Pitch Black Preorder Guide: Sealed Prices, Where and What to Buy
The next Pokémon TCG Mega Evolution set, Pitch Black, will be releasing on July 17, 2026. And while we’re still waiting for its products to go live on the Pokemon Center Official Store, you can already put your preorders in on TCGPlayer, meaning you can start locking in on the products you want at the best market price. In this guide I’ll be giving you the rundown of which products you’ll want to buy, sharing what their current live market prices are, and where you can pick these products up via preorder or in store on release day.
Pitch Black Elite Trainer Box
Elite Trainer Boxes are almost always a top choice for any Pokémon TCG set. The Pitch Black ETB has the special benefit of featuring Mega Darkrai itself, complete with an epic logo surrounded by ghostly visual effects from the abyss where the mythical Pokémon comes from. Thanks to its haunted Pokémon, Pitch Black ETB will likely be a very popular product – up there among the most popular in the Mega Evolution era.
ETBs come with a lot of goodies, including:
• 9 Pokémon TCG: Mega Evolution—Pitch Black booster packs (contents vary by product)
• 1 full-art foil promo card featuring Zarude
• 65 card sleeves
• 40 Pokémon TCG Energy cards
• A player’s guide to the Mega Evolution—Pitch Black expansion
• 6 damage-counter dice
• 1 competition-legal coin-flip die
• 1 plastic coin
• A collector’s box to hold everything, with 6 dividers to keep it organized
• A code card for Pokémon Trading Card Game Live
One of the biggest draws for the ETB is typically the Illustration Art promo you get included. This ETB’s promo is going to be Zarude.
Pitch Black Pokemon Center Elite Trainer Box (Exclusive)
ME05: Pitch Black
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However, just note that the Zarude promo pictured above with the Pokémon Center stamp is only available in the Pokémon Center Exclusive ETB which is trending at a much higher price for preorders – although it does come with additional packs and the stamped Zarude promo which is considerably more valuable than its regular ETB (without the stamp) counterpart.
Pitch Black Booster Box
Next up we have the Pitch Black Booster Box. While the Elite Trainer Box is the best entry level product for player/collectors to buy, the booster box is best for those who want the maximum number of packs for the best price.
36 packs per box is a lot of packs, giving you the best pack-to-dollar ratio you can find from a single product. The only way really to maximize value is to purchase an entire Pitch Black Booster Box Case from my partners at TCGPlayer.
Doing so will run you a couple grand, but that is technically the best way to maximize your value overall. I would only recommend doing this if you are seriously into collecting or plan to sell off high value pulls to get some of your money back.
Pitch Black Booster Bundle
Booster bundles are a decent alternative to booster boxes for more casual collectors. While they lack the same kind of pack value you get from a box, they’re considerably cheaper. At the same, they’re also cheaper than ETBs. And while they may lack the frills and fun of an ETB, they have almost as many packs for considerably less.
Most serious collectors will prefer the ETB for the cool add-ons or the booster box for the better value, but Booster Bundles are a fun way to experience Pitch Black on a budget.
Pitch Black Build & Battle Box
The best way to experience the Pitch Black Build & Battle Box is to go to a prerelease event near you. Prereleases work under special rules that let you build a deck with the newest cards from a set and test them out in battle against other players. However, finding these events can be challenging, and openings are limited with how popular the Pokémon TCG is right now. So another good option is to pick one of these up via preorder. Each Build & Battle box also comes with a unique, special stamped promo that you can’t get anywhere else!
Pitch Black preorders for $50 and under
So far, all of the above products will run you a decent amount via preordering from TCGPlayer. However, if you’re more budget conscious than necessarily wanting to optimize for packs to pull, then you might like these more affordable products instead.
Pitch Black booster pack
If you’re just looking for a quick hit, or a little one-hit-wonder magic, why not give a booster pack a try? These are available for preorder for under $20 a piece right now on TCGPlayer. Realistically, it’s probably better to wait on picking up booster packs until closer to release date or even after. Just as a point of reference, Chaos Rising booster packs (although originally less pricey than Pitch Black) are currently selling for under $10.
