Harley Quinn: the undervalued issues every collector should know

Harley Quinn is a 1992 creation: Paul Dini and Bruce Timm brought her to life for Batman: The Animated Series, where she debuted on September 11, 1992 in the episode "Joker's Favor." Her transition to print came in September 1993 with The Batman Adventures #12. She is a modern-era character — there are no Golden Age, Silver Age, or Bronze Age Harley Quinn issues — which means her collectibles market is entirely rooted in the contemporary era. That has not stopped her top keys from reaching serious price levels.

This guide sticks to the verifiable: records documented by SellMyComicBooks, GoCollect, and specialist press. One important disclaimer: our eBay estimator does not index the Batman Adventures, Harley Quinn, or Suicide Squad series — no eBay median from our tool is cited here. Every figure below comes from documented third-party sources; where no reliable data exists, we keep things qualitative.

Harley Quinn key issues at a glance (documented records, 2024)

Our eBay estimator does not cover the relevant series: all figures below come exclusively from SellMyComicBooks and observed secondary-market sales. These are record sale prices — ungraded, mid-grade copies trade well below these levels.

Sources: SellMyComicBooks (Harley Quinn Comics Price Guide, accessed June 2026); newsstand variant figures: SellMyComicBooks (100 Hot Comics: Batman Adventures #12, accessed June 2026).

The Batman Adventures #12 (1993): the undisputed key

Published in September 1993 by DC Comics as part of the tie-in line for Batman: The Animated Series, The Batman Adventures #12 contains Harley Quinn's first-ever printed appearance. Dini and Timm had already unveiled the character on television a year earlier; this issue put her on paper for the first time. Approximately 9,000 copies have been certified by CGC — a moderate population that creates real tension between supply and demand at the top grades.

Documented 2024 sales put a CGC 9.8 standard copy at $3,250 and the newsstand variant at $5,280 at the same grade — newsstands, printed in smaller quantities, command a meaningful premium. A CGC 9.6 trades around $1,300 to $1,430, and a CGC 9.4 around $840 to $1,075. Mid-grade copies (CGC 6.0 to 8.0) circulate actively but offer a less compelling risk/reward profile for investors. The issue appears regularly on the major market trackers' "hot comics" lists.

Mad Love (1994): the origin story, by Dini & Timm themselves

Published in February 1994, Batman Adventures: Mad Love is a 64-page one-shot written by Paul Dini and drawn by Bruce Timm — the character's creators. It tells the story of psychiatrist Harleen Quinzel falling under the Joker's influence at Arkham Asylum, and stands as Harley Quinn's first printed origin story. The album won both the Eisner Award and the Harvey Award the following year — a rare double for a comic outside the main DC continuity.

With a documented record sale of $550 and a floor around $5, Mad Love remains accessible in lower grade: that is precisely the undervalued argument. For a collector who finds Batman Adventures #12 in CGC 9.8 too expensive, this award-winning one-shot offers a quality entry point into the Harley Quinn collection at a reasonable cost.

Batman: Harley Quinn #1 (1999) and the 2000 solo series

Batman: Harley Quinn #1, published in October 1999, marks Harley Quinn's crossing into the mainstream DC Universe — technically her first appearance outside the DCAU continuity in DC's main comics line. The cover is by Alex Ross; the script is by Paul Dini. The documented record is $450, a modest price for an issue carrying that creative pedigree.

A year later, Harley Quinn vol. 1 #1 (December 2000) launched Harley's first genuine solo ongoing series, with a documented record of $800. Both issues are frequently cited as undervalued relative to their narrative importance: they establish Harley Quinn as an autonomous character, independent of the Joker — a pivotal shift that laid the groundwork for everything that followed, editorially and culturally.

The New 52 issues and the Conner & Palmiotti era

Suicide Squad vol. 4 #1 (September 2011) introduced Harley Quinn's New 52 redesign: a revised costume and a darker personality. This look fed directly into the development of the Suicide Squad film (2016, Margot Robbie), which grossed $749 million worldwide. The issue's documented record stands at $360 — a level that could move upward should interest in DC adaptations strengthen further.

Harley Quinn vol. 2 #1 (November 2013), launched by Amanda Conner and Jimmy Palmiotti, redefined Harley as an independent anti-hero living in Coney Island. That run attracted a wide mainstream audience and propelled the character to her current level of cultural ubiquity. Documented record: $360. With Birds of Prey (2020, $205.5 million worldwide), The Suicide Squad (2021, James Gunn, $168.7 million worldwide), and the Harley Quinn animated series (2019, Kaley Cuoco, now in its fifth season on Max), demand for these modern issues stays consistent — though it has never matched the intensity of the Batman Adventures #12 market.