Best Pokemon TCG Pocket Decks Tier List (September 2025)

Since its release on October 30, 2024, the Pokemon TCG Pocket Decks Tier List has constantly been changing with every new expansion the game introduces. The game’s engaging yet simplified mechanics and dynamic metagame have led players to craft innovative and competitive decks.

Whether attempting to win drop events, Ranked matches or playing casually, knowing the best decks can elevate your experience and outcomes.

This tier list highlights the game's strongest decks and provides insights into their performance. Let’s dive into the tiers to see which decks dominate the meta.

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Best Pokemon TCG Pocket Decks Tier List (September 2025): Incuding Secluded Springs (A4a)

Pokemon TCG Pocket Decks tier list: S-tier

S-tier Pokemon TCG Pocket best decks (Image via The Pokemon Company)

S-Tier decks are the pinnacle of the metagame, excelling in speed, consistency and power. These decks are user-friendly and highly efficient, making them the best options to reach Master Rank faster.

Deck	Strengths	Weaknesses
Arceus ex	Completely Immune to status conditions and adapts well with other types	Highly dependent on other cards
Gyarados ex	High burst damage with energy disruption	Its 4 energy requirement makes it highly dependent on Misty and Manaphy
Palkia ex	High burst damage while chip damaging the benched cards as well. Deck is enhanced with Irida and Cyrus included	Its high energy requirement makes it dependent to other Support cards like Manaphy and Misty
Giratina ex	Great energy acceleration and synergy with Darkrai ex with a solid 130 damage	It requires a lot of energy to do burst damage after it is in play, has to be protected until then. The 20 damage to itself could also put you in a tight spot
Decidueye ex	Excels at bench pressure and decent damage output at low energy cost	Heavily relies on Rare Candy and bench being damage
Solgaleo ex	Sets up quickly with good pressure, requiring low energy	Highly relies on Pokemon cards to stall and Support cards to sustain
Charizard ex (Shining Revelry)	This variant of Charizard ex is self reliant and quickly generates energy. With 180 HP and a solid 150 damage, it is strong core offensive card.	Charmander and Charmeleon are weak and they can't generate energy until final evolution; relies on Rare Candy for quick execution
Mewtwo ex	Great HP, damage and early-game pressure without any need of evolution	Highly depends on Gardevoir for consistency of damage output

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Pokemon TCG Pocket Decks tier list: A-tier

A-tier Pokemon TCG Pocket best decks (Image via The Pokemon Company)

A-tier decks are formidable and capable of competing at the highest levels but require more finesse or face competition from the S-tier options. These decks are powerful but may demand a bit more effort to master.

