So long as you don’t count “???” as a type, there are a total of 18 different types to choose from in the Pokémon franchise. Perhaps that’s common knowledge at this point considering how absurdly powerful the series has become in such a short amount of time, but it’s still worth dwelling on. 18 is quite a lot when it comes to variety. There are over 600 Pokémon categorized into 18 sub-sections. Honestly, even more when you take into consideration dual typing. When it comes down to it, how can someone possibly rank all of them? Well, no one actually can. Unless they only count the core types.

That’s right, Fire, Water, Grass. Where do they all stand compared to one another? It’s an exercise in futility to rank all the dual types, but the single types can be done, and rather easily too. By looking at stats, move pools, design, and Pokémon variety, ranking all these types should be no problem. Where will your favorite type? How about your least favorite? Along with 18 types, Pokémon has undergone multiple generations, each one adding changes to the main game. Types change with time. Some for the better, some for the worst. As of Ultra Sun and Ultra Moon, these are the Pokémon types, officially ranked.

18 ICE

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The trickiest part about ranking Pokémon types is that even the worst type is going to excel somewhere. Ice, for all its faults, ends up being quite the power house. Ice types tend to naturally hit very hard with offense stats made for combat. A fast, well trained Ice type can go the distance and genuinely be an excellent asset in a properly built party.

Ice is not so nice. 

Unfortunately, Ice types are weak by nature with pitiful defense stats meaning they’re just about guaranteed to fall in one turn at the hands of a competent trainer. Game Freak has tried to remedy this by adding in bulkier Ice types, but their weaknesses are so inherent that this style of design just feels like a waste, locking Ice types in an awkward position whereby trying to cover their weaknesses, they end up with little strengths comparatively.

17 BUG

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There’s a good reason the majority of Bug types you can catch are found before you even challenge your first Gym Leader: they just aren’t all that great. Bug types feel underdesigned by design. You can catch a nice variety of them early on, but they won’t take you very far unless you know how to train them beforehand. Even then, their type advantages don’t take them quite far and they’re not exactly sturdy.

The average Bug type’s main claim to fame is their move pool. Even if they don’t have a great spread, their attacks and skills are quite interesting, allowing players to try new strategies and even attempt playing a supportive role in-game. Running a Bug based team can genuinely be a lot of fun. Sure, it won’t get you far competitively, but there’s more to Pokémon than the metagame.

16 ROCK

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Surprisingly fragile with few standout Pokémon, Rock types won’t get you very far. That said, Rock type moves are a different story altogether. While your average Rock type Pokémon is going to let you down most of the time, Rock type moves are actually quite varied and useful. There are many Rock attacks that can make a genuine difference in a battle. When paired with a non-Rock Pokémon, you can actually build up a decent strategy.

There's a reason Brock's gym was first. 

Sadly, the one aspect elevating the Rock type isn’t enough to actually redeem the entire type pool. When it comes down to it, Rock moves are better off on other Pokémon. Gen after Gen, Game Freak fails to introduce new Rock type Pokémon capable enough to hold their own. Hopefully, with time, we’ll actually get to see the type take advantage of their naturally impressive move pool.

15 GRASS

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There are so many great Grass types that Grass being so low on this list might come off blasphemous. Some of the best starter Pokémon are Grass types, after all. That’s the thing, though, starter Pokémon are always a little bit better than their counterparts. At least usually. The rest of the Grass types tend to be fairly weak with far too many weaknesses for their own good.

The typical Grass based Pokémon is going to be weak to: Fire, Flying, Bug, Ice, and Poison. That is genuinely way too much to be vulnerable to. Some starters actually have great type advantages to offset these weaknesses, but that isn’t a luxury every Pokémon in the type pool can afford. It really is a great type at its best, but Grass, at its worst, is simply too open to rank any higher.

14 POISON

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On paper, Poison type Pokémon should be incredible. They’re only weak to Ground and Psychic, Poison moves are designed with doing damage over time, and most Poison type Pokémon have cool designs. Unfortunately, Poison type Pokémon aren’t strong against much and you really need to dedicate yourself to the concept of using poison as a means to win when there are much better, and safer, strategies to choose from.

Who doesn't want to feel like a Team Rocket grunt? 

