TroCuri -comic grading

Comic Book grading.

How we grade every comic before it is listed.

Every comic is graded by TroCuri - our own AI - which reads the covers against the full CGC standard the pros use, then a person signs off. The grade you see is the grade you get.

See what is listed now All grading systems

How TroCuri grades.

When we add a comic, TroCuri studies clear photos of the front and back covers with a vision-AI grader anchored to the CGC 10-point scale - and it works with the full published grading reference loaded in, the same definitions professional graders use. It assesses every factor that drives a grade: edges, corners, spine, surface, color, and creases, and writes a plain-English summary of exactly what it found. It then pulls recent eBay sold listings for the same issue to ground the price. A person reviews every grade before the comic goes live.

Grading is one step of TroCuri, the AI pipeline we built in-house at Thrift By Mail: it also identifies each item, scrapes recent sold comps, recommends a fair price, and composes the listing before a person reviews it.

What it looks at.

Cover gloss, color strikes, and surface wear
Spine condition - stress lines, roll, and ticks
Corner and edge sharpness, creases, and tears
Staples, centering, and how flat the book sits
Stains, tape, writing, or missing pieces

The 0.5 to 10.0 grade scale (Overstreet / CGC style)

9.6 to 10.0 Near Mint+ to Mint - looks like it just left the rack
9.0 to 9.4 Near Mint - minor, barely-there flaws
7.0 to 8.5 Very Fine - light wear, still sharp and bright
5.0 to 6.5 Fine - moderate wear, complete and presentable
3.0 to 4.5 Good to Very Good - a solid reading copy with visible wear
0.5 to 2.5 Fair to Poor - heavy wear or defects, priced accordingly

What you get on every listing.

A clear grade and a plain-English condition summary
Real photos of the exact book, including any flaws
Honest notes - if there is a defect, it is in the description

AI-assisted, human-confirmed.

Our grades are careful in-house estimates that help us set fair prices and give you clear expectations. They are not a replacement for professional third-party grading such as CGC, PSA, or PCGS. When an item has been professionally graded, the listing says so. If there is a flaw, it is in the photos and the description.