🖤 My Favorite Pokémon for Each Type
The caption for this photo should be “How many handhelds can I turn on at once without needing to find a charger?”
Pokémon is one of my favorite video game franchises of all time - I literally grew up with the games, as I first started playing at 11 years old, when Red/Blue were released in the US. As the Pokédex has grown over the years, I’ve developed some favorites that I choose for my teams over and over. After watching an old video by TamashiiHiroka listing her favorite Pokémon in each type, I decided it’d be fun to pick my own favorites. I’ve followed the same basic guidelines that she did - I’ve allowed Pokémon with dual-typing to count for either type, and I didn’t pick any duplicates. I also added in my runner up choices below each type, and at the bottom is a fun chart showing the spread of Pokémon by generation.
Normal - Wooloo (Gen VIII)
It surprised me when I went through the list of Normal-types that Wooloo, one of the new additions to the Pokédex from Galar, is probably my favorite. I don’t really have any reasons besides aesthetics - I didn’t use one on my Sword team, and there are infinitely more useful Normal-type Pokémon, but it’s just so cute. While I prefer Wooloo to its evolution, I love one of the details in the Galar Dex about Dubwool - “Whenever a Beheeyem visits a farm, a Dubwool mysteriously disappears.”
RUNNERS UP: Raticate, Meowth
Grass - Appletun (Gen VIII)
I promise there are Pokémon outside of the Galar Dex on this list - but honestly, I am just not a big fan of most Grass-type Pokémon. When I saw this guy for the first time in Sword/Shield, I knew I had to have one. I love its design so much - the little hat! The floppy ears! The criss cross pastry strips on its back! Not only is it adorable, it’s also got a useful Dragon secondary typing, and it was a valuable member of my Sword team.
RUNNERS UP: Bellossom, Cherubi
Water - Mantine (Gen II)
It’s hard to pick a favorite Water-type because there are just SO MANY Pokemon that carry this typing, and there’s a lot that I like pretty equally. I ended up picking Mantine, both because it has such a cute little face, but also because of its unique evolution method, requiring a Remoraid to be in the party. I really enjoy Pokémon that evolve in a special way beyond the usual level up/evo stone/trade methods, so for that reason, Mantine won out over some others.
RUNNERS UP: Milotic, Totodile
Fire - Charizard (Gen I)
I know, I know - this is a typical, basic pick. But honestly, there’s just no other Pokémon I love more than Charizard. Charmander was the first Pokémon I ever chose. On my very first play through of Blue I didn’t really know what I was doing, so it ended up being way over leveled and evolved into Charizard really quickly. His nickname was Matches, and I’ve named every Charmander I’ve ever caught or trained the same thing in his honor. Besides the nostalgia factor though, Charizard is just a really cool, if overused, Pokémon. It’s got a great shiny variant and some awesome additional forms, including my favorite, Mega Charizard X, with its dual Fire-Dragon typing. Fire is my favorite type, and there are a lot of Pokémon I love, but none will ever top Charizard for me.
RUNNERS UP: Houndoom, Ninetales
Electric - Luxray (Gen IV)
Electric is another one of my favorite types, and I have a lot that came close to being my favorite. But I have to go to with Luxray for both its cool appearance and its usability. Many Electric-type Pokémon either don’t evolve or only have one evolution, so Luxray’s double evolution gives it a lot more power than others in its type. I also really like Pokémon that look like dogs or cats, so its overall appearance really appeals to me. It was heavily used on my team in Sinnoh and I got pretty attached to it, which probably put it over the top for this type.
RUNNERS UP: Boltund, Jolteon
Steel - Skarmory (Gen II)
Steel was added as a type in Gen II, and like many of the types that were added after Gen I, it does suffer a bit in terms of the number of Pokémon that carry this typing. It’s one of my least favorite types, because so many of them are manmade or artificial, which doesn’t really appeal to me. For this reason, Skarmory is my favorite just for its animal-based appearance. I was so disappointed this Pokémon never got an evolution or a Mega, but it’s one of the few non-evolution Pokémon that is actually useful on a team. Hopefully Skarmory will get some love eventually.