Deck	Strengths	Weaknesses
Suicune ex	Excels in consistent chip damage, deck cycling and early-game pressure. Deck is not energy hungry either, making Water decks a bit more viable in the meta again	Deck heavily relies on Suicune ex to be in play, and both benches are full to reach its highest damage potential
Entei ex	Deals the highest consistent damage out of the three Legendary beasts while maintaining a constant deck cycling flow	Entei ex requires 4 energy to double its damage, which may seem expensive, especially if it's not the one to start the game
Raikou ex	Raikou ex applies great pressure to both active and benched cards for 2 energy. Bench damage may seem low, but it sets up for Cyrus plays. All this while drawing a card every turn	Has the lowest HP among the three Beasts, resulting in a potential quicker KO, meaning it depends on other cards to clean up
Ho-Oh ex and Lugia ex	With Ho-Oh ex generating 3 energy every turn and Lugia ex dealing a massive 180 damage, this deck is very threatening	Lugia ex relies completely on Ho-Oh ex for its setup, and setting Ho-Oh ex itself may leave you vulnerable for 2 turns
Crobat ex	Very fast deck does a lot of chip damage. Its speed and consistent pressure almost always give you the upper hand in battles	Relies a lot on Rare Candy and other supporting cards to be in full effect
Umbreon ex	Highly disruptive deck punishing damaged cards on the bench that sets up extremely fast	This deck lacks overall damage output if the game drags into the late game and relies on other critters for that
Kingdra ex	With 170 HP and a 90-damage move that prevents opponents from retreating, this deck is a uniquely solid, disruptive deck in the Water category	The 3-stage evolution may sometimes slow the pace of the game. A secondary attacker is needed for 90 damage in underwhelming in the late-game
Lanturn ex	A single move that can potentially apply to different kinds of status effects is uniquely disruptive, opening up many plays for your deck	The 3 energy requirement requires the other cards to open the game to either stall or set up Lanturn ex. With 150 HP, it can not withstand moves for 2 turns
Donphan ex	This deck sets up quickly and applies consistent pressure for a small amount of energy	Donphan ex relies on others to deal heavy damage or buff its own moves, which may hinder the flow of the match
Togekiss (Wisdom of Sea and Sky)	With solid bulk and damage and an amazing ability to negate any incoming damage, this deck is a surprisingly good, low-cost, cheap deck	Requires some time for it to be set up, and trainer cards to have an impact that matches the meta
Flareon ex	Consistent Energy cycling keeps Flareon ex always ready to deal solid damage	The return damage from Combust may require you to play with a lot of caution
Primarina ex	Primarina ex itself has a lot of healing, and when stacked with other supporting healing cards, its sustainability is unparalleled	Might require a lot of setup, and its Max damage may seem underwhelming sometimes
Eevee ex/Sylveon ex	Let’s you cycle through your deck quickly, making you ready to play pretty much sooner than expected	Sylveon ex has an underwhelming damage output for a fully evolved ex card, and has to rely on other Pokemon
Dragonite ex	Has the potential to one-shot almost every Pokemon in the game with Giga Impact’s 180 damage	On the contrary, Giga Impact makes you unable to attack next, which might be dangerous. The dual Energy requirement might also hinder the setup sometimes
Alcremie	Fun rouge deck that has the potential to one-shot every card in the game. It can be creatively used thanks to its Colorless energy requirement	Every Pokemon in this deck have mediocre HP, meaning if you don’t pull the cards in the right order, you could lose points
Tapu Koko ex	Sets up quickly and applies good early pressure	Lacks damage output in late-game compared to many others in the meta
Ultra Necrozma ex	Its move, Shoegaze, applies the most disruption to opponents the game has ever seen, along with dealing a solid 120 damage	It highly relies on other cards to support it, and its multi-type requirement could hinder setup if your strategy gets interrupted
Lycanroc ex	With Passimian ex and Rockruff's (A3) move, setting this deck up is very easy with a solid damage	Discard 1 energy may restrict setting up other cards on the bench. If Passimian ex isn't played in the early-mid game then might hit a wall
Guzzlord ex	Highly versatile and disruptive with a bulky HP making it a reliable core card	Highly energy hungry and a hefty retreat cost make this card less creative and predictable
Buzzwole ex	Consistent damage with the right set up and benefits from all Grass-type advantages	Setup might take a while and requires Celesteela to stay alive for consistent damage
Infernape ex	Unique hit-and-run playstyle with high consistent damage output	Depends too much on Moltres ex to take the lead to setup and stall
