The 20 best counters for Xerneas in Pokémon GO summarized with the best movesets. This will allow you to defeat the legendary boss. The counters are up to date as of August 2024.
When does Xerneas come back? From February 17, 2025, you will find Xerneas again in Pokémon GO. It will remain until September 24.
We will show you the best counters against Xerneas and what types it is weak to (type effectiveness).
Xerneas Counters in Raid – Use these attackers
The best counters: Xerneas itself is a Fairy type and is boosted in cloudy weather. This means for you that attackers with Steel or Poison attacks will be effective. In the following overview, we will show you the best counter Pokémon and the moves they should ideally have.
- Necrozma – Dusk Mane with Metal Claw and Steel Beam
- Shadow Metagross with Bullet Punch and Meteor Mash
- Mega Gengar with Lick and Sludge Bomb
- Metagross with Bullet Punch and Meteor Mash
- Shadow Excadrill with Metal Claw and Iron Head
- Mega Rayquaza with Air Slash and Hurricane
- Necrozma – Dawn Wings with Metal Claw and Shadow Ball
- Anego with Poison Jab and Sludge Bomb
- Mega Beedrill with Poison Jab and Sludge Bomb
- Shadow Gengar with Lick and Sludge Bomb
- Dialga with Metal Claw and Iron Head
- Dialga (Origin Form) with Metal Claw and Iron Head
- Melmetal with Thunder Shock and Armor-Fist
- Mega Aggron with Iron Tail and Heavy Slam
- Mega Scizor with Bullet Punch and Iron Head
- Genesect with Metal Claw and Magnet Bomb
- Agoyon with Poison Jab and Sludge Bomb
- Excadrill with Metal Claw and Iron Head
- Shadow Ho-Oh with Steel Wing and Brave Bird
- Jirachi with Charge Beam and Wish
What moves does Xerneas have? As a fast move, Xerneas can learn Tackle (Normal) or Zen Headbutt (Psychic). With an Elite TM, it can also learn Geokinesis.
As a charge move, it can learn Hyper Beam (Normal), Moonblast (Fairy), Bug Buzz (Bug), Close Combat (Fighting), or Thunder (Electric).
Can you catch Shiny Xerneas? Yes, you can catch the shiny version of Xerneas in Pokémon GO. In the following graphic, we will show you what it looks like:
How many trainers are needed? If you attack with a group of 3 trainers and your teams consist of the counters mentioned above, you should not have any problems in the fight against Xerneas. If you have the optimal counters and they are at a high level, you can even defeat the monster with just 2 trainers.
Before the battle, you should ensure that you are using your best Pokémon. To avoid having to do this preparation multiple times, you can preorganize your raid teams and also save time in each individual raid lobby.
