Every Magic: The Gathering Format Explained (2026)

Magic: The Gathering has 11 sanctioned formats in 2026, plus dozens of variants. If you’re new, the format landscape is overwhelming. Here’s the guide.

Rotating constructed

Standard

The “newcomer” format. Only the 5–8 most recent sets are legal. Rotates every September — four sets drop out, new ones stay.

• Deck price: $50–$500
• Game length: 15–30 minutes
• Where played: FNM, Arena primary, Pro Tour
• Best for: new players, casual competitive

Alchemy (Arena only)

Digital-first format using Standard sets plus digital-exclusive Alchemy cards. Arena-only. Rebalanced frequently.

Non-rotating constructed

Modern

Sets from Mirrodin (2003) onward. Non-rotating. Fast, interactive, massive card pool.

• Deck price: $300–$2,000
• Game length: 5–15 minutes
• Where played: regional tournaments, MagicCon Modern
• Best for: players who want the “tournament feel” without buying duals

Pioneer

Sets from Return to Ravnica (2012) onward. Non-rotating. Middle ground between Standard and Modern in power level.

• Deck price: $150–$800
• Game length: 10–20 minutes
• Where played: FNM, regional tournaments
• Best for: Modern-curious players on a budget

Legacy

Nearly every Magic card legal except a ~100-card banned list. Uses Reserved List duals; decks average $3,000+.

• Deck price: $1,500–$10,000+
• Game length: 3–10 minutes
• Where played: Eternal Weekend, GP Legacy
• Best for: dedicated competitive players with deep collections

Vintage

The eternal format. Only cards that never existed legally (conspiracies, unsets) are banned. Uses the Power Nine plus dual lands.

• Deck price: $10,000–$100,000+
• Game length: 3–8 minutes
• Where played: Eternal Weekend, MagicCon Vintage
• Best for: collectors and format-legends

Pauper

Commons only. Designed for budget constructed.

• Deck price: $20–$200
• Game length: 10–20 minutes
• Where played: MTGO, some LGS
• Best for: budget competitive play

Multiplayer

Commander (EDH)

100-card singleton decks led by a Legendary Creature “commander”. 40 starting life, typically 3–5 players.

• Deck price: $50–$2,500
• Game length: 45–120 minutes
• Where played: LGS Commander nights, home games, GP Commander
• Best for: players who want game experience over tournament competitiveness

Brawl — Commander with Standard-only card pool, 60-card decks. Arena-primary.

Conspiracy / Two-Headed Giant / Star / etc.

Less common multiplayer variants. Sanctioned but rare in practice.

Digital-only

Historic

Arena’s non-rotating format, using all digitally-legal cards plus digital Alchemy cards.

Explorer

Arena’s Pioneer analogue. Same card pool but Arena-only rules for digital cards.

Format choice guide

“I’m new and want to jump in”: Standard. Cheap, learnable.

“I want to go to tournaments”: Standard for Arena, Pioneer or Modern for paper.

“I have a large budget and want the best”: Legacy or Vintage.

“I have a limited budget”: Pauper.

“I want long social games with friends”: Commander.

“I want to play online”: Historic on Arena.

The format pyramid

Think of MTG formats as a pyramid:

           Vintage
          Legacy
         Modern
        Pioneer
       Standard
      Commander (standalone — different axis)
     Pauper

Moving up the pyramid = larger card pool, higher deck costs, faster gameplay, more format-defining cards.

Commander is off to the side because it’s not about card pool — it’s about multiplayer social game dynamics.

How Scrytics handles formats

The Scrytics card catalog filters by format legality. Filter to Modern-legal cards, Pioneer-legal, or any other format to see only the legal pool. The deckbuilder (shipping) validates deck legality in real-time as you add cards.

Pick one

The biggest mistake new players make is trying to play multiple formats at once. Each format has its own meta, staples, and cultural norms. Pick one for 3–6 months, learn it deeply, then expand.

For most players: start with Commander or Standard, expand to Pioneer/Modern after a year if you like the game enough.