Darkrai ex and Magnezone	2x energy generation and constant chip damage	Relies highly on chip damage until higher burst damage is ready
Celebi ex	Low energy needed and the has the highest damage potential per turn in the game	Highly relies on coin flips and Serperior being set up
Weavile ex and Darkrai ex	Maintains pressure with consistent chip damage and sets up quickly	Does not have high burst damage, chip damage can be recovered with Potion, Irida and Erika
Garchomp ex	Great consistent damage output with excellent bench pressure	Takes time to setup and requires Lucario to stay alive, resulting in having a strong stall wall almost essential for this deck to work
Charizard ex	Highest consistent damage in the game of 200 per turn	2 stage evolution takes time resulting in it being highly dependent on Moltres ex for stall and setup
Pikachu ex	Sets up fast dealing decent damage for low energy cost	Highly depends on the bench to be full
Articuno ex	Consistent damage and has the potential hit hard turn 1 with Misty	If misty fails it may take time to set up
Dialga ex	Fast energy setup with consistent damage. Pokemon Tools enhance this deck further	Highly dependent on Dialga ex to take the lead
Pidgeot ex	Highly disruptive and has versatile synergy due to its Colorless requirement	2 stage evolution takes times to setup. Depends on your bench being full
Aerodactyl ex	One of the highest damage potential among the fighting decks. Aerodactyl's ability is great for disruption as well	Aerodactyl evolves from Old Amber cards which can't be pulled from PokeBall, so setting this up can be inconsistent
Yanmega ex	Sets up fast and applies immediate pressure	Because one energy being discarded every time you attack, it restricts you to only focus on Yanmega ex
Gallade ex	Great counter to high energy running decks and gets bonus damage with Lucario on the bench	Takes time to setup and requires Lucario to stay alive, resulting in having a strong stall wall almost essential for this deck to work
Beedrill ex	Sets up quickly, requires minimal energy and disrupts opponent's energy generation. Exeggutor ex and Erika provides great support	80 damage is the highest damage this deck can go to. Beedrill ex's 2 stage evolution might be hinder to your set up
Lucario ex	Deck puts get pressure on your opponent's active and bench cards. Synergies well Cyrus, regular Lucario and Sudowoodo	Lucario ex's 100 damage might be underwhelming for 3 energy in the current meta. Its 150 HP make it depend on Giant's Cape to out live many others' attacks
Bibarel ex	100 damage and 30 heals per turn provide solid damage with decent sustainability. This deck becomes even better with Pokemon Tools, Potions and Pokemon Center Lady	Highly depends on Dialga ex to the lead and assist it to generate energy
Tinkaton ex	Even its minimum 80 damage applies decent amount pressure for opponents to spend their resources on them	Depends on Dialga ex to set up and coinflips to have its maximum damage output
Pikachu ex (Shining Revelry)	Does a solid 150 damage for a basic card and does well against Water decks which are popular in the meta	Pikachu ex's Thunderbolt discards all energy which forces you to swap it out making you strategically reliant on other cards
Meowscarada	Low cost energy, disrupts opposing energy generation and counters ex cards very well	All Pokemon in this deck have to go through 3 evolution stages that might disrupt the flow of this deck
Leafeon ex	Its HP, decent damage and 2x energy acceleration make it a great offensive and supportive. Cards like Potions, Shaymin and Erika increase the deck's survivability	Depends on other cards to give out higher damage output. Highly depends on Eevee to lead and survive
Alolan Muk ex	Applies great disruptive pressure through random status conditions while dealing solid damage	Other cards have to stall till mid-game for it to be ready, and lack high damage output
Crabominable ex	Fast setup with low energy requirement, dealing consistent damage	Struggles to out damage other cards and has a high retreat cost
Incineroar ex	Applies good pressure and does decent chip damage	Full damage potential is restricted until sustained damage
Wishiwashi ex	Sets up quickly with high potential damage	Depends on bench being full and restrains deck creativity
Alolan Raichu ex	highly adaptable and consistent counter to high-energy decks	Takes some time to set up and has to be protected until then
Lunala ex	Manages and generates energy efficiently while dealing consistent damage	Depends on other cards to take the core offensive role
Passimian ex	Applies great early game pressure while setting up another card well on the bench	Highly depends on other cards to deal massive damage
Rayquaza ex	Has a solid damage output with the ability to disrupt the opponents' strategy	Has high energy requirement and depends on others to take the lead
Oricorio	Excellent counter to a ex-heavy meta rendering them unable to damage it	Does not have a good damage output or HP making it weak to other non-ex Pokemon and chip damage

