Which one is the most accurate and/or to the date on how much comics worth? I already know about Wizard, but it doesn't show ALL comics.

Thanks.

I worked in a comic store for close to a year, and what we did was this: we had a hardback copy of the Overstreet Price Guide that we used for any old issues, since the Overstreet Guide is fairly extensive; but because the Overstreet Guides are only published annually, we used Wizard to double check current prices. And if you REALLY want to get a good idea of what a book is going for at a given moment, check eBay.

Overstreet is the definitive guide. I believe the new edition was just released.

But CaptainMarvel is also correct. eBay can be a good barometer for the TRUE value of a book.

Thanks, guys, for helping me out. I'll get Overstreet Price Guide. I just need to check all price of my comics, because I need to know the value so I can mention it on eBay when I'm ready to sell those.

Overstreet is probably the best, but Wizard is a lot of fun for it's articles (though it's not nearly as good as it was several years ago). I think they're into the 120's-130's now, and I remember first seeing issue number 11 with Cable and Shaft (from Youngblood) on the cover, an image never to be re-printed because of copyright violations.


Ahhh... the good old days.

my fiance wants to sell her collection of comics (yes, i'm marrying a woman who used to collect comics - how cool is that?!) she stopped collecting about 5 years ago. anyway, can anyone tell me of a site that we could go to to see what they are worth? or a site that lists the going price for certain titles? thanks.

If you want a "book" value, I'd suggest you consult a price guide. The Overstreet price guide is the main one that I know of. It's a book that you should be able to find in better stocked bookstores. There's also "Wizard," a monthly magazine/price guide. It's probably more up-to-date than Overstreet, but less concise.

On-line, you could check http://www.milehighcomics.com

A warning about Mile High Comics, though, is that their prices tend to be very high. She's probably never going to get anywhere near most of the prices they ask. MHC seems to be a fair bit of international business, and seem to exist primarlily for collectors to fill holes in their collections.

Probably the most realistic measure of what she can expect to get for her comics would be by checking Ebay -- and be sure to check the completed auctions to see what they actually sold for.

Unless the comics are old (pre-1980 or so) they're probably not worth much. From the 80s on -- the birth of the direct market for comics -- most comics are strong supply -- surplus, even. Meaning the prices they fetch will be low. Most only go for a fraction of cover. Some obscure books are in high demand, though. "Miracleman," for example.

I would also advise against going to a dealer to sell the comics, as you won't get anywhere near what they're actually worth. The dealer wants to make money, too. In fact, I've heard of some dealers actually buying lots of "modern" comics by the pound.

Most comic books from 1990-1995 had HUGE print-runs, far out-stripping any demand. Likewise, there's a huge surplus of them available to collectors and readers.

it would be cooler if she wanted to KEEP them!

Yes, as Josh intimates, comics are only worth what people will buy them for, and that's pretty much nothing. (I know, I have thousands).

Collect them because you enjoy reading them, but do not expect a financial return on your investment. As Keeper suggests, store them in a nice dry place and pass them down to your kids. They're sure to get alot of fun out of it and maybe one or two might be worth something by then.

O.k. comic book fans I need some help. I collected as a kid and stopped about ten years ago. I collected Batman and some weak ass Marvel titles, ( i.e. G.I. Joe, The Punisher...) I'm thinking about getting back into it. I'm tempted to pick up some of The Spiderman titles with the movie coming out and all. What I need to know is what titles out there are hot and are worth picking up? Are Spidey and Batman still good choices? Also, do comics still go up in value? I've looked at WizardWorld and noticed most titles really don't go up like they used to. Finally, if you live in Chicago what store do you pick up your titles at? Thanks alot.

The only really good advice I can give you is to not get back into comic books thinking that they are going to increase in value. I think that trying to speculate on comic books is harder now than ever.

I have comics from the late 70's, 80's, and even some from the 90's that are listed as valuable in the price guides. However, actually getting any money for them is a different issue. The local comic book store won't even buy comics. I would recommend buying comics because you want to read them and not to collect them hoping they will go up in value.

-I stopped collecting comics for over 5 years & if it wasn't for a friend recommending some new stuff to me I never would have gotten back into it & I can assure you comics are better now then they have ever been. So I'm always glad to help if I can.

I work in a comic book store that my friend owns so I'm pretty much on the beat of what's good right now.


I would say the 2 hottest title right now that are both DEFINITELY worth picking up are The Incredible Hulk & The Ultimates. The Ultimates is really good for you right now as it is only on #3 & you should still be able to get the first 2. It is a retelling of the Avengers, with new origins. The entire point of this being done is for people like me who HATE the Avengers & know nothing about them to be able to now read a fresh start, from the very beginning. And it is worth it. The book is like reading a large scale epic movie.