Poison type Pokémon aren’t so much situational as they are just a bit more convoluted to use than is often worth the effort. Why go for a poison build that won’t be doing all that much in your favor when you can just work on speed in order to sweep? There are dozens of better strategies than just using a team revolving around a Poison type.

13 ELECTRIC

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Like Poison types, Electric type Pokémon aren’t weak to much, but they don’t exactly have enough pull to rank any higher than above the bottom five. Electric Pokémon tend to have fantastic speed, making paralysis a viable strategy in any party with an Electric Pokémon, but they’re otherwise lightweights when it comes to dishing out and receiving punishment.

There are good Electric types, mind you, and you can easily integrate one into your party for the sake of paralysis, but don’t go into battles thinking your Electric Pokémon will carry you. Keep in mind, the series’ mascot, Pikachu, requires unique moves just to be viable. If it weren’t for Volt Tackle or the occasional Surf, Pikachu would be nothing to write home about.

12 PSYCHIC

Abra Teleport
via hozure.deviantart.com
Abra Teleport

Time has not been kind to Psychic type Pokémon. The undisputed best time all the way back in Generation I, each gen has made a point to ensure that Psychic never gets as ferociously overpowered as it once was again. Generation II made Psychic weak to both Dark and Ghost, alongside Bug, while subsequent gens simply buffed up other types in order to level the playing field.

Only time will tell if Psychic types will live up to their Gen I glory. 

It’s neglect more than anything that prevents Psychic Pokémon from shining as bright as they once did. Due to how the Special split works, they’re a type that just works better in a simpler game like Red, Blue, or Yellow. In more complicated settings, they take on some obvious flaws, preventing them from living up to their full potential.

11 NORMAL

via.Pokemon.Wikia

Normal types aren’t bad so much as they are bland. They have virtually no weaknesses, but also no real strengths. They’re balanced Pokémon with a few exceptions, but, for the most part, they don’t really excel in any department. As far as moves are concerned, they have a decent pool to choose from, but nothing so outrageous where they become “Must Haves” on in a party. Normal type Pokémon are just that: Normal. They’re the Marios of the Pokémon world. They can get the job done, but they aren’t particularly interesting. For some, there’s beauty in that simplicity. For others, there just isn’t enough to make the type alluring.

10 GROUND

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With few weaknesses and some genuinely impressive stats as far as Attack and Defense are concerned, Ground types almost feel like the successful older cousin to Rock types. They can get hit hard, hit even harder, and have some truly dangerous moves to choose from. In general, Ground type Pokémon just tend to be fairly viable with enough strengths to outweigh personal weaknesses.

Rock's successful older cousin. 

Unfortunately, the common thread that links up Ground Pokémon tends to be their relatively weak Special Defense stat. While it’s fine that they aren’t exactly proficient in Special Attack, their Special Defense does mean Water types can take them out rather reliably and with little to no effort. It’s a massive hole in an otherwise tight group of Pokémon.

9 GHOST

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While there aren’t all that many Ghost type Pokémon to choose from, the ones that are present tend to get the job done in large part thanks to a fairly high Special Attack stat. As we’ve just established with Ground types, Special Attack can go a long way, especially when the Pokémon you’re facing prioritizes regular defense. With Generation IV, Ghost types got moves that played to their strengths, buffing their role in the games.

Ghost type Pokémon aren’t without their weaknesses, however. Perhaps the most glaring is the fact that Ghost type moves cannot damage Normal type Pokémon whatsoever. When facing a Normal Pokémon with a Ghost type, it is literally impossible to get a STAB off of them. This isn’t too big of a weakness, but it’s one worth mentioning as it can potentially break a party down.

8 FIRE

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All things considered, there really aren’t that many Fire type Pokémon to choose from. That alone makes it a tricky type to rank. On one hand, the Fire type Pokémon that are present are capable of pulling their weight while, on the other hand, too many fall into similar patterns, almost preventing legitimate variety within the type pool.

It's quality over quantity as far as Fire is concerned. 

That said, this is a variety issue and not an actual usability issue. The majority of Fire types are great thanks to a low amount of weaknesses, a great move pool, and some decent stats. It certainly helps that the majority of Fire Pokémon are also starter Pokémon, almost guaranteeing a high rank by default. The type could use some much needed variety, but it’s already more than viable as is.

