We Quoted the Same 21 Games at 4 Buy-Back Sites. Here's Who Actually Paid the Most.

Every buy-back site says the same thing. We pay the most. None of them show you the math. You'd have to open four tabs, price the same game four times, and write it all down yourself just to find out if that's true.

So we did it.

What We Actually Did

On September 7, 2026, we quoted the same 21 games at Cart-A-Vision, DKOldies, CATRP, and MyQuickFlips. Same day, same titles, condition matched on every row. Every number got written down and screenshotted before any of it went on a page. The full 21 title breakdown, every screenshot, every source, lives at What We Pay. This is the short version.

The Number That Matters

Sixteen of those 21 games got a real, comparable quote from all four shops. Add up what each shop offered across those sixteen, and here's where it lands.

• Cart-A-Vision: $1,080.51
• DKOldies: $801.00
• CATRP: $791.36
• MyQuickFlips: $687.00

DKOldies was the strongest of the other three. We still beat them by $279.51 on the same sixteen games, same day. That's about 35 percent more.

Where We Didn't Win

Five of those sixteen went to a rival, and we're not trimming them out. Sonic the Hedgehog. Spider-Man 2. Banjo-Kazooie. Super Mario 64. The Simpsons: Hit and Run. Four of the five went to DKOldies, one to MyQuickFlips.

Notice the pattern. Every loss was on a game comped under $70. Nobody loses on the games that actually move the needle, they lose on the cheap ones. Worth knowing if you're trading in a mixed stack, not just one grail. A survey that only shows the wins is an ad. This one shows both.

The Market Doesn't Run On One Rate

Here's the part that actually surprised us. Perfect Dark, same day, same condition. We paid $56.53. CATRP paid $19.96.

That's not a rounding difference. That's 2.83 times the money for the exact same cartridge. Two shops, same game, same afternoon, and one pays almost three times what the other does. If you've ever wondered why "just check a few sites first" is actually good advice, that's why. There isn't a market rate. There's whatever each shop decided that day.

A Higher Number Isn't Always A Higher Number

Here's the part nobody puts in their own ad. CATRP and MyQuickFlips both publish deduction schedules, and both cut 50 to 100 percent off a quote if an item doesn't work or has heavy wear. CATRP's whole buy list assumes 8 out of 10 condition or better to begin with, before any deduction even applies.

We don't publish a deduction percentage, because there isn't one. The rate is comp based, full stop. No discretionary cut once your item is actually in hand.

To be fair where it's earned, both of those shops told us plainly what they will not ding you for. A cracked or sticker covered case. A missing charger or stylus on a handheld. That's a real, published promise, and it deserves to be said, not buried under the deduction numbers.

What Else "Highest Offer" Doesn't Include

Every one of our labels is prepaid, tracked, and insured for the full comp value of what's inside. A five dollar loose cart and a five hundred dollar grail both get covered for what they're actually worth, and it costs you nothing up front to find out. Decline the offer and it ships back on us, no restocking fee, no obligation. None of the three rivals require an account just to see a price either, and we checked. Two of the three don't have a findable return policy anywhere on their site. We looked.

A higher quote with no way back if you change your mind is a different offer than a higher quote that has one.

So Who Actually Pays The Most

On the sixteen games every shop could quote the same way, we did, by about 35 percent over the next best offer. We also lost five rows, all under $70, mostly to DKOldies, and that's stated here plainly instead of hoped past.

Want the full 21 title breakdown, every screenshot, every source? It's all at What We Pay. Want to know what your own stuff is actually worth? Start a trade-in and get a real number in a couple minutes.

Checked September 7, 2026. Buy lists move without notice, so if it's been a while since that date, the live comparison always has the current numbers.

---

Got a game you think we lowballed, or a shop you want added to the next check? trades@cart-a-vision.com, no pressure, no obligation.