PokePicks User Guide
Everything you need to know to find the best Pokémon card deals.
System Requirements
PokePicks runs on Windows 10, Windows 11, and macOS. No special hardware needed — both platforms have full feature parity.
Installation
Windows
Mac
First Launch
When you first open PokePicks, an Interactive Tour automatically starts to walk you through the app's features step by step. The tour highlights each part of the interface and explains what it does — just follow along and click Next to continue.
Once the tour is complete, you'll land on the Active watchlist tab showing your current tracked listings. All features are immediately accessible from the tab bar at the top — switch between your Watchlist tabs (Active, Ended, Buy Now), Search eBay, Early Bird, Hot Deals, Check Market, and Card Grade.
If you currently have items on eBay that are on your Watchlist, click Start Chrome and then Sync from eBay to import all your active eBay Watchlist items into PokePicks.
Interactive Tour
PokePicks includes a built-in interactive tour that walks you through every feature with step-by-step highlights. The first time you launch the app, the tour starts automatically — but you can re-run it anytime from the About link at the bottom of the app.
What the Tour Covers
The tour is broken into three guided walkthroughs that flow seamlessly from one to the next:
Main App Tour
Learn the toolbar buttons (Start Chrome, Sync from eBay, +Add, Settings), Watchlist tabs, Tools tabs, and where to find About & Calculator.
Search eBay Tour
See how the search bar works, try a live demo search, explore sort & filter options, listing actions, and image magnification.
Check Market Tour
Watch a live card lookup, then walk through Card Info, Current Market Value, Sold Auctions by grade, and the Price Trend Chart.
Each step highlights the relevant part of the app and explains what it does. You can navigate forward and back through steps, or skip the tour at any time.
Search eBay
The main search tab lets you look up any Pokémon card on eBay with powerful filters. Type a card name, set, or keyword and hit Enter.
Filters
Listing Type
All listings, Auctions only, or Buy It Now only.
Condition
Both, Graded only, or Ungraded only.
Centering Filter
Find ungraded cards with possible PSA 10 centering.
Sort Options
Sort results by Newly Listed, Price (Low to High), Price (High to Low), Bids, or Ending Soon.
What You'll See
Each result shows the card image, title, condition, current bid or price, number of bids, and a live countdown timer. Timers change color as auctions get close to ending — green means plenty of time, yellow is a warning, and red means it's about to end.
Every listing includes quick-action buttons: View opens the listing on eBay, Check Market instantly looks up the card's market value, and Search finds similar cards currently listed.
Check Market
Check Market is your all-in-one market research tool. It combines data from multiple sources to give you a complete picture of any card's value — current market prices, AI-powered price estimates, grade-by-grade breakdowns, eBay sold listings, and interactive price trend charts.
How to Look Up a Card
There are several ways to get to Check Market:
Search by Name
Type any card name in the search bar (e.g. "Charizard ex 006 Scarlet Violet 151") and click Go.
Paste eBay URL
Paste any eBay listing URL into the URL field and click Lookup to identify the card automatically.
From Search eBay
Click the Market button on any search result to jump straight to its market data.
From Browse Sets
Navigate to any set, find a card, and click its Market button.
What You'll See
For individual cards, Check Market shows:
Current Market Value
TCG Market price, Raw (eBay) price, and PSA 10 price — with a PSA 10 premium calculation.
AI Price Estimates
AI-powered price estimates for Raw and PSA 10 with confidence scores and price ranges.
Grade Pricing
Detailed pricing breakdown by grade (PSA 10, PSA 9, BGS, CGC, etc.) with comparable sold listings and links to eBay sold auctions.
Price Trend Chart
Interactive chart showing price history over time, filterable by grade. Hover over data points to see exact prices, dates, and sale volumes.
For sealed products (booster boxes, ETBs, tins, bundles), you'll get current market value based on recent sales with its own price trend chart.
Browse Sets
Browse Sets lets you explore every Pokémon card set and view all the cards inside. It's a great way to discover cards you might want to collect or invest in.
How to Use
Top Movers
Top Movers shows you which cards are selling the most right now — a quick way to spot trending cards and stay on top of the market.
What You'll See
Click View trending cards with biggest recent gains in the Check Market tab to see two ranked lists:
Top 20 US — Most Sold
The 20 US cards with the highest sales volume in the last 30 days, with current prices by grade.
Top 20 JPN — Most Sold
The 20 Japanese cards with the highest sales volume in the last 30 days.
Each card shows its image, name, set, 30-day sales count, and current prices. Click Market to see the full market breakdown or Search to find it on eBay.
Early Bird Alerts
Early Bird is your personal listing scout. Set up watch terms for specific cards, and PokePicks continuously monitors eBay for new listings that match. The moment something appears, you get alerted — before most other buyers even know it exists.