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Pokemon TCG Pocket Decks tier list: B-tier

B-tier Pokemon TCG Pocket best decks (Image via The Pokemon Company)

B-tier decks are solid performers but typically require more skill and luck to compete effectively. They have niche loopholes that makes them struggle to face decks in the higher tiers. They’re ideal for seasoned players who can leverage their potential fully.

Deck	Strengths	Weaknesses
Jumpluff ex	Jumpluff ex adapts the hit-and-run strategy and capitalizes on being a frustrating poke card with a low and flexible energy requirement	Struggles to do massive damage and relies on other cards to be well thought-out to maximize the chip damage
Poliwrath ex	Poliwrath ex is bulky and has consistent damage output	Its move, Hydro Knuckle, can be expensive to execute and requires two different types of energy to reach its maximum damage potential
Latias & Latios (Secluded Springs)	Both, Latias & Latios, benefit from the other being in play with consistent damage output and free retreats	The consistent 3-energy discard can be expensive, making this duo rely on other support cards
Espeon ex	This deck performs well with consistent healing and damage output, with faster deck acceleration	The damage output and healing may feel underwhelming in the late game
Skarmory ex	A bulky deck with low energy requirement and early game dominance	Suffers from an underwhelmingly low damage output and fails to make any impact late-game
Xatu	Can instantly put the bulkiest card in a difficult spot, highly disruptive meme deck	Requires meeting a lot of conditions to make this deck work, coin toss being the major one
Shuckle ex	Its low energy cost and no-evolution requirement let it apply early-game pressure	120 HP and a cionflip dependent move is not reliable. Its max damage is 60, making it need other Pokemon to carry it
Meganium	This deck provides decent damage and healing consistently across the board	Other than lacking the damage to match some of the Meta giants, this deck also requires a lot of setup
Typhlosion	Applies good pressure and causes chip damage with constant damage and burn	Fails to compete with other decks when it comes to damage. If the setup isn't smooth, you may fall behind in any match
Feraligatr	Has good bulk and slows the opponent with consistent energy distribution pretty well	Deck is energy-hungry, which may put you in certain situations, and requires other cards to take the role of core damage-dealers
Tyranitar	Has good bulk and damage output, with flexible playable alternatives	Requires a lot of setup and requires at least 4 turns for it to deal any damage, till then it has to rely on other cards
Scizor	Highly versatile and hard to predict deck, can catch opponents off guard easily	Lacks overall damage and bulk, and requires other cards to be core attackers
Blissey ex	The deck has good bulk and healing which applies good pressure	Requires a lot of energy, so requires other cards to support it. Additionally the self healing relies on coinflips
Alolan Dugtrio ex	The low energy requirement and 1 evolution makes it easy to set up. The ability to potentially deal 180 damage is highly valuable as it can KO the majority of meta giants in the game	130 HP makes it extremely vulnerable, and relying on coin-flips can backfire, potentially dealing no damage at all
Probopass ex	Has highest defensive and sustainable potential the game while maintaining decent damage output	Damage output somewhat falls short compart to other decks in the meta. Giant Cape and healing gives the opponent more space to out live Probopass ex's damage
Dragonite	200 damage per turn is highly disruptive to opponents' strategies	Requires too much of setting up; lacks impactful supporting cards to stall. Dragonite's random targeting makes it difficult to have battle control
Venusaur ex	With Giant Bloom, Potion and Erika, this deck has one of the highest healing potential	Its 2 stage evolution and 4 energy requirement takes time, making the stall go for 3 turns atleast
Golem (Mythical Island)	High consistent damage and sustainability potential	Takes time to setup with not many great supporting stall cards' synergy
Lucario	2 Lucario cards essentially lets you stack on the damage output	Depends highly on other cards as Lucario's damage by itself is not that great
Silvally	Fun deck with solid damage and rewards for using supporter cards. Ilima keeps the deck alive when needed.	Lacks damage output overall. Decent bulk but can't outlive popular moves in the meta
Volkner	Can potentially have high burst damage	Requires a lot of systematic steps. If it gets disrupted its hard to creatively adapt to given situation
Koga	Your Darkness cards survive well and put instant pressure on the opponent	No high burst damage giving enough time for the opponent to set up their bench
Paldean Clodsire ex	This deck is Energy friendly, making it an easy, quick and disruptive set	Has underwhelming damage and relies highly on the opposing card to be poisoned
Wugtrio ex	Sets up quickly and does consistent 150 damage per turn. Applying damage to random target can apply decent pressure	The damage might be underwhelming compared to many others in the meta. Additionally the random targeting can also backfire not hitting the intended target
Dhelmise ex	Doesn't require any evolution and disrupts opposing strategies	High energy requirement, with okay damage and highly depends on other Pokemon
Krookodile	Highly disruptive and stacks poison chip damage, makes this deck really fun	May take some time to set up, energy hungry and lacks damage output
Umbreon	Highly disruptive for a low-cost requirement. Counters decks with only Basic cards well.	Highly relies on other cards for damage output. Its move is rendered useless if there are no Basic cards in play
Snorlax ex	With 160 HP, Snorlax ex is a great wall that keeps itself alive by constant healing	Snorlax ex itself is energy hungry for a decent damage output, forcing you to rely on other Pokemon for damage output
Leafeon (Eevee Grove)	Has the potential to deal high damage; enough to one-shot meta giants	Requires a lot of set up and the deck has low HP overall
Espeon	This low-cost deck is great against energy-hungry decks, dealing scaling damage as they set up, and it sets up quickly	Espeon itself has low HP, making it vulnerable to many decks. Highly depends on the opponent to stack energy. If they are running a low-energy deck as well, you could be pushed into a corner

