Best Poison-type attackers in Pokémon Go

Poison-type Pokémon are just one of 18 different types in the world of Pokémon Go. Each has its own strengths, weaknesses and best Pokémon. Poison is mostly known for countering Fairy-types and inflicting status ailments – something famously missing in Pokémon Go. For the longest time it also had zero Legendary Pokémon.

Still, it's important to know the best Poison-type Pokémon in Pokémon Go. Given that they are super-effective against Grass and Fairy-type Pokémon, this is a type you should keep an eye on. But, as always, some are worthy of your time, Candy and Stardust, and others are not.

So, to make life easy for everyone, I've split this page into multiple sections, including an overview of what Poison-type Pokémon are, the best Legendary Poison-type Pokémon in Pokémon Go and the best non-Legendary Poison-type Pokémon in Pokémon Go, including a brief analysis of each.

On this page:

• Best Legendary Poison-type Pokémon
• Best non-Legendary Poison-type Pokémon
• What are Poison-type Pokémon?

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Best Poison-type Legendary Pokémon

With so many different Poison-type Pokémon in Pokémon Go, it is getting incredibly difficult to know which ones you can rely on. It wasn’t until the Ultra Beasts in Gen 7 that we got a Poison-type Legendary, and even then that’s playing fast and loose with definitions. Some will say Gen 8’s Eternatus was the first actual Legendary in this type. For the sake of ease, we’re counting UBs as Legendaries.

Level for level, is a perfect Eternatus better than a perfect Nihilego? How do the budget options Roserade and Garchomp compare? Who is the best Poison-type in Master League? As always, the strongest Pokémon depends on the situation, which is why our lists below come with a brief note for each Pokémon, telling you where and how it is useful.

As with our list of best Pokémon in Pokémon Go, we’re going to avoid covering Shadow Pokémon and Mega Pokémon. Including them would pretty much knock everything else out of this list. If you want to read more about either of those, you can check out our best Shadow Pokémon and best Mega Pokémon in Pokémon Go guides.

And finally, it's also worth adding that this is an editorialised list of Pokémon - it's not strictly the Pokémon that throw the biggest punches.

Here’s a breakdown of the best Poison-type Legendary Pokémon:

Eternatus

• Eternatus types: Poison/Dragon
• Eternatus weaknesses: Dragon, Ground, Ice and Psychic
• Main use: Master League, Raids

Eternatus is the best Poison-type in the franchise and is currently the second-best Dragon in the game (after Mega Rayquaza, but only just) with its exclusive move Dynamax Cannon. It’s worth noting, however, that it is the best non-Mega Dragon in the game. Eternatus, simply put, is very good.

As such, you should expect to take an eternity maxing out this Pokémon. It is not cheap to do so, to say the least.

To the surprise of no-one then, it’s a top-tier finisher in Master League, running Dragon Tail, Dynamax Cannon and Flamethrower. This doesn’t use its Poison-type attacks, but that’s not really an issue when you’re winning the game.

Nihilego

• Nihilego types: Rock/Flying
• Nihilego weaknesses: Ground (2x), Psychic, Steel and Water
• Main use: Raids

Nihilego isn’t technically a Legendary Pokémon, the same way as Primal Groudon isn’t technically a Mega. But since they’re functionally Legendary in that they are of limited supply in the main-series games and you get them in 5* Raids in Go, we’re making life simple. To all intents and purposes, UBs are Legendary Pokémon. Also, there are three Pokémon on this list and two of them are UBs…

Right, with that out of the way, Nihilego is an excellent Poison-type attacker and subpar everywhere else. The only place you’d consider it is Master League, but the number of Ground-types which are almost immune to Poison makes this a bit awkward. Use your Nihilego in Raids where Poison matters and you should be ok.

Naganadel

• Naganadel types: Dragon/Poison
• Naganadel weaknesses: Dragon, Ground, Ice and Psychic
• Main use: Raids

Like the other UB on this list, Naganadel only has one use: it is a great Poison-type attacker but is virtually useless everywhere else.

This brings us to the crux of this list. Is it worth chucking Candy and Stardust at this Pokémon? If you have a hundo, sure. It has a very high attack stat and can put out some serious damage. But if you don’t have one with high IVs, it’s not that much better than Roserade. You should probably save your Stardust.

The Mega Squads event sees the release of Maschiff! Want to know what's happening this month? Then take a look at the September schedule. Don't forget to keep an eye out for both the rarest Pokémon and the best Pokémon in your travels.

Best Poison-type non-Legendary Pokémon

As a rule of thumb, Legendary Pokémon are typically stronger than non-Legendary Pokémon. However, if things were that simple you wouldn’t be here.

Some pseudo-Legendries and even the odd regular Pokémon can go toe-to-toe with even the most famous Pokémon. While Eternatus is in a league of its own, Roserade is only slightly worse than Naganadel, and you can max it out for a fraction of the cost, meaning you’ll get more out of it quicker and probably for longer.

Again, this is an editorialised list of Pokémon, not simply those who have the biggest attack stats.

Here's a breakdown of the best Poison-type non-Legendary Pokémon:

Roserade

• Roserade types: Grass/Poison
• Roserade weaknesses: Fire, Flying, Ice and Psychic
• Main use: Raid attacker

Those who scoff at the idea of flower power clearly forgot that roses have thorns.

Roserade is the go-to budget Poison-type attacker and is handy as a Grass-type budget attacker if you’re short on the aforementioned flower power. Maxing this out is relatively cheap and well worth your Stardust.

As far as PVP goes, Ultra League is probably its best showing, but be aware that its stats work against it thanks to its high attack/low defence. Certainly one to consider in limited metas!

Clodsire

• Clodsire types: Poison/Ground
• Clodsire weaknesses: Ground, Ice, Psychic and Water
• Main use: Great League, Gyms

Clodsire is one of those immovable objects. Partly, we assume, because nobody wants to touch it. But also mostly because its stats make it one hell of a Gym defender.

Those same stats lend it to being extremely bulky in Great League. Poison Sting is a fantastic fast-charging attack, and running two nukes of different types gives you access to a long list of easy wins.

Gengar

• Gengar types: Ghost/Poison
• Gengar weaknesses: Dark, Ghost, Ground and Psychic
• Main use: Mega Evolution

Gengar is such a cool Pokémon... It’s easily one of our faves, and a favourite of Pokémon royalty, Ken Sugimori. That alone should be enough reason to make this list.

What, you want actual gameplay usage? Fine. Mega Gengar is (and will continue to be) the strongest Poison-type Mega in the game, second only to Eternatus. Have a hundo? Max it out. Have a shiny? Max it out too, shiny Mega Gengar looks epic. Have a Gigantamax? Max it out, you get the idea....

Weirdly, we’re recommending an off-type Fast move here. Gengar currently has no Poison-type Fast moves, but that frankly isn’t holding it back. Amusingly, it also has fairly similar stats to Naganadel, which means if we get access to a decent Poison-type move, we could see Gengar rocket up the charts here as a budget Poison attacker. For now, though, our favourite ghosty is staying as our chief Mega and little else.

What are Poison-type Pokémon?

In order to save you from having to remember it, here's a breakdown of the Poison typing in Pokémon Go.

Poison-type explained

• Type: Poison
• Weak to: Ground and Psychic
• Resistant to: Bug, Fairy, Fighting, Grass and Poison
• Very resistant to: Electric
• Super effective against: Fairy and Grass
• Not very effective against: Steel (1/2), Ghost, Ground, Rock and Poison
• Boosted by: Cloudy weather

Good luck finding the most powerful Poison-type Pokémon in Pokémon Go!