MTG Editions: Print Runs & Production Data
All MTG Editions, Card by Card
How many copies of each Magic: The Gathering card exist? This index of MTG editions answers that question with complete print run data: each edition below links to the exact copies printed for every card, the sheet-level production framework and the distribution format. Our methodology anchors every figure to primary industrial sources.
- Print run: 2,609,728 cards
- Set size: 295 cards
- Cards in database: 290
- Print run: 7,830,515 cards
- Set size: 302 cards
- Cards in database: 292
- Print run: 34,993,200 cards
- Set size: 302 cards
- Cards in database: 292
- Print run: 3,267,000 cards
- Set size: 363 cards per boxed set
- Cards in database: 292
- Print run: 1,633,500 cards
- Set size: 363 cards per boxed set
- Cards in database: 292
The First MTG Editions: 1993, the Year Magic Was Born
Magic’s first year of production saw five editions — Alpha, Beta, Unlimited, Collectors’ Edition and International Edition — for a combined 50,333,943 cards. Carta Mundi printed all of them in Turnhout, Belgium.
Alpha opened the year with 2.6 million cards. Beta tripled that volume two months later. By December, Unlimited had pushed the total past the 35-million mark — the largest run of the year.
How the 1993 MTG Editions Reached Players
Alpha, Beta and Unlimited reached players through randomized booster packs and starter decks. Collectors’ Edition and International Edition shipped instead as fixed boxed sets containing the complete card list. The table below compares the release date, total cards and distribution format of these five MTG editions.
| Edition | Release | Total Cards | Distribution |
|---|---|---|---|
| Alpha | August 5, 1993 | 2,609,728 | Boosters & starters |
| Beta | October 4, 1993 | 7,830,515 | Boosters & starters |
| Unlimited | December 1, 1993 | 34,993,200 | Boosters & starters |
| Collectors’ Edition | December 10, 1993 | 3,267,000 | 9,000 boxed sets |
| International Edition | December 10, 1993 | 1,633,500 | 4,500 boxed sets |
Why You Can Trust Our MTG Editions Data
Every figure on this site rests on primary industrial data, not on the community estimates that still circulate online. The foundation is the Carta Mundi archive release of 2021: Peter de Weerdt, former Pre-Press Manager at the factory, confirmed the core figures. Our print run methodology explains how we anchor, verify and label each number.
MTG Editions: Frequently Asked Questions
How many Magic cards were printed in 1993?
50,333,943 cards in total across the five 1993 MTG editions: 2,609,728 in Alpha, 7,830,515 in Beta, 34,993,200 in Unlimited, 3,267,000 in Collectors Edition and 1,633,500 in International Edition.
What is the difference between Alpha, Beta and Unlimited?
Alpha has 295 cards, black borders and distinctive rounded corners. Beta expanded the set to 302 cards and fixed Alpha’s omissions. Unlimited reprinted the 302-card list with white borders. Print size grew from 2.6M to 7.8M to 35M cards.
Are Collectors’ Edition and International Edition tournament legal?
No. Wizards of the Coast sold both as fixed commemorative boxed sets with gold borders and square corners on the card backs. The 1993 production record includes them in full: 363 cards per set, 9,000 CE sets delivered and 4,500 IE sets actually produced (of 5,000 announced).
How accurate are these print run numbers?
Alpha and Beta totals come straight from the Carta Mundi factory archives, released in 2021. The remaining figures come from official Wizards of the Coast statements cross-checked against the industrial constraints of sheet printing and packaging. Every data point carries a Confirmed or Derived label.