What are the Top 10 Most Expensive Beanie babies?

Some Beanie Babies are worth quite a bit of money. Most are worth almost nothing. After the Beanie Baby craze collapsed, prices fell to earth. At the height of the craze, Tabasco the Bull was selling for $500. Today, you can purchase one on Ebay for around $19 for a 4th generation Tabasco and as much as $100 for a 3rd generation Tabasco.

Before I write this, I have to mention that most of the lists online are complete bunk. Declaring Valentino, Claude, or Princess the Bear valuable is just not true. These were, for the most part, common Beanie Babies sold. They are extremely common pieces, and usually worth less than $10. The valuable Beanie Babies are older. They are the ones that were sold before the craze began. Most of the more expensive Beanie Babies will have 1st and 2nd generation hang tags.

Some of them were beanies that were not retired until mid-craze. So what makes them valuable is the tag that indicates they were from that first set of Beanies. I’m leaving off exclusive Beanie Babies here and going for the generally collectible units. There were many, for example, that were given out at company parties. These toys are valuable, but they didn’t appear in stores. Daily, Beanies are also sold as prototypes. These are neat collectibles, but, again, not the sort of thing that collectors could simply find in their collections. I’m also not including errors in this list. Most errors do not do much for you. Some do a lot. A princess that is missing the thistel, for example, is pretty valuable. An Iggy with a Rainbow hang tag is not. This list is accurate as of April 1, 2019. And it could change. But it will be the most accurate list you can find online regarding real prices of these beanies.

1. Peanut the Royal Blue Elephant Beanie Baby ($800-$1200): Sells Between $800-$1200. This might be the holy grail of Beanie Babies. While Peanut the elephant is relatively common, its light blue form is the one most often seen in the wild. The royal blue version was released for a very short time only. Many estimate around 2,000 total were made. And while there are rarer Beanie Babies, this is the one that started the craze.

2. Inky the Gray Octopus with no mouth and 1st or 2nd Generation Hang Tags ($260-$700): Sells for beween $260-$700. This was a popular Beanie Baby that lasted long into the craze. But most collectors know it by its distinct pink fabric. The happy octopus also is usually smiling. But originally, Inky was a drab gray. It had no smiling mouth. Depending on the generation of the hang tag (1st or 2nd) this Beanie Baby is highly sought after.

3. Punchers the Lobster Beanie Baby ($600-$700): Punchers was disappeared very early on and replaced by Pinchers the Lobster. They are the exact same animals, exact same body, exact same fabric. But Punchers was only produced with first generation hang tags. Similar to Inky the Octopus, a first generation hang tag punchers will sell for upwards of $600 to $700.

4. Patti the Magenta Platypus Beanie Baby ($535-$595): Sells for $535-$595. This is one of the original 9 Beanie Babies that came out. When introduced it was a magenta platypus… you know… like real platypuses. The later versions were more fuchsia. They are common and sell for very little.

5. Any of the Old Faced Teddy Bear Beanie Babies ($502-$549): The bears were and are some of the most popular Beanies ever to exist. The colored bears come in two varieties: “old face” and “new face.” These are easy to distinguish between. The old face does not have stitching right beneath the eyes that give them a rounded face. The old-faced bear beanie babies have pointy faces. These are all worth between $500 and $550 depending on their tag.

6. Wingless Quacker the Duck ($497-$449): If you’ve never heard of a duck with no wings, then you are right in line with Ty who quickly added some wings to the sad looking duck as well as an “S” to the end of the duck’s name. Generally wingless Quacker tilts to one side in a depressing sort of way. Highly counterfeited, Quacker is a valuable little animal if you have one.

7. Trap the Mouse ($90-$390): This little mouse is an oft forgot addition to the Beanie Baby collection. One of the earliest beanie babies, this cheese-loving critter is small, round, and worth a little less than $400. Crucially, it must have the first generation swing tag to fetch that incredible price tag. Its 2nd and 3rd generation hang tag generation will go for considerably less. A 2nd generation Trap recently sold for just over $200, and a 3rd generation goes for something south of $180.

8. Digger the orange crab ($60-$408): Orange is an odd choice for a crab, since that’s kind of the color that they turn when they’re cooked. Crabs and lobsters. Ty had the foresight when it came to Punchers. But not so much when it came to Digger. While more commonly known by its bright red fabric, Digger the crab originally was released as an orange critter. It was later changed to its more famous red color many years later. To date, the orange version of Digger, however, is sought after, and hard to find. A first generation hang tag Digger can sometimes sell for just north of $400. The price of the orange crab with later generation hang tags drops precipitously. A second generation might go for under $100, while a third generation Digger Beanie Baby will sell for under $60.

9. Humphrey the Camel ($358): This adorable camel is one of the oldest, rarest Beanie Babies on the books. Cute, yes, cheap, no. If you’re looking for a good quality Humphrey with a first edition hang tag, it will set you back a little over $350.

10. Slither the snake ($330). If Beanie Baby prices were sold based on length, Slither would win. Longer than 3 feet (46 inches), Slither is one of the most desirable pieces one can have in their collection. A Slither sporting a 3rd generation swing tag in mint condition recently went for $330. What Slither would fetch with a 2nd or 1st generation swing tag is anyone’s guess.