Ekans · Expedition Base Set, what to know.
About the Ekans card
Ekans is card 108 of 165 in Expedition Base Set, released in September 2002, a Common. It is a Basic Grass-type with 50 HP.
As a Basic Pokémon, Ekans needs no prior evolution to put into play, which made it a practical card in the era's decks.
Illustrated by Kyoko Umemoto.
About Ekans in the Pokémon world
The Poison-type snake. Its name is "snake" spelled backwards, a recurring naming trick in Gen 1. Fossil Ekans is a low-demand Common but holds steady raw value among set completionists.
What is Ekans worth?
Ekans is a Common, so raw copies trade for very little and most of the print run survives. The only real value is in pristine, high-grade copies, where even a Common can reach low triple digits in 1st Edition PSA 10. See the live price above for the current figure by grade.
Print variants and how to spot them
Confirm the print and finish on Ekans before pricing it, since variant and rarity set the market more than the card name alone.
Grading and condition
Ekans is the most forgiving tier to grade in the set. Centering on the framed border is the usual cap, and the soft Wizards-era cardstock picks up edge whitening easily, but high print runs keep clean copies affordable.
If you are collecting Ekans
Raw copies of Ekans are inexpensive enough that grading rarely pays unless you have a clearly pack-fresh example. For set completion, a clean sleeved Ekans is the practical move.
