You finally found it. That one "secret" listing on a random marketplace for the Skullpanda or Molly figure you’ve been hunting for months. The price isn't even that "too good to be true" kind of cheap—it's just a little lower than the resale average. You buy it. It arrives. But something about the weight feels... off. Maybe the paint on the chin is a bit grainy? This is exactly where the anxiety starts, and honestly, it's why knowing how to do a popmart authenticity check online has become a survival skill for collectors in 2026.
The blind box craze didn't just bring us cute plastic toys; it brought an entire shadow industry of "super fakes." These aren't the janky, melted-looking bootlegs from ten years ago. These are sophisticated. They have the boxes. They have the cards. Sometimes, they even have the smells right.
The QR Code Trap and Why It Isn't Always Enough
Most people think they're safe because they found the holographic sticker on the side of the box. You scratch off the coating, find the QR code, scan it with your phone, and a website pops up saying "Authentic."
Great, right? Not necessarily.
Scammers have gotten incredibly good at redirecting those QR codes to "ghost" websites. You scan the code, and instead of hitting the official popmart.com verification sub-domain, it sends you to something like popmart-verify.net or official-popmart-check.com. These sites look identical to the real thing. They’ll give you a green checkmark and a celebratory animation. You’re happy. The scammer is happier.
Always, always check the URL in your mobile browser after you scan. If it isn't the official Pop Mart domain, you're looking at a fake. Genuine Pop Mart products use a multi-layered verification system. The real site will tell you how many times that specific code has been scanned. If it says it’s been scanned 452 times, you’ve got a copied code on a counterfeit box. A brand-new figure should show a scan count of "1."
How to Do a Popmart Authenticity Check Online Without the Box
What happens if you bought a "loose" figure from a collector on a Facebook group? No box means no QR code. This is where most people give up and just hope for the best, but that's a mistake.
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You've gotta look at the feet. Or the butt. Basically, anywhere the branding is stamped.
Real Pop Mart figures have incredibly crisp "embossing." The text "(C) Pop Mart" and the designer’s name (like Kenny Wong for Molly) should be sharp. On fakes, the mold quality is lower, so the letters often look "mushy" or slightly filled in. It’s a subtle difference, but once you see it, you can't unsee it.
Also, check the internal weight. Pop Mart often uses specific weights or even small metal balls inside the figures to give them a premium feel. Fakes are usually lighter because they use cheaper, hollower PVC. If you have a kitchen scale, use it. Compare your figure’s weight to a known authentic one from the same series. If there’s more than a 3-5 gram difference, start worrying.
The Secret Language of the ID Card
Every blind box comes with a character card. Most people just look at the art and toss it aside, but the card is actually a high-security document.
Texture and Printing Quality
Authentic cards have a very specific "snap" to them. They are printed on high-quality cardstock with a matte or semi-gloss finish that doesn't feel like plain paper. If the card feels like a business card you got from a cheap local printer, it's likely a fake.
Look at the edges.
Real cards are die-cut with precision. Fakes often have "burrs" or tiny white paper fibers sticking out of the corners because they were cut with duller industrial blades.
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Color Accuracy
This is where the popmart authenticity check online gets digital. Go to the official Pop Mart Instagram or their website and find the high-resolution promotional images of the character card. Look at the colors. Scammers often struggle with color grading. The pinks might be too "neon," or the shadows might be too muddy.
If you're buying a Labubu, pay special attention to the fur textures in the card's art. The official printing process captures the fine lines of the "fur" perfectly. Bootlegs often look slightly blurry, like someone took a screenshot of a low-res photo and hit "print."
The "Smell Test" is Actually Real
It sounds weird. I know.
But genuine Pop Mart figures are made with specific PVC and ABS materials that meet strict safety standards. They have a very faint, almost "sweet" plastic smell when first opened, or no smell at all.
Fakes? They often stink.
Because counterfeiters use unregulated, cheap plastics, their figures frequently off-gas a strong, pungent chemical odor. If you open a box and it smells like a bucket of industrial solvent or a cheap shower curtain, put it down. Those fumes aren't just a sign of a fake; they can actually be toxic because they lack the phthalate-free certifications that the real brand maintains.
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Where Most Collectors Get Fooled
The "Special Edition" scam is a big one.
Sometimes you'll see a colorway that you’ve never seen before. The seller claims it’s an "overseas exclusive" or a "limited event piece." If you can't find a record of that specific colorway on the official Pop Mart global site or their verified Weibo/WeChat accounts, it doesn't exist.
Pop Mart is very consistent with their releases. They don't just "accidentally" release a purple Dimoo that no one has ever heard of.
The Price Reality Check
If the market price for a "Secret" (the chase figure) is $200 and someone is selling it for $60 "without the box," they aren't being generous. They are selling you a factory scrap or a straight-up counterfeit. Factory scraps are "authentic" in the sense that they came from the same mold, but they were rejected for quality issues—paint bleeds, broken limbs, or improper curing. In the eyes of a collector, these are still considered "non-authentic" because they didn't pass QC.
Real-World Verification Steps
- Check the Logo: Look at the "P" in the Pop Mart logo on the box. On many fakes, the loop of the P is slightly different or the font weight is off.
- The Box Flaps: Genuine boxes have a very specific folding pattern and use high-quality glue that doesn't leave massive yellow stains.
- The Foil Bag: This is a big giveaway. Real foil bags are thick and difficult to tear by hand without some effort. Fakes often use thin, crinkly plastic that feels like a candy wrapper.
- UV Light: If you have a UV flashlight (blacklight), shine it on the box. Some newer Pop Mart series have UV-reactive elements on the packaging as an anti-counterfeit measure that bootleggers haven't bothered to replicate yet.
The community is your best friend here. If you’re unsure, take macro photos of the face, the bottom of the feet, and the card. Post them in specialized Discord servers or Reddit communities like r/PopMart. There are people there who have spent thousands of dollars and can spot a fake Dimoo from a mile away just by looking at the "slope" of the head.
Don't just trust a "verified" badge on a resale app either. Those badges often just mean the seller is verified, not the specific item.
Actionable Steps for Your Next Purchase
To keep your collection "clean" and ensure you aren't throwing money at scammers, follow this workflow:
- Stick to Authorized Channels: If possible, buy directly from the Pop Mart Global store, their official AliExpress/Tmall stores, or authorized retailers like Mindzai or StrangeCat Toys.
- Verify Before Unboxing: Check the holographic sticker before you rip the plastic off. Once the plastic is gone, some sellers won't accept a return even if you prove it's fake.
- Screen the URL: When scanning that QR code, manually type the first part of the URL into Google to see if it's the actual corporate domain.
- Document Everything: If you're buying from a person, ask for a "tagged photo"—a picture of the figure with a piece of paper that has their username and today's date on it. If they refuse, walk away.
Collecting should be fun, not a constant detective job. But in a world where "super fakes" are everywhere, a little bit of skepticism goes a long way in protecting both your wallet and the value of your shelf.