Top of the Stack: Best-Selling CGC Comic Titles by Decade (August 25–September 7, 2026)

According to GPAnalysis, the latest 14-day reporting period generated $5.8 million in sales from 23,349 individual books across major venues offering CGC-graded comics, magazines and pulps. The median price was $100, holding the market near the $100 mark.

The CGC-graded comic market settled back into familiar territory over the latest fortnight, but beneath the headline numbers there were some notable shifts.

Amazing Spider-Man remained the market’s most heavily traded title, extending its extraordinary run at the top. The 1960s through 1980s continued to generate strong collector activity, while the 2020s produced one of the period's strongest individual title performances, led by Absolute Batman.

Further back, the Golden Age and pre-superhero market told a different story. Volume and dollars frequently moved in different directions, with some of the most commonly traded titles failing to appear among their decade’s biggest sellers.

Here’s what moved across the CGC-graded market from August 25 to September 7, 2026.

Source: GPAnalysis.com, sales recorded from August 25 to September 7, 2026.

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Market Observations

🏆 Trophy Sale

The largest individual transaction of the fortnight was Amazing Fantasy #15 CGC 4.5 (1962), which sold for $33,140.

🕷️ The Volume King

Amazing Spider-Man, The (1963) was once again the most-traded title on the market, with 1,466 copies sold for about $0.6 million.

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Insights

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Highest-Selling Title by Decade

The highest-selling title within each publication decade during the August 25–September 7, 2026 reporting period.

$250.8K

highest decade-leading title sales

Amazing Spider-Man led the 1960s at $250,784. Absolute Batman followed at $204,980 for the 2020s.

1960s

$250,784

Amazing Spider-Man

Highest-selling title among 1960s books, accounting for 38.2% of the decade’s Top Five title sales.

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Popularity ≠ Spending

This chart compares the most-traded title with the highest-selling title for each decade. Dataset pooled during the August 25–September 7, 2026 reporting period.

6 of 10

decades shared the same leader

Same leader Different leaders

DECADE MOST TRADED HIGHEST SALES

1930s Gang World × More Fun Comics 1940s Detective Comics × Batman 1950s Forbidden Worlds × Batman 1960s Amazing Spider-Man ✓ Amazing Spider-Man 1970s Amazing Spider-Man ✓ Amazing Spider-Man 1980s Amazing Spider-Man ✓ Amazing Spider-Man 1990s Amazing Spider-Man ✓ Amazing Spider-Man 2000s Invincible ✓ Invincible 2010s Walking Dead × Ultimate Fallout 2020s Absolute Batman ✓ Absolute Batman

1960s

Same leader

Amazing Spider-Man ranked first for both trading volume and sales among 1960s titles, generating $250,784.

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How Dominant Was the #1 Title?

Share of each decade’s Top Five title sales generated by its highest-selling title during the August 25–September 7, 2026 reporting period.

64.8%

highest concentration

Absolute Batman accounted for nearly two-thirds of the 2020s Top Five title sales.

100% 75% 50% 25% 0%

29.9% 30s 33.4% 40s 29.5% 50s 38.2% 60s 34.8% 70s 44.1% 80s 23.5% 90s 38.7% 00s 40.3% 10s 64.8% 20s

2020s

64.8%

Absolute Batman

$204,980 of $316,286 in Top Five title sales

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Let’s step through the ages/eras by decade

Platinum/Golden Age

1930s

The 1930s produced one of the clearest separations between trading activity and spending. Gang World (1930–1932) was the decade’s most-traded title, yet it did not appear among the top five titles by sales. Instead, More Fun Comics (1936–1947) generated the most dollars, followed by Action Comics and The Funnies.

Top five titles by volume:

1. Gang World (1930–1932)

2. Weird Tales (1923–1954)

3. Spider (1933–1943)

4. Film Fun (1920–1962)

5. Real Screen Fun

Top five titles by sales:

1. More Fun Comics (1936–1947): $7,450

2. Action Comics (1938): $6,482

3. Funnies, The (1936–1942): $5,551

4. Spider (1933–1943): $3,103

5. Real Screen Fun: $2,318

The most traded issues were:

1. Mickey Mouse Magazine #5 (1938)

2. Real Screen Fun #1 (1936)

3. Real Screen Fun #9 (1937)

4. Film Fun #560 (1935)

5. Gay Parisienne #75 (1937)

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1940s

Detective Comics generated the highest volume in the 1940s, but Batman (1940) led in sales with $48,087. The pair occupied the top two positions across both measures, reinforcing their continued importance within Golden Age trading.

