Pokemon Go | Best Pokemon For PVP Trainer Battle: Guide & Tips

Check out this Pokemon GO guide for the best & recommended Pokemon for PVP Trainer Battles - plus battle tips & more!

PvP Related Articles
GO Battle League Guide			Trainer Battle Guide
Best Teams For PvP			Best Pokemon For PvP
Great League Tier List		Ultra League Tier List		Master League Tier List

Best Pokemon For Great League

The CP limit of Pokemon you can bring into battle for Great League is 1500. Legendary Pokemon such as Mewtwo exceed this limit & can't be used. Other Pokemon not normally used in gym & raid battles can be used due to the low CP limit.

Frequently Used Pokemon In Great League

▼Venusaur			▼Blastoise			▼Arcanine			▼Alolan Marowak
▼Mew			▼Azumarill			▼Skarmory			▼Kindgra
▼Whiscash			▼Altaria			▼Alolan Muk			▼Cresselia
▼Umbreon			▼Melmetal			▼Tropius			▼Bastiodon
▼Medicham			▼Deoxys (Defense)			▼Sableye			▼Probopass
▼Togekiss			▼Bronzong			▼Forretress			▼Lucario
▼Aggron			▼Victreebel			▼Clefairy			▼Swampert
▼Jirachi

Venusaur

Recommended Move Set Fast Move / 1st Charge Move / 2nd Charge Move
( Vine Whip / Frenzy Plant / Sludge Bomb)

Vine Whip is very powerful & can charge gauges fast. With this combination, Frenzy Plant can be used many times in one battle, though it's an exclusive Community Day move. Venusaur has good defense, making it a strong & durable Pokemon in battle.

Blastoise

Recommended Move Set Fast Move / 1st Charge Move / 2nd Charge Move
( Water Gun / Hydro Cannon / Ice Beam)

Hydro Cannon is a limited Community Day move but its gauge charges fast so you can use it many times. Blastoise's Ice Beam can be used as a 2nd Charge Move, allowing you to fight another Type weak against Ice easily.

Arcanine

Recommended Move Set Fast Move / 1st Charge Move / 2nd Charge Move
( Fire Fang / Flamethrower / Wild Charge)

Arcanine is a strong Fire Type with high HP base stat, among all Pokemon that can fight in the Great League. Arcanine's Fast Move can charge his gauges pretty fast & is very strong. Learning Wild Charge will help him beat Water & Flying Types.

Alolan Marowak

Recommended Move Set Fast Move / 1st Charge Move / 2nd Charge Move
( Hex / Shadow Ball / Bone Club)

Alolan Marowak can quickly charge & use its Bone Club attack, forcing opponents to use their shields quickly. Shadow Ball is also powerful despite this Pokemon's many weak points.

Mew

Recommended Move Set Fast Move / 1st Charge Move / 2nd Charge Move
( Shadow Claw / Grass Knot / Wild Charge)

Mew is a unique Pokemon whose moveset is hard to predict since it can learn many move Types. Shadow Claw is good for charging up your gauge and defeating Pokemon with its Wild Charge.

Azumarill

Recommended Move Set Fast Move / 1st Charge Move / 2nd Charge Move
( Bubble / Hydro Pump / Ice Beam)

Azumarill has high HP stats and is only weak to a few Types. It can learn many Charge Moves, making it flexible & easy to create powerful combinations with. It is frequently used due to lack of Electric Types in the league.

Skarmory

Recommended Move Set Fast Move / 1st Charge Move / 2nd Charge Move
( Steel Wing / Sky Attack / Flash Cannon)

Being a Steel Type, Skarmory is very durable & has high defense. He has strong Fast & Charge Moves that 2nd Charge Moves sometimes aren't needed. Flying Type attacks also match with Skarmory's Type, allowing him to use these moves as well.

Kingdra

Recommended Move Set Fast Move / 1st Charge Move / 2nd Charge Move
( Dragon Breath / Outrage / Hydro Pump)

Kingdra is a Dragon Type and able to use the very powerful Dragon Breath as its Fast Move. Due to it being a Dual Type, it doesn't have very many weak points. Kingdra is also very powerful with Water Type moves.

