Stan Lee (1922–2018) and the market for Stan Lee signed comics
Published Sep 14, 2026 · Updated Sep 14, 2026 · Event date Nov 11, 2018 · 1 min read
Short answerStan Lee, born Stanley Lieber on 28 December 1922, co-created the Fantastic Four, Spider-Man, Hulk, Thor, Iron Man, the X-Men and the Avengers as Marvel's editor and writer, and died in Los Angeles on 12 November 2018, aged 95. In his last decade he signed enormous numbers of comics at conventions, many under CGC's Signature Series programme, so witnessed Stan Lee signatures are common; the value of a signed book depends on the book itself, the label, and the pairing of signer and issue.
Career in brief
Lee joined Timely Comics in 1939 as an assistant and became editor in 1941; his first credited work is a text story in Captain America Comics #3 (May 1941). After two decades of genre comics, he wrote Fantastic Four #1 with Jack Kirby in 1961 and, over the next five years, most of the Marvel Universe with Kirby, Steve Ditko, Don Heck, Bill Everett and John Romita Sr. He was Marvel's editor-in-chief until 1972, its publisher after that, and its public face for the rest of his life.
The signing years
From the 2000s Lee appeared at conventions across the United States and signed comics, posters and memorabilia in volume, most of it witnessed by CGC or CBCS representatives and encapsulated with yellow labels. Tens of thousands of witnessed Stan Lee signatures exist.
What a Stan Lee signature is worth
- On a key he created — Amazing Fantasy #15, Fantastic Four #1, X-Men #1 — a witnessed signature adds meaningfully to an already valuable book.
- On a modern comic — the signature is most of the value, and because so many exist, that value is modest.
- On a book unrelated to him — often neutral.
The supply of new witnessed signatures ended in November 2018, which supports prices at the top of the market but does not make every signed modern book scarce. See What is a Signature Series comic?.
Authenticity
Only a CGC yellow label, a CBCS yellow (witnessed) or red (authenticated) label, or documented provenance from a witnessed signing establishes a Lee signature. Unwitnessed signatures on raw books are common and frequently not genuine. See What do CGC label colours mean?.
The characters Lee co-created each have a page on this site listing their first appearances and the copies in the store.
Written by the Rare Comics Collectors grading team. Spotted an error or have a question this guide does not answer? Tell us.