The hulk is another comic I never really liked but the new creative team has made the book a conspiracy type story, where Bruce banner is on the run from the law with extremely deadly bounty hunters after him. There are so many other amazing comics out right now it would be too much typing for me to tell you about them all.

Quote:

Are Spidey and Batman still good choices?

Unfortunately I don't like either character but I can tell you a little about them. the amazing spider-man is probably the BEST selling comic right now in all of comics after New X-men(which is in my opinion THE BEST comic being published today). J. Michael Stracynski (Babylon 5) is writing it & although I don't read the book, the customers say it's the best spider-man has ever been. Also Ultimate Spider-man is a new title like The ultimates that retells the story of Peter Parker from the beginning with a new twist, this is another one of the most popular books today.

Batman while not quite as hot is also huge right now with the recent revelation that[spoiler]Batman is now a fugitive of the law, & claims that Bruce Wayne no longer exists & was the made up personality all along, now only Batman exists[/b]

Quote:

Also, do comics still go up in value? .

Of coarse comics still go up in value. Origin, which is a mini-series that finally reveals the origin of Wolverine, is on issue #5, issue #1 came out only at the end of last year for a $2.95 cover price & is now over a $40.00 comic. This doesn't mean all comic are like this but the books that are hot are always going to go up in value. however most book that one may have from 10 years ago that were worth a lot of money (like Spawn, many spider-man & Image books) are worth nothing now. So you have to sell while the iron is hot. And not to a store. Pretty much the only way to make a profit is on ebay, but if your getting back into comics just ot make money, you have a serious problem, get back into them for fun & b/c they are better now than ever.

the bottom line is comics are definitely amazing right now. If you have any questions on any titles feel free to ask. A really good place to see some thoughts & mini-reviews on recent comics is over in the This weeks comics threads we post every week in this forum.

Don't get back into comics as a speculative venture.

Get back into them because you enjoy them...

And if you do that, what you enjoy depends on what your tastes are...

Thanks for all the good answers. I used to be and probasbly still like collecting for the increase in value of stuff. Unfortunately, that will probably be the reason why I officially stop collecting football and baseball cards. I just can't keep up with the high end items and impossible sets to complete.
Looks like I'm going to check out The Incredible Hulk, Ultimate Spiderman and Batman titles. This time around I'm just going to collect for the fun of it and not worry how much its worth in 5 years. Thanks!

I'm looking for pics of the covers of comic books? Anyone recommend any sites?

With so many different comic books out there, I think you would have better luck if you would post which covers you need. There are fan sites out there with every cover from a certain comic, but not all comics. You also may get lucky and someone on this forum may have what you are looking for.

http://www.milehighcomics.com

http://www.wizardworld.com has a lot of the old comics covers on it, but you have to do a search for specific issues or titles.

I finally bought a recent edition of the Overstreet Price Guide (since it was 50% off at a local comic book store that's going out of business). It's been years since I owned a copy (probably about the time Wizard killed off my favorite comic periodical: the Overstreet update, with its always entertaining "market reports") and I have to say the quality of the Guide has gone noticeably downhill. Aside from the oftentimes confusing issue number listings under each title in Overstreet (sometimes making it very difficult to figure out what the last issue of a given series actually is), there is a disturbing lack of information about the artists and writers who created the books.

I bought Overstreet hoping it would be at least a little more detailed than Wizard as far as creators were concerned. But I'm finding that that wasn't entirely a realistic expectation.

Does anyone know where I could find a site (or a publication) that lists EVERY artist (cover and interior) and EVERY writer for many, if not most, comics? Specifically, I'm looking for one that covers silver and bronze age books, since golden age are and will probably always be way out of my range.

I guess the reason I'm asking is that I'm no longer concerned with collecting every issue of a given title. Instead, my collecting interests have definitely moved towards being artist/writer centered (along with a good portion of the comic book audience, I'd wager). A publication that had more complete information about the comics' creators would be a big help in that respect.

Issues for the last several years of Wizard each have a spotlight section for a particular writer/artist and all the books they've worked on (at all)...

I doubt thats helpful, but I figured I'd just add it in case you have a stack of Wizards lying around (or have access to one).

Actually Liquid, I've got the last two years of Wizard piled up next to my computer and those lists are what inspired me to go out hunting for the information on my own.

The randomness of the creators Wizard chooses to spotlight kinda, sorta irked me. (How many minutes did it take to russle up a complete comicography of Kevin "overexposed" Smith?) So I thought I'd see if I could compile a list that actually interested me.

Why does Wizard bother putting in a two page spread with microscopic abbreviations for thousands of creators and then fail to actually use those abbreviations (with any degree of consistency) in their price-guide listings?

Maybe try emailing a couple of sites and asking them?

Like www.comicspriceguide.com or www.downtowncomicbox.com?

I have no idea if they'd help or not, but that's all I got.

or say the Top 5 most valuable comics

don't know but probably Superman #1