Whiscash

Recommended Move Set Fast Move / 1st Charge Move / 2nd Charge Move
( Mud Shot / Mud Bomb / Petal Blizzard)

A must-have Pokemon in the Great League, Whiscash can attack quickly with Mud Shot. This move can fill up its Charge Move gauges quickly, allowing it to deal fast & big damage to its opponents.

Altaria

Recommended Move Set Fast Move / 1st Charge Move / 2nd Charge Move
( Dragon Breath / Sky Attack / Dragon Pulse)

The Altaria is a Dragon Type Pokemon that has good defense, making it durable in battle. Dragon's Breath is a strong Fast Move and Sky Attack can deal good damage to a lot of Pokemon Type. Be cautious of fighting against Fairy Type Pokemon.

Alolan Muk

Recommended Move Set Fast Move / 1st Charge Move / 2nd Charge Move
( Poison Jab / Sludge Wave / Dark Pulse)

Alolan Muk has overall good base stats & is only weak against Psychic Types. Muk is a good counter to Azumarill (which is weak to Poison Types) that many people use in the Great League. Make sure to trade Alolan Muk in order to raise its Individual Value..

Cresselia

Recommended Move Set Fast Move / 1st Charge Move / 2nd Charge Move
( Psycho Cut / Future Sight / Aurora Beam)

Cresselia's has good defense and its Psycho Cut move can charge its gauges fast. It is also an effective Pokemon against Dragon Types. It's recommended to raise its IV level first by trading before using Cresselia in battle.

Umbreon

Recommended Move Set Fast Move / 1st Charge Move / 2nd Charge Move
( Feint Attack / Last Resort / Dark Pulse)

Unless hit by moves that it is weak to, Umbreon's high defense stats make it hard for opponents to knock it out of battle. It has strong Dark Type moves that can take advantage of Pokemon weak to this type of attacks.

Melmetal

Recommended Move Set Fast Move / 1st Charge Move / 2nd Charge Move
( Thunder Shock / Thunderbolt / Rock Slide)

Being a Steel Type Pokemon, Melmetal is impervious to a lot of damage from other Types. It also has good defense stats. If equipped with Rock & Electric Type moves, Melmetal can easily defeat Azumarill & Altaria - both Pokemon often used in the Great League.

Tropius

Recommended Move Set Fast Move / 1st Charge Move / 2nd Charge Move
( Razor Leaf / Leaf Blade / Aerial Ace)

Razor Leaf and Leaf Blade are the strongest Grass Type moves in Pokemon GO. Tropius is strong against Ground Pokemon such as Whiscash.

Bastiodon

Recommended Move Set Fast Move / 1st Charge Move / 2nd Charge Move
( Smack Down / Stone Edge / Flamethrower)

Bastiodon has the capacity to learn one of the strongest Fire type moves, Flamethrower. However, be warned that Bastiodon has two type weaknesses.

Medicham

Recommended Move Set Fast Move / 1st Charge Move / 2nd Charge Move
( Counter / Power-Up Punch / Ice Punch)

Medicham has high defense and excels with the Power-Up Punch Move. Ice Punch can penetrate the weakness of most enemy Pokemon. Make sure to have a Medicham with high IV, due to the low CP limit in this league.

Deoxys (Defense)

Recommended Move Set Fast Move / 1st Charge Move / 2nd Charge Move
( Counter / Psycho Boost / Rock Slide)

The Defense form of Deoxys is able to learn the move Counter which is great as it is a Psychic type. It can face off with other Pokemon due to learning the Rock Slide attack.

Sableye

Recommended Move Set Fast Move / 1st Charge Move / 2nd Charge Move
( Shadow Claw / Shadow Sneak / Foul Play)

Sableye is a unique Pokemon that only has weakness to Fairy types. It's easy to use but make sure to have a Sableye with the move Shadow Claw.

Probopass

Recommended Move Set Fast Move / 1st Charge Move / 2nd Charge Move
( Spark / Rock Slide / Thunderbolt)

Another Pokemon with high defense and great for battles. Both Spark & Rock Slide can charge your gauge up quickly, however, take note that Probopass has 2 weaknesses.

Togekiss

Recommended Move Set Fast Move / 1st Charge Move / 2nd Charge Move
( Charm / Dazzling Gleam / Aerial Ace)

Togekiss is a Normal type Pokemon that has very strong skills. It can do a lot of damage and charge its gauge quickly.

