Pokémon Type Effectiveness Calculator

Attack Effectiveness

Defense Effectiveness

Defensive Effectiveness

Understanding Pokémon types is the cornerstone of mastering battles, whether you're a casual player exploring Pokémon Scarlet and Violet, a Pokémon GO raider, or a competitive VGC strategist. This guide dives into the intricacies of Pokémon type advantages, weaknesses, and game-specific strategies to help you dominate battles across various platforms.

Why Pokémon Types Matter

Pokémon battles hinge on the interplay of types. Each Pokémon belongs to one or two of the 18 Pokémon types (like fire type Pokémon or water Pokémon), each with unique strengths and weaknesses. Knowing these matchups can turn a losing battle into a victory. For instance, using a grass type Pokémon like Turtwig against a rock Pokémon like Geodude leverages the super effective advantage, dealing double damage. This guide breaks down these dynamics, offering insights for casual fans, competitive battlers, and nostalgic players revisiting classics like Pokémon Emerald.

Type Effectiveness Explained

Pokémon type effectiveness determines how much damage an attack deals based on the target’s typing. Here’s a quick breakdown:

  • Super Effective: Deals 2x damage (e.g., water type Pokémon like Squirtle hit fire Pokémon like Charmander for double damage).
  • Not Very Effective: Deals 0.5x damage (e.g., electric Pokémon like Pikachu deal half damage to ground type Pokémon like Diglett).
  • No Effect: Deals 0x damage (e.g., ghost type Pokémon like Gengar are immune to normal type moves from Pokémon like Snorlax).
  • Dual-Type Calculations: Pokémon with two types, like Charizard (a fire and flying type Pokémon), combine weaknesses and resistances. Charizard takes 4x damage from rock type moves due to its flying type weakness compounding its fire type vulnerability, but only 0.25x from grass type moves due to both types resisting it.
  • Same-Type Attack Bonus (STAB): Moves matching a Pokémon’s type (e.g., Flamethrower from a fire type like Arcanine) gain a 1.5x damage boost, making type synergy critical.

Best Offensive and Defensive Types

Top Offensive Types

Some Pokémon types excel at dealing damage due to their wide coverage:

  1. Fighting Type Pokémon: Hits normal Pokémon, rock Pokémon, steel Pokémon, ice Pokémon, and dark Pokémon for super effective damage. Examples include Machamp’s Dynamic Punch.
  2. Ground Type Pokémon: Effective against electric type Pokémon, poison Pokémon, rock type Pokémon, fire Pokémon, and steel type Pokémon. Earthquake from Garchomp is a staple.
  3. Fire Type Pokémon: Strong against grass Pokémon, ice type Pokémon, bug Pokémon, and steel type Pokémon. Charizard’s Fire Blast is devastating.
  4. Water Type Pokémon: Hits ground Pokémon, rock Pokémon, and fire Pokémon effectively. Gyarados’ Hydro Pump is a prime example.
  5. Dragon Type Pokémon: Super effective against dragon Pokémon, making Salamence’s Draco Meteor a key move in dragon-heavy metas.

Top Defensive Types

Defensive types resist multiple attacking types, making them durable:

  1. Steel Type Pokémon: Resist 10 types, including fairy type Pokémon, grass type Pokémon, and psychic Pokémon. Steel Pokémon like Metagross are meta staples.
  2. Fairy Type Pokémon: Resist fighting Pokémon, dragon Pokémon, and dark type Pokémon, with immunity to dragon type moves. Sylveon’s charm is tough to crack.
  3. Water Pokémon: Resist fire, water, ice, and steel moves. Swampert’s bulk shines here.
  4. Electric Type Pokémon: Resist electric, flying, and steel moves, with only ground type weakness. Electivire tanks hits well.
  5. Ghost Type Pokémon: Immune to normal and fighting moves, resisting poison and bug types. Gengar’s ghostly evasion is unmatched.

Weakest Types

  • Ice Type Pokémon: Defensively weak, with vulnerabilities to fighting, rock, steel, and fire types. Ice Pokémon like Glaceon struggle against common threats.
  • Bug Type Pokémon: Offensively limited, weak to flying, rock, and fire types. Bug Pokémon like Scyther lack broad coverage.

Game-Specific Strategies

Pokémon GO

In Pokémon GO, type matchups are critical for raids and PvP:

  • Raid Counters: Use water type Pokémon like Kyogre against fire-type raid bosses like Entei, or electric Pokémon like Zekrom against flying Pokémon like Rayquaza.
  • Shadow/Purified Bonuses: Shadow Pokémon deal 20% more damage but take 20% more, making shadow Machamp a glass cannon against normal type Pokémon like Blissey.
  • Best Picks: Grass Pokémon like Roserade counter water and rock types, while fairy Pokémon like Togekiss dominate dragon raids.

Pokémon Scarlet and Violet

Scarlet and Violet introduce Terastalizing, which changes a Pokémon’s type:

  • Terastalizing Strategies: A grass type like Breloom can Tera into a fighting type to surprise steel Pokémon with super effective hits. Tera types can flip matchups, so anticipate opponents’ Tera choices.
  • Early-Game Gyms: Start with Sprigatito (grass type Pokémon) to counter the rock-type gym leader, but beware of bug type Pokémon like Nymble.

Competitive VGC

In VGC, type synergy is key:

  • Meta Picks: Pair steel type Pokémon like Corviknight with fairy type Pokémon like Hatterene to cover weaknesses. Ground Pokémon like Garchomp counter electric types threatening Corviknight.
  • Dual-Type Synergies: Dragon and fairy type Pokémon like Hatterene resist each other’s weaknesses, creating balanced teams.

Legacy Type Matchups (Pre-Gen 6)

Before Generation 6, type interactions differed:

  • Steel Type: Resisted ghost and dark type moves, making Skarmory a powerhouse.
  • Dark Type Pokémon: Immune to psychic Pokémon moves, unlike today’s fighting type weakness.
  • Ghost Type Pokémon: Dealt super effective damage to psychic types, not resisted. Nostalgic players may prefer this simpler Gen 1 type chart for games like Pokémon Red.

Frequently Asked Questions

Why is steel so strong?

Steel Pokémon resist 10 types and are only weak to fighting, ground, and fire types, making them defensively versatile.

Does fairy beat dark?

Yes, fairy type Pokémon like Gardevoir deal super effective damage to dark Pokémon like Umbreon, while resisting dark moves.

How do dual-types affect weaknesses?

Dual types combine resistances and weaknesses. For example, Swampert (water/ground) takes 4x damage from grass type Pokémon but is immune to electric type moves.

What is psychic weak to?

Psychic Pokémon are weak to bug, ghost, and dark types, as these represent fears (bugs, ghosts, and darkness).

What is super effective against poison?

Ground and psychic type moves hit poison Pokémon like Arbok for double damage.