The Rarest NFTs From the Best-Selling PFP Collections

Among the best-selling NFT collections out there, some pieces hold a strong potential to become uniquely defining assets of the mythos of each collection. But these don’t always sell for the highest price on the open market. Sometimes, they possess one of the most highly sought-after qualities across the entire NFT space: rarity.

In the case of generative PFP NFTs, the rarest pieces are generated at random. How? They possess the rarest combination of traits found in each collection. If you ever wondered what those pieces might be within the top NFT collections currently available on the market, then look no further. With the help of rarity.tools, one of the most trusted utilities for quickly finding the rarest NFTs in any given collection, we’ve rounded out a quick list to save you the trouble of opening up a gazillion tabs in your browser.

At first glance, this may look like the perfect CryptoPunk to represent the average Berlin nightclub enthusiast. But it’s so much more than that. With a mind-bending rarity score of 10342.68, this is undisputably the rarest CryptoPunk of them all. Its rarity isn’t carried by any individual rare trait it possesses. It’s the fact that it has seven traits, and is the only CryptoPunk out of 10,000 that does. Aside from that, it’s also one of only 78 CryptoPunks with buck teeth, and 115 wearing a top hat.

This particular Bored Ape has a rarity score of 333.86 due in large part to several highly coveted traits found in the piece. These are largely driven by the dagger in its mouth, of which only 48 other Bored Apes possess. Combined with its cyborg eye and its cross earring, and you’ve got a truly one-of-a-kind Bored Ape ripe to build a franchise around.

Despite belonging to the most common CloneX species, a regular old human, what makes CloneX #4941 such a rare NFT is what it’s wearing. It possesses not one, but two exclusive traits: a skull helmet and a red-on-black varsity jacket. With those two traits, this particular CloneX NFT definitely stands out among a collection 20,000 strong, making its rarity score of 4537.75 well-earned.

Despite the general flashiness of Azuki NFTs and their emphasis on merging streetwear fashion with anime aesthetics, the rarest Azuki NFT of them all is a surprisingly pure representation of an enduring archetype in Japanese culture: a Shinto monk. It’s one of only eight bald Azukis in the 10,000-piece collection, and the only one with five traits in total. All in all, that nets it a rarity score of 11096.50.

Perhaps one of the most important NFT collections to launch in 2022, Moonbirds largely caught on among the community thanks to their cute aesthetic and broad appeal. However, flying highest amongst this flock of 10,000 digital owls looks more like the stuff of a classic creepypasta more than anything. Moonbird #668 is one of only six glitch Moonbird NFTs in the entire collection, and coupled with it being one of only four Moonbirds that possesses the Legendary Guardian feather trait, nets it a rarity score of 6578.47.

What makes gold such a valuable commodity? For the most part, it’s a scarce, difficult-to-harvest resource with a wide degree of practical application. So just imagine how rare a gold alien of all things would be if it existed. Well, it does, in a sense. At least within the Doodles NFT collection. Enter Doodle #2912. It’s just decked in gold, and is the only Doodle out of 10,000 that’s a gold alien from head to toe, and the only one that sports a gold-specked background. This complete set of exclusive traits gives it a rarity score of 14546.06.

Throughout 2022, DeGods enjoyed a redemption arc the likes of which has rarely been seen in the nascent NFT space. Now we even know what its founder Frank looks like. But what about the rarest DeGod of them all? That would be DeGod #2885. It’s one of just 53 DeGods in the 10,000-piece collection with four traits, and one of only 25 sporting Medusa’s iconic snake-for-hair. Thanks to those factors, it enjoys a rarity score of 473.14 atop the heap.