types and competition captured many fans' hearts.
Misty's Favor, in the TCG, is also pretty great. It allows you to add three supporters to your hand, which is fantastic for setting up for a few future turns and planning your route to victory.
7 Bianca - Boundaries Crossed
- Market Value: $112.00
Keeping with the generation five train, we have Bianca, another iconic female character from the Black & White era. She was a rather well-written and deep character, struggling with family pressure, insecurities, and self-doubt.
The card itself is handy, making you draw until you have six cards in your hand. Adding to such a strong draw effect, the art on this card is also flawless. Showing a cute, almost shy-looking Bianca with popping colors, it's a desirable collection piece.
6 Cynthia - SM - Ultra Prism
- Market Value: $117.71
Cynthia makes the list yet again, proving her popularity in the series. With her incredible team, intimidating demeanor, and signature Garchomp, she is one badass lady. Her popularity, then, is no surprise.
Cynthia in the TCG is a simple but effective card. Powercrept, like the previous entry, it lets you shuffle your hand into the deck and draw six new cards, hopefully allowing you to find some key cards. The art is slick, with Cynthia in an excited, eager pose, and the colors are just great.
5 Professor Juniper - Plasma Freeze
- Market Value: $127.01
The Pokemon TCG has printed several professor cards throughout its history. Many of which have either similar or straight-up the same effect. Sure, Professor Oak did it first, but Professor Juniper was the first modern printing of the classic professor card that made you discard your hand and draw seven cards. It has some years under its belt, making it more valuable.
Almost every new generation comes with one of these professor cards nowadays, but few of them make the splash that Juniper did. The effect is already impressive, but the art on this card does not fall short. Looking bright, colorful, and clean, Juniper may have the most beautiful Pokemon card among the professors.
4 Rosa - SM - Cosmic Eclipse
- Market Value: $130.02
Rosa is the one and only playable protagonist on this list, and for a good reason. She is one of the best main, self-insert characters in design, with fabulous clothing and a memorable hairstyle. That's not the only reason this card is valuable, though.
The effect is pretty good in a vacuum, letting you add to hand a Pokemon, a Trainer, and a basic energy, pretty much set up for an explosive turn. Unfortunately, you can only use it if your Pokemon was knocked out last turn, which did prevent this card from becoming a staple. However, it's definitely one of the first cards to seek for a collection.
3 Lisia - SM - Celestial Storm
- Market Value: $170.76
Lisia is an interesting character to get her own full-art card, to be honest. She's not a protagonist, villain, champion, or even a gym leader. She's only a Pokemon Coordinator from Sootopolis City.
To be fair, her design is pretty great, taking cues from the contest star Altaria, which is also her Pokemon in-game. Her card effect is not bad either, letting you add two Prism Star cards from the deck to hand. Of course, that includes Prism Star Trainer cards, making her an excellent option for the right deck.
2 Skyla - Boundaries Crossed
- Market Value: $176.86
Skyla is another one of those characters that the fanbase loves the design of. At least Skyla has some acclaim to fame, being the gym leader of Mistralton City. She has an excellent team and is a very bubbly yet confident character, making her a fan favorite.
Skyla has a simple effect, add a Trainer card from your deck to your hand. Unfortunately, this has been power crept since by Rosa, interestingly enough, making Skyla competitively a relic. She wins in value, though, thanks to her incredible art capturing her vibe and the fact that it's a decade old now.
1 Lillie - SM - Ultra Prism
- Market Value: $280.58
The most valuable full-art Pokemon Trainer card title goes to Lillie. Lillie is a fan favorite for a good reason. She has the sweet look of Lisia, the story depth of Bianca, and later gains the confidence of Skyla. She really is the best Poke-girl there is.
Lillie is, interestingly, not an especially strong card. She draws you cards until you have six in your hand, or eight if it's the first turn. It's not that old of a card either, as it was released in 2018. After all is said and done, Lillie is proof of what character attachment and incredibly well-drawn card art can do for the price of it.