What are the best Pokemon per type?

There are over 900 Pokémon registered in the National Pokedex, with 100 more potentially joining with the release of Pokémon Scarlet and Violet. After eight generations of games, this is the ultimate list of the best Pokémon per type.

Multiple generations have grown up with the Pokemon franchises. Whether you played the games first or watched a movie, Pokémon is the type of universe that stay with you throughout your life. Every Pokémon fan has dreamt of becoming a Pokémon master and has a favorite starter. When it comes to picking the best, there is no right answer.

This list is completely subjective and based on a criterion that is as vague as it is specific. In order to be the best of a particular type, the Pokémon must be pure, meaning that it cannot have a secondary type. None of that Dragon-Flying shenanigans allowed. In the second and sixth generation, new types were added and, as a result, some Pokémon were retyped. First generation Pokémon like Clefairy were originally Normal type and later on became Fairy type.

We take into consideration the Pokémon combat potential, popularity, rarity, and relevance among players, and overall, how iconic it is.

Best Normal type Pokemon

Any player that has watched at least one episode of the Pokémon anime knows a Normal type Pokémon. There are so many iconic Pokémon in this type, from Team Rocket’s Meowth to Snorlax, that in any game is a reliable Pokémon in combat.

And while there are so many options, the title must go to Eevee. No other Pokemon has Eevee’s potential. Its multiple evolutions have turned it into a fundamental part of the Pokemon universe. The Eeveelutions are a collection within the collection, it doesn’t get better than that.

Best Fire type Pokemon

Entei is legendary for more reasons than one. It is one of the Legendary Beasts but most fans will remember it from Pokemon 3: The Movie. Without spoiling much about the movie, let’s just say that Entei is the hero of Pokemon 3.

Entei is available on every title since its introduction in the second generation.

Best Water type Pokemon

Water is the category with the most Pokémon. At least 145 Pokémon have Water as their primary, secondary, or only type.

This is a personal preference because not only is Piplup adorable, it evolves into a majestic Pokémon and in the anime, it is one of the cutest characters. People will say that Piplup is not the strongest starter from its generation but those people are wrong.

To prove our point, here’s a cheerleader Piplup.

Best Grass type Pokemon

When it comes to Grass type, there are multiple ways to go. One could go for Chikorita, one of the standouts of the second generation, or the smiley Sunflora. Grass has some of the prettiest Pokémon like Leafeon, Shaymin, and Lilligant. But why go with pretty when you can go with strong?

Rillaboom gets the title in this category because nothing is more impressive than a drummer Pokémon. Special mention to Sprigatito, already the most popular starter from Pokémon Scarlet and Violet.

Best Electric type Pokemon

There’s no room for discussion in this category. Pikachu is the face of Pokémon for a reason. The most loyal companion with its own games, and so much merch with its face. Even people that don’t know the first thing about Pokémon can recognize Pikachu.

Best Ice type Pokemon

The Alola region introduced us to some interesting variants of some known and loved Pokémon. One of the variants is Alolan Vulpix, our pick for best Ice type Pokémon. A beloved fire Pokémon turned into an ice type is the kind of plot twist that keeps the Pokémon universe interesting.

Best Fighting type Pokemon

This category has some of the strongest and rarest Pokémon from Pokémon Go. Machamp is one of the strongest and most reliable options for anyone participating in PVP combat. Galarian Farfetch’d is one of the rarest Pokémon because it is region locked. Then there is Riolu, who can evolve into the strong Lucario. If we talk about Legendary Pokémon, then we have Zamazenta.

Let’s go with the one that would probably win in arm wrestling, naturally the one with the most arms, Machamp.

Best Poison type Pokemon

Poison Pokémon are often synonyms for villains, like Team Rocket. Jessie’s Arbok and James’ Weezing are a fundamental part of the team, so they can share the title of best Poison type Pokémon.

Best Ground type Pokemon

The best Ground Type Pokémon is the perfect combination of sad and mysterious. This lonely Pokémon is known for crying on the full moon when it remembers its mother. It has a dinosaur-like appearance and is one of the few Pokémon that carries a weapon, in its case, a bone.