Top five titles by volume:

1. Detective Comics (1937)

2. Batman (1940)

3. Adventure Comics (1938–1983)

4. World’s Finest Comics (1941–1986)

5. Action Comics (1938)

Top five titles by sales:

1. Batman (1940): $48,087

2. Detective Comics (1937): $33,195

3. Human Torch, The (1940–1954): $24,764

4. All-Star Comics (1940–1978): $22,815

5. Adventure Comics (1938–1983): $15,240

The most traded issues were:

1. Action Comics #112 (1947)

2. Four Color #223 (1949)

3. World’s Finest Comics #28 (1947)

4. World’s Finest Comics #31 (1947)

5. Walt Disney’s Comics and Stories #41 (1944)

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1950s

The 1950s offered another split result. Forbidden Worlds (1951–1967) led by volume, while Batman (1940) generated the most sales at $27,525. Showcase also performed strongly, ranking third by title sales and placing two issues among the decade’s five most traded.

Top five titles by volume:

1. Forbidden Worlds (1951–1967)

2. Batman (1940)

3. Detective Comics (1937)

4. Superman (1939–1986)

5. Shock SuspenStories (1952–1955)

Top five titles by sales:

1. Batman (1940): $27,525

2. Forbidden Worlds (1951–1967): $19,249

3. Showcase (1956–1978): $16,496

4. Adventure Comics (1938–1983): $16,331

5. Playboy (1953): $13,663

The most traded issues were:

1. Showcase #6 (1957)

2. Shock SuspenStories #1 (1952)

3. Peanuts #1 (1953)

4. Action Comics #252 (1959)

5. Showcase #8 (1957)

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Silver Age

1960s

The 1960s were once again dominated by Amazing Spider-Man (1963), which led in both volume and sales. Its $250,784 sales total comfortably beat Fantastic Four at $151,836 and X-Men at $121,956.

The decade remained heavily concentrated around foundational Marvel titles, with Amazing Spider-Man, Fantastic Four, X-Men and Avengers all appearing near the top of both measures.

Top five titles by volume:

1. Amazing Spider-Man, The (1963)

2. Fantastic Four (1961)

3. X-Men, The (1963–1981)

4. Avengers, The (1963)

5. Tales of Suspense (1959–1968)

Top five titles by sales:

1. Amazing Spider-Man, The (1963): $250,784

2. Fantastic Four (1961): $151,836

3. X-Men, The (1963–1981): $121,956

4. Amazing Fantasy (1962–1996): $69,706

5. Avengers, The (1963): $62,785

The most traded issues were:

1. Iron Man #1 (1968)

2. Amazing Spider-Man #50 (1967)

3. Fantastic Four #52 (1966)

4. Amazing Spider-Man #31 (1965)

5. X-Men #12 (1965)

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Bronze Age

1970s

Amazing Spider-Man maintained its grip on the 1970s, finishing first for both volume and sales with $160,178 generated during the fortnight.

But the gap to The Incredible Hulk was unusually narrow. Hulk generated $152,418, leaving just $7,760 between the decade’s two largest-selling titles. Hulk #181 was also the third-most-traded issue of the period.

Top five titles by volume:

1. Amazing Spider-Man, The (1963)

2. X-Men, The (1963–1981)

3. Incredible Hulk, The (1962–1999)

4. Star Wars (1977–1986)

5. Batman (1940)

Top five titles by sales:

1. Amazing Spider-Man, The (1963): $160,178

2. Incredible Hulk, The (1962–1999): $152,418

3. X-Men, The (1963–1981): $55,564

4. Giant-Size X-Men (1975): $50,613

5. Batman (1940): $41,380

The most traded issues were:

1. Amazing Spider-Man #194 (1979)

2. Star Wars #1 (1977)

3. Incredible Hulk #181 (1974)

4. Amazing Spider-Man #129 (1974)

5. Green Lantern/Green Lantern Corps #87 (1972)

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1980s

The 1980s continued Spider-Man’s dominance. Amazing Spider-Man (1963) ranked first by both volume and sales, generating $147,289.

