Finding the scanner
Sign in to The Hobby Network, open the Tools menu in the top navigation bar, and choose Bulk Card Scanner. That's the upload page where everything below happens.
Don't see it in the menu? Access is invite-based during the beta — let us know and we'll switch it on for your account, and the link appears.
Before you start — the essentials
The bulk scanner is for raw (ungraded) cards. If a graded slab slips into a batch, the scanner sets it aside so it never lands in a raw box — you can send those to the vault in one click (see step 5).
Your daily allowance is shown right on the upload page — e.g. “You've used 50 of 200 cards today — 150 remaining.”
Three ways to add photos
- ZIP file — up to 200 MB. Images must be JPEG, PNG, or WebP.
- Drag & drop — up to 100 files, 20 MB each.
- Paste image URLs — up to 50 links, one per line.
Naming front & back: give a card's two photos the same name with
_a for the front and _b for the back — e.g. 1_a.jpg +
1_b.jpg. Have front-only photos? Just drop them in individually.
Tell us about the batch
Sort your cards so a batch shares the same sport, year, and brand, then set those up top. The scanner uses them to narrow down what it's reading — and it flags any card that comes back outside what you stated, instead of quietly guessing.
- Sport / Non-Sport / TCG — required. The single biggest accuracy win.
- Year — required. For a season set, use the first year (2012-13 → 2012).
- Brand — required. e.g. Panini, Topps, Bowman, Upper Deck.
Set up the box
Leave “Give every raw card a physical address” on (it's on by default) and the scanner files each card into a box for you. Pick a box and how it's laid out:
- Box type — a White Box with 1–5 rows (800 cards per row), or set your own.
- Box key — up to 3 letters that name the box. Defaults to
RBX(raw box); use a genre likeNFLif you prefer. - Location — where the box physically lives (Home, Store…).
- Scope — Mixed (any sport shares the box) or This sport only.
- Cards per row — default 800.
- Section (block) size — a divider every N cards (default 50). Cards fill Section A, then B, then C…
Each card ends up with an address like RBX-1 · R1-A1 — Box RBX-1, Row 1, Section A, position 1.
“Where will these land?” Press it any time to preview the exact box, row, and first slot this batch will fill — including picking up where your last batch left off.
Add pricing (optional)
If the batch shares a price, enter a Cost and/or Asking price and it's applied to every card. Leave it blank to price cards later — individually on the site, or by downloading the inventory sheet and re-uploading it (step 6).
This records the price only — it does not list the card for sale. Your cards go into your collection and your box; you choose if and when to list them.
Upload & walk away
Choose your upload method, then hit Upload & Start Scanning. You'll see a simple confirmation — your cards are being scanned, we'll notify you when they're ready to review. There's no need to sit and wait or refresh: leave the page and get back to collecting. When scanning and data-entry finish, you get a “Your cards are ready” notification that brings you straight to the review.
Doing a lot? You can have up to 3 batches scanning at once, and your daily allowance counter keeps you posted on how many cards you have left.
We'll notify you the moment they're ready to review. You can safely leave this page.
Review, fix, approve & file
Open the review from your notification. Every card appears in filing order with the exact slot it will drop into. Because you're filing into a real box, we intentionally turn auto-approve off — nothing is filed until you say so, so you're confirming the card data and the location together.
| # | Img | Year | Set | Player | Card# | Title (auto) | Slot | Status | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ▸ RBX-1 · Row 1 · Block A — one divider's worth (≤ 50) | |||||||||
| 1 | 2019 | Bowman | Griffin Canning | BP-48 | 2019 Bowman Griffin Canning #BP-48 | → R1-A1 | Ready | ||
| 2 | 2019 | Bowman | Salvador Perez | 23 | 2019 Bowman Salvador Perez #23 | → R1-A2 | Ready | ||
| 3 | 2019 | Bowman | Yusniel Diaz | BP-109 | 2019 Bowman Yusniel Diaz #BP-109 | → R1-A3 | Check | ||
Fixing a card
- Every field is editable — Year, Set, Brand, Player, Card #, Variety, RC, Auto, Print run.
- The Title is calculated from those fields — you never retype it. To change the name, edit the Player field.
- A red cell means the scanner wasn't sure — give it a look, correct it, and click Save.
Approving in blocks
Use the checkbox on a block header to grab a whole divider's worth at once, or the top checkbox to select everything. Approving files those cards into their slots — in scan order — so the box matches the list.
Graded slab in the batch? It's set aside, not filed. You'll see a Send to Vault button to move it to the managed vault instead.
After filing — find & price your cards
Approved cards land in your collection and your box. Each one shows its “Filed at” address — like RBX-1 · R1-A1 — so you can pull any card in seconds, exactly like finding a vaulted slab.
The inventory sheet
Want to price offline? Download (.xlsx) and the sheet lists your filed cards in physical box order — so the addresses read straight down the page as you work through the box. Fill in cost, asking price, and notes, then Re-upload to apply them all at once. (It only updates price and notes — it never moves your cards.)
| Filed at | Title | Cost | Sale |
|---|---|---|---|
| RBX-1 · R1-A1 | 2019 Bowman Griffin Canning | — | — |
| RBX-1 · R1-A2 | 2019 Bowman Salvador Perez | — | — |
| RBX-1 · R1-A3 | 2019 Bowman Yusniel Diaz | — | — |
Next batch picks up where you left off. Start another upload and the box keeps filling from the next open slot — Section B, then C, into Row 2, then a new box when one fills. Your cards stay in order automatically.