Best Ultra League teams to use in Pokémon Go

The Ultra League in Pokémon Go’s Go Battle League and its 2,500 CP limit is where more “regular” Pokémon have their time in the spotlight, compared to the almost Legendary-dominated Master League and lower levels of the Great League.

In this League, every Pokémon has a chance to make a splash — but that’s not to say there are some strong team recommendations to make, and some genuine strategy to be had.

Here’s our picks for the best Ultra League team, and where the meta is right now.

The Pokémon Go Ultra League is filled with a mixture of great Legendary Pokémon and some more unassuming entries, like starter evolutions and some other surprising picks. It’s a great melting pot, but the amount of Pokémon eligible for it mean that the rankings are actually pretty susceptible to fast changes.

Just recently at the Toronto Regionals, the new Pokémon Cursola made its way to the very end of the Go Tournament (in the Tournament standard Great League, mind), while some familiar favorites seem to have fallen out of favour.

Some of the biggest recent changes to moves include the damage reduction of Body Slam, which meant that Swift has come out ahead as the better Fast Move for many Pokémon. Meanwhile, some popular picks got access to new moves, such as Lickilicky now being able to learn Rollout (which lets face it, it should have known all along), and Clefable now having access to Draining Kiss.

Meanwhile, the huge shake up as part of Season 20 was almost more infamous for nerfs than buffs, with huge changes to moves like Counter, Body Slam, and Wing Attack, all having far reaching consequences for some particular favorites like Gliscor and Annihilape.

While Ultra League is very different to Master League, the two cups do share a lot of the same threats, and most Ultra League teams will need to be prepared for Zygarde (Complete Forme) in one way or another. The need for a sturdy Water-type Pokémon with high attack is the reason for the prevalence of Shadow Feraligatr and to a lesser extent Azumarill. But whichever way you go about it, make sure you have something that can switch into Zygarde.

One of the best things about Ultra League is that some favorite Legendary Pokémon — who maybe cannot drop their CP below 1,500 for Great League — have found a niche for themselves among more powerful picks. You’ll see sturdy Pokémon like Registeel, Cobalion, and Cresselia all over this cup if you decide to dip your toes. And with that — let us guide you through the top picks.

With the caveat that you may struggle to get a couple of the Legendary Pokémon on offer here, these Pokémon our the top picks for the Pokémon Go Ultra League:

Let’s go through them separately.

If you’re wondering why you are seeing Feraligatr everywhere in competitive Pokémon Go battles, it’s because it gained Shadow Claw earlier in 2024. This fantastic Fast Move helps Feraligatr to gain energy quickly, while hitting some consistent Ultra League threats like Giratina and Cresselia.

It also uses Charged Moves like Hydro Cannon and Ice Beam to take care of some other huge threats like Skeledirge and Talonflame. While having Shadow Feraligatr is preferable, the regular old version still has enough attack power and access to the same moves, so will fill a similar role in your team with little problems.

A surprising pick for the top tiers, but Drapion — including the Shadow version —- is helping to round out a lot of teams in the Ultra League meta right now. It has access to Poison Sting, a decent STAB powered Fast Move, as well as the recently buffed Ice Fang if you want to catch your opponent out.

Then, charged moves Crunch and Aqua Tail have fantastic coverage across some of the Ultra League regulars. The reason it works well alongside Feraligatr is because it resists Grass-type moves, as well as Ghost, and Psychic threats like the omnipresent Giratina. Feraligatr is a great lead to get some damage in, and then Drapion can often soak up the remaining picks.

Finally, rounding out the team is Electivire, who is here to deal with your opponent’s Feraligatr or Azumarill. Ideally, you want to be using Shadow Electivire, to get that extra Attack boost. Either way, Electivire can use the Fast Move Thunder Shock for some great quick damage, while Charged Moves Wild Charge and Ice Punch round out the package.

Naturally, Electivire is mostly aiming at Water-type Pokémon, but a well-timed Wild Charge can also ruin the prospects of an opposing Talonflame. Plus, Ice Punch means it can stand a chance against Pokémon like Zygarde or Gliscor if it gets backed into a corner. A bulky Pokémon that can still hit hard, don’t count Electivire out.

This team’s best moves, IVs, and alternative suggestions:

A cute little slug you wouldn’t want to hug, Gastrodon has made a huge dent in the Ultra League thanks to its great movepool and lack of weaknesses. It is only weak to Grass-type moves (though it is very weak to Grass), and it has some key advantages, such as STAB Ground-type moves which will hit Poison-type Pokémon like Drapion extremely hard.

In fact, it’s rare for players to even run a Water-type move on Gastrodon, because that’s not really what it’s aiming for. Usually, run this Pokémon with Mud Slap, Earth Power, and Body Slam, and it is a powerhouse. It even gets the jump on some of its Water-type contemporaries, like Tentacruel. It may not look like much, but Gastrodon has carved out a very good niche for itself.

While Ultra League isn’t quite dominated by Dragon-type Pokémon in the same way that the Master League is, they are still a constant threat, and that’s where a powerful Fairy-type like Clefable comes in. It doesn’t have the best Attack, it has a respectable 216 Stamina to keep it on the field for longer.

The power of a STAB-boosted Fairy Wind or Moonblast are definitely scary stuff, but luckily Clefable was one of many Pokémon to enjoy the recent boost to Swift, helping to round out its offensive capabilities. Clefable is a menace for some Dragon-type Pokémon like Guzzlord, Giratina, and more.

Finally, Steelix helps to add some more bulk to this team and act as a wall for the more offensive foes. It has access to Thunder Fang and Dragon Tail as effective Fast Moves, while it can utilize Breaking Swipe and Psychic Fangs as its Charged Move.

This very defensive-focused creature is a good pick against Clefable, Drapion, and Tentacruel, meaning it can soak in a few attacks from some of the most common picks in this tier. It’s also relatively easy to get hold of, making it a fantastic pick for anyone who is hoping to finally break into the Ultra League.

This team’s best moves, IVs, and alternative suggestions:

In summary, the main thing to remember with the Ultra League is that it has probably the widest pool of possible Pokémon, so while the rankings are important, don’t get boxed in. Try out different teams, swap moves around, and try your best to surprise your opponent more than anything.

While the Master League is all about that max 15/15/15 IV spread, that generally won’t get you far here. For any Pokémon with a max CP above 2,500, you instead want a 0/15/15 IV spread (use the search string ‘0-1attack&3-4defense&3-4hp’) for a very specific reason. A low Attack stat allows you to get the highest IV spread before you hit the CP cap, as a higher Attack will instead bump up the CP. So yes, it may seem counter intuitive, but low Attack works great as long as those other two stats are pumped to the max.

Good luck, and happy battling. If you want some more Go Battle League tips, we also have some Great League best team recommendations.