Okay, let’s get a little bit silly. While it’s very difficult to provide an objective ranking of all of the beginner options in our Pokémon starter tier list, given that they’re not really all that different or more powerful than each other.
So what we’re going to do here, is provide a bit of a subjective option, ranking them using a combination of our personal feelings towards the ‘mons themselves, as well as the games they first appeared in. We’ll also detail our feelings about the best ones below, so you understand why.
Pokémon Starter Tier List
Please find below our Pokémon Starter Tier list – a subjective ranking of what we consider to be the best Pokémon starters available throughout the six gens so far.
OP
Look, Pikachu deserves their own spot on this list. Pikachu is Pokémon. They’re the Mario of the series – the mascot. If you see Pokémon merch out in the wild, chances are it’s got Pikachu on it.
- Pikachu
S Tier
Maybe we’re showing our age and bias here, but you just can’t beat the OG starters, can you? There’s something so cosy and nostalgic about them, and they’re right up there with Pikachu in terms of popularity.
- Bulbasaur
- Charmander
- Squirtle
A Tier
Okay, so now we’re getting to the less subjective portion of the tier list. Below are the starters that we genuinely consider to be the best options for the early portions of the games they appear in. It also helps that their designs are utterly adorable.
- Froakie
- Mudkip
- Piplup
B Tier
Options in our B tier are decent options for the early game, but aren’t quite the easy win button of the A tier options. Once you get to mid or later, they do start to shine though.
- Chespin
- Cyndaquil
- Tepig
- Treecko
C Tier
These options aren’t bad at the beginning, but they also won’t provide you with much of an advantage. Pick them because you like the designs, rather than the power.
- Chimchar
- Fennekin
- Totodile
- Torchic
- Turtwig
D Tier
We don’t dislike these, or any Pokémon for that matter, but they are what we consider to be the weakest options available in each of the games at the beginning.
- Chikorita
- Oshawott
- Snivy
How Did We Pick Our Rankings?
As we mentioned during the beginning of this article, we’ve used a bunch of different methods when determining how to rank our Pokémon Starters.
It’s nearly impossible to be objective, because there are so many factors to consider, so we picked a bunch of criteria, including:
- Personal opinion
- Nostalgia
- Fan appeal
- Their performance during the early phases of the game
That’s what led to Pikachu getting its own category and the bias towards the Gen 1 starters. A – D are a little less silly, and focus more on early game performance with a bit of fan appeal thrown in.
