TLDR
In MTG, banned vs restricted comes down to zero copies versus one total copy. If a card is banned in a format, you cannot put it in your main deck or sideboard. If it is restricted, you may have one copy total across both—not one in the deck and another in the sideboard. These statuses are format-specific, so always check the list for the format and platform you intend to play.
Vintage is the best-known tabletop format to use restrictions. That rule lets the format retain access to certain historically significant cards while sharply limiting how consistently a deck can draw them. MTG Arena’s Timeless format has also used restricted cards, so “restricted” should not be treated as a Vintage-only term. The practical lesson is simple: identify the format first, and then consult the current official list.
MTG banned vs restricted at a glance
| Status | Copies in main deck | Copies in sideboard | What it means |
|---|---|---|---|
| Banned | 0 | 0 | The card cannot be included in a deck for that format. |
| Restricted | 1 total across both zones | 1 total across both zones | The deck and sideboard together may contain no more than one copy. |
| Legal | Subject to normal format rules | Subject to normal format rules | The card is allowed, but ordinary deck-construction limits still apply. |
| Suspended | 0 while suspended | 0 while suspended | The card is temporarily illegal while its status is reviewed. |
Wizards defines a banned card as one that cannot be included in either the deck or sideboard for the relevant format. A restricted card is allowed as one total copy across the deck and sideboard. Wizards’ current Banned & Restricted information is the appropriate starting point for checking either status.
What does banned mean in Magic?
A ban sets the permitted number of copies to zero for the named format. Moving the card to the sideboard does not get around the ban: the sideboard is included in the prohibition. A deck containing that card is therefore not legal for sanctioned play in that format.
The phrase “for that format” is essential. Magic formats have their own card pools, deck-construction rules, and legality lists. A card banned in Modern is not automatically banned in Legacy, Vintage, Pioneer, or every MTG Arena format. Its status must be checked separately wherever you want to use it.
This also explains why the same card can receive different treatment in different environments. Each format combines a particular card pool with its own rules. A card’s interaction with one pool may lead to a ban there without producing the same policy decision elsewhere. That observation does not tell us whether the card is competitively strong in every format; it only explains why legality cannot be carried from one format to another by assumption.
For example, knowing that a card appears on a Modern banned list answers a Modern deckbuilding question. It does not, by itself, answer whether the card is legal in Vintage or another format. For more context on that specific format’s card pool and legality structure, see how the Modern format works.
What does restricted mean in MTG?
A restricted card remains legal, but the entire deck may contain no more than one copy. “Entire deck” includes the main deck and sideboard together. If the restricted card is in your main deck, you cannot place another copy in your sideboard. If it is in your sideboard, there cannot also be a copy in the main deck.
That combined limit is the most common point of confusion. Restriction does not grant one slot per deck zone. Think of the deck registration as having a single slot for that card, and decide whether that slot belongs in the main deck or sideboard.
- One copy in the main deck and zero in the sideboard: legal if the card is restricted in that format.
- Zero copies in the main deck and one in the sideboard: legal if the format allows a sideboard and the card is restricted.
- One copy in the main deck and one in the sideboard: illegal because that is two copies total.
- Two copies in the main deck and zero in the sideboard: illegal for the same reason.
Wizards’ Vintage format page describes Vintage deck construction as requiring at least 60 cards and allowing an optional sideboard of up to 15 cards. Its restriction rule still counts the main deck and sideboard together.
Why Vintage uses restriction instead of only banning cards
Vintage is built around access to an exceptionally broad portion of Magic’s history. Restriction provides a middle position between normal access and complete exclusion: the card remains part of the format, but decks cannot use several copies to maximize the chance of drawing it.
The immediate mathematical effect is reduced consistency. A single copy in a 60-card deck will generally appear less often than four copies would. Restriction does not make the card weaker when drawn, and it does not guarantee balanced games. It changes how frequently the deck can naturally access that card and prevents players from registering multiple copies.
That is why “restricted” should not be read as a milder synonym for “banned.” The two policies produce meaningfully different gameplay and deckbuilding results:
- A ban removes the card as a deckbuilding option in that format.
- A restriction preserves one copy as an option.
- A ban prevents the card from being drawn through ordinary play because it is absent from the deck.
- A restriction makes access less consistent but still allows tutors, card draw, recursion, and other legal game actions to interact with the one copy.
- Neither status necessarily applies outside the format named on the list.
