TCG Card Shop Simulator: Complete Shopkeeper's Guide

A practical guide to TCG Card Shop Simulator after its 1.0 launch: how to price products so they actually sell, what to stock first, when to hire workers, how to profit from opening packs, and how the new playable Tetramon card game, tournaments and grading fit in.

Researched September 2026 — current as of the 1.0 release (14-15 September 2026). Live games change; check the linked sources if something differs.

Quick Start

• Your early money comes from booster packs, not singles. Stock shelves with packs, price them sensibly, and keep them full.
• Price just around market price. Customers buy almost always at or below market; the chance drops fast as you mark up. Start near market price and nudge up slowly.
• Level up to unlock licenses. Shop level gates new products, furniture, and workers. Opening packs and making sales both push XP.
• Open some packs yourself. Rare cards can be sold for big profits in card displays, and opening packs gives shop XP, especially for rarer border types and foils.
• Keep the shop clean and fresh. Smelly customers drive others away; buy a sprayer and use it.
• Expand your shop as soon as you can afford it. More space means more shelves, more customers, and higher customer budgets.
• Hire your first worker around shop level 10. Restocking by hand stops scaling fast.
• Pay your bills. Rent and utilities come due; missing them causes trouble.
• Your 0.70 save still works. Early access saves carry over to 1.0.
• Try Tetramon at the play table. 1.0 made the in-game card game playable; it's a fun break and ties into tournaments.

What's New in 1.0

The September 2026 release moved the game out of Early Access after two years. Headline changes:

Feature | Details

Playable Tetramon TCG | Build a 50-card deck at the Workbench; 3-5 minute matches against customers waiting at the play table

Deck customisation | Deckboxes and playmats based on the licenses you've unlocked

Tournaments | Join tournaments you host; keep the prizes if you place well

New pack: Ascension | 1,452 newly illustrated cards

Card library | Grew from 2,714 to 4,436 total cards

Furniture | From 21 to 43 furniture types

Unlockables | From 77 to 111 unlockable items

Decorations | 273 decoration options and 55 community art posters

Other systems | Card grading, customer card trading, scanner ordering, worker improvements, selling old shelves, a customer review app

Performance | Model and memory optimisation

Not included in 1.0: some roadmap items (more are planned after 1.0), multiplayer for Tetramon (NPC opponents only, none planned soon), and cross-save between consoles and Steam. The developer also said the price would rise at 1.0.

Core Loop

• Order stock through your in-game phone/computer apps.
• Receive boxes and unpack them onto shelves.
• Set prices for each product.
• Serve customers at the checkout (or let workers do it).
• Open packs to find valuable cards, then sell them in card displays or keep them for your collection.
• Host play-table events and tournaments for extra income and XP.
• Reinvest in expansions, furniture, licenses and workers.

Pricing: How Customers Decide

The community wiki documents the selling-chance curve based on your markup over market price:

Markup vs market price | Chance a customer buys

-20% | 100%

-10% | 95%

0% (at market) | 90%

+10% | 75%

+20% | 60%

+30% | 45%

+40% | 15%

+50% | 5%

+60% | 1%

Above +60% | 0%

These figures are from the community wiki and may have been tuned in 1.0; test with your own shop.

Rules of thumb:

• Early on, price at market or slightly above. You need throughput more than margin.
• Bump prices on high-demand products once your shop is busy.
• Re-check market prices regularly. They change, and a shelf priced at yesterday's value can stop selling.
• Singles in card displays: Price them relative to their market value; rare cards can sell for huge amounts to the right customer.

Customer budgets

Customers have a maximum spend that scales with your main room expansions and shop level (and later Shop B expansions), per the wiki's formula. Rare wealthy customers (about 4.7% of spawns) carry double the normal budget, and very rare ultra-wealthy ones (about 0.3%) carry four times as much. Expanding your shop and levelling up isn't just about space; it raises what each customer can spend.

Stock and Products

• Booster packs come in multiple expansions (the Tetramon base set, Destiny, Ghost, and 1.0's new Ascension) and rarity tiers (Basic, Rare, Epic, Legendary).
• Other products: sleeves, deck boxes, card cleanser, figurines, plushies, playmats and other accessories unlock as you level and buy licenses.
• Demand shifts. Keep track of which products are trending and adjust your stock (the store page specifically calls out changing customer demand).
• Use warehouse shelves to store overflow so you're not ordering every day.

Opening Packs: Profit and XP

• XP from opening: Each card gives XP based on its border type. The wiki lists six border types: Base, First Edition, Silver, Gold, EX and Full Art. Rarer borders give much more XP, and foils multiply it further.
• Valuable finds: Full Art and foil versions of rare cards are where the money is. Put them in card displays at a good price.
• Ghost cards are a special card category; check the wiki's card lists for values.
• Grading (1.0): Graded cards can be worth more. Grade your best pulls before selling.
• Customer trading (1.0): Customers can now trade cards with you, a good way to fill collection gaps.

