Collecting Funko Pop: exclusives, chase, variants and formats

Pick a series or format

Many collectors start with one series or one character. Funko groups its Pop! figures into lines such as Movies, Television, Animation, Games and Marvel. A series like Stranger Things has figures per season, such as Vecna (Season 5), Will Byers (Hive Mind), Dustin Henderson (Season 5), Mike Wheeler, Jim Hopper and the Max and Lucas 2-Pack.

Sticking to one series keeps the collection manageable and easier to fit on a shelf. The number on the box helps you tell the figures apart. With Which Funko Pop is this number? you can look a number up.

Exclusives: the sticker on the box

An exclusive is a figure released only through one seller, an event or a certain region. The box then often carries a sticker that says so, such as "Exclusive" or "Special Edition". In product names you see this as "Exclusive" or "US Exclusive". Examples in the catalogue are Mace Windu EXCLUSIVE, ASTRO BOT Space Bully Nebulax EXCLUSIVE, One Piece Tony Chopper (Flocked) Exclusive and Monkey D. Luffy (metallic) Special Edition Exclusive.

An exclusive is often a variant of a regular figure: the same figure in another colour or finish. So check the full name and the number, so you know which version you are buying.

Chase variants

A chase is a rarer variant of a figure, which Funko makes in smaller numbers and packs among the regular boxes. The figure differs from the regular one, for example in colour or finish, sometimes with a whole new mould, and the box usually carries a chase sticker. Product names often say "Chase Edition possible": you are buying the regular figure, with a chance that a chase is in your box. Examples are Marvel Rivals Venom, Fallout Maximus, Fallout Vault Boy and Fairy Tail Gray.

If you want a chase for certain, look for an offer that names the chase itself and check the sticker in the photo.

Flocked, glow in the dark and metallic

Besides colour variants there are finishes you can spot in the name:

• Flocked: a velvety coating, often on animals and furry characters, such as Kuriboh (Glow in the Dark)(Flocked) and Pepe the Prawn (Flocked).
• Glow in the dark: the figure glows in the dark, such as Iron Man (Glow in the Dark) and Luke Skywalker (Legends) (Glow in the Dark).
• Metallic: a shiny, metal-like paint, such as Robocop (Metallic).

These variants are often exclusives as well. Each is its own product in the catalogue, with its own EAN, so you see the price of exactly that version.

Formats: from Bitty Pop! to Jumbo

Funko makes its figures in several sizes. Product names often give the size:

• Pop!: the regular format, usually 9 cm in product names.
• Deluxe and Rides: bigger, with a scene or vehicle, such as Batman The Animated Series Deluxe, Max Verstappen (Rides) and Doc with Time Machine (Rides). They are under Pop! Deluxe, Rides and Jumbo.
• Jumbo: one figure in a large size, such as Pikachu Sitting (Jumbo Size), Lapras (Jumbo Size) and Jumbo Astro Bot.
• Bitty Pop! and keychains: Bitty Pop! is very small, around 2.5 cm in product names, often in sets, such as the Sonic Bitty Pop! 4-Pack and the Harry Potter Bitty Pop! Starter Set. Keychains such as Keychain Vecna are under Bitty Pop! and keychains.

In the box or out

Many collectors keep the figure in its box, window facing out. Then the condition of the box counts: dents, creases or a loose sticker show at once. Collectors who keep boxes often put them in a separate clear plastic protector. Take the figure out and it takes less room, so more figures fit on a shelf. Both ways are common; choose what suits your space.