Mint (MT):(98-100%) Near perfect in every way. Only the most subtle bindery or printing defects are allowed. Cover is flat with no surface wear. Cover inks are bright with high reflectivity and minimal fading. Corners are cut square and sharp. Staples sre generally centered, clean with no rust. Cover is generally well centered and firmly secured to interior pages. Paper is supple and fresh. Spine is tight and flat.

Near Mint (NM):(97-90%) Nearly perfect with only minor imperfections such as tiny corner creases or staple stress lines, a few color flecks, bindery tears, tiny impact creases or a combination of the above where the overall eye appeal is less than Mint. Only the most subtle binding and/or printing defects allowed. Cover is flat with no surface wear. Cover inks are bright with high reflectivity and minimum of fading. Corners are cut square and sharp with ever so slight blunting permited. Staples are generally centered, clean with no rust. Cover is well centered and firmly secured to interior pages. Paper is supple and like new. Spine is tight and flat.

Very Fine (VF):(89-75%) An excellant copy with outstanding eye appeal. Sharp, bright and clean with supple pages. Cover is relatively flat with minimal surface wear beginning to show. Cover inks are generally bright with moderate to high reflectivity. Slight wear beginning to show including some minute wear at corners. Staples may show some discoloration. Spine may have a few transverse stress lines but is relativly flat. A light ½" crease is acceptable. Pages and covers can be yellowish/tannish but not brown.

Fine (FN):(74-55%) An exceptional, above average copy that shows minor wear but is still relativly flat and clean with no major creasing or other serious defects. Eye appeal is somewhat reduced because of noticeable surface wear and accumulation of smaller defects, especially on the spine and edges. A Fine condition comic book appears to have been read many times and has been handled with moderate care. Compared to a VF, cover inks are begining to show a significant reduction in reflectivity but is still a highly collectable and desireable book.

Very Good (VG):(54-35%) The average used comic book. A comic in this grade shows moderate wear, can have a reading or center crease or a rolled spine, but has not accumulated enough total defects to reduce eye appeal to the point that it is not a desireable copy. Some discoloration, fading and even minor soiling is allowed. No chunks can be missing but a small piece can be out of the corner or edge. Store stamps, name stamps, arrival dates, initials, etc. have no affect on this grade. Cover and interior pages can have minor tears and folds and the centerfold may be loose or detached. One or both staples might be loose, but cover is not completely detached. Common bindery and printing defects do not affect grade. Pages and inside covers may be brown but not brittle. Tape should never be used for comic book repair, however many VG condition comics have minor tape repair.

Good (GD):(34-15%) A copy in this grade has all pages and covers, although there may be small pieces missing. Books in this grade are commonly creased, scuffed, abraded and soiled, but completely readable. Often paper quality is low but not brittle. Cover reflectivity is low and in some cases competely absent. Most collectors consider this the lowest collectable grade because comic books in lesser condition are usualy incomplete and/or brittle. This grade can have a large accumulation of defects but still maintains its basic structural integrity.

Fair (FR):(14-5%) A copy in this grade has all pages and most of the covers, is soiled, ragged and unattractive. Creases and folds are prevalent and paper quality may be very low. The centerfold may be missing, if it does not affect a story. Spine may be completely split its entire length. Staples may be gone, and/or cover completely detached. Corners are commonly severely rounded or absent. Coupons may be cut from front and/or back cover and/or interior pages. These books are mostly readable although soiling, staining, tears, markings or chunks missing may interfere with reading the complete story. Very often paper quality is low and may even be brittle around the edges but not in the central portion of the pages.

Poor (pr):(4-1%) Most comic books in this grade have been sufficiently degraded to the point that there is no longer any collector value. Copies in this grade typically have pages and/or approximately ¼ or more of the front cover missing. They may have extremely severe stains, mildew or heavy cover abraision to the point that cover inks are indistinct/absent. They may have been defaced with paints, varnishes, glues, oil, indelible markers or dyes. Other defects include severe rips, tears, folding and creasing. Another common defect in this grade is moderate to severe brittleness, often to the point that the comic book literally falls apart when examined.