AFA grades sealed LEGO on a 0–100 scale with eight named bands. Gem Mint is the trophy tier; Mint (90+) is investment-grade; Near Mint (85) is collector-grade; Excellent (80) is the break-even line. Here’s every tier — and how BrickGauge maps to each one.
AFA grading tiers for sealed LEGO run from AFA 100 Gem Mint down to AFA 10 Poor on a 100-point scale. The named bands are AFA 100 Gem Mint, AFA 95 Mint+, AFA 90 Mint (investment-grade), AFA 85 Near Mint (collector-grade), AFA 80 Excellent (break-even), AFA 75 Very Fine, AFA 70 Fine, and AFA 65 or below Detractive. Modern submissions can return half-grade steps (90.5, 87.5). AFA 90 is the threshold where auction houses and institutional buyers enter the market — and where the resale premium jumps 60–110% over AFA 85.
The named bands collectors and resellers actually use. Investment band describes the resale outcome — trophy, top investment, investment-grade, collector-grade, mid resale, discount resale, or below raw comp.
| Grade | Label | Visual signal | Investment band |
|---|---|---|---|
| AFA 100 | Gem Mint | Pristine on every axis, indistinguishable from new | Trophy / museum |
| AFA 95 | Mint+ | Sub-sub-1mm corners, no detectable issues anywhere | Top investment |
| AFA 90 | Mint | Sub-1mm corners, sub-2% edge, no print drift | Investment grade |
| AFA 85 | Near Mint | Up to 2mm corners, sub-5% edge, hairline scuffs | Collector grade |
| AFA 80 | Excellent | Up to 4mm corners, 5–15% edge, visible scuffs | Mid resale |
| AFA 75 | Very Fine | Larger compression, edge whitening over 15% | Discount resale |
| AFA 70 | Fine | Multiple visible defects, structural deformation | Below raw comp |
| AFA 65 and below | Detractive | Heavy damage, the slab actively reduces value | Avoid |
| AFA tier | Equivalent CGC | Investment band |
|---|---|---|
| AFA 100 Gem Mint | CGC 10.0 | Trophy |
| AFA 95 Mint+ | CGC 9.8 | Top investment |
| AFA 90 Mint | CGC 9.5 | Investment grade |
| AFA 85 Near Mint | CGC 9.0 | Collector grade |
| AFA 80 Excellent | CGC 8.5 | Mid resale |
| AFA 75 Very Fine | CGC 8.0 | Discount resale |
| AFA 70 Fine | CGC 7.5 | Below raw comp |
Where auction houses price differently and institutional buyers enter. The 60–110% premium over AFA 85 is the highest single-tier delta on the AFA scale.
Strong resale premium over raw on retired UCS, Modulars, and ICONS flagships. 25–110% delta — typically clears the $40–$90 round-trip on flagships.
The line where grading typically still pays — but only on retired flagships. Modern in-production sets at AFA 80 usually net-loss the round-trip.
The 240,127-set training corpus is labeled at the AFA tier level — BrickGauge returns the predicted band with ±0.5 grade accuracy. Two scans free on signup, no credit card. Submit only when the verdict says SEND.
AFA grades sealed LEGO on a 0–100 numeric scale grouped into tiers: AFA 100 Gem Mint, AFA 95 Mint+, AFA 90 Mint, AFA 85 Near Mint, AFA 80 Excellent, AFA 75 Very Fine, AFA 70 Fine, and AFA 65 or below Detractive. Half-grade steps (95.5, 90.5, etc.) appear in modern AFA submissions but the band labels remain the same.
AFA 85 is Near Mint — up to 2mm corner compression, 5% edge whitening, hairline surface scuffs. AFA 90 is Mint — sub-1mm corners, sub-2% edge whitening, no detectable surface or print drift. AFA 85 is collector-grade; AFA 90 crosses into investment-grade. Read the full AFA 85 vs AFA 90 comparison.
AFA 100 is the maximum grade — visually indistinguishable from a brand-new factory box across all six axes (seal, corners, edges, surface, print, structural). AFA 100 is rare — under 0.5% of submissions hit it. The Gem Mint label commands a 50–200% premium over AFA 95 on top-tier sets like Cafe Corner and original Millennium Falcon UCS.
Usually no. The AFA 80 premium over raw is 5–25% on most themes — typically not enough to clear the $40–$90 round-trip cost. Exception: original Modulars and original UCS Star Wars where any graded inventory commands a liquidity premium. For modern flagships, AFA 80 is the break-even line — pre-grade with BrickGauge to confirm before submitting.
AFA 80 / CGC 8.0 on most themes. Below AFA 75, the slab actively reduces resale below the raw comp because the grade is now documented evidence of below-Mint condition. Pre-grade with BrickGauge to ensure you only submit boxes that will clear AFA 80 at minimum.
Rough mapping: AFA 100 ≈ CGC 10.0; AFA 95 ≈ CGC 9.8; AFA 90 ≈ CGC 9.5; AFA 85 ≈ CGC 9.0; AFA 80 ≈ CGC 8.5; AFA 75 ≈ CGC 8.0; AFA 70 ≈ CGC 7.5. CGC's 0.5-step scale is finer than AFA's 5-point bands, but resale buyers price within 5–10% of each other across both scales.
Yes — modern AFA submissions can return half-step grades like 90.5, 85.5, or 87.5. These are real grades that appear on the slab. The band labels (Mint, Near Mint, etc.) remain tied to the 5-point thresholds, but the published grade reflects the exact axis-weighted score.
AFA 90 (Mint). This is the cutoff where Heritage, Goldin, and Sotheby's price differently — and where corporate vault funds and institutional collectors enter the buyer pool. AFA 85 is collector-grade with strong resale; AFA 90 is investment-grade with auction-house liquidity. The premium delta between the two is 60–110% on Modulars and UCS.
