10 Old Toys Worth a Fortune

Remember the good old days when your parents would give you five dollars and let you pick out anything you wanted at the toy store? Well, you may be surprised to learn that those once-inexpensive playthings may now be worth as much as a new car. Of course, it all depends on the rarity and condition, but some buyers are willing to pay a premium for highly coveted children’s toys of yore, whether at a tag sale, on eBay, or at an auction house. So, if you have any stuffed animals or action figures stashed in the basement, you may be sitting on a proverbial gold mine. Here are 10 old toys that could be worth big bucks.

Pokémon Cards

While most Pokémon cards are only worth a few cents, some early ones from the late 1990s are valued in the thousands depending on their condition. No Pokémon card is more valuable than a “1st Edition” Charizard, which sells for around $1,700 ungraded. (Grading a card is a practice in which a professional validates the card’s authenticity.) But if you send your Charizard to PSA for official grading, it could be worth as much as $320,000 if it nets a perfect score. There are many other Pokémon cards worth hundreds of dollars, so check out current prices here if you think you may have something of value.

Barbie Dolls

Barbie has seen a resurgence in popularity since the release of the Barbie movie in 2023, which means that resale prices for original Barbie dolls have only gone up. The very first Barbie — which sold for just $3 upon its 1959 release — now sells for upwards of $27k if it’s in great condition and comes with the original box. Limited edition Barbie dolls and complete playsets are also deeply coveted amongst collectors.

Beanie Babies

Beanie Babies were the absolute rage during the 1990s, and some remain quite valuable all these years later. Some examples include Weenie the Wiener Dog, which is valued at about $2,500, and the Peace Bear, which sells for $5,000. There are also some extremely rare Beanie Babies such as Batty the Bat with an extra foot due to a production error — that highly desirable version will net you around $125k to the right collector.

Vintage Trains

Old Lionel trains and vintage station houses sell for thousands of dollars depending on the year they were produced, with pre-war models from the 1930s being of particularly high value. But even classic trains from the 1950s and 1960s are worth well more than their original cost. This price only goes up if you have the original box, and if the trains are in pristine condition without too many nicks or dents.

Star Wars Action Figures

In the late 1970s, Kenner released a collection of Star Wars action figures, which was right when the movies first hit theaters. These figures are worth absurd amounts of money today, especially if they’re still sealed inside the original packaging with all of the accessories. An original Luke Skywalker from 1977 can sell for over $7,000, while a Stormtrooper figure and Darth Vader are both worth nearly $4k. Even loose figures still have some value to the right collector.

Hot Wheels

Old Hot Wheels are highly desirable, with many models from the ‘60s being particularly valuable. One such model stands out above the rest — the 1969 Pink “Beach Bomb” VW Bus with a surfboard valued at around $175,000. But plenty of other early Hot Wheels are worth a pretty penny, including the 1968 Mustang (~$40k) and a 1970 purple Red Baron (~$7.5k).

Happy Meal Toys

In 1979, McDonald’s released their now-iconic Happy Meal, which includes food and a limited edition toy. Some old sets of Happy Meal toys are way more valuable today than the few dollars they were originally sold for. A set of Power Rangers toys from 1995 now sells for $350, while a collection of Tarzan toys from 1999 is valued at over $450. The fast food giant even got into the Beanie Baby craze of the 1990s, as a complete set of the Happy Meal mini Beanie Babies is now worth in excess of $1,000.

Polly Pockets

Polly Pockets were miniature dollhouses that were released throughout the 1990s. Some of these vintage sets sell for quite a bit of money today, including the Pollyville Super Set from 1994, which is worth around $1k. Other sets from that decade are worth hundreds of dollars to the right buyer, so check to see what they’re selling for on eBay and list yours if you’ve got something valuable.

Video Games

Sealed graded copies of early video games are worth a fortune, perhaps none larger than the original copy of Super Mario 64 that recently sold for over $1.5 million. Even opened video games are still quite valuable, especially if you have a complete set including the cartridge, the box, and the instruction manuals. For instance, original copies of Pokémon for Game Boy are potentially worth around $300, while original Nintendo games can be worth hundreds if not thousands of dollars.

PEZ Dispensers

PEZ dispensers are more than just a mechanism for eating candy; they’re also fun toys people love collecting. Each PEZ dispenser features the cartoonish likeness of a character, many of which can fetch a pretty penny. A Captain Hook from 1979 is worth about $1,000, and the same could be said for a Donald Duck PEZ dispenser from that same year. Original space gun versions of the PEZ dispenser from the 1950s are even more valuable, as some have sold for over $11,000 at auction.

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