How Many Packs Are in an MTG Booster Box?

A Magic: The Gathering Play Booster box holds 30 packs, a Collector Booster box holds 12, and a Foundations Jumpstart box holds 24. Those are Wizards of the Coast’s own counts for Reality Fracture and Foundations Jumpstart. The pack type matters more than the box: Play Boosters are for playing and drafting, Collector Boosters for foils and special versions.

Magic booster box sizes compared

Magic booster box sizes depend on the kind of pack inside. Wizards of the Coast lists the box contents in its “Collecting” article for each set:

The cards-per-box column is our multiplication of Wizards’ two numbers. A Collector Booster box has fewer cards, but 12 of the 15 cards in each pack are foil, against one foil in a Play Booster.

What a Play Booster box gives you

A Play Booster box gives you the widest spread of a set’s cards. Each Reality Fracture Play Booster holds commons, uncommons, three echoed pairs cards, at least one rare or mythic rare, one traditional foil, a land and a token. Across 30 packs that is 30 rare-or-better slots plus any rares in the foil and echoed pairs slots.

That spread is why a Play Booster box is the usual buy for a playgroup or for building decks from one set. Wizards’ Booster Draft format seats up to eight players with three packs each, so one box covers a full table with six packs left over.

Play Booster boxes

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What a Collector Booster box gives you

A Collector Booster box gives you a set’s foils and special treatments. Wizards’ Product Guide calls Collector Boosters a “shortcut to the coolest cards.” In Reality Fracture each pack has at least four rare or mythic rare cards, and some cards appear only here: facet foil shattered mirror cards, Japan Showcase cards and the serialized Bloodline Recollector, limited to 500 numbered copies.

With only 12 packs, a Collector Booster box is not a good base for drafting or for building several decks. It suits collectors and players who want special versions of cards they already play. The two pack types are compared slot by slot in Play Booster vs Collector Booster.

Collector Booster boxes

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What a Jumpstart Booster box gives you

A Foundations Jumpstart Booster box holds 24 packs of 20 cards, each pack a half-deck built around one theme with its own lands. Two packs shuffled together make a 40-card deck, so one box is enough for 12 ready-made decks, a good fit for a family or a group of new players. Each pack has one or two rare or mythic rare cards.

How to tell Magic booster boxes apart on a listing

Magic booster box listings often look alike, so read three details before you buy:

1. The set name. Each set has its own boxes, and only recent sets are legal in Standard.
2. The pack type. “Play Booster,” “Collector Booster,” “Jumpstart” and, for older sets, “Set Booster” or “Draft Booster” are different products with different counts.
3. Sealed or not. A factory-sealed box has never been opened. Avoid listings that say “repack,” a word sellers use for packs they assembled themselves.

Other ways to buy several Magic packs

A full booster box is not the only way to buy several packs. A Bundle holds nine Play Boosters with lands, a spindown die and a storage box; see what comes in a Magic Bundle. A Draft Night box holds 12 Play Boosters and one Collector Booster for four players. Every option is compared in which Magic product to buy, and the newest set’s boxes are listed in Reality Fracture products.