Pokémon Go Ultra League: Best Pokémon

Toughen up your teams with these creatures

Contents

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

The Ultra League is one of the most popular competitions in Pokémon Go’s PvP mode, the Go Battle League. It returns into the rotation of available disciplines from March 8 to 15, 2024.

We've updated this guide according to the balance changes made in the World of Wonders update, so be sure to adapt your teams.

Ultra League, just like Great League and Master League, is an open format, which means that there are no limitations regarding the types of Pokémon that may participate. There is, however, a maximum limit of 2,500 competition points (CP). This still leaves a lot of room for Pokémon powered up by Candy XL to dominate the league, so you’ll really want to invest in your teams to get them up to speed.

We’ll show you the best Pokémon for Ultra League in this guide based on statistics and simulations provided by PvPoke.com.

Ultra League is the medium weight class in GO Battle League.

Niantic

Pokémon Go Ultra League: Best Leads

These Pokémon are very aggressive, applying pressure on your opponent right from the beginning of a match. They can drag out even tough battles for a long time – this makes them ideal to open a duel up, enabling you to score an early knockout or set up a strong counter play.

1. Pidgeot^(XL) (Wing Attack, Feather Dance, Brave Bird)
2. Registeel^(XL) (Lock On, Focus Blast, Zap Cannon)
3. Feraligatr^(S)(XL) (Shadow Claw, Hydro Cannon, Ice Beam)
4. Poliwrath^(XL) (Counter, Icy Wind, Scald)
5. Zygarde (Complete Forme) (Dragon Tail, Crunch, Earthquake)
6. Giratina (Altered Forme) (Shadow Claw, Dragon Claw, Shadow Sneak)
7. Gliscor (Wing Attack, Night Slash, Earthquake)
8. Shadow Poliwrath^(XL) (Counter, Icy Wind, Scald)
9. Talonflame^(XL) (Incinerate, Fly, Flame Charge)
10. Shadow Charizard (Wing Attack, Blast Burn, Dragon Claw)

Pokémon marked with (XL) require Candy XL to reach their maximum potential; Pokémon marked with (S) perform very similarly in their Shadow and regular versions.

Pokémon Go Ultra League: Best Safe Switches

Should the initial pairing be to your disadvantage, consider switching out your lead for another Pokémon. This is where Safe Switches come into play. They are either strong leads themselves or are specialized in countering some of the more popular members of that class. In any case, a switch will preserve your original lead to fight later on in the battle and perhaps force your opponent to also adapt their strategy on the fly, equalizing the battle once again.

1. Shadow Feraligatr (Shadow Claw, Hydro Cannon, Ice Beam)
2. Feraligatr (Shadow Claw, Hydro Cannon, Ice Beam)
3. Shadow Charizard (Wing Attack, Blast Burn, Dragon Claw)
4. Poliwrath^(S)(XL) (Counter, Icy Wind, Scald)
5. Giratina (Altered Forme) (Shadow Claw, Dragon Claw, Shadow Sneak)
6. Kyurem (Dragon Breath, Glaciate, Dragon Claw)
7. Registeel^(XL) (Lock On, Focus Blast, Zap Cannon)
8. Cresselia (Psycho Cut, Grass Knot, Moonblast)
9. Charizard (Wing Attack, Blast Burn, Dragon Claw)
10. Goodra (Dragon Breath, Aqua Tail, Power Whip)

Pokémon Go Ultra League: Best Closers

The Pokémon in this category are especially useful when there are no shields left in play on either side – they are incredibly tough themselves thanks to their high hit points and many resistances or end battles quickly thanks to powerful charge attacks.

1. Registeel^(S)(XL) (Lock On, Focus Blast, Zap Cannon)
2. Shadow Electivire (Thunder Shock, Wild Charge, Ice Punch)
3. Regirock (Lock On, Stone Edge, Focus Blast)
4. Pidgeot^(XL) (Wing Attack, Feather Dance, Brave Bird)
5. Shadow Raikou (Volt Switch, Wild Charge, Shadow Ball)
6. Skarmory^(S)(XL) (Steel Wing, Brave Bird, Sky Attack)
7. Shadow Feraligatr (Shadow Claw, Hydro Cannon, Ice Beam)
8. Shadow Regirock (Lock On, Stone Edge, Focus Blast)
9. Turtonator^(XL) (Incinerate, Dragon Pulse, Overheat)
10. Raikou (Volt Switch, Wild Charge, Shadow Ball)

Pokémon Go Ultra League: Best Attackers

These Pokémon do best when fighting an opponent who still has shields, while you’re out of shields. They combine important resistances and powerful fast attacks to compensate for this disadvantage. For this 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. Pidgeot^(XL) (Wing Attack, Feather Dance, Brave Bird)
2. Registeel^(XL) (Lock On, Focus Blast, Zap Cannon)
3. Giratina (Altered) (Shadow Claw, Dragon Claw, Shadow Sneak)
4. Cresselia (Psycho Cut, Grass Knot, Moonblast)
5. Mandibuzz^(XL) (Snarl, Dark Pulse, Aerial Ace)
6. Zygarde (Complete Forme) (Dragon Tail, Crunch, Earthquake)
7. Poliwrath^(XL) (Counter, Icy Wind, Scald)
8. Virizion (Double Kick, Leaf Blade, Sacred Sword)
9. Lanturn^(XL) (Counter, Superpower, Lunge)
10. Tapu Fini (Water Gun, Surf, Moonblast)

It seems like no balance changes can shake up the Ultra League meta massively. The World of Wonders update hasn't managed to create any dramatic shifts with the one exception of Feraligatr becoming a top pick in almost all categories thanks to Shadow Clawn being available on it now. There is also the more humble rise of Goodra due to it gaining a buffed Aqua Tail. Other than that, you won't have to make many changes.

For more Pokémon Go, check our overviews for the weekly Spotlight Hours, all 5-Star Raids, and this month’s Field Research Tasks.