RUNNERS UP: Alolan Sandslash, Scizor
Psychic - Galarian Rapidash (Gen VIII)
I absolutely LOVE the idea of regional forms - it just makes sense to me that Pokémon would change their appearance or typing based on the different environments around them, and I love that this has been carried forward into Gen VIII. Rapidash is actually pretty high up on my list of favorite Pokémon overall, but there are just a few others I love more. So when a new form appeared in Galar, it was an opportunity to take advantage of its new typing, especially because I don’t love most Psychic Pokémon. Glimwood Tangle is one of the coolest locations in Galar, and this awesome Pokémon taking on its new ethereal form because of it really makes it a favorite for me.
RUNNERS UP: Mew, Delphox
Ghost - Drifloon (Gen IV)
I typically end up using a Ghost-type on my teams vs. a Psychic type, because most Ghost-types can learn Psychic moves and they just look so much cooler. It’s one of my favorite types so it was hard to pick, but I ended up going with Drifloon because its just so cute. I ended up using it on my Sinnoh team even though its not the strongest option, solely because I love the way it looks.
RUNNERS UP: Gengar, Dragapult
Dark - Houndoom (Gen II)
Dark is my second-favorite type behind Fire, and so it should really be difficult for me to pick a favorite - but Houndoom is my second-favorite Pokémon of all time behind Charizard, so this was an easy choice. It’s solely based on its badass appearance, because unfortunately it’s not a great Pokémon from a battle perspective. There’s just so many better options competitively, even including the truly awesome-looking Mega Evolution form. I was pretty disappointed in the Mega because it didn’t really make Houndoom more usable, but there’s no denying that it’s one of the coolest looking Pokémon in the game. Looks aren’t everything, but for me, they’re enough to make Houndoom a favorite even though it’s kind of weak.
RUNNERS UP: Mightyena, Hydriegon
Poison - Crobat (Gen II)
I’m not a big fan of most of the Poison-type Pokémon, but Crobat was a clear standout for me. I always have hated Golbat, from my very first playthrough, so I was thrilled when Gen II came around and I could evolve that ugly thing into the much better-looking Crobat. With its cool flying style and its happiness-based evolution method, it’s just a great addition to the Zubat line. Even better, it’s one of those Pokémon that hypothetically is easy to get - Zubat are literally everywhere in almost every single game - but most people don’t take the time to raise it to its final evolution because of the effort involved, which makes it a fun Pokémon to have on a team.
RUNNERS UP: Salazzle, Nidoqueen
Ground - Cubone (Gen I)
I still remember vividly using the Silph Scope in Lavender Tower to reveal the Marowak ghost for the first time, and Cubone and its evolution have been in my top favorite Pokémon ever since. With its sad backstory, awesome skull mask and fun signature moves like Bonemerang, it’s just a fun Pokémon to use. It also gets access to False Swipe, which makes it a common team member for me while I’m hunting for Pokédex additions. While I don’t like most other Ground-type Pokémon, it was hard for me to pick between Cubone and Marowak. At the end of the day, Cubone is just a little bit cuter.
RUNNERS UP: Garchomp, Swinub
Rock - Dusk Lycanroc (Gen VII)
I definitely love most of the wolf and dog-inspired Pokémon species, and Lycanroc was a great addition to the Dex for me because I don’t really enjoy most of the Rock-type species. While I don’t typically use Rock-type team members, I made sure to make room for Lycanroc on my Gen VII teams just because I loved the way it looked. I actually really like all of its forms - they’re all pretty awesome-looking - but Dusk Lycanroc won because it’s kind of tricky to obtain. You need to evolve a Rockruff with the Own Tempo ability in either UltraSun or UltraMoon between 7pm-7:59pm. I do love me some evolution conditions, and Dusk Lycanroc is ultimately the best-looking of all three forms.
RUNNERS UP: Tirtouga, Kabutops
Flying - Vivillon (Gen VI)
Okay, this is kind of a cop out because so many Flying-type Pokémon have a secondary type. But my “rules” allow for any Pokémon that carries a type to be counted as my favorite! Vivillon (which is interchangeable with my Bug pick) is my favorite solely because of the geographic pattern mechanic. When X/Y came out, it was so much fun to coordinate with people all over the world to collect all the Vivillon patterns. I ended up with a full set, each with their pattern name in French as the nickname, and it’s one of my favorite sets in my collection. While I was disappointed in the pattern native to my region (at the time, I was living in Chicago so I had the Modern pattern), the geographic component is totally unique in the Pokémon world and makes it an easy favorite.
