The 10 best Dark Pokemon of all time

The best Dark Pokémon are cool yet shady, and aren't afraid to get their hands dirty

Known as the ‘Evil’ type in Japan, it’s no surprise that Dark-types all have a certain sharpness to their design. They’re not meant to be your cuddly partners or happy friends, they’re malevolent creatures who enjoy inflicting pain on others – or they’re just going through a goth phase. It’s up to you.

Either way, it means that Dark Pokémon should have a cool edge to them. Nothing’s worse than a Dark-type that looks like it’s trying too hard to be edgy. That’s why we’re running down the best Dark Pokémon.

If you want to see more Pokémon rankings then check out our lists of the best Electric Pokémon, the best Flying Pokémon, and the best Normal Pokémon.

Obstagoon

Giving some regional variants brand-new evolutions was a great way to breathe new life into otherwise forgettable Pokémon. It’s a bit of a weird humanoid progression from Linoone, but the Galarian form has such a mad look in its eye and wild attitude that I can forgive such a big leap up.

Greninja

Being a starter Pokémon it leans much more on its Water-typing for its design, but the ninja aspects shine through to make it an excellent Dark-type. This goes double for its all-black shiny form.

Tyrantiar

There isn’t anything complex about why Tyranitar is great. It looks like an absolute monster, and we think that’s pretty cool. It’s remained weirdly resilient in the competitive scene too, regularly popping up every generation – even when it seems out of place.

Bisharp

Whether you love or hate Generation 5, it’s hard to say it has many outright “cool” designs, but Bisharp manages to be one of the few. Due to its chess-piece theme, it works as a humanoid, invoking the razor-sharp power of Scizor, but spicing up the design with a few more colors and layers to its body. Gen 9 tried to take it further with Kingambit, but Bisharp is still the best-looking ‘mon of the line.

Roaring Moon

Paradox Pokémon are deliberately designed to be strange and uncanny to look at, but Roaring Moon is perhaps the only one that outright improved the Pokémon it’s based on. Salamence is already a cool customer, but Roaring Moon turns it into some ferocious. It has a more interesting spread of patterns and colors with a murderous look in its eye that you want to keep away from.

Weavile

Weavile can switch between lovably mischievous, to unrelentingly dangerous in an instant. Its face has so much natural charisma that it can easily bend to either end of the spectrum while still undeniably fitting in as a Dark Pokémon. Plus, with Pokémon Legends: Arceus giving us the sub-par alternate evolution, Sneasler, we can all better appreciate the greatness we already have with Weavile.

Darkrai

Having “dark” in the name may be a little on the nose, but if any Pokémon deserves it, it’s this mythical monster. Its ghostly form and ability to induce endless nightmares make it a terrifying Pokémon, with no softened edges. Plus, it happens to be the title character of one of the best Pokémon movies ever made.

Zoroark

Another Pokémon who got themselves a movie – this time despite not even being mythical – Zoroark is a Pokémon that I come to appreciate more and more as time goes by. Its Illusion ability may not successfully fool people that often, but it’s always a cheeky trick to pull out in a battle. Plus, there’s the Hisuian form which, although it’s not a Dark-type, is still a work of art.

Umbreon

It’s an Eeveelution, of course it’s one of the best Dark-types. Umbreon is more subtle than most of its siblings, but weirdly that makes it stands out from the pack. Instead of going big and evil with its look, it became sleek and stylish. The vibe with Umbreon is less outright nasty and more subtly fiendish, which makes it oddly cute.

Absol

When we think of Dark Pokémon, we think of Absol, it’s that simple. Absol has such a straightforward design yet so much beauty is packed in, going with bright white fur to contrast against the patches of pitch-black body. It’s also the most interesting from a lore perspective, being classified as ‘evil’ simply because people misunderstand its intentions, with it actually attempting to save people from natural disasters. Also, it’s definitely a My Chemical Romance fan. Just look at that face.