Seemingly out of nowhere, trading cards, especiallyPokemoncards, are all the rage once again.The past few months have harkened back to a time known as Pokemania in 1999, which sawPokemonat the height of its popularity, filling households with video games, anime, trading cards, and much more. Now, with the highest grossing media franchise in the world celebrating its 25th anniversary this year,Pokemonseems as popular as ever, most notably with collectors.
Updated August 11, 2025 by Mina Smith:TCGs have been big news again in the last year, with Magic: the Gathering cards going at auction for hundreds of thousands of dollars and Pokemon TCG boxes selling for thousands. As the games continue to grow in popularity among collectors, the prices of the cards will also climb, even for the McDonald’s collectible cards sold in Happy Meals. This article has been updated with current prices as they continue to inflate. Miscut and misprinted items are still the highest value of the McDonald’s 25th-anniversary cards, with the holo Pikachu in second.
Pokemon TCG in the News
Recent months have seen YouTubers, influencers, Twitch streamers, and even average fansgoing all-out on purchasingPokemoncards,spending upwards of thousands of dollars forPokemon Trading Card Game (TCG)booster boxes, and in some cases, just as much for a single card. The monster-catching franchise’s 25th anniversary has brought along with it a virtual concert with Post Malone, new game announcements, and a plethora of commemorative merchandise, but by far the most viral part of the celebration has beenPokemon’s collaboration with McDonald’s.
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The History of Pokemon Cards and Happy Meals
Alongside the franchise’s monumental anniversary, The Pokemon Company has partnered with McDonald’s to bring children andPokemonfans alikePokemon-themed Happy Meals from February to March. Each Happy Meal includes the standard Happy Meal food of choice, a Pikachu-themed Happy Meal box, and a mini booster card pack of 4Pokemon TCGcards. Happy Meal also include a mini picture frame, deck box, or sticker sheets. Unsurprisingly, the limited-timePokemoncards have skyrocketed in both popularity and price, and while each card has the same likelihood of appearing in a pack, here are the hardest to find McDonald’sPokemoncards.
Rare McDonald’s Pokemon Misprints
As with most any other set ofPokemon TCGcards, misprints and error cards tend to be both the rarest and most valuable cards on the third-party reselling market. One McDonald’s customersold an error Pikachu cardjust last week for about $500. While the holographic cards in the 2021 McDonald’s promotional set are the ones fans have been on the lookout for, this one, in particular, was non-holographic, showing just how much some collectors value error cards.
It is also worth noting that a misprint holographic Squirtle card from the2021 McDonald’sPokemon25th anniversary setis also making the rounds on eBay at the moment. Listed for $45 by user michigangirltreasures, this holographic Squirtle misprint shows that the Squirtle on the error card has supposedly been printed with much more of a green color than when compared side-by-side to what looks like a normal holographic Squirtle card. Although it is rather hard to tell, it does seem like only the Squirtle on the card is discolored, giving it a lot more value.
Holographic Pikachu
Aside from misprints and error cards, by far the most coveted McDonald’sPokemon25th anniversary card is theever-popular holographic Pikachu.This particular Pikachu card was originally released as part of theUnified MindsPokemon TCGexpansion back in 2019. As part of this year’s McDonald’s promotion, this Pikachu card includes thePokemon25th Anniversary logo, as well as a unique icon marking it as part of the promotional set.
As the franchise’s iconic mascot, it comes to no surprise that this holographic Pikachu card is the most difficult to find and drives the highest price ofany 2021 McDonald’sPokemoncardwhen resold. On third-party websites, theUnified MindsPikachu goes for around $1-2, while the McDonald’s non-holographic Pikachu goes for around $4-10, and the McDonald’s holographic Pikachu card goes for anywhere from around $45-350, depending on the card’s condition and/or PSA grade.
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Holographic Bulbasaur, Charmander, and Squirtle
Aftericonic Pokemon like Pikachuand Charizard, it goes without saying that the Kanto region starters are likely some of the most recognizable monsters out there. Bulbasaur, Charmander, and Squirtle made theirPokemondebut alongside Pikachu back in 1996, and have since remained some of the favorite monsters of long-time fans, particularly those who grew up playing the originalPokemongames on the Game Boy. These are the second-rarest cards from the 2021 McDonald’s promotion.
This particular Bulbasaur card featuring theclassic Grass-type starter Pokemonwas originally released as part of theShining Legends Pokemon TCGexpansion back in 2017. In 2019, the card appeared in General Mills Let’s Go, Kanto! Mini Packs found in General Mills cereal boxes exclusively at Walmart. The card was also part of a McDonald’s promotion in France in 2019, also with holographic and non-holographic variations.
Now, the Bulbasaur card dons thePokemon25th-anniversary logo and unique icon as part of the 2021 McDonald’s promotion. Today, theShining LegendsBulbasaur card goes for around $2-5, while the 2021 McDonald’s non-holographic Bulbasaur resells for around $3-5, and the holographic version goes for $15-20.
This Charmander card was originally released in theBurning Shadows Pokemon TCGexpansion in 2017. The card has appeared in a variety of promotions in Japan, like the ones at 7-Eleven, FamilyMart, and Lawson. This Charmander also appeared outside of Japan in a 2019 French McDonald’s promotion, as well as in the Charizard-GX Premium Collection and Deck overseas.
Now, this Charmander bears thePokemon25th-anniversary logo and unique icon as part of the 2021 McDonald’s set, and remains one of the more difficult cards to find online, following in the footsteps ofits evolution, Charizard.TheBurning ShadowsCharmander card resells for around $2-5, while the 2021 McDonald’s non-holographic Charmander goes for around $3-5, and the holographic version goes for $12-20.
Finally, this Squirtle card featuringthe Water-type starter Pokemonoriginally appeared in 2019’sUnbroken Bonds Pokemon TCGexpansion. Since then, this card was included in the Blastoise-GX Premium Collection released in 2019, and was later reprinted in the JapaneseTag All-StarsPokemon TCGsubset in the same year.
Like the other cards in this year’s McDonald’s set, this Squirtle card includes thePokemon25th-anniversary logo and unique set icon, and its holographic variant is about as hard to find online as the holographic Bulbasaur and Charmander cards. TheUnbroken BondsSquirtle goes for anywhere from $6-80 depending on its condition and/or holographic iteration, while the McDonald’s non-holographic Squirtle resells for $3-10, and the holographic version for $12-20.
Other McDonald’s Pokemon Cards
Of course, without the Pikachu, Bulbasaur, Charmander, and Squirtle cards, plus their variants, there are still 42 other cards left in the set. These includethe rest of the starter Pokemonfrom previous generations: Chikortia, Cyndaquil, Totodile, Treecko, Torchic, Mudkip, Turtwig, Chimchar, Piplup, Snivy, Tepig, Oshawott, Chespin, Fennekin, Froakie, Rowlett, Litten, Popplio, Grookey, Sobble, and Scorbunny. Each of these cards are readily accessible via third-party reselling sites, and each card’s non-holographic version resells for around $2-5, while each holographic card goes for around $6-10.
ThePokemon TCG25th anniversary cards are available with the purchase of a McDonald’s Happy Meal for a limited time.
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