Workers

Hire through the GO Recruit app. Workers can be assigned to restocking or checkout, and they draw a daily salary regardless of task. The wiki's list (early access values; 1.0 added worker improvements):

Worker | Shop level | Restock | Checkout | Hiring fee | Daily salary

Zackery Cole | 10 | Normal | Slow | $500 | $50

Terence Fay | 15 | Slow | Normal | $1,000 | $150

Dennis Brandon | 20 | Fast | Normal | $2,000 | $300

Clark Cash | 25 | Slow | Very Fast | $2,400 | $400

Angus Mick | 30 | Very Fast | Slow | $3,000 | $500

Benji Otto | 35 | Fast | Fast | $5,000 | $500

Alexander Cole | 38 | Fast | Fast | $8,000 | $400

Lauren Posie | 40 | Fast | Fast | $7,500 | $500

Axel Charleton | 45 | Very Fast | Very Fast | $10,000 | $700

Hiring tips:

• Zackery Cole is cheap and good enough for early restocking.
• Clark Cash is an excellent dedicated cashier.
• Angus Mick is a top restocker.
• Axel Charleton is the best all-rounder but the most expensive.
• Don't overhire; salaries add up every day.

Play Tables, Events and Tournaments

• Play tables let customers play card games in your shop for a fee you set. Keep the area clean and comfortable or they leave.
• XP from play tables scales with your average review score and shop level (per the wiki, the shop-level multiplier caps at level 50). Good reviews matter.
• Tetramon matches (1.0): You can play against customers waiting at the play table with your own 50-card deck.
• Tournaments (1.0): Host and now join your own tournaments; if you rank highly you keep the prizes. The Tournament Prize Shelf displays prizes.

Cleanliness and Customer Happiness

• Smelly customers reduce others' satisfaction. Use a sprayer to fix the smell.
• Clean up mess and keep aisles clear so customers can move.
• Checkout speed: Long queues frustrate customers. Add a second register or a fast cashier.
• Customer review app (1.0): Reviews tell you what customers like and dislike. Fix recurring complaints.

Shop Layout and Expansion

• Place popular products near the entrance and checkout.
• Leave walkways for customers and workers.
• Expand the main room for more shelves and higher customer budgets; expand storage for warehouse shelves.
• Renovate with the RENO BIGG app: new furniture types and decorations.
• Sell old shelves (1.0) when you upgrade.

Suggested Progression

Stage | Goals

Day 1-5 | Stock basic packs, price at market, open a few packs, pay bills

Early | Expand once, buy more shelves, add card displays for rare pulls

Level 10+ | Hire a restocker; unlock more licenses

Mid-game | Add play tables, a second checkout, a cashier worker

Late | Tournaments, grading, full-art collecting, premium furniture and decor

Common Mistakes to Avoid

• Overpricing. Sales collapse past +30% (15% chance at +40%, almost nobody at +60%); even +20% cuts sales noticeably.
• Ignoring market changes. Update prices regularly.
• Hiring too many workers too early. Salaries eat profit.
• Letting the shop stink. Buy and use a sprayer.
• Neglecting expansions. They raise both capacity and customer budgets.
• Forgetting bills.
• Selling your best cards without checking value. Grade and price them properly.
• Blocking walkways with shelves.

Advanced Tips

• Focus XP farming on opening rare packs. Higher border types and foils give much more XP.
• Pair a fast restocker with a fast cashier for smooth mid-game days.
• Use the scanner ordering (1.0) to reorder quickly.
• Keep high-value cards for rich customers. Rare rich customers can spend far more than normal ones.
• Use tournaments for prizes and XP once your review score is strong.
• Build a Tetramon deck from your collection and play matches while customers wait.

FAQ

When did TCG Card Shop Simulator leave Early Access? The 1.0 update released on 14-15 September 2026, after two years in Early Access (EA launch: 15 September 2024).

Does my Early Access save carry over? Yes, saves from 0.70 carry over to 1.0.

Can I play Tetramon online with friends? No. Tetramon is against NPCs only, with no multiplayer planned in the near future.

How do I get customers to buy more? Price near market, keep shelves stocked, keep the shop clean, expand the main room and level up to raise customer budgets.

When should I hire workers? Around shop level 10 when the first worker unlocks; start with a cheap restocker.

Is there cross-save between console and Steam? Not currently.

Are there more updates coming? Yes, the developer said there are post-1.0 updates planned, including remaining roadmap items.

Sources

• TCG Card Shop Simulator on Steam
• Steam news: 1.0 Update, 1.0 FAQ and release date announcement (2026)
• TCG Card Shop Simulator Wiki (wiki.gg)
• TCG Card Shop Simulator Wiki — Mechanics and Formulas
• TCG Card Shop Simulator Wiki — Workers