Bronzong

Recommended Move Set Fast Move / 1st Charge Move / 2nd Charge Move
( Confusion / Psyshock / Bulldoze)

Bronzong has high and excellent resistance with good defense. Its Fast Moves are better used than its Charge Move due to their effectiveness.

Forretress

Recommended Move Set Fast Move / 1st Charge Move / 2nd Charge Move
( Bug Bite / Rock Tomb / Earthquake)

Forretress is a Bug & Steel Pokemon that is resistant to a lot of other types. It also only has one weakness, which is Fire.

Lucario

Recommended Move Set Fast Move / 1st Charge Move / 2nd Charge Move
( Counter / Power-Up Punch / Shadow Ball)

Lucario has a strong Fighting type move called Power-Up Punch. The Pokemon can also charge up gauges faster, allowing you to use your Charge Move fast.

Aggron

Recommended Move Set Fast Move / 1st Charge Move / 2nd Charge Move
( Smack Down / Stone Edge / Heavy Slam)

Aggron has similar capacity to Bastiodon, able to learn both Smack Down and Stone Edge, however it has lower defense than Bastiodon.

Victreebel

Recommended Move Set Fast Move / 1st Charge Move / 2nd Charge Move
( Razor Leaf / Leaf Blade / Acid Spray)

Victreebel's Leaf Blade requires shorter charge time so it's easy to use quickly. Acid Spray lowers the enemy's stats, even if it has lower attack power, making it useful to defeat opponents.

Clefairy

Recommended Move Set Fast Move / 1st Charge Move / 2nd Charge Move
( Charm / Psychic / Meteor Mash)

Clefairy is able to fight against those with Fairy type weaknesses such as Altaria. However, it takes a while to charge its gauge.

Swampert

Recommended Move Set Fast Move / 1st Charge Move / 2nd Charge Move
( Mud Shot / Hydro Cannon / Earthquake)

Swampert's Community Day move Hydro Cannon is very powerful so be sure to learn it! Swampert is very strong and can fill up its gauge quickly, allowing you to take down shields & defeat foes fast.

Jirachi

Recommended Move Set Fast Move / 1st Charge Move / 2nd Charge Move
( Confusion / Doom Desire / Psychic)

Jirachi's Doom Desire has high attack power and can quickly be activated when charging the gauge. It's also a Steel & Psychic type, allowing for good resistance against other Pokemon types.

Best Pokemon For Ultra League

In Ultra League, almost all Pokemon can be used since the CP limit is 2500. A lot of powerful Pokemon show up in this league, including strong legendary Pokemon.

Frequently Used Pokemon In Ultra League

▼Cresselia			▼Kindgra			▼Giratina (Altered Forme)			▼Swampert
▼Togekiss			▼Melmetal			▼Heatran			▼Lickilicky
▼Poliwrath			▼Registeel			▼Steelix			▼Alolan Muk
▼Venusaur			▼Blastoise			▼Snorlax

Cresselia

Recommended Move Set Fast Move / 1st Charge Move / 2nd Charge Move
( Psycho Cut / Future Sight / Aurora Beam)

Cresselia is high defense Psychic Type that only has a few weaknesses. Use Psycho Cut to charge your gauge quickly and use your Charge Moves against your foes.

Kingdra

Recommended Move Set Fast Move / 1st Charge Move / 2nd Charge Move
( Dragon Breath / Outrage / Hydro Pump)

Kingdra is a Dragon Type and able to use the very powerful Dragon Breath as its Fast Move. Due to it being a Dual Type, it doesn't have very many weak points. Kingdra is also very powerful with Water Type moves.

Giratina (Altered Forme)

Recommended Move Set Fast Move / 1st Charge Move / 2nd Charge Move
( Shadow Claw / Dragon Claw / Shadow Sneak)

Giratina's Shadow Claw is a Fast Move that can easily fill up its Charge Move gauge and deal massive amounts of damage. Teaching Giratina Shadow Sneak as its 2nd Charge Move will help it bring down many Pokemon types.

