A Holo-First Edition Dragonite Fossil set card that is graded a 10 on the PSA grading scale has an average price of $5,761.83 on psacard.com.
The highest recorded sale at auction of this card was $9,850 in October of 2020. It is the most consistently valuable card from the First Edition Fossil set card collection that was released in 1999.
Dragonite is Pokémon #149, making it a part of the original set of 151 Pokémon created for the first Pokémon games, Red and Green, released in Japan in early 1996.
It is one of the rarest Pokémon in the first collection of games and can only be obtained by evolving a Dragonair. Dragonite also makes several appearances in the anime adaption of Pokemon, with the first being in Episode 13: Mystery at the Lighthouse.
The original English release of the Dragonite Pokémon card was in 1999 as a part of the First Edition Fossil set cards, a set that included all the pre-historic, ancient, and dinosaur-like Pokémon.
It is the first card to come with a rainbow holographic foil and is probably the origin of the term “rainbow rare” that is used to refer to rare Pokémon cards with rainbow holographic foil.
Some other notable cards from that First edition Fossil release include the First Edition Gengar, a fan-favorite Pokémon, and currently a very difficult card to obtain in good condition.
There are only about 100 PSA 10 graded Gengars on the known market, driving its cost up as high as $4,000 in January 2021.
The First Edition Fossil Articuno is another very popular card from the Fossil release.
Although not as much of a fan favorite as its legendary bird companion Zapdos, the Articuno card holds a higher value because of its blue holographic effect and high-quality artwork.
Currently, a PSA 10 graded Articuno First Edition Fossil is valued at around $3,000.
There have been many releases of Dragonite cards as part of different card sets. The most notable release was the Dark Dragonite Holographic card (part of the Team Rocket collection) with a print error that made them non-holographic.
Due to this error being limited to a very small amount of the cards, a Dark Dragonite with this error can reach prices well above $1,000.
Below is a list of the most valuable Dragonite cards currently available, most of them up for auction on eBay or available for purchase on Amazon. (Note: The PSA grading scale is 1-10)
#10 – Dragonite – Triumphant
The Triumphant card set was released on November 3rd, 2010. It is another very easy-to-obtain card that can be bought for an average of $6.11. The best grade card available will cost around $18.15.
#9- Dragonite – Sun and Moon
The Sun and Moon card set was released on February 3, 2017.
The highest-grade versions of the Dragonite Rare Holo card from this set can go for $50 or higher, although the reverse foil version of the card has little value and an average price of $4.45.
#8- Dragonite-EX – Furious Fist
The Furious Fist card set was released on August 13th, 2014.
It is one of the easiest to obtain Dragonite cards and can be easily bought for 6 dollars or less. A PSA 10 is sold for an average of $128.07.
#7- Dragonite FB- Supreme Victors
The Supreme Victors card set was released on August 19th, 2009, as the third set of Pokemon cards was released in the Platinum Series.
The reverse foil version of the Supreme Victors Dragonite card is by far the more valuable, with an average cost of $25 in comparison to just $5.66 for the regular card. A PSA 10 is sold for an average price of $300.
#6- Dragonite-EX – Evolutions
The Evolutions card set was released on November 2, 2016. The highest listed price for the Evolutions Dragonite Rare Holo Ex card is $77.07 and its value has been slowly trending upward.
#5- Dark Dragonite – EX Team Rocket Returns
EX Team Rocket Returns card set was released on November 8th, 2004.
The Dark Dragonite is a fan favorite card, with a PSA 9 rated Dark Dragonite from the Team Rocket Returns collection listed at $515.
It is not as popular or as valuable as the Dark Dragonite card from the original Team Rocket card set release but still commands a comparatively high price at high grades.
#4- Dragonite – Legends Awakened
Legends Awakened card set was released on August 20th, 2008.
This card has a reasonably high average cost and is the first on this list to come with a high-grade asking price of above $1000.
Making this card more valuable is that a special staff version of the Dragonite – Legends Awakened card was created for the 2008 Pokemon National Championships.
The staff version of this card fetches consistently higher prices.
#3- Light Dragonite – Neo Destiny
The Neo Destiny card set was released on February 28th, 2002, and was the final Neo set.
The average sale price of the Light Dragonite Holo card from Neo Destiny on PSAcard.com is $1,132 for a PSA 10 rated card.
It has a high average value for high-quality cards and has some of the most interesting artwork among the various Dragonite cards.
#2- Dragonite – Fossils
The Fossils card set was released on October 10, 1999, in English.
This is the original Dragonite card release and fetches prices above $5,000 and as high as $9,000 for the Dragonite- Holo First edition version of the card.
It is the original “rainbow rare” in reference to its unique rainbow holographic effect.
#1- Dark Dragonite – Team Rocket
The Team Rocket card set was released on April 24th, 2000.
The original version of the Dark Dragonite card fetches some very solid prices even for the unlimited versions of the card.
Once you move up into the first edition version of the card, prices begin to rise above $500 and even into the low $2000 for PSA 10 rated cards.
The rarest version of the card however is the error version. Due to a printing error, some of the cards that were meant to have the holo printed on did not.
The error version of the Team Rocket Dark Dragonite can go even higher than that, reaching up into the $6,000-$7,000 range. The average price for a PSA 9 (no 10 graded cards have been sold through PSA) is $6,400.
Where a Dark Dragonite PSA 10 is to be sold, it would be the most valuable Dragonite card available.