CGC grader notes are short condition comments attached to a slab that explain defects the graders saw and why a book received its numeric grade. They matter because a 9.4 with a clean note and a 9.4 with a note flagging a spine tear are not the same purchase, even at the same grade. You can check most notes for free through CGC's Verify tool or your My Submissions dashboard.
TL;DR:
- Most grader notes use a small, learnable vocabulary, with qualifiers like lite, moderate, and heavy indicating defect severity and location.
- Notes referencing structural damage or irreversible repairs, like missing parts or tape, typically prevent a high grade regardless of appearance.
- Accessing grader notes involves entering a certification number into CGC's Verify tool or your account dashboard, though details can vary by submission tier.
- Pressing and cleaning can improve notes related to surface dirt, minor bends, and simple stains, but won't change issues like tape stains or deep water damage.
- Disclosing and assessing notes before selling can prevent disputes, and clear photos of flagged areas help justify a fair price based on defect severity.
Table of Contents
- What Are CGC Grader Notes?
- Sample Notes and the Shorthand You'll See on a Slab
- How to Check Grader Notes on a Slab or Submission
- Turning a Grader Note Into a Buying or Selling Decision
- What Pressing and Cleaning Can Actually Fix
- Fees, Access Rules, and Limitations Worth Knowing
- Making Practical Calls With Grader Notes
- Let Pressing Issues Handle the Prep and the Paperwork
- Sources
What Are CGC Grader Notes?
Grader notes are the written explanation behind a number. When a CGC grader assigns a grade, they can enter comments describing the specific defects they found, where those defects sit on the book, and sometimes how severe they are. CGC confirms these are comments entered directly by the graders, covering everything from cover wear to interior page quality.
The framework behind those comments isn't improvised. CGC's official guide, excerpted from The Official CGC Guide to Grading Comics, organizes 109 distinct defects into seven classifications:
- Crease
- Distortion
- Missing part
- Stain
- Substance
- Tanning
- Tear
On restored books, notes take on extra weight. A restored-label slab will typically list the specific work performed, whether that's color touch, piece fill, or trimming, because collectors need to know exactly what was done before pricing the book. Multiple graders sometimes weigh in on a single submission, and notes can be expanded or clarified as the book moves through the grading room.
Sample Notes and the Shorthand You'll See on a Slab
Grader notes read like triage shorthand, not full sentences. A slab might carry something like "lite crease upper right corner," "moderate tanning interior pages," "spine tick front," or "color touch spine, small." Learning to decode that shorthand is half the skill of buying slabs with confidence.
Qualifiers do most of the work in these notes:
- Lite usually means a defect is minor and mostly cosmetic.
- Moderate signals something noticeably affecting the surface or structure.
- Heavy points to a defect significant enough to be a primary grade driver.
- Location shorthand ("UR," "spine," "1st page") tells you exactly where to look before you buy.
Statistic Callout: CGC's Grader Notes Guide groups all 109 recognized defects under just seven classifications, which means most terse notes you'll ever see boil down to a small, learnable vocabulary rather than an endless list of one-off descriptions.
Not every note carries the same weight. A "spine water minor" note usually hints at cosmetic staining a grader wants disclosed. A note referencing "missing piece" or "tape repair" points to structural or irreversible damage, the kind that caps a grade regardless of how clean the rest of the book looks.
How to Check Grader Notes on a Slab or Submission
Finding a book's grader notes takes a few minutes once you know where to look.
- Locate the certification number. It's printed on the slab label, usually a nine or ten-digit number beneath the barcode.
- Go to CGC's Verify tool and enter that certification number to pull up the public record, which includes grader notes when the grader entered any.
- Check My Submissions if it's your own book. Logged-in members can often see more detail on their dashboard than what displays publicly through Verify.
- Confirm the notes loaded, since some older submissions or specific service tiers show fewer details than current ones.
Access differences do exist. A CGC Economy tier submission and a premium tier submission aren't guaranteed identical note detail, and CGC's own guidance is clear that notes are entered at grader discretion, not as a mandatory checklist item on every book.
