What Do the Symbols on Pokémon Cards Mean?

Let’s be honest, for a while, many of us just picked the Pokémon cards we thought looked the coolest. That holographic Blastoise? Awesome. That adorable Jigglypuff? A must-have. We’d get into battles with friends and pretty much just make up the rules as we went along.

“This circle thingy means he’s extra strong, right?” If that sounds familiar, you’re in the right place. It turns out those little symbols actually have a purpose, and knowing what they mean can be a game-changer. It’s finally time to figure out what we were supposed to be doing all these years.

Anatomy of a Pokémon Card: Top to Bottom

To solve this puzzle, let’s take a tour of a standard Pokémon card. We’ll start at the top and work our way down, decoding as we go.

At the Top: The Absolute Essentials

This is your Pokémon’s vital information, kind of like its driver’s license.

Name and HP

Right at the top, you’ll see the Pokémon’s name and, to the right, its “HP” (Hit Points). The HP is simply how much damage a Pokémon can take before it’s Knocked Out. The higher the number, the beefier the Pokémon. A Magikarp might have a measly 30 HP, while a Snorlax VMAX could be sporting a whopping 340 HP.

Evolution Stage

In the top-left corner, you’ll see if the card is a Basic Pokémon or an evolution. A Basic can be played directly from your hand. A Stage 1 card evolves from a specific Basic Pokémon, and a Stage 2 evolves from a Stage 1. You have to follow the chain; you can’t just throw down a Charizard without having a Charmander and Charmeleon first! Special cards like Pokémon ex, V, and VMAX have their own rules but generally follow these principles.

Type

Next to the HP is a symbol that represents the Pokémon’s type. This is its elemental alignment, like Fire (🔥), Water (💧), or Grass (🍃). There are 11 types in the modern TCG, and this symbol is crucial for figuring out Weakness and Resistance.

The Middle: Pretty Pictures and Powerful Punches

This is where the action happens. The card’s art and its attacks live here.

The Artwork

This is what drew us all in as kids! It’s the beautiful illustration of the Pokémon. Tucked away at the bottom of the art box, you’ll almost always see the illustrator’s name—give a little nod of respect to the artist who brought your favorite creature to life.

Attacks and Abilities

Below the art, you’ll find the Pokémon’s attacks.

• Energy Cost: To the left of each attack name, you’ll see a series of symbols. These tell you how much and what type of Energy you need to attach to the Pokémon to use that attack. A 🔥 symbol requires one Fire Energy, for example. The star symbol (⭐) represents Colorless Energy, which is a wildcard—you can use any type of Energy to fulfill that cost.
• Damage: To the right of the attack name is a number. That’s the base damage the attack does to your opponent’s Active Pokémon. Bigger number equals bigger ouch.
• Attack Effects: Some attacks have extra text underneath them describing special conditions or effects, like making the opponent’s Pokémon fall Asleep or discarding their Energy. Read these carefully; they can completely turn the tide of a battle!

At the Bottom: The Fine Print for Future Champions

This bottom section contains the nitty-gritty details that separate the rookies from the masters.

Weakness and Resistance

This is basically your Pokémon’s kryptonite and its superpower.

• Weakness: The symbol here shows which Pokémon type is super effective against this card. The “x2” next to it means it takes double the damage from that type. So, if your Grass-type Pokémon has a Weakness to Fire x2, a 50-damage Fire attack will hit it for 100!
• Resistance: This is the opposite. If a Pokémon has Resistance to a type, it takes less damage from it. A “-30” means you subtract 30 damage from any attack of that type.

Retreat Cost

See those Colorless Energy symbols (⭐) at the very bottom right? That’s the Retreat Cost. If you want to swap your Active Pokémon with one from your Bench, you have to discard that much Energy from the retreating Pokémon. Some nimble Pokémon have a free retreat cost (zero symbols), while big, heavy ones might cost a lot.

The Footer Bar: A Treasure Trove of Info

Rarity Symbol

This is the one we all tried to decipher. In the bottom corner (usually right), there’s a small symbol that indicates how rare the card is.

• Circle (⚫): Common. You’ll have a million of these.
• Diamond (◆): Uncommon. A bit harder to find.
• Star (★): Rare. This is where the exciting Pokémon usually are.
• Modern Rarity: In recent sets, they’ve added more stars to help! Two black stars (★★) are “Double Rare” (like most Pokémon ex), two silver stars are “Ultra Rare” (think full-art cards), and golden or multi-colored stars denote even rarer “Illustration Rares” or “Hyper Rares.”

Card and Set Number

You’ll see something like “025/165”. This means it’s card number 25 out of an official set of 165 cards. If the first number is higher than the second (e.g., “166/165”), you’ve got a “Secret Rare” on your hands—the hardest to find and often the most valuable!

Set Symbol

A small icon that represents the expansion set the card belongs to (e.g., Obsidian Flames or 151). It’s a great way to organize your collection.

Regulation Mark

In the bottom left, you’ll see a letter like F, G, or H. This is the Regulation Mark, and it’s super important for official tournament play. It tells you which competitive season the card is legal for. As new sets come out, older marks are “rotated” out of the standard format.

You’ve Leveled Up!

And there you have it! You’ve officially graduated from “Oooh, shiny!” to a knowledgeable trainer who understands the language of the cards. Go on, dig out that old shoebox of cards. You now have the power to look at that beat-up old Rattata and know exactly what its Retreat Cost is.

The world of Pokémon TCG is now your Cloyster!