7 FLYING

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With so many Flying-type Pokémon to choose from, you’d be a fool not to have at least one on your team. Sure, most Flying-types end up having weird weaknesses thanks to dual typing, but the variety is so plentiful that it kind of counters itself. Toss in balanced stats, move pools that dip into all regions of the Pokémon metagame and you’ve got a Type more than worthy of placing in your team. That said, not all Flying-types are created equal and you have to be careful when choosing one. There are just as many bad ones as there are great ones. It’d the double-edged sword of the Flying pool.

6 DARK

via Lunaromon - DeviantArt

Introduced in Generation II alongside Steel to help offset Game Freak’s Psychic problem, it goes without saying that Dark ended up quite the impressive type. While it’s not completely perfect, and perhaps the type in need of the most justification as far as its rank goes, I can assure you that Dark types can pull their weight.

Don't be a square. Use Dark-type Pokémon.

While they aren’t particularly impressive as far as stats go, Dark types do tend to be fairly balanced. They also have strong moves to dip into as many Dark types have access to other typed moves to counter their weaknesses. On top of that, Dark Pokémon are consistently some of the best designed in the franchise. They’re a type that’s easy to ignore, but one you absolutely shouldn’t.

5 FIGHTING

via Gamnesia

One of the most commonly used types in the franchise, of course, Fighting types are going to rank high. They have some obvious weaknesses, but they hit so hard, and some so fast, that it hardly matters. A well trained and built Fighting type Pokémon will get the job done reliably most of the time. Generation VI added Fairy types to further subdue Fighting types, but that doesn’t make them any worse for wear. If you’ve got a Fighting Pokémon on your team, chances are they can pull their weight.

4 STEEL

registeel
via sergiotomo on Deviant Art
registeel

I’m going to be brief with this one. Steel type Pokémon are absolute monsters. Just look at all the types they can resist: Bug, Dragon, Fairy, Flying, Grass, Ice, Normal, Psychic, Rock, and Steel. They’re also completely immune to Poison and, in Gen V, were resistant towards Dark. They’re weak to Fire, Fighting, and Ground- three relatively common types- but they’re resistant to so much that it hardly matters. Who cares about move pools and stats when your Pokémon is just going to tank 80% of what’s thrown at them?

3 WATER

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You don’t have to be a Pokémon fanatic to know that Water types are actually incredible. With so many to choose from and a constant influx of Water type Pokémon, there’s really no shortage of great Water types to choose. Sure, they have their fair share of weaknesses, but their strengths, and the sheer variety of the type pool, outweigh the majority of their cons.

The world is 80% water and Pokémon isn't far behind. 

If you think about it, it’s actually a bit unfair just how good Water types are. There are so many Water Pokémon to the point where you can easily weed out all the bad ones and still be able to build a decent party consisting entirely of Water Pokémon. If anything, they need a nerf!

2 FAIRY

Krisantyne - DeviantArt

With few weaknesses, a resistance against Dragon types, and incredibly unique strengths, it didn’t take long for Fairy type Pokémon to establish themselves as the new standard to beat. When you take into consideration that they’ve been added so late into the franchise’s run, there’s honestly so much we don’t know about them. We’re at a point in the series’ history, where there simply won’t be as many tight strategies to counter Fairy types as there are for other types. That’ll probably change with time, but, for the time being, enjoy tearing the games up with your Fairy Pokémon.

1 DRAGON

8 Best Dragon Type Pokémon Header
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You knew it without having to read this list and I knew it without having to write this list: Dragon types are the undisputed Kings and Queens of Pokémon. Even with Fairy types introduced as a specific counter for Dragons, this is just a type you can’t silence. With high stats, an amazing move pools, and just fantastic all around type advantages, it takes a special Pokémon to fight on even footing with your average Dragon type.

It's only fitting a creature of myth stand out on top. 

Some Dragon types are so good, in fact, that they can easily rival Legendaries in terms of raw power. Lance is easily the hardest member of the Elite Four in Generation I, and he’s arguably the hardest boss in the game if you come into the finale without a proper team. He owes all that to his dragons. You, too, can assemble a true beast of a part if you dedicate yourself to the art of Dragon types.