Wizards has discussed Vintage restrictions in historical articles, but older explanations should be treated as historical context rather than proof of current legality. The live list and current Vintage page control the practical deckbuilding answer today.
Is Vintage the only format with restricted cards?
Vintage is the primary tabletop example, but players may also encounter restrictions on MTG Arena. Wizards’ Banned & Restricted page includes format-specific information for Timeless, including restricted cards. Because the same page has also used broad wording associating restricted lists with Vintage, the safest approach is not to rely on a blanket statement that restriction exists in only one format. Check the section for the exact format and platform.
Vintage and Timeless are distinct environments. A restriction in one does not automatically apply in the other, and a card’s tabletop status does not establish its Arena status. When checking legality, “I play Magic” is not specific enough; “I play tabletop Vintage” or “I play Timeless on MTG Arena” identifies the rule set that matters.
Banned, restricted, suspended, rotated, and singleton are different
Several Magic terms can produce the same immediate result—being unable to register multiple copies—but they reach that result for different reasons.
Suspended versus banned
A suspended card is functionally illegal while its suspension remains in effect. Wizards describes suspension as a status that offers more flexibility to revisit the decision in a digital-first format. You still cannot put the suspended card into a legal deck during that period, but “suspended” communicates a different policy status from a conventional ban.
Rotated versus banned
A rotated card leaves a rotating format because its set is no longer part of that format’s current card pool. A banned card may otherwise belong to the format’s card pool but has been specifically prohibited. Both can make a card illegal in a particular deck, yet only one results from a ban.
Nonrotating does not mean that every card in the broader pool is playable. A nonrotating format can still maintain a banned list. Rotation, card-pool eligibility, and bans are separate checks.
Restricted versus singleton
Restriction applies to particular named cards on a format’s restricted list. A singleton deck-construction rule applies more broadly to the deck, subject to that format’s exceptions. A card is not “restricted” merely because a singleton format normally permits only one copy of it.
Constructed versus Limited
Wizards’ Banned & Restricted lists apply to Constructed formats, where players prepare decks from a defined card pool. Limited play builds decks from cards opened or selected for that event instead. The broader deckbuilding distinction is explained in Constructed versus Limited MTG.
How to check whether a card is legal right now
Legality and restriction lists can change, so remembered information and old decklists are poor final authorities. Use this process before registering a deck:
- Name the exact format. “Casual,” “tabletop,” or “Arena” may not be specific enough.
- Identify the platform when relevant. Tabletop formats and MTG Arena formats do not necessarily share the same card pool or policy.
- Confirm that the card belongs to the format’s legal card pool. This is separate from checking the banned list.
- Open Wizards’ live Banned & Restricted page and find the section for that format.
- If the card is restricted, count every copy in the main deck and sideboard together.
- Consult the applicable format page for deck size, sideboard, card-pool, and other construction rules.
- Recheck close to an event because an announcement may have changed the status since the decklist was created.
This workflow also helps with cards discussed in older articles or announcements. An announcement is reliable evidence of what changed on its effective date, but it is not necessarily proof that the status remains unchanged. For current deck registration, prefer the live format list.
Common questions
Can a restricted card go in the sideboard?
Yes, provided the format permits a sideboard and there is no other copy in the main deck or sideboard. Restriction allows one total copy across both.
Can I play one restricted copy in the deck and another in the sideboard?
No. That would be two registered copies. You must choose one location for the single allowed copy.
Are restricted cards legal in sanctioned tournaments?
Yes, when the tournament uses a format in which the card is restricted and the deck contains no more than one total copy. The card must also meet all other applicable deck and event rules. Restricted means legal in limited quantity, not prohibited.
Is a card banned everywhere once it is banned in one format?
No. Bans are format-specific. Check every format separately rather than extending one list to the rest of Magic.
Does restriction mean the card is safe or fair?
Not necessarily. Restriction is a deck-construction status, not a universal evaluation of the card. It tells you how many copies may be registered in that format; it does not by itself establish the health of the metagame or the quality of games involving the card.
The distinction that resolves the question
For MTG banned vs restricted, remember two numbers: banned means zero; restricted means one total across the main deck and sideboard. Vintage uses restriction as a way to retain access to certain cards while reducing how consistently decks can include and draw them, but restrictions can also appear in platform-specific formats such as Timeless.
The status belongs to a format, not permanently to the card in every form of Magic. Before building or registering a deck, identify the exact format and platform, then verify the card on Wizards’ live list. That one habit prevents nearly every banned-versus-restricted deckbuilding mistake.