Zubat · Team Rocket, what to know.
About the Zubat card
Zubat is card 70 of 83 in Team Rocket, released in April 2000, a Common. It is a Basic Grass-type with 40 HP.
As a Basic Pokémon, Zubat needs no prior evolution to put into play, which made it a practical card in the era's decks.
Illustrated by Mitsuhiro Arita. Arita painted the Base Set Charizard and much of the early holo run, and his work has a painterly weight that set the visual tone of the Wizards era.
The card's flavor text gives Zubat a line of lore: "Lives in dark caves. Can occasionally be seen at night, when it flies in search of food."
About Zubat in the Pokémon world
The bat Pokémon. Famously over-encountered in cave areas of the games. Common card across multiple early sets. Familiar punchline for veteran players.
What is Zubat worth?
Zubat 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
Team Rocket shipped in 1st Edition and Unlimited, with no Shadowless print. The 1st Edition Zubat carries the Edition 1 stamp under the artwork and trades above the Unlimited copy in matching grade. The set is also home to Dark Raichu, the first Secret Rare ever printed.
Grading and condition
Zubat 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 Zubat
Raw copies of Zubat are inexpensive enough that grading rarely pays unless you have a clearly pack-fresh example. For set completion, a clean sleeved Zubat is the practical move.
Three prints, three markets.
Edition 1 stamp under the artwork. Trades above Unlimited in matching grade.
No stamp. The standard, more affordable print.
