Pokémon, Magic: The Gathering, Lorcana, One Piece and most other trading card games use 63 x 88 mm cards, which take standard-size sleeves: deck sleeves of 66 x 91 mm (66 x 92 mm at some makers), penny sleeves of about 66.7 x 92.1 mm and inner sleeves of 64 x 89 mm. Yu-Gi-Oh! and Cardfight!! Vanguard use smaller 59 x 86 mm cards and take Japanese-size sleeves of 62 x 89 mm, with 60 x 87 mm inners.
Japanese Pokémon cards are standard size, like every other language, and full arts, gold and textured cards take the same sleeves as any other game card. The "Japanese size" printed on some sleeve boxes means the small Yu-Gi-Oh! size, 62 mm wide: too narrow for a 63 mm Pokémon card, whatever its language.
Which sleeve size for which game
| Game | Card size | Sleeves to buy |
|---|---|---|
| Pokémon, every language | 63 x 88 mm | Standard |
| Magic: The Gathering | 63 x 88 mm | Standard |
| Disney Lorcana | 63 x 88 mm | Standard |
| One Piece Card Game | 63 x 88 mm | Standard |
| Flesh and Blood | 63 x 88 mm | Standard |
| Dragon Ball Super | 63 x 88 mm | Standard |
| Weiss Schwarz | 63 x 88 mm | Standard |
| Grand Archive | 63 x 88 mm | Standard |
| Sports cards | 2.5 x 3.5 in (63.5 x 88.9 mm) | Standard |
| Yu-Gi-Oh! | 59 x 86 mm | Japanese size |
| Cardfight!! Vanguard | 59 x 86 mm | Japanese size |
Standard sleeves are made for the 2.5 x 3.5 inch card; a Pokémon card, at 2.48 x 3.46 inches, is a hair smaller and fits the same sleeves. For a game not listed, measure one card: 63 mm wide means standard sleeves, 59 mm means Japanese size. Board games use many other card sizes, which this guide does not cover.
What to buy depends on what you do with the card:
- To play: deck sleeves, with inner sleeves under them for a deck worth protecting (double sleeving).
- To store a card: a penny sleeve inside a 3x4 toploader, or a binder page.
- To send a card for grading: a clear penny sleeve inside a semi-rigid holder.
- To display a card: a magnetic one-touch holder of the card's thickness.
Sleeve sizes by type
| Sleeve | Standard size | Japanese size | What it is for |
|---|---|---|---|
| Inner (perfect fit) | 64 x 89 mm | 60 x 87 mm | First layer for double sleeving, under a deck sleeve |
| Deck sleeve | 66 x 91 mm, or 66 x 92 mm | 62 x 89 mm | Play: thicker, usually with an opaque or matte back |
| Penny sleeve | 66.7 x 92.1 mm, up to 67 x 94 mm | - | Storage, and the first layer inside a toploader |
| Outer sleeve | 69 x 94 mm | 65 x 91 to 65 x 92 mm | Third layer, over a deck sleeve or an art sleeve |
A deck sleeve is a little narrower than a penny sleeve (66 mm against 66.7 to 67 mm) and much thicker. Penny sleeves are thin (Ultra PRO's are 45 µm a side) and made for storage, not for a deck you shuffle every week. For long storage, choose acid-free, PVC-free polypropylene, as Ultra PRO, BCW and Gamegenic sleeves are.
Thickness is measured in microns (µm; 1,000 µm is 1 mm): 50 to 100 µm for inner sleeves, 45 µm a side for Ultra PRO's penny sleeves, and 90 to 140 µm for deck sleeves, depending on the maker and on how it counts, as the next table shows.