Any guesses? It’s Cubone!

Best Flying type Pokemon

There are only three Pokémon who are pure Flying type, so this is the easiest pick in the list. Is it a cloud? Is it a plane? No, it’s Tornadus. A member of the Forces of Nature from the Unova region, Tornadus can blow away whole houses. Best to keep it happy then, just in case.

Best Psychic type Pokemon

What other Pokémon could get the title of best Psychic type Pokémon than the Pokémon that contains the DNA of all past, present, and future Pokémon? Perhaps, its clone. Mew and Mewtwo meet every category in the criterion. They are powerful, popular, rare, and iconic in the Pokémon universe.

Best Bug type Pokemon

No Bug type Pokémon goes as hard as Metapod and, for that, it deserves to be recognized as the best. Ash’s Metapod took part and won one of the most intense battles in the anime. Forget about the movies and the battles against Gym Leaders, Metapod vs Metapod was the real battle of the century.

Best Rock type Pokemon

In the pure Rock type list you can find trees, dinosaurs, walking totems… and puppies? Everyone likes a puppy Pokémon and Rockruff makes an adorable pet. Don’t underestimate it, Rockruff evolves into some dangerous Pokémon. Early this year, Rockruff made its Pokémon Go debut, in case you want to take it on a walk, literally.

Best Ghost type Pokemon

And speaking of dog Pokémon, the best Ghost type Pokemon goes to the newest addition, Greavard.

We don’t know much about Greavard other than it can hide well and drains the energy of those that stay close for too long. It is a good representative of the Pokémon in the Paldea region. So far, we know that these Pokémon are likeable and powerful. We’ll know more when Pokémon Scarlet and Violet comes out on November 18.

Best Dark type Pokemon

The Dark type is another category that surprisingly has only animal-like Pokémon. Cat Pokemon like Purrloin, fox Pokémon like Nickit and Zorua. The best Dark type Pokémon is one that can sense incoming disaster, Absol from Hoenn.

In the games, players shouldn’t miss the chance to catch Absol. Dark type Pokémon seem to be one of the few Pokémon with lots of strengths and few weaknesses. Making Absol a great addition to a team, especially in Pokemon Go.

Best Dragon type Pokemon

One surprising fact is that Charizard is not a Dragon type Pokémon. Only when it evolves into Mega Charizard X it gets Dragon as its secondary type. One would normally associate Dragon type with fire but almost every other type of Pokémon can have Dragon as a secondary type. Perhaps the most surprising is Alolan Exeggutor which is a Grass Dragon type or the Legendary Palkia, a Water Dragon.

There are only 13 pure Dragon type with some strong options but in this case, it is best to go back to Kanto and the first generation. Dragonair, which later evolves into Dragonite, is one of those Pokémon that we can’t help but remember fondly.

Best Steel type Pokemon

This is another category with only a handful of options. Every iconic steel Pokémon you can think of, has a secondary type. If it is pure Steel, then let’s go with a Mythical like Meltan.

Meltan is the first Pokémon to make its debut in Pokémon Go before any other title. It is from the Kanto region and later on became part of Let’s Go Pikachu and Eevee. Meltan is one of the rarest in Pokémon Go and originally, it could only be caught when you linked Let’s Go Pikachu and Eevee with Pokémon Go.

Best Fairy type Pokemon

You cannot talk about cute Pokémon without mentioning the Fairy type. First introduced in the sixth generation, it was originally conceived to count the Dragon and Dark type. All Fairy type Pokémon are cute and most of them are pink. However, underestimating the strength of Fairy Pokémon is a costly mistake.

There are elegant Fairy Pokémon like Sylveon, Florges, and Xerneas. Other that look like dessert, Alcremie and Slurpuff. And the classics, Clefairy, Togepi, and Snubbull. This is probably the hardest category but we’ll go with Sylveon.

Arguably the strongest of the Eevee evolutions, in combat Sylveon is one fearsome opponent.