A hobby box is a box of sports cards that is sold directly to distributors or individual dealers but not available to collectors through traditional retail outlets like Walmart or Target.

By contrast, a retail box is one that is sold through non-hobby retail outlets (again, think Walmart, Target, etc.) and not directly to dealers or shops.

Most of the time, card makers will distinguish between the two types of boxes by using a distinct box and pack design for each, though sometimes the differences are subtle. The major difference between hobby and retail boxes lies in the availability of insert cards, which are generally more plentiful in hobby boxes.

Often, a hobby box comes with a manufacturer guarantee of containing a certain number of specific types of inserts, for example, and there are even sometimes special inserts that are available ONLY in hobby boxes.

All of those factors built to a propensity for collectors to buy and open hobby boxes in their entirety — after all, if you’re going for “chase” cards in a particular product, the appeal of a hobby box is the guaranteed seeding.

But dealers do sometimes bust open their boxes and sell individual packs, particularly where hobby boxes contain inserts or other cards not available through retail outlets. That gives their customers a shot a pulling something unusual without breaking the bank on a full box.

Finally, and as you might imagine, there has always been some controversy about the very existence of hobby boxes.

While the card companies tout this packaging as a way to focus on the more hardcore center of the hobby and reward loyal dealers and distributors, and their direct customers, many hobbyists don’t have access to card shops. For them, buying hobby boxes online is the only shot they have at acquiring the hobby-only inserts, or they can just stick to whatever cards do eventually show up at local (to them) retail outlets.

Because of that disparity, many collectors decry the existence of hobby boxes, and there was some excitement — and consternation — when Fanatics talked about selling directly to collectors when they nabbed MLB, NFL, and NBA licenses in the summer of 2021.

They’ve since walked that stance back a bit, but it will be interesting to watch the future of hobby boxes — and the rest of the cardboard landscape — unfold as we move into a bold new era!