Turning a Grader Note Into a Buying or Selling Decision
A grader note is a clue, not a verdict on its own. The same word, like "crease," can mean very different things depending on severity, location, and whether it's singular or repeated across the book. Context is what separates a cosmetic footnote from a grade-defining flaw.
Some defects mostly shape how a buyer feels about a book without moving the numeric grade much: light spine ticks, minor color breaks, small indentations. Others reliably pull a grade down regardless of eye appeal: interior tears, missing staples, significant water damage, or heavy foxing. CGC's guide connects specific defects to general grade ranges, which gives collectors a rough benchmark for what a given note usually costs in grade points.
A few practical habits protect you on both sides of a transaction:
- Disclose grader notes when selling. Buyers who discover an undisclosed defect after the sale remember it, and it damages repeat business.
- Request close-up photos of any flagged area before committing to a purchase, especially on high-value books.
- Price around the note, not just the number, since two 9.4s with different notes can carry different fair values.
Watch for red flags that deserve real hesitation: notes referencing missing parts, unverified or questioned signatures, or major tape and water damage. PSA's move toward clearer grader notes on trading cards reflects a broader shift across the grading industry toward giving buyers more transparency, and comic collectors benefit from applying that same scrutiny to CGC notes.
Pro Tip: Screenshot the grader notes before you list a book for sale. If a dispute comes up later, having CGC's own language on record protects you and the buyer.
What Pressing and Cleaning Can Actually Fix
We've pulled hundreds of grader notes at Pressing Issues, and the pattern is consistent: some defects respond well to professional prep, others simply don't move.
Notes that often improve with pressing and cleaning include light bends, non-embedded fingerprints, surface grime, and minor spine roll. Notes that usually stick around no matter what: tape stains, missing pieces, deep-set water damage, and anything that's altered the paper structurally rather than just its surface.
Here's the honest version collectors don't always hear: pressing can improve eye appeal without erasing the underlying note, because a grader may still see evidence of the original defect even after it's been flattened or cleaned. That's why we recommend evaluating each defect individually rather than assuming a general pressing service fixes everything a note describes.
Our workflow reflects that reality:
- Photo triage to identify which specific defects are present.
- Estimate what's realistically reversible versus permanent.
- Press or clean the book based on that estimate.
- Submit once the expected grade uplift justifies the cost.
Pro Tip: If a note mentions a defect involving lost material, moisture damage that's changed the paper's texture, or tape, don't budget for a grade jump. Budget for improved eye appeal instead, and price accordingly.
Fees, Access Rules, and Limitations Worth Knowing
Grader notes are free to view through Verify or your submissions dashboard when CGC has entered them; there's no separate charge for accessing them.
A few caveats matter more than most collectors realize:
- Notes are discretionary, so a grader may condense several minor issues into one short comment rather than listing each separately.
- A book with no visible note isn't guaranteed to be flaw-free. Absence of a note simply means nothing rose to the threshold of comment.
- Pre-screen rejects and certain submission states may never generate a full note, since the book didn't complete standard grading.
Making Practical Calls With Grader Notes
I use three quick filters on any note: how severe is it, is it reversible, and what's the realistic price delta if it's fixed. If the answer to reversible is yes and the expected uplift clears the cost of prep, I press. If the note points to something structural, I accept the grade and price the book honestly instead of chasing a number that isn't coming.
— Charles
Let Pressing Issues Handle the Prep and the Paperwork
Pressing Issues is the practical option for collectors who'd rather send a book to specialists than gamble on a DIY press. We evaluate the exact defects behind a grader note, from light bends to surface grime, and only recommend comic book pressing or cleaning when the expected grade uplift is worth the cost.
We're based in Seattle and Portland but ship nationwide, so U.S. collectors anywhere can send books in for cleaning, pressing, and full CGC submission handling. Every job starts with a free estimate based on photos of your book's actual defects, and we walk you through expected turnaround before you commit. If you've got a slab with a note you're unsure about, or a raw book you're weighing whether to press before submission, check our services and turnaround times and send us photos to get started.
Sources
Read CGC's own Grader Notes page and the full Grader Notes Guide for complete defect definitions.