The feeling of pulling a hidden labubu is electric. Your hands are shaking a little as you tear the foil, you feel the weight, and then you see it. It's not one of the 12 regular designs on the box. It's the one with the question mark. The secret. The chase. It's a rush that keeps so many of us in this hobby.
But let's be real. That rush is rare. And expensive.
As the owner of PopNya, I've opened hundreds, probably thousands, of Labubu blind boxes. I've seen the joy of customers pulling a secret in-store, and I've felt the soul-crushing defeat of opening an entire case and finding… nothing. So if you're asking how to get the secret labubu, you've come to the right place. I'm not going to give you a generic SEO-fueled list. I'm going to give you the playbook I've developed from years of being deep in the trenches of the designer toy world.
First, Let's Get The Terminology Right
Before we dive into strategy, you need to know what you're hunting for. In most standard Pop Mart series, there are 12 regular designs. Then, there's the "Secret" or "Hidden" figure.
The official odds for pulling a secret are typically 1 in 144 boxes.
A standard case contains 12 blind boxes. So, you'd need to go through 12 full cases, on average, to find one secret. Sometimes a case will contain a secret (replacing one of the regular figures). Sometimes it won't.And then there's the "Super Secret" or "Chase" figure. These are even rarer, sometimes with odds like 1/720 or higher. They are the absolute holy grails of a series. For the sake of this article, we'll focus on the standard 1/144 secret, as that's the one most people are chasing.
The Great Myth of "Tricks" to Find a Secret
Let's get this out of the way immediately. The old-school tricks don't work anymore.
* Shaking the Box: You can't tell anything by shaking. Pop Mart has gotten incredibly good at packaging. Each figure is snug in its plastic tray inside the foil bag. Nothing rattles in a way that would give away its identity. * Weighing the Box: This used to be a thing. Years ago, you could bring a tiny digital scale to a store and weigh boxes. A secret might be slightly heavier or lighter. But Pop Mart caught on. Now, the weight differences are so minuscule they are statistically irrelevant. They even sometimes add tiny weights or vary the packaging materials slightly to throw people off. I've personally weighed dozens of boxes from the same case and found variations across regular figures that were larger than the difference between a regular and a secret. It's a waste of time. * Magnets, X-Rays, and Other Insanity: Please don't. You'll just look silly and potentially damage the product.
The truth is, a blind box is exactly that: blind. Pop Mart has engineered it to be a game of pure chance. So, how do you improve your odds? You don't, really. You just choose your method of attack.
Method 1: The Gambler's Path, Playing the Odds
This is the most common path. It's the thrill of the hunt. You're buying blind boxes and hoping for the best.
Strategy A: The Single Box Hope
This is the purest form of collecting. You walk into a store or visit an online shop like ours, you buy a few boxes, and you hope for magic. It's low-cost, high-excitement. Can you get a secret this way? Absolutely. It's pure, dumb luck. I've had customers buy one single box and pull the secret. It's an amazing feeling. But the odds are, obviously, 1/144. Don't go into it expecting anything. Buy it because you like the series and would be happy with any of the regular designs.
Strategy B: The Case Strategy
This is for the more serious collector. You buy a sealed case of 12 boxes. This is the only way to guarantee you get all 12 regular designs in a series without any duplicates.
But does it guarantee a secret? No.
I cannot stress this enough. Most cases do NOT have a secret. The odds are roughly 1 in 12 cases will have a secret. So you might buy a case and get the 12 regulars. You might buy five cases and get five sets of the 12 regulars. Or, you might buy one case and hit the jackpot.
The main benefit of buying a case is completing the base set. The chance of a secret is just a potential bonus. As a seller, this is how we get our inventory. We order master cartons (which contain multiple cases) and open them to sell as single blind boxes. The feeling of cracking a case and seeing that slightly different box design or weight that signals a secret is incredible. It also means we have a very valuable figure on our hands.
The "Almost Hidden" Anomaly: A Totally Different Game
Then Pop Mart threw a curveball with the Labubu The Monsters Almost Hidden Series. This series completely changed the game. Instead of one secret, every figure in the series is a variation of a "hidden" design. It's a brilliant concept.
