Lotus ScanHow to Detect Fake or Counterfeit MTG Cards
A step-by-step guide to help you detect fake or counterfeit mtg cards quickly and accurately.
The counterfeit Magic card market has become increasingly sophisticated, with fakes that can fool experienced players at first glance. As card values have risen, so has the incentive for counterfeiters to produce convincing replicas of expensive staples. Knowing how to authenticate cards protects you from losing money on trades, purchases, and collection building. This guide covers the most reliable physical tests you can perform at home and explains how scanning tools like Lotus Scan can serve as an additional verification layer.
Step-by-Step Guide
Perform the light test
Hold the card up to a bright light source like a flashlight or phone light. Genuine Magic cards have a blue core layer sandwiched between the front and back printing layers, which gives them a distinctive dark blue appearance when light shines through. Counterfeit cards typically lack this blue core and will appear brighter, more translucent, or show a grayish tone instead of blue. This is one of the fastest and most reliable authentication tests you can perform and works on cards from every era of Magic's history. Practice on a card you know is genuine so you learn what the correct blue glow looks like.
Tip: The light test is most effective in a dark room with a focused light source like a phone flashlight rather than ambient room lighting.
Use the green dot test with a loupe or magnifier
Get a jeweler's loupe or strong magnifying glass with at least 10x magnification and examine the green mana symbol on the back of the card. On genuine cards, the green dot is made up of a specific rosette print pattern of red, yellow, blue, and black dots that form the green color. On counterfeit cards, the dot pattern is usually blurry, shows visible ink bleeding, or uses a solid green color without the distinct dot pattern. This test requires a magnification tool but is considered one of the gold-standard methods for detecting fakes. You can buy a suitable loupe online for under ten dollars and it is an essential tool for anyone who buys or trades expensive singles.
Check the card weight and feel
Genuine Magic cards have a specific weight and flexibility that comes from their unique card stock. Hold the suspect card alongside a known genuine card of similar age and compare the feel. Real cards have a slight snap when you flex them gently, while many counterfeits feel either too stiff or too flimsy. The surface texture should feel smooth but not glossy or waxy, and the card should not feel slippery. Weight differences are subtle but noticeable if you handle cards frequently. Some collectors use precision scales to weigh cards, with genuine cards typically weighing around 1.7 to 1.8 grams each.
Tip: Compare the suspect card against a known genuine card from the same era. Card stock has changed over the years, so a genuine card from 2005 will feel different than one from 2023.
Examine print quality under magnification
Look closely at the card text, especially small text like the artist credit and copyright line. Genuine cards have crisp, clean text with no fuzzy edges or ink spreading. Counterfeits often show slightly blurred text, uneven ink density, or visible pixelation when magnified. Also check the black border of the card - genuine cards have a solid, even black border while fakes sometimes show a slightly off-black or inconsistent border color. The holographic security stamp on cards printed after Magic 2015 core set should feel slightly raised when you run your fingernail over it and should show a clean, sharp pattern under magnification.
Use a scanning app as an additional check
While no scanning app can definitively prove a card is real, Lotus Scan and similar tools can serve as a useful supplementary check. Scan the suspect card and compare the detected printing to what the card claims to be. If the scanner consistently fails to identify the card or matches it to the wrong printing, that can be a red flag worth investigating further. Counterfeit cards sometimes have subtle color differences or artwork sizing that confuses recognition algorithms trained on genuine card images. This is not a definitive test on its own, but combined with the physical tests above, it adds another layer of confidence to your authentication process.
Tip: If a card fails to scan repeatedly and you have concerns about its authenticity, do not complete the trade or purchase until you can perform the physical tests.
Know when to seek professional authentication
For high-value cards worth hundreds or thousands of dollars, consider professional authentication services like PSA, CGC, or Beckett. These services physically examine the card using industrial equipment and issue a grade with a tamper-proof case. The cost is typically $20 to $50 per card depending on the service level, which is a worthwhile investment for cards worth $200 or more. Professional grading also increases resale value and buyer confidence. If you are purchasing a high-value card from an individual seller, asking to see a professional grade or requesting the card be sent for grading before completing the sale is a reasonable and common practice.
Make It Easier with Lotus Scan
Lotus Scan for iPhone simplifies this entire process with AI-powered card recognition, real-time price tracking, and intuitive collection management. Just point your camera and scan.
Pro Tips
- Buy expensive singles from established sellers with return policies whenever possible. Reputable stores on TCGPlayer and Card Kingdom authenticate cards before listing them.
- Be extra cautious with Reserved List cards and old-border staples like dual lands. These are the most commonly counterfeited cards because of their high value and the difficulty of comparing them to recent printings.
- If you discover a counterfeit, report the seller to the platform where you purchased it. This protects other buyers in the community.
- Keep a known-genuine card from several eras in a reference sleeve so you always have a comparison card available for the light test and feel test.
- The water test, where you drop water on the card, does work to detect some fakes but it damages the card. Only use it as a last resort on inexpensive cards you are testing for educational purposes.