Pokémon Go Great League: Best Pokémon

Top the competition with these monsters and moves

Niantic

Back to the basics! The Great League returns to Pokémon Go, running from October 29 to November 12, 2024. This entire period will feature quadruple Stardust rewards for wins, so make sure to give it your all. Great League is the simplest discipline in Go Battle League, Pokémon Go’s PvP mode, and thus is the perfect ground to get started on your trainer battle journey.

Table of Contents

1. Pokémon Go Great League: Best Leads
2. Pokémon Go Great League: Best Safe Switches
3. Pokémon Go Great League: Best Closers
4. Pokémon Go Great League: Best Attackers

There are no restrictions on what type of Pokémon you can field, though there is a maximum limit on competition points (CP) these creatures can possess. In Great League, this is set at 1,500 CP. That also means that this competition is very easy on your Stardust and Candy XL budget, as you won’t have to power up your Pokémon all too much. Again, it’s very friendly to any beginners who may want to try PvP for the first time.

We’ve put together a list of the best Pokémon for Great League to get you started on your team building process. Our choices are based on statistics and simulations provided by PvPoke.com.

Pokémon Go Great League: Best Leads

The Pokémon in this class are aggressors, able to apply pressure on your opponent right from the start of a battle. They can also drag out tough battles for a long time thanks to their bulk. This allround effectiveness makes them perfect to open a match up, enabling you to score an early knockout or set up a strong counter play.

1. Pangoro (Karate Chop, Close Combat, Night Slash)
2. Gastrodon (Mud Slap, Body Slam, Earth Power)
3. Clodsire (Poison Sting, Earthquake, Sludge Bomb/Stone Edge)
4. Shadow Jumpluff (Fairy Wind, Aerial Ace, Energy Ball)
5. Shadow Gallade (Psycho Cut, Close Combat, Leaf Blade)
6. Shadow Machamp (Karate Chop, Cross Chop, Stone Edge)
7. Clefable (Fairy Wind, Moonblast, Swift)
8. Shadow Marowak (Mud Slap, Bone Club, Rock Slide)
9. Jumpluff (Fairy Wind, Aerial Ace, Energy Ball)
10. Malamar (Psywave, Superpower, Foul Play)

Pokémon Go Great League: Best Safe Switches

If you’re not happy with the initial pairing, you should consider switching out your lead for another Pokémon. That’s the role of a Safe Switch. They are either strong leads themselves or are specialized in countering some of the most popular leads. Putting them in will let you score an elimination, disrupt your opponent’s game plan, or at least preserve your lead for the later stage of the match.

1. Feraligatr [S] (Shadow Claw, Hydro Cannon, Ice Beam)
2. Shadow Drapion (Poison Sting, Crunch, Aqua Tail)
3. Clodsire (Poison Sting, Earthquake, Sludge Bomb)
4. Qwilfish (Poison Sting, Aqua Tail, Ice Beam)
5. Shadow Ursaring (Shadow Claw, Swift, Close Combat)
6. Samurott (Fury Cutter, Hydro Cannon, Megahorn)
7. Diggersby [XL] (Quick Attack, Fire Punch, Scorching Sands)
8. Shadow Ursaring (Shadow Claw, Swift, Close Combat)
9. Malamar (Psywave, Superpower, Foul Play)
10. Drapion (Poison Sting, Crunch, Aqua Tail)

Pokémon marked with [XL] require Candy XL to reach their best performance levels.

Pokémon Go Great League: Best Closers

These Pokémon come in quite handy when there are no shields left in play on either side – they are incredibly tough thanks to their high bulk and many resistances or they can end battles quickly due to their access to powerful charge attacks.

1. Clodsire (Poison Sting, Earthquake, Sludge Bomb/Stone Edge)
2. Shadow Gallade (Psycho Cut, Close Combat, Leaf Blade)
3. Registeel [S] (Lock On, Focus Blast, Zap Cannon)
4. Shadow Feraligatr (Shadow Claw, Hydro Cannon, Ice Beam)
5. Pangoro (Karate Chop, Close Combat, Night Slash)
6. Carbink [XL] (Rock Throw, Rock Slide, Moonblast)
7. Diggersby [XL] (Quick Attack, Scorching Sands, Hyper Beam)
8. Shadow Electivire (Thunder Shock, Ice Punch, Wild Charge)
9. Malamar (Psywave, Superpower, Foul Play)
10. Chesnaught (Vine Whip, Frenzy Plant, Superpower)

Pokémon marked with [S] perform comparably well in both their regular and Shadow forms.

Pokémon Go Great League: Best Attackers

This class is specialized in fighting an opponent who still has shields, while you no longer have any yourself. They combine strong resistances and potent fast attacks to compensate for this disadvantage. For that reason, you rarely see Shadow forms in this role – they take more damage than their regular counterparts, making them a risky card to pull out at this stage of a match.

1. Mandibuzz (Snarl, Dark Pulse, Aerial Ace)
2. Bastiodon [XL] (Smack Down, Stone Edge, Flamethrower)
3. Clodsire (Poison Sting, Earthquake, Sludge Bomb)
4. Carbink [XL] (Rock Throw, Rock Slide, Moonblast)
5. Diggersby [XL] (Quick Attack, Scorching Sands, Hyper Beam)
6. Toxapex (Poison Jab, Brine, Sludge Wave)
7. Azumarill [XL] (Bubble, Ice Beam, Play Rough)
8. Gastrodon (Mud Slap, Body Slam, Earth Power)
9. Shadow Bastiodon [XL] (Smack Down, Stone Edge, Flamethrower)
10. Araquanid (Bug Bite, Bug Buzz, Bubble Beam)

The Max Out update for Pokémon Go brought tons of refreshing balance changes to the game, which have done quite a number on the meta: Names like Pangoro and Malamar suddenly are appearing everywhere, while already valued Pokémon like Clodsire became even stronger.

For more Pokémon Go, check our overviews for the weekly Spotlight Hours and 5-Star Raids.