CGC-certified Comics and Pulps Power a Historic Year at Heritage Auctions

In a year defined by scale, discovery and trust, comics and pulp magazines authenticated and graded by Certified Guaranty Company® (CGC®) stood at the center of Heritage Auctions’ most successful year ever as it surpassed $2.15 billion in total sales for 2025!

Heritage’s $2,158,204,321 in total sales was its highest annual total in the auction house’s history — easily topping 2024’s $1.867 billion result. This was not a year defined by a single outlier or momentary surge, but by sustained excellence across dozens of collecting categories, including illustration art, historic sports collectibles, rare coins, comic books and the cultural artifacts that have shaped generations.

“Every year, we’re reminded that the passion for collecting isn’t cyclical — it’s enduring,” says Steve Ivy, Heritage’s co-founder and CEO. “What made 2025 so extraordinary wasn’t just the final total, but the consistency and depth behind it. It proves Heritage’s strength across categories, the highest level of trust from collectors around the world and a shared belief that great objects deserve serious scholarship and global visibility.”

Comic books themselves delivered one of the year’s most remarkable stories. In November, a Superman #1 graded CGC 9.0 realized $9.12 million. The result made the Man of Steel’s first solo comic the most valuable comic book ever sold at auction, shattering the previous record of $6 million set by an Action Comics #1 graded CGC 8.5 at Heritage in 2024.

Protected for decades by little more than a stack of yellowed newspapers in a cardboard box, the extraordinary survival of the book served as a powerful reminder that even in a market defined by blockbuster prices, discovery and provenance continue to drive some of the hobby’s most thrilling moments.

“Our strength comes from consistency and credibility,” says Jim Halperin, Heritage’s co-founder and Co-Chairman, who continues to oversee the Comics category. “Collectors know that when they bring their most important material to Heritage, it will be handled and marketed with the utmost care, integrity and expertise.”

Heritage also demonstrated its ability to unlock value in categories long overlooked by the broader market.

In December, the auction house held its first Pulps Signature® Auction, a three-day event that realized $1.84 million and set multiple records. Comprised of material from the extraordinary collection of Dr. Richard Meli, the auction was led by the June 1935 debut Spicy Mystery Stories #1 graded CGC 9.6, which realized $156,000, and a high-grade copy of Weird Tales #118 graded CGC 9.2 featuring the iconic “Bat Woman” cover, which sold for $105,000, smashing its previous issue record.

About CGC

Since revolutionizing comic book grading in 2000, CGC has grown to include certification services for a vast variety of pop culture collectibles. These divisions include CGC Cards, CGC Video Games and CGC Home Video. CGC Cards provides expert card grading for sports cards, TCGs and non-sports cards. CGC Video Games is dedicated to video game grading for the most popular consoles, including Nintendo, Sega, Atari, PlayStation and more. CGC Home Video provides expert VHS grading in addition to other types of videocassettes, DVD, Blu-ray and more. CGC also offers seamless solutions for autograph collectors with CGC Signature Series and JSA Authentic Autograph services.

CGC is part of the Certified Collectibles Group, a global provider of expert and impartial authentication and grading services for collectibles. Since 1987, the Certified Collectibles Group companies have certified more than 100 million collectibles, including coins, banknotes, comic books, cards, autographs and stamps.