What each maker publishes (checked September 24, 2026)
Sizes and thicknesses exactly as each maker gives them on its own product or help pages, width first:
| Sleeve | Type | Size | Thickness, as published |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dragon Shield Matte, Classic, Dual Matte | Deck | Not given; made for cards up to 63 x 88 mm | 120 µm per layer, 240 µm per sleeve |
| Ultra PRO Eclipse, PRO-Matte | Deck | 66 x 91 mm | 90 µm front, 120 µm back |
| KMC Hyper Mat | Deck | 66 x 92 mm | 0.12 mm, layer not stated |
| KMC Hyper Phoenix | Deck | 66 x 92 mm | 0.14 mm, layer not stated |
| Ultimate Guard Katana, Cortex | Deck | 66 x 91 mm | Not given |
| Gamegenic Matte Prime | Deck | 66 x 91 mm | Not given |
| Pokémon Center sleeves (US), 65 a pack | Deck | 2.6 x 3.6 in (about 66 x 91 mm) | Not given |
| Pokémon Center Deck Shield (Japan), 64 a pack | Deck | About 66 x 92 mm | About 0.2 mm for the sleeve |
| KMC Perfect Fit, Perfect Hard | Inner | 64 x 89 mm | 0.05 mm, 0.10 mm |
| Ultra PRO PRO-Fit | Inner | Not given | 50 µm front and back |
| Ultimate Guard Precise-Fit | Inner | 64 x 89 mm | Not given |
| Gamegenic Inner, Thick Inner | Inner | 64 x 89 mm | Thick Inner: 100 µm |
| Dragon Shield Perfect Fit, Thick Inner | Inner | Not given | 60 µm, 100 µm |
| BCW Standard Card Sleeves | Penny | 66.7 x 92.1 mm (2 5/8 x 3 5/8 in) | Not given |
| Gamegenic Soft Sleeves | Penny | 67 x 94 mm | Not given |
| Gamegenic Outer Sleeves | Outer | 69 x 94 mm | Not given |
| KMC Character Guard | Outer | 69 x 94 mm | 0.12 mm |
| Dragon Shield Outer Sleeves | Outer | Not given | 120 µm, like its regular sleeves |
In Japanese size, Ultra PRO, KMC (Hyper Mat Mini), Ultimate Guard and Gamegenic all make 62 x 89 mm sleeves, KMC's Perfect Mini and Ultimate Guard's Japanese Precise-Fit inners are 60 x 87 mm, and outers are 65 x 92 mm (Gamegenic) or 65 x 91 mm (KMC).
Two habits make packs hard to compare. Some makers print the card a sleeve is made for rather than the sleeve itself: the 63 x 88 mm on Dragon Shield's product pages is the card, and it appears on its outer sleeves too. And thickness is given per layer (Dragon Shield says so; Ultra PRO lists front and back) or as one number with no convention (KMC, Gamegenic). A 120 µm Dragon Shield sleeve therefore adds 0.24 mm to a card, and two sleeves sold as "120" may differ twofold.
The official Pokémon sleeves
The Pokémon Company sells its own sleeves. In the United States, the Pokémon Center sells them 65 to a pack, enough for a 60-card deck and spares, and lists them at 2.6 x 3.6 inches (about 66 x 91 mm). In Japan, the Deck Shield comes 64 to a pack (60 plus 4 spares) and measures about 66 x 92 mm and 0.2 mm thick. Both are standard size, made for the same 63 x 88 mm cards.
At Play! Pokémon tournaments, every sleeve in a deck must be the same color, design, condition, size and texture, with a single solid color on every edge, and must be either a single solid color or an officially licensed Pokémon design. Inner and outer sleeves are allowed as long as the deck can still be shuffled, and opaque backs are strongly recommended (tournament rules revised September 1, 2026). The other deck rules are in our guide to what goes in a 60-card deck.
How thick is a sleeved deck?
For a 60-card deck, with a card of about 0.3 mm (12 pt, or 0.305 mm, as in our card dimensions guide), Dragon Shield deck and outer sleeves at 240 µm each and an Ultra PRO PRO-Fit inner at 100 µm (50 a side):
| Setup | Per card | 60 cards | Against bare |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bare | 0.305 mm | 18 mm | - |
| Single sleeved | 0.545 mm | 33 mm | +79% |
| Double sleeved (inner + deck sleeve) | 0.645 mm | 39 mm | +111% |
| Triple sleeved (inner + deck + outer) | 0.885 mm | 53 mm | +190% |
A double-sleeved deck is about twice as thick as a bare one, and a triple-sleeved deck about three times. Deck boxes are sold by the number of cards they hold, so check whether the rating counts single- or double-sleeved cards before you buy one for a double- or triple-sleeved deck.
How to double sleeve a deck, step by step
Inner sleeve, top first. Slide the card top first into a perfect-fit inner sleeve (64 x 89 mm for standard cards, 60 x 87 mm for Japanese size).
Deck sleeve, bottom first. Slide the sleeved card bottom first into the deck sleeve, so the two openings sit at opposite ends. Hold the inner sleeve down with a fingertip as you push, or it rides up.
Press out the air. Lay the finished cards flat and press them with your hand to push out the air trapped between the layers.
