Mtg sealed price check

MTG Sealed Price Check (Argentina vs US)

Compares Argentine retailer pricing against the current US market to determine if a sealed product is a good deal, average, or overpriced.

When to use

• User pastes a price list from a Buenos Aires MTG store
• User asks "is X price good for Y product?"
• User is deciding between multiple stores for the same sealed product

Constants and assumptions

• Exchange rate: ALWAYS ask the user for the current ARS/USD rate — Argentine peso moves weekly, never assume from memory
• Acceptable Argentine markup: +0-30% above US is fair, +30-50% is typical, +50%+ is overpriced
• Cash/bank transfer discounts: typically 5-15% off list price — always factor these in

US reference price sources (verify each, don't trust memory)

Source	URL pattern	Use case
Manapool	https://manapool.com/sealed/<set>/<product>	Often best for current market price
TCGPlayer	https://www.tcgplayer.com/product/<id>/...	Authoritative US market
MTGGoldfish	https://www.mtggoldfish.com/price/<set>/<product>-sealed	Price history graphs
PriceCharting	https://www.pricecharting.com/game/magic-<set>/booster-box-collector	Charts and trends
Card Kingdom	https://www.cardkingdom.com/mtg-sealed/<product>	Usually marked up vs market

Critical rule

NEVER invent or recite US reference prices from memory. Always verify via WebSearch or WebFetch before saying "US price is $X."

Sealed prices move 10-30% within weeks. Always re-verify on TCGPlayer first before quoting any number.

Required first step (before any markup math)

Open TCGPlayer for the product and read the current Market Price. Search pattern:

• https://www.tcgplayer.com/search/magic/<set-slug>?productLineName=magic&ProductTypeName=Sealed+Products
• Or direct product URL if known: https://www.tcgplayer.com/product/<id>/...

If WebFetch returns 403 on TCGPlayer (common), use WebSearch with: "<product full name>" tcgplayer market price. The search results often surface the Market Price even when the page itself is blocked.

Cross-check against Manapool or MTGGoldfish only if TCGPlayer is unavailable.

Process

Step 1 — confirm exchange rate

Ask the user: "What's the current ARS/USD rate you're using?" Never assume.

Step 2 — convert ARS to USD

price_USD = price_ARS / rate

If there's a discount (e.g., "10% off cash" or "8% off promo"), apply it: final_USD = price_USD * (1 - discount).

Step 3 — fetch current US price

WebSearch for "<product name>" sealed booster box price <year> current or fetch a known retailer URL directly.

If WebFetch returns 403 (Cardmarket, PriceCharting, TCGPlayer often block), try WebSearch with retailer-specific queries:

• "<product>" Card Kingdom sealed price
• "<product>" Manapool current price

Step 4 — compute markup

markup_pct = (final_USD / US_market) - 1

Step 5 — produce the report

Use this verdict scale:

• ≤ +10%: Excellent (essentially US price)
• +10-30%: Fair (normal Argentine markup)
• +30-50%: OK (mediocre)
• +50-80%: High markup
• +80%+: Skip / terrible markup

Bundle/Scene/Draft Night warnings

These are typically priced at 70-150% markup in Argentina. Almost always skip:

• Bundles (especially Scene boxes priced near Collector Box levels)
• Draft Night packs
• Single Commander decks at $80+ (usually $30-40 in US)

Time cost factor

If a cheaper store requires significant travel, factor in your own time cost (your hourly rate × travel time). Sticker savings need to exceed this hidden cost to be worth the trip.

Suggest shipping ($10-25 typical in Argentina) over driving when feasible.

What NOT to do

• Don't say "this is a steal" without verified US comparison
• Don't recommend products purely because the user mentioned them — give an honest assessment
• Don't push for the cheapest store if it's overpriced internationally too (Argentine market floor matters)
• Don't suggest shipping bypass schemes — Argentine import tariffs are real
• Don't assume an exchange rate — always ask