Pullorax Guide№ 037 min read

Japanese Pokémon card rarities explained: AR, SR, SAR, UR and the rest

The small mark in the bottom-left corner of a Japanese card tells you its tier. Here is every mark you will meet in a current set, what it looks like, where it sits in the numbering — and what English calls the same card.

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In short

The rarity is printed bottom-left, next to the card number. C, U, R and RR are the regular set; AR, SR, SAR and UR sit above the set's printed total.
The order above the total never changes: AR, then SR, then SAR, then UR — or MUR and BWR in the newest sets.
AR = Illustration Rare, SR = Ultra Rare, SAR = Special Illustration Rare, UR = Hyper Rare in English. Same card, different word, different number.
Shiny Treasure ex adds S and SSR; VSTAR Universe still uses the Sword & Shield-era RRR and K.
AR and SAR were introduced in VSTAR Universe (December 2022) and have been in every set since.

Where the mark is printed

Every Japanese card carries its rarity as a small mark in the bottom-left corner, next to the collector number. C, U and R for the regular cards, RR for Pokémon ex — and above the set's printed total, the marks this guide is about: AR, SR, SAR and UR, joined in the newest sets by MUR and BWR.

Read the number first, then the mark. 174/086 with BWR means card 174 of a set whose printed total is 86: a card that sits above the list. That is what "secret rare" means in a Japanese set — not a rumour, a number. The order above the total is always the same: AR first, then SR, then SAR, then UR (or MUR, or BWR). Once you know that, the number alone tells you the tier.

The regular set: C, U, R, RR and ACE

C (Common), U (Uncommon) and R (Rare) are the numbered set; R cards are holographic. RR (Double Rare) marks a Pokémon ex in its standard frame — the playable version of the set's headline Pokémon. ACE marks ACE SPEC cards, the trainers and energies a deck may hold only one of, printed in a frame of their own. None of these are secret: they are numbered within the printed total, and every set file in this magazine lists them in full.

AR — Art Rare

AR is a regular Pokémon — no ex — drawn as a full illustration: the artwork fills the card and the text box sits over it. It is the first block above the set total and usually the largest. A regular set carries around twelve; Black Bolt and White Flare carry 72 each, one for every Unova Pokémon in the set. English calls the same card an Illustration Rare.

AR and its big sibling SAR both first appeared in VSTAR Universe in December 2022. Every set since has carried them, which is why VSTAR Universe is still the file collectors open first.

Charmander AR 168/165, Japanese Pokémon card — AR — a full illustration on a regular Pokémon. Four sets, four artists.
№ 005 Pokémon Card 151 →View the box →№ 004 Storm Emeralda →View the box →

Bulbasaur AR 64/063, Japanese Pokémon card — AR — a full illustration on a regular Pokémon. Four sets, four artists.
№ 005 Pokémon Card 151 →View the box →№ 004 Storm Emeralda →View the box →

SR — Super Rare

SR is the full-art version of a Pokémon ex or a Supporter: the same card as the RR or the regular trainer, with the frame removed and the character drawn large. It is the second block above the total. In English it is an Ultra Rare.

The block is not always Pokémon. In Terastal Festival ex the twelve SR cards are all Supporters — the Pokémon ex of that set go straight to SAR.

Charizard ex SR 185/165, Japanese Pokémon card — SR — the same Pokémon ex as the RR, with the frame removed.
№ 005 Pokémon Card 151 →View the box →№ 002 Black Bolt →View the box →

Zekrom ex SR 161/086, Japanese Pokémon card — SR — the same Pokémon ex as the RR, with the frame removed.
№ 005 Pokémon Card 151 →View the box →№ 002 Black Bolt →View the box →

SAR — Special Art Rare

SAR is the alternate-art card: a Pokémon ex or a Supporter drawn as a scene, usually by a guest illustrator, with the text box pushed to the bottom edge so the picture runs the height of the card. This is the mark most collectors are looking for when they open a Japanese box, and the one the set files in this magazine lead with. English: Special Illustration Rare.

A regular set has five to eight SAR. A High Class set has dozens — VSTAR Universe has 35, Terastal Festival ex 33.

Team Rocket's Mewtwo ex SAR 237/193, Japanese Pokémon card — SAR — a scene by a guest illustrator, text box pushed to the bottom. The card most Japanese boxes are opened for.
№ 013 Terastal Festival ex →View the box →№ 014 VSTAR Universe →View the box →

Sylveon ex SAR 212/187, Japanese Pokémon card — SAR — a scene by a guest illustrator, text box pushed to the bottom. The card most Japanese boxes are opened for.
№ 013 Terastal Festival ex →View the box →№ 014 VSTAR Universe →View the box →

UR, MUR and BWR — gold, and black-and-white

UR (Ultra Rare) is the gold card: a Pokémon ex, an Item or an Energy printed in gold foil, the last block above the total. English: Hyper Rare.

The MEGA-era sets — Mega Brave, Mega Symphonia, Mega Dream ex and onward — close instead with MUR: one gold Mega Pokémon ex, the very last number of the set. Mega Dream ex also uses a mark of its own, MA, on ten Mega Pokémon ex numbered 223 to 232, between the SR and SAR blocks.

Black Bolt and White Flare added BWR (Black White Rare): a Zekrom ex printed in black and a Reshiram ex printed in white, one per set, both numbered 174/086 — the last card of each list.