RUNNERS UP: Noivern, Cramorant
Fighting - Marshadow (Gen VII)
I’ve been kind of avoiding Legendaries on this list because they feel like a bit of a cop out. They’re MEANT to be cooler and more powerful than an average Pokémon, so they have a bit of an advantage. But I honestly just hate most Fighting-type Pokémon. It’s by far my least favorite type, due to the abundance of humanoid Pokémon. I never use Legendaries on any teams, so I’ve never even fought with Marshadow, but the addition of one of my favorite types and its spooky-cute appearance make it an easy pick over the rest of the weird crap in this type.
RUNNERS UP: Lucario, Falinks
Bug - Vespiquen (Gen IV)
As I mentioned before, this Pokémon could be swapped into the Flying category, but I put it here because Vespiquen gets access to some of the most powerful Bug-type moves in the game. Vespiquen is another Pokémon that’s just cool from every aspect - she’s super rare and difficult to get, since Combee are often found only in trees and she only evolves from the rare female Combees. Her moveset is a blast to play with thanks to the aforementioned Bug-type attacks, and she has several signature moves as well. She also just looks awesome, and has a badass shiny variant to boot. Vespiquen is a clear winner in this category, and I’ve really enjoyed having her on my teams.
RUNNERS UP: Scyther, Shedinja
Ice - Alolan Ninetales (Gen VII)
Ninetales is one of my favorite Pokémon overall, but I rarely end up using it because I almost always pick a Fire-type starter. So when a new typing for this beautiful Pokémon popped up in Alola, it was an instant addition to my Gen VII team. Honestly, I think Alolan Ninetales is actually even cooler than Kantonian Ninetales - it’s even more ethereal and beautiful, and there are so few Ice-type Pokémon which makes it really fun to use. The addition of Fairy as a secondary typing helps combat the worst part of Ice-type Pokémon, their fire weakness. So exciting to have a reason to put this lovely lady on my team!
RUNNERS UP: Dewgong, Eiscue
Dragon - Dragapult (Gen VIII)
Dragon is kind of an interesting type - they’re super powerful, especially before the introduction of the Fairy type, but the type is frequently limited to Legendaries, which makes it less fun for me because I don’t use them. That is, until Gen VIII. Dragapult was my absolute favorite team member in Galar, and so much fun to use because of its Dragon Darts signature move. The addition of the Ghost type makes it completely unique in the Pokédex (outside of the Legendary Pokémon Giratina), and it’s also just undeniably cool-looking.
RUNNERS UP: Garchomp, Hydreigon
Fairy - Xerneas (Gen VI)
Another Legendary Pokémon, oops - but I don’t really love most Fairy-types either, despite having a few Pokémon on this list already that carry Fairy as a secondary type. Fairy was a much needed type addition in Gen VI, and I’m glad they added it, but as I tend towards darker, more “edgy” Pokémon as my favorite, the appearance of a lot of these species just don’t appeal to me. The exception is Xerneas, which is not only my favorite Fairy-type Pokémon, but my favorite Legendary. It’s just a beautiful Pokémon - I love that it changes color when it goes into battle, too.
RUNNERS UP: Clefairy, Azumarill
Favorite Pokemon by Generation
It was really fun to put this list together, and looking at it overall, it’s pretty revealing - Gen III and Gen V were some of my least favorite Pokémon games at the time they came out, and I think a big reason why is that I just don’t really love any of the new Pokémon introduced in those generations. I was kind of surprised to see so many of the more recent additions appear on the list - but for all the flaws of Gen VII/Gen VIII, I think they did an excellent job designing new Pokémon species. I was really surprised to see Gen VIII tied for number of favorite Pokémon - and honestly thought there’d be more Gen I species represented.
This list has inspired me to try to do a play through using some of my favorites on a team! What are your favorite Pokémon of each type? Are there any glaringly awesome species I overlooked? Let me know in the comments!