The series features Labubu in various states of being obscured, peeking out from a TV, a watermelon, a flower pot. It's a whole labubu hidden series in and of itself.
But the real prize in this set was the labubu almost hidden secret, the one true chase figure: Sketch Labubu. This figure is designed to look like a black-and-white pencil sketch. It's monochrome, it's artistic, and the community went absolutely wild for it.
What does the mystery labubu look like in this series? It looks like a drawing come to life. The demand for Sketch Labubu was insane. I remember seeing its aftermarket price hit $250-$300 within a month of release. That's for a figure that came from a ~$17 blind box. The odds for Sketch were the standard 1/144, but because the entire series was so popular, the hunt was even more intense. This series shows how Pop Mart is willing to experiment with the very concept of a "secret," and it's something to watch out for in future releases.
Method 2: The Sure Thing, The Secondary Market
If you're not a gambler, or if your luck has run dry, there's another way: just buy the secret figure directly.
This is the path of the pragmatist. You skip the "hunt" and go straight for the prize. For many, this is actually the more financially sound option.
Think about it. At $15 per box, you would spend $2,160 on average to pull one secret Labubu (144 boxes x $15). Or, you could go on eBay, StockX, or a collector forum and buy that same secret for, say, $150-$250.
When you look at the math, buying blind boxes specifically to find a secret is a terrible financial decision.
Where to Buy:
* StockX/eBay: These platforms offer buyer protection, which is a huge plus. Prices can be high due to fees, but it's a relatively safe way to buy. * Facebook Collector Groups: This is where you can find some of the best deals. You're buying directly from other collectors. Find a reputable group with good moderation and a feedback system. Always pay using a method with buyer protection (like PayPal Goods & Services). * Specialty Stores (like us!): Sometimes, we pull a secret when breaking down cases for our inventory. When we do, we often sell it directly on our site. It's a great way to get a confirmed secret from a trusted source.
The Big Warning: Fakes Are Everywhere
If you go the secondary market route, you MUST be vigilant. The high value of secret figures has created a massive market for counterfeits. Some are laughably bad, but others are scarily accurate. The paint jobs might be a little sloppier, the material might feel cheaper, or the box and card might have printing errors. Before you spend $200 on a secret, you should absolutely read up on how to spot a fake. We put together a detailed Fake Labubu Guide from our perspective as sellers who have to authenticate figures all the time.
Real Talk: My Honest Advice on Chasing Secrets
Okay, let me put my seller hat aside and just talk to you as a fellow collector. Chasing secrets can be toxic. It can suck the joy out of the hobby. You start seeing every regular figure as a "loss" and a waste of money. You can fall into a gambling mindset, always buying "just one more box" in the hopes of hitting it big.
Don't do that.
My honest advice is this: decide what kind of collector you are.
Are you in it for the thrill of the pull? If so, set a strict budget. Decide you're going to spend $50 this month on blind boxes and enjoy the process. If you get a secret, amazing! If not, you still have some cool new figures for your shelf. The joy was in the experience.
Are you a completionist who just wants that one specific figure to finish your set? If so, just buy it on the secondary market. Save yourself the time, money, and heartache. Your wallet will thank you. There is no shame in buying a secret outright. A complete collection is a complete collection, regardless of how you got there.
I've seen people spend $500 chasing a $150 secret. Don't be that person.
Remember why you got into this in the first place. Was it because you love Kasing Lung's art? The adorable, mischievous look of Labubu? The creativity of the different series? The character's unique design is a big part of the appeal, and it's something I've come to appreciate more after learning about Kasing Lung's journey as the Labubu creator. Focus on that joy. Don't let the 1/144 odds dictate your happiness.
The regular figures are just as beautifully designed as the secrets. Sometimes, they're even better. Collect what you love. If you happen to find a secret along the way, consider it a lucky bonus, not the entire point of the journey.
We're always getting the latest series in stock, and who knows? Maybe your next order will have a little extra magic inside.
Disclosure: PopNya may earn a commission if you purchase through links on this page.
