Price guide

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

A price guide is a book or online site that attempts to deliver accurate and concise valuation information for a good. Many industries and hobbies rely heavily on independent pricing sources when evaluating an item to sell or to purchase. This is most prevalent in the automobile industry and in the world of collectibles such as baseball cards, coins, comics, or stamps. Not only do vendors rely on these guides when determining at what price they should list an item for sale, but interested parties look at price guides when shopping.

In the past, price guides were created by field experts utilizing dealer prices, auction prices (when applicable), and expert opinion(s). Hobby price guides in the Numismatic and Sports Memorabilia arenas have traditionally been print based. Several companies have been particularly strong in this market. As the internet continues to become more and more powerful, so to are the price guides available. Online price guides utilizing actual prices have sprung up in recent years. These guides thrive on actual sales data and other relationships with major auction venues to provide the user with accurate figures.