A rare Pokémon slipping away at the last second is every Trainer’s ultimate frustration. The good news: catching isn’t just a matter of luck. A few simple techniques will noticeably improve your odds and earn you some extra XP along the way.

The catch circle

When you encounter a Pokémon, a circle shrinks around it. Its color shows the difficulty: green means easy; yellow or orange is trickier; red, hold on tight. Powerful Pokémon and Legendary Pokémon are often in the red.

The size of the circle when the Poké Ball hits gives you a bonus:

  • Nice Throw: fairly large circle.
  • Great Throw: medium circle.
  • Excellent Throw: tiny circle. The best catch bonus, and lots of XP.

Berries

  • Razz Berry: makes the Pokémon easier to catch.
  • Nanab Berry: calms a restless Pokémon that moves around a lot.
  • Pinap Berry: doubles the Candy you get if the catch succeeds. Save it for Pokémon you want a lot of Candy from.
  • Golden Razz Berry: greatly increases your catch chances. Save it for Legendary Pokémon in Raids.
  • Silver Pinap Berry: combines a catch bonus with double Candy.

Poké Balls

Poké Ball, Great Ball, then Ultra Ball: each type improves your catch chances and unlocks as you level up. Keep your Ultra Balls for tough Pokémon. The extremely rare Master Ball catches any Pokémon without fail: a treasure to save for a Legendary Pokémon or a dream Shiny.

Type medals

Every catch advances a medal for the Pokémon’s type. The higher your type medals (bronze, silver, gold), the easier it becomes to catch Pokémon of that type. One more reason to catch everything early on!

Shiny Pokémon

Some Pokémon exist in a Shiny version with different colors. Nothing sets them apart on the map: you only see its colors and sparkles once you start the encounter. They’re rare, but events often boost their appearance rate, especially Community Days. In our Pokémon GO Pokédex, each entry lets you display the Shiny artwork.

Magicarpe dans Pokémon GO#129MagicarpeEauShiny Magikarp: goldenÉvoli dans Pokémon GO#133ÉvoliNormalEevee: ideal for Community DaysMinidraco dans Pokémon GO#147MinidracoDragonDratini: rare and highly sought after

Their full Pokédex entries: Magikarp, Eevee and Dratini.

Testez-vous

Which Berry doubles the Candy from a catch?

The Pinap Berry, or the Silver Pinap Berry, which adds a catch bonus.

What does a red catch circle mean?

Red: the catch is difficult.

How do you land a Curveball?

By spinning the Poké Ball before throwing it, until it sparkles.