The black-suit era remained particularly visible. Amazing Spider-Man #252 and Secret Wars #8 occupied the top two positions among individual issues, while Amazing Spider-Man #300 ranked third.

Top five titles by volume:

1. Amazing Spider-Man, The (1963)

2. Uncanny X-Men, The (1981)

3. Marvel Super Heroes Secret Wars (1984–1985)

4. X-Men, The (1963–1981)

5. Daredevil (1964–1998)

Top five titles by sales:

1. Amazing Spider-Man, The (1963): $147,289

2. Marvel Super Heroes Secret Wars (1984–1985): $71,524

3. Uncanny X-Men, The (1981): $40,151

4. Transformers, The (1984–1991): $39,985

5. X-Men, The (1963–1981): $35,312

The most traded issues were:

1. Amazing Spider-Man #252 (1984)

2. Marvel Super Heroes Secret Wars #8 (1984)

3. Amazing Spider-Man #300 (1988)

4. Wolverine Limited Series #1 (1982)

5. Uncanny X-Men #221 (1987)

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Modern Age

1990s

Spider-Man remained on top into the 1990s, although the decade was considerably more competitive.

Amazing Spider-Man generated $40,460, narrowly ahead of Spider-Man (1990–1998) at $39,735. Just $725 separated the top two titles by sales.

The issue rankings also read like a snapshot of the era, with Spider-Man #1, X-Men #1 and Spawn #1 occupying the first three positions.

Top five titles by volume:

1. Amazing Spider-Man, The (1963)

2. Spider-Man (1990–1998)

3. X-Men/New X-Men (1991)

4. Spawn (1992)

5. Uncanny X-Men, The (1981)

Top five titles by sales:

1. Amazing Spider-Man, The (1963): $40,460

2. Spider-Man (1990–1998): $39,735

3. New Mutants, The (1983–1991): $34,278

4. Spawn (1992): $31,894

5. Uncanny X-Men, The (1981): $25,904

The most traded issues were:

1. Spider-Man #1 (1990)

2. X-Men/New X-Men #1 (1991)

3. Spawn #1 (1992)

4. Uncanny X-Men #266 (1990)

5. Amazing Spider-Man #361 (1992)

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2000s

The 2000s belonged to Invincible (2003), which led both volume and sales. It generated $33,816, ahead of The Walking Dead at $20,452.

The decade also showed a broader mix of collector interest, with Green Lantern, Batman, Spider-Man and Hulk appearing among the most actively traded individual issues.

Top five titles by volume:

1. Invincible (2003)

2. Amazing Spider-Man, The (1963)

3. Batman (1940)

4. Green Lantern (2005)

5. Walking Dead (2003)

Top five titles by sales:

1. Invincible (2003): $33,816

2. Walking Dead (2003): $20,452

3. Amazing Spider-Man, The (1963): $13,934

4. Batman (1940): $13,268

5. Supergirl and the Legion of Super-Heroes (2006): $5,917

The most traded issues were:

1. Green Lantern #25 (2008)

2. Batman #608 (2002)

3. Amazing Spider-Man #601 (2009)

4. Hulk #1 (2008)

5. Superman #204 (2004)

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2010s

The 2010s produced one of the period’s more interesting divergences. The Walking Dead (2003) was the decade’s most-traded title, yet it did not rank among the top five by sales.

Instead, Ultimate Fallout (2011) led sales with $30,257, driven by the continuing importance of Ultimate Fallout #4, which was also the decade’s most-traded individual issue.

Top five titles by volume:

1. Walking Dead (2003)

2. Invincible (2003)

3. Spawn (1992)

4. Ultimate Fallout (2011)

5. Amazing Spider-Man (2014)

Top five titles by sales:

1. Ultimate Fallout (2011): $30,257

2. Invincible (2003): $15,674

3. Spawn (1992): $11,791

4. Transformers (2019): $9,025

5. Something is Killing the Children (2019): $8,307

The most traded issues were:

1. Ultimate Fallout #4 (2011)

2. Venom #3 (2018)

3. Star Wars #1 (2015)

4. Amazing Spider-Man #4 (2014)

5. Amazing Spider-Man #800 (2018)

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2020s

The 2020s delivered perhaps the standout result of the fortnight.