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Pokemon TCG Pocket Decks tier list: C-Tier (off-meta decks)

C-tier Pokemon TCG Pocket best decks (Image via The Pokemon Company)

C-tier decks are niche options, excelling at countering specific threats but don't do well overall when facing decks outside those specific threats. They’re not as consistent as higher-tier decks.

• Arbok Lock (Pidgeot) Deck
• Zapdos ex Deck (18 trainer deck)
• Blastoise ex Deck
• Gengar ex Deck
• Machamp ex Deck
• Wigglytuff ex Deck
• Melmetal Deck
• Koga Deck
• Omastar and Articuno ex Deck
• Lapras ex and Butterfree Deck
• Poliwrath Deck
• Tentacruel and Greninja Deck
• Victreebel and Exeggutor ex Deck
• Gengar ex and Golbat Deck
• Persian and Mawile Deck
• Lickitung and Primeape Deck
• Exeggutor ex and Alakazam Deck

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Pokemon TCG Pocket Decks tier list: D-tier

D-tier Pokemon TCG Pocket best decks (Image via The Pokemon Company)

D-tier decks are PvE-friendly and can still perform well but are often outclassed by higher-tier decks. They’re great for beginners as they are easier to get and experiment with.

• Frosmoth and Articuno ex Deck
• Gyarados Deck
• Centiskorch and Moltres ex Deck
• Grapploct and Pidgeot Deck
• Cinccino and Weezing Deck
• Brock Deck
• Kabutops Deck
• Eeveelutions and Ditto Deck
• Lickitung Deck
• Articuno Deck
• Zapdos Deck
• Moltres Deck
• Venusaur Deck
• Charizard Deck
• Blastoise Deck

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FAQs about Pokemon TCG Pocket best decks

1) Which card holds the highest rarity in Pokemon TCG Pocket?

In Pokemon TCG Pocket, the rarest card type currently available is known as the Golden Crown Rare, easily recognized by its distinctive golden symbol and colors. These cards are exceptionally scarce, even more so than the highly sought-after three-star Immersive cards. At present, the following cards have this elite variant in the game: Nihilego, Mantyke, Ho-Oh ex, Lugia ex, Lunala ex, Solgaleo ex, Poke Ball, Eevee Bag, Arceus ex, Dialga ex, Palkia ex, Mew ex, Charizard ex, Pikachu ex, and Mewtwo ex.

2) What’s the strongest non-ex deck in Pokemon TCG Pocket right now?

While ex cards often steal the spotlight, some of the Pokemon TCG Pocket best decks come from non-ex combinations. The standout non-ex setup in the current meta is the Magnezone & Oricorio (Pom-Pom Style), known for its counter to ex cards and pressure. Other competitive options include Dragonite with Manaphy, the interesting pairing of Sudowoodo and Marshadow, and the control-heavy combo of Weezing and Arbok.

3) What exactly is a God Pack in Pokemon TCG Pocket?

A God Pack in Pokemon TCG Pocket is a rare and exciting find, labeled in-game as a Rare Pack. What makes it so special? Every card inside is guaranteed to be of 1-star rarity or higher: meaning you’ll open a full pack of five premium cards. This can include full-art, immersive, or even Golden Crown Rares.

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Check out our other Pokemon-related articles:

• Pokemon TCG Pocket decks tier list
• Pokemon TCGP announces new Trading changes
• What are Pokemon Tools in Pokemon TCGP, and how to use them
• All status conditions explained in Pokemon TCGP
• How to access older packs in Pokemon TCGP