What are my 1990 topps baseball cards worth?

How much would complete sets of topps unopened baseball cards be worth from the years 1990-2010?

• ever since I was born in 1990 my parents have bought me a complete set of topps baseball cards, I have never opened them. I have 20 years worth. (1990-2010) Does anybody have an idea how much they are worth?

• Answer:

  Some years, especially the early 1990s, are low value. Topps has lowered production in recent years, but the number of collectors has also dropped. Even so, some of the newer sets have held their value pretty well. The big factor is going to be which version of the sealed set you have, Starting in the later 1990s, Topps began to produce different versions of its factory sets. There were 'retail' sold at the big box stores like Walmart and K-Mart, and the 'hobby' sold at card shops. The hobby sets tended to be more expensive but included special cards the retail sets did not. Some years in the early 2000s, there were more than two different sets to choose from. If you were going to sell this as a package, and you have all of the 'best' sets, you might be able to get $1,000 - $1,200. If you have all of the retail sets for each year, you probably would not get back the original retail cost. Maybe in the $400 - $500 range. If you're thinking of eBay for selling, you might get more selling the entire run. Normally it works the other way around, breaking up a collection usually gets you more money. But the problem with card sets on eBay is the cost of shipping due to the weight. Single sets generally cost $10 or more to ship, and with many of these sets very common and only selling in the $12 - $20 range total cost, you're getting very little for the sets themselves. In one big package, even though it could cost $50 - $100 to ship, it would reduce the shipping cost to $2.50 - $5.00 per set, and you would get more money for the cards. Try searching eBay closed and sold auctions, and compare the prices for the exact sets that you have. Look closely at the pictures, because often, the different versions for a given year look similar at first glance. You absolutely have to compare apples to apples.