Absolute Batman (2024) led both volume and sales, generating an impressive $204,980. That made it the second-highest-selling decade leader in the entire dataset, behind only the 1960s Amazing Spider-Man total of $250,784.

Its dominance was equally visible at issue level. Four of the five most-traded issues from the 2020s were Absolute Batman books, including #1, #19, #15 and #20.

Top five titles by volume:

1. Absolute Batman (2024)

2. Transformers (2023)

3. Deviant Nation (2024)

4. Amazing Spider-Man (2022)

5. Absolute Wonder Woman (2024)

Top five titles by sales:

1. Absolute Batman (2024): $204,980

2. Transformers (2023): $55,682

3. Custom Hero Initiative Giant-Size X-Men (2025): $29,653

4. Amazing Spider-Man (2022): $13,310

5. VeeFriends (2024): $12,661

The most traded issues were:

1. Absolute Batman #1 (2024)

2. Absolute Batman #19 (2026)

3. Deviant Nation #nn (2025)

4. Absolute Batman #15 (2026)

5. Absolute Batman #20 (2026)

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What Stood Out?

Spider-Man Still Sits at the Centre of the Market

Amazing Spider-Man’s reach continues to be difficult to match.

The 1963 series was the most-traded title across the entire CGC market, with 1,466 copies changing hands. It also led both volume and sales across the 1960s, 1970s, 1980s and 1990s.

Across those four decades alone, Amazing Spider-Man generated $598,711 in Top Five title sales.

Its influence stretched further still. The series ranked second by volume and third by sales in the 2000s, while later Amazing Spider-Man series appeared in the 2010s and 2020s rankings.

Spider-Man wasn’t simply responsible for one major key or one unusually active decade. Collector activity was spread across multiple generations of the character.

Absolute Batman Is Trading Like a Much Older Heavyweight

One of the dataset's strongest signals came from a title barely two years old.

Absolute Batman generated $204,980, more than the leading title from every decade except the 1960s.

That means its fortnightly sales total exceeded the decade-leading totals of Amazing Spider-Man in the 1970s, 1980s and 1990s; Invincible in the 2000s; Ultimate Fallout in the 2010s; and every Golden and Atomic Age leader represented here.

The comparison doesn't make Absolute Batman inherently more valuable than those older titles—the composition and prices of individual sales can differ enormously—but it does show the sheer amount of money currently moving through the title.

Volume and Value Told Different Stories

A heavily traded title isn’t necessarily the title attracting the most money.

The 1930s, 1940s, 1950s and 2010s all had different leaders for volume and sales.

The contrast was particularly striking in the 1930s and 2010s. Gang World led 1930s volume without appearing in the Top Five for sales, while The Walking Dead did the same in the 2010s.

Elsewhere, the market was more aligned. Amazing Spider-Man led both measures across four consecutive decades, while Invincible and Absolute Batman did the same in the 2000s and 2020s.

The Bottom Line

From August 25 to September 7, the CGC-graded market recorded $5.82 million in sales across 23,349 books, with a median price of $100.

Amazing Spider-Man remained the market’s great constant. It was the most-traded title overall and controlled both volume and sales across four consecutive decades.

But the biggest surprise came from the opposite end of the timeline.

Absolute Batman generated $204,980 in 2020s sales and placed four separate issues among the decade’s five most traded. For a modern title to sit within striking distance of the sales generated by 1960s Amazing Spider-Man, and ahead of every other decade leader, is a notable measure of the attention surrounding the series.

Meanwhile, the gaps between volume and sales leaders in several decades reinforce one of the recurring lessons of Top of the Stack: the books collectors trade most often aren’t always where they spend the most money.

The market may have its constants, but every fortnight reveals a different layer of where collector attention, and collector dollars, are moving.

Want to dig into every sale behind these highlights?

👉 Explore the full dataset and build your own lists inside GPAnalysis at comics.gpanalysis.com — and catch each new Top of the Stack in The Collector Hub newsletter.

See you in two weeks. Keep stacking.