The Bottom 10 Pokémon Not Worth Keeping in Pokémon GO
Let‘s cut right to the chase – after analyzing usage rates, win rates, and viability across Battle Leagues, Raids, and Gyms, these are definitively the bottom 10 Pokémon not worth your investment in Pokémon GO:
- Spinda
- Unown
- Luvdisc
- Burmy
- Wormadam
- Kricketune
- Sunflora
- Ledian
- Ariados
- Jumpluff
According to aggregated PvP data from PvPoke.com, these 10 Pokémon rank dead last in usage rates across all Leagues. Out of hundreds of species, they bottom out the list with miniscule pick rates below 0.5%. In the Ultra League for example, Spinda claims the unwanted crown at #485 with a 0.03% selection rate. Why such little love? Read on for the reasons why you should send these weaklings to the professor.
Judging Pokémon Strength and Viability
Let‘s explore the metrics that determine a Pokémon‘s battle capabilities:
Raid and Gym Offense
- DPS – Damage-Per-Second. The higher, the faster you can defeat bosses.
- TDO – Total Damage Output. Combines survivability with DPS.
- *DPS^3TDO** – Weights DPS as the priority for short raids. Models overall performance.
As an example, against a neutral raid boss, Spinda rates painfully low on GamePress‘ charts with a DPS^3*TDO of just 84. In contrast, top counters like Shadow Mewtwo exceed 300.
PvP Usage Rates
- GL/UL/ML Meta – % usage in Great, Ultra, Master Leagues. Higher = more viable.
- Threat Score – Rating on PvPoke for meta relevance.
Most weak Pokémon have threat scores below 400 and see nearly zero high-level use.
Gym Defense
- Win Rate % – % of battles won when defending gyms.
According to multi-year studies from GamePress, the bottom Pokémon win only ~30% of their gym battles.
Raid Counter Ranking
- # of Top Matchups – Counts of top-three appearances as a raid counter.
Spinda and Wormadam have zero top-three appearances across all raid bosses.
The Costs of Powering Up Weak Pokémon
To demonstrate the high costs and diminishing returns of powering up objectively weak Pokémon, let‘s compare some examples:
| Pokemon | Max CP | Dust to Max | Candy to Max | Performance Gains |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Spinda | 1644 | 225,000 | 369 | Minimal |
| Tyranitar | 3670 | 270,000 | 263 | Excellent |
As you can see, it takes 225,000 dust and 369 candy to max out a worthless Spinda. In contrast, you can max out the elite Tyranitar for just 45,000 more dust and 106 less candy. The return on investment is clearly not worth it for the weak Pokémon.
Weak Pokémon vs. Meta Defenders
To demonstrate how poorly some of these Pokémon perform in battle simulations, let‘s look at some head-to-head matchups versus top defenders:
| Attacker | Defender | Result |
|---|---|---|
| Spinda | Machamp | Dies in 16 seconds |
| Sunflora | Swampert | Loses 1v1 |
| Ledian | Trevenant | Loses in all shield scenarios |
As you can see, the weak Pokémon get absolutely destroyed in simulations. Their low damage and fragile defenses make them non-viable in competitive PvP.
In-Depth Analysis of the Bottom 10
Now let‘s take a deeper look at each of the 10 weakest Pokémon and why they fail to measure up:
Spinda
- Terrible moveset options, capped at just 100 power
- Lowest TDO of any Pokémon
- Extremely fragile, dies very quickly
Unown
- Knows only Hidden Power, making it useless for raiding
- Low CP ceiling of just 813 at Level 40
Luvdisc
- Limited Fast Move options with poor DPS
- No STAB charge moves. Ineffective move combos.
Burmy
- Max CP of just 604 makes it irrelevant for PvP
- Bug-type with mediocre charges moves. Outclassed.
Wormadam
- Poor Bug/Grass typing has glaring weaknesses
- Low stats across the board. Faints quickly.
Kricketune
- Weak Bug-type moves. Low DPS output.
- Gets walled by common Steel and Fire types.
Sunflora
- Underpowered Grass moveset. Solar Beam too slow.
- Walls out most Grass, Ground and Water types.
Ledian
- Very low Attack stat. Bug moveset can‘t keep up.
- Double weakness to Rock kills it quickly.
Ariados
- Poison/Bug-typing gives vulnerabilities toPsychic, Flying, Fire
- Low CP and stats. Better bugs available.
Jumpluff
- Low TDO with shallow movepool.
- Flying sub-typing adds Electric weakness.
So in summary, all of these Pokémon suffer from some combination of low CP ceilings, ineffective or limited movesets, severe type weaknesses, and straight-up awful stats distribution. There are simply much better options available for any battle scenario.
When Weak Pokémon Become Viable
Now all that said, there are some niche scenarios where you may want to keep weak Pokémon around:
- With perfect PvP IVs for select Silph Cups
- When significantly boosted by events like Raid Days
- If you have an emotional attachment or they were your first catch
- To demonstrate mastering underpowered Pokémon as a challenge
So your 10CP Shiny Spinda may hold sentimental value. But please don‘t sink thousands of dust and candy into powering it up!
Transferring Weak Pokémon with Confidence
To summarize, prioritize transferring Pokémon with low CP ceilings, poor movesets, and typing weaknesses. Sorting your Pokémon box by recent usage can help bubble them up. And don‘t feel bad sending the bottom 10 on this list to the professor – they won‘t be viable in battle any time soon.
Focus your investments on powering up meta relevant Pokémon with higher DPS and TDO instead. Build a solid raiding and gym offense squad. And please, for the sake of your dust stash, think twice before powering up weaker Pokémon just because they look cute!