Pokémon GO Master League: Best Pokémon

Bring out the big guns! The Master League is ready to roar in Pokémon GO and will be running from June 24 to July 1, 2025. This is the heaviest weight class the mobile game’s PvP mode is offering, giving an arena to all those Legendary and Mythical Pokémon in your arsenal. All the Stardust rewards for wins are quadrupled for this entire period so make sure to give each match your best shot.

There are no limits whatsoever when it comes to which Pokémon are allowed to take part in this format.

That can be quite overwhelming, so we’ve put together a list of the best Pokémon for Master League in Pokémon GO to get you started on your team building process. Our choices are based on statistics and simulations provided by PvPoke.com.

Pokémon GO Master League: Best Leads

These Pokémon are ideal when it comes to firing the opening salvo in a bout. They are able to apply pressure on your opponent right from the start, while they are tough enough to take a bit of a beating. This gives you time to think over your next steps and might give you an advantage in a battle of attrition. Ideally, of course, you achieve a quick first knockout.

1. Zacian (Crowned Sword) (Metal Claw, Close Combat, Behemoth Blade)
2. Zamazenta (Crowned Shield) (Metal Claw, Close Combat, Behemoth Bash)
3. Shadow Rhyperior (Mud Slap, Rock Wrecker, Breaking Swipe)
4. Palkia (Origin Forme) (Dragon Breath, Aqua Tail, Spacial Rend)
5. Landorus (Therian Forme) (Mud Shot, Sandsear Storm, Stone Edge)
6. Solgaleo (Fire Spin, Psychic Fangs, Iron Head)
7. Kyurem (Black Forme) (Shadow Claw, Freeze Shock, Fusion Bolt)
8. Rhyperior (Mud Slap, Rock Wrecker, Breaking Swipe)
9. Groudon (Mud Shot, Fire Punch, Precipice Blades)
10. Urshifu (Single Strike) (Sucker Punch, Dynamic Punch, Payback)

Pokémon GO Master League: Best Safe Switches

Should the initial pairing be to your disadvantage, you need to consider switching out your lead monster 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 category. 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. Kyurem (Black Forme) (Shadow Claw, Freeze Shock, Fusion Bolt)
2. Necrozma (Dusk Mane) (Shadow Claw, Dark Pulse, Sunsteel Strike)
3. Shadow Groudon (Mud Shot, Fire Punch, Precipice Blades)
4. Zamazenta (Crowned Shield) (Metal Claw, Close Combat, Behemoth Bash)
5. Palkia (Origin Forme) (Dragon Breath, Aqua Tail, Spacial Rend)
6. Ho-Oh (Incinerate, Brave Bird, Sacred Fire)
7. Kyurem (White Forme) (Ice Fang, Ice Burn, Fusion Flare)
8. Groudon (Mud Shot, Fire Punch, Precipice Blades)
9. Tapu Lele (Astonish, Psyshock, Nature’s Madness)
10. Meloetta (Aria Forme) (Quick Attack, Psyshock, Dazzling Gleam)

Pokémon GO Master League: Best Closers

Once no shields are left in play on either side, you’ll want to use one of these Pokémon. They are incredibly tough thanks to their high defense and plenty of useful resistances or can knock out an opponent in one blow with their powerful Charged Attack.

1. Zacian (Crowned Sword) (Metal Claw, Close Combat, Behemoth Blade)
2. Ho-Oh [S] (Incinerate, Brave Bird, Sacred Fire)
3. Zamazenta (Crowned Shield) (Metal Claw, Close Combat, Behemoth Bash)
4. Kyurem (Black Forme) (Shadow Claw, Freeze Shock, Fusion Bolt)
5. Groudon [S] (Mud Shot, Fire Punch, Precipice Blades)
6. Lunala (Shadow Claw, Shadow Ball, Moonblast)
7. Palkia (Origin Forme) (Dragon Breath, Aqua Tail, Spacial Rend)
8. Necrozma (Dawn Wings) (Shadow Claw, Dark Pulse, Moongeist Beam)
9. Xerneas (Geomancy, Close Combat, Moonblast)
10. Shadow Heatran (Fire Spin, Magma Storm, Stone Edge)

Pokémon marked with [S] perform comparably well in both their regular and Shadow forms.

Pokémon GO Master League: Best Attackers

If you’re left without shields while facing an opponent who still has that option available, these Pokémon are your best friends. 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. Zacian (Crowned Sword) (Metal Claw, Close Combat, Behemoth Blade)
2. Solgaleo (Fire Spin, Psychic Fangs, Iron Head)
3. Zygarde (Complete Forme) (Dragon Tail, Crunch, Earthquake)
4. Zamazenta (Crowned Shield) (Metal Claw, Close Combat, Behemoth Bash)
5. Palkia (Origin Forme) (Dragon Breath, Aqua Tail, Spacial Rend)
6. Lugia (Dragon Tail, Aeroblast, Fly)
7. Florges (Fairy Wind, Moonblast, Trailblaze)
8. Ho-Oh (Incinerate, Brave Bird, Sacred Fire)
9. Tapu Bulu (Bullet Seed, Grass Knot, Nature’s Madness)
10. Melmetal (Thunder Shock, Superpower, Double Iron Bash)

Master League is the most static format in GO Battle League, as new additions to the available Pokémon are rare and signature moves tend to remain untouched by balance patches. While a competitive team takes a good amount of resources to build, the other side of the coin is that it’ll usually be relevant for quite a long time.

If PvP battles aren’t your favorite activity and you’d rather style on Team GO Rocket instead, check out our complete guides with the best counters to Giovanni, Arlo, Cliff, and Sierra.