Swampert

Recommended Move Set Fast Move / 1st Charge Move / 2nd Charge Move
( Mud Shot / Hydro Cannon / Earthquake)

Use Mud Shot to quickly fill Swampert's gauge. If possible, use a Swampert with the Community Day move Hydro Cannon to be more effective in Pokemon battles.

Togekiss

Recommended Move Set Fast Move / 1st Charge Move / 2nd Charge Move
( Charm / Flamethrower / Aerial Ace)

Togekiss is one of the most powerful Normal type Pokemon and can learn a variety of different moves. The best way is to use your Fast Moves to bring opponent HP's down as quick as possible.

Melmetal

Recommended Move Set Fast Move / 1st Charge Move / 2nd Charge Move
( Thunder Shock / Thunderbolt / Rock Slide)

Melmetal has high defense against other types due to it being a Steel Pokemon. It can be used to fight against Pokemon such as Altaria and Azumarill.

Heatran

Recommended Move Set Fast Move / 1st Charge Move / 2nd Charge Move
( Fire Spin / Flamethrower / Stone Edge)

Heatran can be very powerful against Pokemon that are weak against Fire type moves. However, it's best to use it only in special cases where you have the advantage due to its type match difficulty.

Lickilicky

Recommended Move Set Fast Move / 1st Charge Move / 2nd Charge Move
( Lick / Earthquake / Shadow Ball)

Lickilicky is a Normal type Pokemon that can learn how to use Ghost type moves for both Fast Move & Charge Move.

Poliwrath

Recommended Move Set Fast Move / 1st Charge Move / 2nd Charge Move
( Mud Shot / Power-Up Punch / Ice Punch)

Use Power-Up Punch to raise your Pokemon's attack to increase damage. Can be used with Giratina, to compensate for each other's type weaknesses.

Registeel

Recommended Move Set Fast Move / 1st Charge Move / 2nd Charge Move
( Lock-On / Flash Cannon / Focus Blast)

The Lock-On move has low attack power however it can charge up the gauge quickly. This is useful for the Flash Cannon move that has super high attack power but takes a lot of gauge to activate.

Steelix

Recommended Move Set Fast Move / 1st Charge Move / 2nd Charge Move
( Thunder Fang / Heavy Slam / Crunch)

Being a Steel-type Pokemon, Steelix has very few type weaknesses, making it popular in battle. However, it does not work well with Swampert or Poliwrath. Be careful of low CP levels also as Steelix's max CP does not reach 2500.

Alolan Muk

Recommended Move Set Fast Move / 1st Charge Move / 2nd Charge Move
( Snarl / Dark Pulse / Acid Spray)

Alolan Muk has overall good base stats & is only weak against Psychic Types. It can counter Giratina easily in the Ultra League.

Venusaur

Recommended Move Set Fast Move / 1st Charge Move / 2nd Charge Move
( Vine Whip / Frenzy Plant / Sludge Bomb)

One of the strongest Grass-type Pokemon, Venusaur is great against Swampert and Poliwrath - both used often in the Ultra League. Make sure to have the Community Day move, "Frenzy Plant", to make Venusaur more effective.

Blastoise

Recommended Move Set Fast Move / 1st Charge Move / 2nd Charge Move
( Water Gun / Hydro Cannon / Ice Beam)

Blastoise can learn Ice Beam, a good move that exploits the weakness of Dragon-type Pokemon. It also has the powerful Water-type attack, Hydro Cannon. Blastoise is good but also rarely used because Swampert is used more often.

Snorlax

Recommended Move Set Fast Move / 1st Charge Move / 2nd Charge Move
( Lick / Body Slam / Heavy Slam)

Snorlax has only a few type weaknesses due to it being a Normal-type Pokemon. It also has high HP, making it a great tank in battle. It can also learn other type moves aside from Heavy Slam.

Recommended Pokemon For Master League

Since there is no CP limit in Master League, trainers tend to bring out their most powerful Pokemon. Trainers should expect to see powerful, legendary Pokemon so prepare a roster that will counteract them to increase your winning chances.