Outer sleeve, for triple sleeving. Slide an outer sleeve (69 x 94 mm) over the deck sleeve, its opening opposite the deck sleeve's.
Side-loading inners make double sleeving faster but, by Dragon Shield's account of its own, protect less than top-loading ones; sealable inners close all four edges.
Toploaders, binders and grading
For a card you keep, the usual pair is a penny sleeve inside a 3x4 toploader. A "3x4" toploader is 3 by 4 inches outside; inside, BCW's measures 2 3/4 x 3 7/8 inches (69.9 x 98.4 mm), and a standard toploader takes cards up to 35 pt. Thicker patch and relic cards need thick toploaders, rated by point size from 55 pt up, or sleeves made for them: Ultra PRO's thick-card sleeves take cards up to 130 pt. Magnetic one-touch holders are sold by point size too, from 35 pt for a standard card up; Ultra PRO's contain UV-blocking additives.
BCW's 9-pocket binder pages have pockets of 2 5/8 x 3 5/8 inches (66.7 x 92.1 mm), the outside size of its penny sleeves, so a card in a 69 mm outer sleeve will not go in.
For grading, PSA asks, as of September 24, 2026, for each card in a clear penny sleeve inside a semi-rigid holder of 3 5/16 x 4 7/8 inches, and says not to use toploaders. BCW's semi-rigid #1 measures 81.0 x 108.0 mm inside. The card comes back sealed in a case: see what a Pokémon slab is.
Jumbo cards
Jumbo promos from collection boxes need their own holders. They measure 6 x 8 inches (152 x 203 mm) until about 2020 and 5.75 x 8 inches (146 x 203 mm) since, with a few at 6 x 9 inches, and smaller figures around 5.4 x 7.4 inches are quoted for recent ones. Measure yours before buying: a 6-inch card will not go into a sleeve made for 5.75 inches, and a 6 x 8 inch sleeve leaves the top edge of an 8-inch-tall jumbo exposed, which a slightly too tall 6 x 9 inch sleeve covers.
Common mistakes
- Japanese-size sleeves for Pokémon cards. They are 62 mm wide and a Pokémon card, Japanese or English, is 63 mm. The same goes for One Piece and Weiss Schwarz: Japanese games, standard-size cards.
- Standard sleeves for Yu-Gi-Oh!. A 59 x 86 mm card sits loose in a 66 x 91 mm sleeve, with about 7 mm of play across.
- Penny sleeves for play. They are thin and made for storage: a deck you shuffle needs deck sleeves.
- Reading the card size as the sleeve size. "For cards up to 63 x 88 mm" on a pack describes the card, not the sleeve.
- Opaque sleeves for grading. PSA asks for clear penny sleeves and warns that solid or opaque ones can cause delays.
FAQ
What size sleeves do Pokémon cards need?
Standard-size sleeves: 66 x 91 mm (or 66 x 92 mm) deck sleeves, penny sleeves of about 66.7 x 92.1 mm and 64 x 89 mm inners. Japanese-size sleeves are too narrow, even for Japanese Pokémon cards.
Are Pokémon and Magic: The Gathering sleeves the same size?
Yes. Both games use 63 x 88 mm cards, so the same sleeves, toploaders, binder pages and deck boxes work for both, and for Lorcana and One Piece too.
What size sleeves fit Yu-Gi-Oh! cards?
Japanese-size sleeves of 62 x 89 mm, with 60 x 87 mm inners for double sleeving. Yu-Gi-Oh! cards measure 59 x 86 mm.
What size is a penny sleeve?
BCW's penny sleeve is 2 5/8 x 3 5/8 inches (66.7 x 92.1 mm) outside; Gamegenic's soft sleeves are 67 x 94 mm. Both take standard 63 x 88 mm cards.
Do One Piece cards need Japanese-size sleeves?
No. One Piece is a Japanese game, but its cards measure 63 x 88 mm, the standard size, so Japanese-size sleeves are too small for them.
What is double sleeving?
A tight inner sleeve on the card, then a deck sleeve over it with the openings at opposite ends. It keeps dust and spills off the card and adds about 0.1 mm per card.
What sleeves fit a jumbo Pokémon card?
Measure it first: jumbos run from about 5.4 x 7.4 inches to 6 x 8 inches, and a few are 6 x 9. On an 8-inch-tall card, a 6 x 8 inch sleeve leaves the top edge exposed; a 6 x 9 inch sleeve covers it.
