What Is a SLAM Score?

How SLAM Scores Work

A SLAM score is Mantel's proprietary 0-to-100 rating that measures how liquid a sports card is on the secondary market — how quickly and reliably it will sell at fair market value. SLAM stands for Secondary Liquidity and Momentum. It is not a price estimate or a condition grade. It answers a different question entirely: if you own this card and want to sell it today, how easy would that be?

The score is calculated from recent sales data pulled from major marketplaces including eBay and Fanatics Collect. Three pillars feed into the calculation:

• Tradeability -- Combines sales volume with price stability over time. A card scores high on tradeability when it moves at recent comps and retains value across transactions, not just when it sells frequently.
• Consistency -- Rewards cards with steady sales frequency and comp retention. A single anomalous high-value sale does not inflate the score. The algorithm looks for cards that sell regularly at predictable prices.
• Accessibility -- Focuses on cards that everyday collectors can actually buy and sell. Ultra-rare cards like 1/1s and super short prints are intentionally filtered out because their markets are too thin to measure reliably.

Each card-and-grade combination receives its own SLAM score. A PSA 10 copy of a card will have a different SLAM score than a PSA 9 or a raw (ungraded) copy of the same card, because each grade trades at different frequencies and price points.

The Four SLAM Tiers

Every SLAM score maps to one of four tiers that give you an immediate read on market conditions:

Cash (90-100) -- As close to cold hard cash as you can get. Cards in this tier are selling frequently and consistently at fair market value. If you list one at a reasonable price, it will likely sell quickly. These are the most liquid cards in the hobby at any given time.

Liquid (70-89) -- High demand, easy to sell. These cards have strong buyer interest and healthy transaction volume. You may not get an instant sale, but there is an active market and you should not have trouble finding a buyer within a reasonable timeframe.

Inventory (40-69) -- Sellable with patience. Cards in this range have moderate market activity. They do sell, but not as quickly or as predictably. You may need to be patient on timing or flexible on price to move them.

Collection (0-39) -- Buy it because you love it. Limited recent sales activity means these cards are harder to sell at a predictable price. That does not make them worthless -- it means the market is thin. Collectors buy these cards because they want them in their collection, not because they expect to flip them.

What Makes a Card Liquid vs Illiquid

Several factors influence where a card lands on the SLAM scale:

Player popularity and performance. Active superstars in peak seasons tend to have the most liquid cards. A breakout rookie year, a championship run, or a record-setting performance drives buyer interest and pushes SLAM scores higher.

Card grade. Graded cards -- especially PSA 10 and BGS 9.5 -- generally trade more actively than raw copies. The grading authentication provides buyer confidence, which reduces friction in transactions. That said, some high-volume base cards trade actively in raw condition because the price point is accessible.

Product and rarity. Flagship products like Topps Chrome, Prizm, and Bowman Chrome 1st tend to have more active markets than niche inserts or ultra-low-print parallels. Scarcity cuts both ways: a card numbered to /10 is rare, but that rarity can also mean fewer buyers are searching for it at any given time.

Sport and season timing. Market activity follows the sports calendar. Football cards tend to be most liquid during NFL season. Baseball cards peak around Opening Day and the postseason. Off-season periods can temporarily lower SLAM scores even for popular cards.

Price point. Cards in the $20 to $500 range often have the highest SLAM scores because the price is accessible to a large pool of buyers. Ultra-high-end cards ($5,000+) may have strong demand but lower transaction frequency simply because fewer collectors can afford them.

How to Use SLAM Scores

SLAM scores are a decision-making tool. Here are the most common ways collectors use them:

Before buying. Check the SLAM score to understand what you are getting into. A high SLAM score means you are buying a card with an active resale market. A low SLAM score means you should be comfortable holding it long-term or accepting that selling it later may take time.

Before selling. A card with a SLAM score in the Cash or Liquid tier is a good candidate to list now -- the market is there. A card in the Inventory or Collection tier may benefit from waiting for a catalyst (a player's hot streak, a playoff appearance, or increased hobby interest) that could push activity higher.

Comparing options. When deciding between two similar cards -- say, a PSA 10 and a PSA 9 of the same player -- the SLAM scores reveal which grade has the more active market. Sometimes the PSA 9 is significantly more liquid because the price point attracts more buyers.

Portfolio management. If you collect with any eye toward value, SLAM scores help you understand the overall liquidity of your collection. A collection full of Cash and Liquid cards can be converted to cash relatively quickly. A collection dominated by Collection-tier cards is less flexible.

What SLAM Scores Do Not Measure

SLAM scores are built on actual transaction data. They intentionally exclude several things that other tools or platforms might factor in:

• Price prediction. A SLAM score does not forecast whether a card's value will go up or down. It measures current market activity, not future price movement.
• Investment recommendations. SLAM scores are not financial advice. A high score means a card is liquid, not that it is a good investment.
• Hype or media buzz. Social media mentions, news coverage, and speculative sentiment do not factor into the score. Only completed sales data counts.
• Ultra-rare cards. Cards like 1/1s and extreme short prints are excluded because their markets are too thin to score reliably. A card that sells once a year does not generate enough data for a meaningful SLAM score.

SLAM Score vs Card Grades

This is the most common point of confusion, so it is worth being direct: SLAM scores and card grades measure completely different things.

Card grades from services like PSA, BGS, and SGC evaluate the physical condition of a card. They look at centering, corners, edges, and surface quality. A PSA 10 means the card is in gem mint condition. The grade is permanent -- it does not change over time (assuming the card stays in its holder).

SLAM scores evaluate the market around the card. They measure how often a specific card-and-grade combination is selling, at what price, and how liquid the market is. SLAM scores change over time as market conditions shift. A card can be a PSA 10 (perfect condition) and have a low SLAM score (thin market). A raw card can have a high SLAM score if buyers are actively transacting.

Think of it this way: the grade tells you about the card. The SLAM score tells you about the market for the card.

Where to Find SLAM Scores

SLAM scores are available across the Mantel platform:

• Mantel app -- Download the Mantel app to browse SLAM scores on the go and get the full card marketplace experience.
• Collect pages -- Browse SLAM scores organized by sport and category on pages like baseball cards, basketball cards, football cards, and hockey cards.
• Card search -- Search for any card on Mantel to see its SLAM score alongside recent sales data, marketplace listings, and price trends.

SLAM scores are one part of the data Mantel provides to help collectors make informed decisions. Combined with real-time marketplace listings, recent comparable sales, and price trend charts, they give you a more complete picture of what is actually happening in the market -- not just what sellers are hoping to get.

Frequently Asked Questions