Mew ex UR 208/165, Japanese Pokémon card — The last numbers of a set: UR in gold, MUR for the MEGA era, BWR in black and white.
№ 004 Storm Emeralda →View the box →№ 003 White Flare →View the box →

Arceus VSTAR UR 262/172, Japanese Pokémon card — The last numbers of a set: UR in gold, MUR for the MEGA era, BWR in black and white.
№ 004 Storm Emeralda →View the box →№ 003 White Flare →View the box →

S and SSR — the shiny marks

Shiny Treasure ex is built around two marks no regular set uses: S (Shiny) for shiny Pokémon in a regular frame, and SSR (Shiny Super Rare) for shiny Pokémon ex in full art. Above its 190-card list sit 129 S cards and 18 SSR — and in that set they come first, before the AR block. English: Shiny Rare and Shiny Ultra Rare.

Lucario S 281/190, Japanese Pokémon card — Shiny Treasure ex: S in a regular frame, SSR in full art — marks no other set uses.
№ 015 Shiny Treasure ex →View the box →

Scizor S 299/190, Japanese Pokémon card — Shiny Treasure ex: S in a regular frame, SSR in full art — marks no other set uses.
№ 015 Shiny Treasure ex →View the box →

Older marks you will still meet

VSTAR Universe belongs to the Sword & Shield era, so its regular list uses that era's marks alongside the ones above: RRR (Triple Rare) for VMAX and VSTAR cards, and K for Radiant Pokémon — from *kagayaku*, "to shine". If you go further back you will also meet CHR and CSR (Character Rare, Character Super Rare), the trainer-and-Pokémon cards of the 2021–2022 sets. They are not printed in current sets.

Japanese mark, English name

The tiers map one to one; only the words change, and the table below has the full list. What does not carry over is the number: an English set usually combines two Japanese sets, so the same card wears a different number on each side. Every set file has the cross-reference table for its set — and if you are choosing between the two prints, the guide on Japanese vs English booster boxes covers the rest.

More questions? The PulloraX FAQ covers ordering, shipping, customs and product condition — see the FAQ.

Side by side

Mark	Japanese name	What it is	English name
C / U / R	Common / Uncommon / Rare	The numbered set; R is holographic	Common / Uncommon / Rare
RR	Double Rare	Pokémon ex, standard frame	Double Rare
ACE	ACE SPEC	One-per-deck trainer or energy, own frame	ACE SPEC Rare
AR	Art Rare	Regular Pokémon, full illustration	Illustration Rare
SR	Super Rare	Pokémon ex or Supporter, full art	Ultra Rare
SAR	Special Art Rare	Alternate-art scene, text box at the bottom	Special Illustration Rare
UR	Ultra Rare	Gold card — ex, Item or Energy	Hyper Rare
MUR	—	Gold Mega Pokémon ex, last card of a MEGA-era set	—
BWR	Black White Rare	Zekrom ex in black, Reshiram ex in white (Black Bolt / White Flare)	Black White Rare
S	Shiny	Shiny Pokémon, regular frame (Shiny Treasure ex)	Shiny Rare
SSR	Shiny Super Rare	Shiny Pokémon ex, full art (Shiny Treasure ex)	Shiny Ultra Rare
RRR	Triple Rare	VMAX and VSTAR (Sword & Shield era)	Ultra Rare
K	Kagayaku (Radiant)	Radiant Pokémon (Sword & Shield era)	Radiant Rare

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The sets mentioned in this guide, as Japanese factory-sealed boxes. Shipped tracked from the PulloraX vault.

All Japanese boxes →

SV8a · In stock Terastal Festival ex SV8a Japanese Pokémon Booster Box View the box →
SV4a · In stock Shiny Treasure ex SV4a Japanese Pokémon Booster Box View the box →
S12a · In stock VSTAR Universe S12a Japanese Pokémon Booster Box View the box →
M2a · In stock Mega Dream ex M2a Japanese Pokémon Booster Box View the box →

Set files mentioned in this guide

More set files

Questions

Good to know

Where is the rarity printed on a Japanese card?

Bottom-left corner, next to the collector number. On a card above the set total the number itself already tells you the block: AR comes first, then SR, then SAR, then UR (or MUR / BWR).

What is a “secret rare” in a Japanese set?

Any card numbered above the set's printed total — 174/086, for example. In Japanese sets that is the whole AR, SR, SAR and UR range, which is why a set with 86 numbered cards can have 174 cards in its list.

Is a SAR the same card as a Special Illustration Rare?

Yes. Same artwork, same card; the English print gives it a different name and, because English sets combine two Japanese sets, a different number. The cross-reference table in each set file matches them.

Does every Japanese box contain a SAR?

We do not publish pull rates and we do not open boxes. A set list tells you what exists in the set, not what a given box holds. What is fixed: a regular Japanese box is 30 packs of 5 cards, and Japanese High Class packs guarantee one Pokémon ex per pack.

What is the difference between the RR, SR and SAR of the same Pokémon ex?

In play, nothing — same name, same attacks, same rules. The RR is the standard frame, the SR is the full-art version, the SAR is an alternate illustration. They are three different cards with three different numbers.

What are MUR and BWR?

MUR is the gold Mega Pokémon ex that closes each MEGA-era set (Mega Brave, Mega Symphonia, Mega Dream ex and onward) — one per set, the last number. BWR (Black White Rare) exists only in Black Bolt and White Flare: a Zekrom ex printed in black and a Reshiram ex printed in white, both numbered 174/086.

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