Spiderman Comic Book Prices
Values of Spider-Man Comics
Since he’s been the undisputed face of Marvel Comics for decades, it’s no surprise that Spiderman comic book prices continue to rise at a robust rate. Both kids and adults have thrilled to his adventures since Stan Lee and Steve Ditko created the character in 1962, and they’ve watched him grow from mild-mannered Peter Parker into a confident hero who currently holds membership on such notable superhero teams as the Avengers and Fantastic Four.
But the popularity of Spider-Man doesn’t stop with the comics. The three movies starring Tobey Maguire as your “friendly, neighborhood Spider-Man” raked in hundreds of millions at the box office, and any child of the 1980s remembers Spider-Man and His Amazing Friends. Throw in Broadway musicals, comic strips, additional animated works, and appearances on everything from t-shirts to underwear, and you’ve got yourself a bona fide pop culture phenomenon.
This article will focus on some of the more noteworthy Spider-Man comic book prices and appearances, whether they take place in his own title or elsewhere. If you’re looking to start a Spiderman collection, this is a good place to start.
Notable Prices for Spiderman Titles
Potential Spider-Man collectors should pay close attention to the following titles in order to get the most bang for their buck:
The Debut of Spider-Man
While Jack Kirby claims that he and Joe Simon came up with the idea, the creation of Spider-Man is generally credited to Stan Lee and Steve Ditko. Whatever the case, the character was given a trial run in Amazing Adult Fantasy #15, a cancelled anthology whose title was changed to Amazing Fantasy for that single issue. The sales for Amazing Fantasy #15 were through the roof, and it was one of the company’s best-selling issues of 1962. On the strength of these sales, Spidey was given his own solo series.
This issue of Amazing Fantasy is valued at $140,000 in near mint condition. A price variant cover (known as #15D) is worth $20,000, and a tattered 2.0 graded copy sold for $900 in 2009. But all these numbers were blown out of the water in 2011, when a 9.6 graded issues of Amazing Fantasy #15 sold for $1,100,000, a figure only surpassed by the first issue of Action Comics.
The Amazing Spider-Man
The Amazing Spider-Man #1 was published in March of 1963, and the title would soon become a hot property among kids and college students. According to one poll taken at the time, Spidey ranked alongside real people like Che Guevara when it came to popular counterculture figures.
Steve Ditko left the series in 1966, and he was replaced by John Romita, Sr. Romita would draw the series for years, as well as working on the short-lived comics magazine titled The Spectacular Spider-Man.
Issues 96 thru 98 broke new ground by providing a strong anti-drug message, which was considered a taboo topic for comics in this era. The Comics Code Authority refused to approve the issues, but Marvel went ahead anyway (they had been asked to do the story by the Department of Health, Education, and Welfare). The issues racked up monster sales and left the people at the Comics Code with egg on their face.
The first issue of The Amazing Spider-Man is worth $60,000, and it also includes the debut of the cigar-chomping J. Jonah Jameson. As for issues 96 thru 98, each of these is valued at $200 each.
“The Death of Gwen Stacy” story in #121 was also notable, as female love interests of superheroes weren’t in the habit of getting killed during this era. It’s worth $400 in near mint condition.
Marvel Team-Up
As Spider-Man’s success continued to grow, he received a second monthly title in 1972 in the form of Marvel Team-Up. Inside these pages, he would team-up with a different superhero on a monthly basis. The first series to carry this title lasted for 150 issues from 1972 until 1985. Two other Marvel Team-Up series would appear in later years, both with frequent appearances from Spidey.
Some of my favorite team-ups include Spider-Man joining forces with the X-Men (#4), Captain America (#13), the Hulk (#18), and Dr. Doom (#43). The most valuable title in the first volume of this series is the debut issue, where Spidey teams up with the Human Torch (valued at $240).
Send in the Villains
In the pages of the various Spider-Man titles, a number of long-running Marvel supervillains would be introduced. If your collection just wouldn’t be complete without villainous debuts, be sure to add these:
Amazing Spider-Man #2 – First appearance of the Vulture
Amazing Spider-Man #3 – First appearance of Dr. Octopus
Amazing Spider-Man #6 – First appearance of the Lizard
Amazing Spider-Man #9 – First appearance of Electro
Amazing Spider-Man #129 – First appearance of the Punisher
Web of Spider-Man #36 – First appearance of Tombstone
Amazing Spider-Man #300 – First appearance of Eddie Brock’s Venom
The Spectacular Spider-Man
1976 saw Spidey get his second solo series titled The Spectacular Spider-Man (it was originally known as Peter Parker, The Spectacular Spider-Man). It would run until 1998 and rack up 263 issues, and comic books icons such as Frank Miller, Peter David, Sal Buscema, and Archie Goodwin would work on the series.
A notable story arc from this series was “The Death of Jean DeWolff,” which appeared in issues 107 thru 110. In it, the supporting character of Jean DeWolff, a NYPD officer who had appeared for almost a decade, was killed off by a madman known as the Sin-Eater. Daredevil would also co-star in this story arc, and Sin-Eater would once again return to complicate Spider-Man’s life in issues 134 thru 136.
Web of Spider-Man
Marvel Team-Up was eventually replaced by Web of Spider-Man, and this monthly title ran for a decade from 1985 to 1995. It turned out 129 issues that featured work by everyone from Marc Silvestri to Louise Simonson. The title would eventually be phased out to pave the way for yet another Spidey series, The Sensational Spider-Man.
Spider-Man
While the series was originally known as Spider-Man, it later became known as Peter Parker: Spider-Man. This monthly title helped make artist/writer Todd McFarlane a celebrity in the comics world, and he would stay with the title for the first 16 issues before leaving to co-found Image comics and create his own iconic character in the pages of Spawn. The first volume lasted until issue #98 in 1998, and the second volume of the series started soon thereafter.
One of the more valuable issues of this title is #1C. Referred to as the Platinum Edition, only 10,000 copies were produced, and it carries a value of $100.
Spin-Offs and Alternate Spider-Man Titles
In addition to his appearances in his solo comics, Spider-Man has also inspired a number of spin-offs and tales set in alternate realities. If you enjoy reading or collecting tales where almost anything can happen, you might want to take a look at one of the following: Marvel Adventures: The Avengers, The Amazing Spider-Girl, Ultimate Spider-Man, Spider-Man Loves Mary Jane, Spider-Man Family, and Marvel Adventures Spider-Man. These are all newer titles, though, so don’t expect them to rival the Spiderman comic book prices of older issues.
Spiderman comic book prices have long been a hot property thanks to the wall-crawler’s insecurities and personal conflicts. This makes him easy to identify with, as almost everyone has went through a phase where they feel awkward or alienated from the rest of the world. While he’s underwent great personal growth over the years, Peter Parker and his web-headed alter ego are, at their core, the people we stand next to at the grocery store or bus stop every day.