If you are going to spend time and money at The National Sports Card Convention in Cleveland from July 24-28, you'll want to make sure to properly protect the new cards you pick up at the show. That way will be able to enjoy your collection for years, without depreciating the cards' value when you handle them.

Different cards call for different types of card protection. For instance, you’ll protect your vintage rookie cards in a much different way than you will your older common/base cards. We’ll start with the cheapest protection and move toward the more expensive options.

Penny Sleeves

These are thin plastic sleeves you’ll want to put nearly all your cards into once you deem them worthy of protection (some cards can remain “sleeveless” because the penny sleeve might be worth more!).

Pro Tip: Cut the corner of the top of a penny sleeve before you slide your card into it, and you’ll lessen your chances of damaging the card.

Top Loaders

These plastic sleeves are thicker and more protective than the penny sleeve, and they’ll protect corners and edges from being damaged, just like how a penny sleeve protects the surface from scratches. Penny sleeves and top loaders are the very first steps to protecting nearly any card that comes out of a pack. (There are thick sleeves and thick top loaders you can purchase, as well, for thicker cards that have a patch or relic.)

Pro Tip: For thicker cards, don’t use Card Savers. Grading companies are OK with you submitting thicker cards in thick top loaders.

Card Savers

When submitting cards to be graded, they need to be in penny sleeves before being inserted into these semi-rigid card savers, rather than top loaders. These sleeves are thinner than top loaders, but they are longer and wider, helping to keep the card secure inside to protect the corners.

Pro Tip: Before putting in your cards, jam a thicker card with a thick penny sleeve into the Card Saver and move it around. This will expand the bottom of the card saver, so when you take out the thick card, your card (in a penny sleeve) will slide in much easier, with less chance of damage.

Team Bag Sleeves

These sleeves can take multiple raw cards, penny-sleeved cards or cards in top loaders, which make for easy shipping and storage. Think of them as a bigger penny sleeve (but your cards should already be protected before going in team bags).

One-Touch Magnetic Protectors

This form of protection is for those who want to protect great cards, but aren’t planning to submit for grading just yet – or ever. These thick card holders usually have two small hinges on one end, and a magnetic spot at the top that keeps it closed. They are easily opened – but not too easily – and closed. It’s generally considered a good practice to still keep your card in a penny sleeve, and insert the card into the One-Touch’s indention before closing. Again, you can get these in different thicknesses, so make sure you buy one that fits your card (most cards have 35pt thickness.)

Cardboard Boxes For Cards

It’s time to ditch the shoebox! Go with a standard cardboard trading card box. There are different versions, though, as some are for standard cards with no protection, and some are for cards in top loaders already.

Card Display

Whether you have slabs of already graded cards, one-touch magnetic holders or just great cards in top loaders, you likely want to display some of them (perhaps even on your mantelpiece!). There are some great card displays available in different sizes and prices. Each row has a lip to keep your card/slab from slipping out, and they have UV protection to help keep your cards from fading.

Graded Card Storage Box

If you plan to take your graded cards to a card show, or you are just planning to travel with them and don’t want them to get scratched up, these graded card briefcases are perfect for your slabs and one-touch holders. Boxes like this also offer security because you can lock them.

Trading Card Binders and 9-Card Pages

Always the controversial choice, many people detest card binders and pages, while others swear by them. The pros are that you can see your card collection pretty easily and enjoy them with little space taken up. The cons are that there might be more opportunities for damaging the cards in a binder. If you go with a binder, get acid-free pages, and just take extra care when inserting your cards and flipping through the pages!