Setting Up a Watch
How You'll Be Notified
Sound Alert
Plays your selected notification sound.
On-Screen Toast
Pop-up notification in the bottom-right corner.
Email Alert
Optional — enable in Settings with your email.
Tab Flash
The Early Bird tab flashes yellow until you click it.
Limits
You can watch up to 20 terms at a time. The minimum polling interval is 5 minutes (configurable in Settings). You can edit filters, remove individual watches, or clear all watches at any time.
Hot Deals
Hot Deals automatically finds auctions ending soon that are priced below market value — the kind of listings that savvy collectors jump on.
How to Use
Each deal shows the card name, current bid, market value, and the savings percentage highlighted in green. Click View Deal to open the listing on eBay.
Hot Deals Settings
Configure US Sellers Only and Minimum Seller Feedback directly from the Hot Deals tab. The scan interval can be adjusted in Settings.
Card Grade
The Card Grade tool analyzes the centering of your Pokémon cards to help you determine if they might qualify for a PSA 10 grade.
How to Use
Alarm Thresholds
Control when you get notified about auctions ending soon. Open Settings from the top-right button.
| Setting | Default | Range | What It Does |
|---|---|---|---|
| Critical Alarm | 10 min | 1–60 min | High-priority red alert when an auction is about to end |
| Warning Alert | 60 min | 10–1440 min | Yellow heads-up that an auction is getting close |
Sound Settings
PokePicks comes with a collection of Pokémon-themed alert sounds. You can also add your own.
Built-In Sounds
Bell Notification (default), Caught a Pokémon, Pokémon Out, Pokémon Recovery, PC On, Level Up, Wild Pokémon Victory, Yeah Boi!, Evolve, Item Obtained, Pokimons, Red Blue SFX, Magikarp Jump Coins, and Mission Success.
Custom Sounds
Drop any MP3 or WAV file into the sounds folder inside your PokePicks directory. It will automatically appear in the Settings dropdown.
Sound Controls
| Setting | Default | What It Does |
|---|---|---|
| Enable critical alarm sound | ON | Toggle the high-priority alert sound on/off |
| Critical alarm duration | 120 sec | How long the critical sound repeats (5–600 sec) |
| Enable warning alert sound | ON | Toggle the warning alert sound on/off |
| Warning alarm duration | 60 sec | How long the warning sound repeats (5–600 sec) |
Email Notifications
Get alerts sent straight to your inbox so you never miss a deal, even when you're away from your computer.
Setup
Emails are sent as formatted HTML with card images, prices, and direct links to eBay. PokePicks is smart about it — it won't send duplicate alerts for the same listing.
Polling Interval
The Early Bird polling interval controls how often PokePicks checks eBay for new listings matching your watch terms. The default is 5 minutes (which is also the minimum). You can increase it in Settings if you want to conserve API calls.
Troubleshooting
Windows SmartScreen Warning
The first time you run PokePicks, Windows may show a blue SmartScreen popup. This is normal for new apps. Click "More info" then "Run anyway" to proceed.
macOS Security Warning
macOS may block the app from running because it’s from an unidentified developer. Go to System Settings > Privacy & Security and click "Open Anyway" next to the PokePicks entry.
No Search Results
Make sure you're connected to the internet. If searches still return nothing, try broadening your search terms — very specific queries may not have active listings.
Email Notifications Not Arriving
Check your spam/junk folder first. Emails come from noreply@pokepicks.com — add this to your contacts to prevent filtering. Use the Test Email button in Settings to verify your setup.
Sound Not Playing
Make sure the sound is enabled in Settings and your computer volume is up. If using a custom sound file, verify it's a valid MP3 or WAV file.
App Running Slowly
If you have many Early Bird watch terms with a short polling interval, the app may use more resources. Try increasing the polling interval or reducing the number of active watches.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is PokePicks free?
Yes, completely free. We're eBay and TCGPlayer affiliates — if you buy through a link in the app, we may earn a small commission at no cost to you. That's how we keep PokePicks free.
Does it work on Mac?
Yes! PokePicks is available for both Windows and macOS with the same full set of features.
Is there a web version?
Yes — a web version is available at app.pokepicks.com that works on any device with a browser.
Do I need an eBay account?
No. PokePicks searches eBay's public listings. When you find something to buy, it opens the listing in your browser so you can purchase through eBay normally.
How many Early Bird watches can I have?
Up to 20 watch terms at a time. You can add, edit, or remove watches whenever you want.
Will PokePicks work while minimized?
Yes! Early Bird alerts, Hot Deals scanning, and auction countdown alerts all continue running in the background. You'll hear sound alerts and see tab flashes when something needs your attention.
Where do I report bugs?
Use the Report a Bug page on our website, or reach out through the Contact Us page.