Tips & guides
Every article comes with a 3-line summary, links to related Pokémon and events, sources and a last-checked date. Articles are rechecked once that date is 6 months old.
Getting started11 articles
- First-week guide for new players (with how GO differs from the main series)Pokémon GO has different stats, IVs, moves and type matchups from the main series, so main-series numbers give wrong answers here.
- Throwing and catch rates (Nice, Great, Excellent, Curveball)Ball, Berry, throw ring, Curveball and medal bonuses multiply together to raise your catch rate, and the smaller the ring when you hit it, the bigger the bonus.
- Types of research (Field Research, Special Research, Timed Research, Breakthrough)Research gives you rewards for finishing tasks, and it splits into Field Research, Special Research, Timed Research and more, depending on where you get it and its time limit.
- Adventure Sync (step tracking) and weekly rewardsWith Adventure Sync on, distance you walk with the game closed also counts, using the records in your phone's health app.
- How to use Party Play and Party PowerParty Play lets up to 4 Trainers at level 20 or higher form a party and adventure together.
- How to use PogoHelp tools (IV calculator, PvP, calendar subscription, My Pokédex)Enter CP, HP and the Power Up Stardust in the IV calculator, and it finds every possible IV combination.
- How to read IVs and appraisalsIVs run from 0 to 15 for each of Attack, Defense and HP, and appraisal stars are set by the sum of the three (0–45).
- Trading and Lucky PokémonYou can trade from Trainer level 10 with a friend within 100 m, and the higher your friendship level, the less Stardust it costs.
- Gyms and how to earn PokéCoinsPlace a Pokémon in a gym held by your team and you earn PokéCoins for the time it defends, up to 50 coins a day.
- Exchanging gifts with friends (how to build friendship points)Spinning the Photo Disc at PokéStops and gyms gets you gifts, and you can send one to each friend once a day.
- How to tidy up your bag and Pokémon storageYour bag (items) and Pokémon storage have a set number of slots, and you can add 50 slots at a time with PokéCoins in the shop.
Training10 articles
- How to earn and save StardustStardust goes into power-ups, second Charged Attacks and trades, so you'll always be short. Deciding where to spend it first is the biggest way to save.
- How to use Candy and Candy XLYou collect Candy by catching, transferring, walking with your buddy, trading and hatching, and from level 40 you power up with Candy XL.
- What to power up first (power-up priorities for beginners)Stardust is limited, so first power up strong counters you'll use for a long time across many raids.
- TMs and how to learn exclusive moves (Elite TMs and Community Day moves)Fast TMs and Charged TMs change a move at random, and they can't teach exclusive moves such as Community Day moves.
- How to raise your Trainer level fast (earning XP)The fastest way is to activate a Lucky Egg (2× XP for 30 minutes) and do your evolving, catching and raids all at once.
- Shadow Pokémon: when to purifyShadow Pokémon have 1.2× Attack but also take more damage, and they cost 1.2× Stardust and Candy to power up.
- Evolution items and the Pokémon that use themSome Pokémon need an evolution item on top of Candy to evolve. The Sinnoh Stone is used for 18 species and the Unova Stone for 7.
- Every way to evolve Eevee (nicknames, Lure Modules and buddy)Eevee evolves into one of 8 Pokémon for 25 Candy, and you can choose the evolution you want by meeting its condition.
- Egg hatching guide (Eggs by distance and incubators)Eggs come in distances such as 2, 5, 7, 10 and 12 km. Put one in an incubator and walk that far, and a Pokémon hatches.
- Buddy Pokémon guide (Candy distance and Best Buddy)Walk with the Pokémon you set as your buddy and you get its Candy every set distance (1, 3, 5 or 20 km), which depends on the Pokémon.
Battle9 articles
- Raids and Remote Raid PassesRaids open at Trainer level 5. Up to 20 Trainers team up to defeat and catch a boss that appears at a Gym.
- Beating raids alone (how to use the solo simulator)Anyone can solo a 1-star raid, and six powered-up Pokémon of the boss's weakness types can solo a 3-star. 5-star raids usually need several players.
- Mega Evolution guide (Mega Energy and Mega Level)Mega Evolution spends Mega Energy to make a Pokémon stronger for a set time, and in raids it also powers up everyone attacking with the same type.
- Pokémon GO type chart (multipliers differ from the main series)In GO, super effective is 1.6× and not very effective is 0.625×, and the main series' 'no effect' becomes 0.39× instead.
- Weather boost guide (which types get stronger in each weather)Each in-game weather boosts certain types, and moves of those types deal 1.2× damage.
- Max Battles and Dynamax for beginnersIn a Max Battle, you spend Max Particles at a Power Spot to fight a Dynamax Pokémon. Win, and you can catch that Dynamax Pokémon.
- GO Battle League for beginners (Great, Ultra and Master League)GO Battle League opens at Trainer level 10. You battle other Trainers with 3 Pokémon and 2 shields each.
- Choosing IVs for PvP (low Attack wins in Great and Ultra League)In leagues with a CP cap, the lower the Attack IV, the higher you can level up within the same CP, which makes Defense and HP bigger.
- Team GO Rocket guide (Grunts, Leaders, the Boss and Rocket Radars)Find Grunts at dark, twitching PokéStops or Team GO Rocket balloons. Beat them for a chance to catch a Shadow Pokémon.
Events8 articles
- Weekly and monthly recurring events (Max Monday, Raid Hour, Spotlight Hour)Every week there's Max Monday on Mondays (06:00–21:00 local), Raid Hour on Wednesdays (18:00–19:00) and Spotlight Hour on Thursdays (18:00–19:00).
- Understanding the GO Pass (free, Deluxe, ranks and milestones)The GO Pass is a free monthly reward pass. Earn GO Points to rank up, and each rank unlocks rewards.
- Event bonus terms explained (special backgrounds, Snapshot photobombs and more)Short, plain explanations of the bonus terms that often show up in event announcements.
- How to find Shiny Pokémon (estimated odds by event)Shiny Pokémon sparkle when you encounter them. They're very rare in the wild normally, but the odds go way up during events.
- Community Day prep checklistCommunity Day usually happens once a month, from 14:00 to 17:00 local time. One Pokémon appears a lot and your odds of meeting its Shiny form go up.
- Lure Module types and evolving with special Lure ModulesPut a Lure Module on a PokéStop and more Pokémon appear around it. Everyone nearby can share it.
- Following Routes and collecting Zygarde Cells (Mateo's Gift Exchange)Routes are set paths that link PokéStops and Gyms. Walk one to the end for a Route Badge and an XP bonus, and your buddy earns Candy faster too.
- PokéStop Showcases and Pokémon size (XXS and XXL)PokéStop Showcases are contests where you enter a Pokémon at a set PokéStop and compete on size. These days they're held every Tuesday.