Pitch Black Single Pack Blister
![Pitch Black Single Pack Blister [Slowpoke] Pokemon Product](https://tcgplayer-cdn.tcgplayer.com/product/692955_400w.jpg)
Pitch Black Single Pack Blister [Slowpoke]
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Meanwhile, for a similar amount of money you can get a pack, a promo, and a coin when you preorder a Single Pack Blister for Pitch Black.
Pitch Black 3 Pack Blister
![Pitch Black 3 Pack Blister [Binacle] Pokemon Product](https://tcgplayer-cdn.tcgplayer.com/product/692938_400w.jpg)
For a bit more money you can get a three pack blister. These contain three Pitch Black booster packs as well as special promo. If you’re looking for a quick hit for under $50 that’s easy to preorder right now, the 3-Pack Blister offers considerably more value than picking up loose packs.
Pitch Black Booster Pack Art Bundle (Set of 4)
![Pitch Black Booster Pack Art Bundle [Set of 4] Pokemon Product](https://tcgplayer-cdn.tcgplayer.com/product/692945_400w.jpg)
Pitch Black Booster Pack Art Bundle [Set of 4]
ME05: Pitch Black
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Lastly, pushing just a little past that $50 mark is this set of four Pitch Black booster packs, each one containing one of the four different booster pack arts.
With one more pack than the blister, the art bundle will increase your odds of pulling something epic versus a single pack, offering a better pack-to-price ratio while also letting you see each of this set’s gorgeous pack artworks.
Where to buy Pitch Black Pokémon card products
While right now TCGPlayer is arguably the best spot to place your preorders, it’s far from the only place to buy Pokémon cards. Here are a few more options for both in-store pickups and online preorders.
Preorder on Amazon
Pitch Black products are currently loaded onto the Amazon store but not yet available. Many preorder their Pokémon TCG products from Amazon, however, and you can use my affiliate link below to get yours. However, just looking at the prices for Chaos Rising (Pokémon’s latest set), TCGPlayer’s prices look considerably better.
Pokémon Center
One of the most popular destinations to preorder upcoming Pokémon TCG sets is the official Pokémon Center website. While the Pitch Black products appear to have been added to the backend of the website, they’ve yet to go live. Just a bit of fair warning, however: despite the attraction of picking up Pitch Black products for MSRP (considerably lower than what you’d get on TCGPlayer), these products sell out notoriously quickly, and lines to just get onto the store can last for hours.
Department stores and retailers
Department stores like Best Buy and Target are popular spots for picking up Pokémon TCG products. While they won’t typically work for preorders, fans line up around the block at these stores in hopes of picking up products at MSRP or close to it. Select stores will even offer a special promo just for picking up products in store.
GameStop
GameStop has been putting a huge emphasis on Pokémon cards in recent years, although unlike other big retailers you won’t be paying MSRP when shopping at GameStop. Essentially, GameStop acts as your local game store but with a brand name behind it: last time I checked earlier this year they even still take preorders from their local customers!
Local Game Stores
Lastly, there’s your friendly local game store. Apart from TCGPlayer (which is my preferred way to go for ordering products), the local game store is my second option for picking up products. These days, most shops will sell products at a similar rate to TCGPlayer’s market price. Just double check this guide for the current price before committing to any purchases!
Because they aren’t selling at MSRP, many local game shops will have products available the same day of release for a new set, and you can even get on the list to preorder at some local shops.
While there are all kinds of different ways to purchase Pokémon TCG: Pitch Black products, purchasing from TCGPlayer is easy and fast. Skip the drama of waiting in lines overnight at local shops or hoping to get a spot in line when the Pokémon Center queue opens – your time is valuable and TCGPlayer offers the best market prices while saving you precious time.