Frequently Used Pokemon In Master League

▼Groudon			▼Kyogre			▼Dialga			▼Giratina (Altered Forme)
▼Giratina (Origin Forme)			▼Swampert			▼Garchomp			▼Togekiss
▼Metagross			▼Melmetal			▼Heatran			▼Mewtwo

Groudon

Recommended Move Set Fast Move / 1st Charge Move / 2nd Charge Move
( Mud Shot / Earthquake / Solar Beam)

Groudon is one of the strongest Pokemon that can be used in Master League. It has high maximum CP and its Mud Shot can quickly fill up its gauge to use Earthquake or Solar Beam.

Kyogre

Recommended Move Set Fast Move / 1st Charge Move / 2nd Charge Move
( Waterfall / Surf / Thunder)

Waterfall is a great move that can easily fill up the gauge to use Surf. Using Thunder will also help you take down Dragon-type Pokemon.

Dialga

Recommended Move Set Fast Move / 1st Charge Move / 2nd Charge Move
( Dragon Breath / Draco Meteor / Thunder)

Dialga is a great Dragon Pokemon that can withstand Dragon-type moves well. Using Draco Meteor will lessen your attack power, so be careful when using this move.

Giratina (Altered Forme)

Recommended Move Set Fast Move / 1st Charge Move / 2nd Charge Move
( Shadow Claw / Shadow Sneak / Ancient Power)

Giratina is a powerful Ghost Pokemon that is also often used in the Master League. It's best to use Ghost-type moves on Giratina to combat Pokemon such as Metagross.

Giratina (Origin Forme)

Recommended Move Set Fast Move / 1st Charge Move / 2nd Charge Move
( Shadow Claw / Shadow Ball / Dragon Pulse)

Giratina's Origin Forme is also good to use in the Master League due to its high attack power. Use Shadow Claw to build your gauge up fast then demolish opponents with Shadow Ball or Dragon Pulse.

Swampert

Recommended Move Set Fast Move / 1st Charge Move / 2nd Charge Move
( Mud Shot / Hydro Cannon / Earthquake)

Though its maximum CP does not go beyond 3000, Swampert can still attack and defeat Pokemon such as Metagross. It can use Mud Shot to easily fill up its gauge for Charged Moves.

Garchomp

Recommended Move Set Fast Move / 1st Charge Move / 2nd Charge Move
( Mud Shot / Earthquake / Outrage)

Garchomp has a similar move set to Groudon, making it a good alternative to the legendary Pokemon. It also has different type weaknesses so watch out for a Togekiss in battle.

Togekiss

Recommended Move Set Fast Move / 1st Charge Move / 2nd Charge Move
( Charm / Flamethrower / Aerial Ace)

Togekiss can learn powerful type moves despite being a Normal Pokemon. It can easily damage Dragon Pokemon, without having to use Charge Moves. However, filling up gauges will be quite slow.

Metagross

Recommended Move Set Fast Move / 1st Charge Move / 2nd Charge Move
( Bullet Punch / Meteor Mash / Earthquake)

Metagross is a Steel & Psychic Pokemon that is resistance to Dragon & Fairy moves. It is strong against Togekiss but can be vulnerable to Giratina's Ghost-type moves.

Melmetal

Recommended Move Set Fast Move / 1st Charge Move / 2nd Charge Move
( Thunder Shock / Thunderbolt / Rock Slide)

Melmetal has high defense against other types due to it being a Steel Pokemon. It is a strong Pokemon against Togekiss and Kyogre.

Heatran

Recommended Move Set Fast Move / 1st Charge Move / 2nd Charge Move
( Fire Spin / Stone Edge) / Flamethrower

Melmetal is a great Pokemon with strong attack power and defense. It can easily do great damage on Metacross and Melmetal.

Mewtwo

Recommended Move Set Fast Move / 1st Charge Move / 2nd Charge Move
( Psycho Cut / Psystrike / Ice Beam)

Mewtwo is one unpredictable Pokemon that can be brought into the Master League. It can learn a variety of moves of different types, to your advantage. Psycho Cut is also a good move to fill up your gauge quickly.

PVP League Overview

GO Battle League Starts Feb 2020

The Pokemon GO Battle League is starting February 2020 and trainers can participate according to their level and win in-game rewards!

There Is A CP Limit Per League

PVP Trainer battles in Pokemon GO are separated into 3 leagues - Great, Ultra, and Master. The Great & Ultra Leagues limit the CP of Pokemon you can bring into battle while the Master League has no CP limit.

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