Shiny Pokémon (GO)

Shiny encounter in Pokémon GO

A Shiny Pokémon (Japanese: 色違いポケモン differently colored Pokémon) is a specific Pokémon with different coloration to what is usual for its species. It is one of the many differences that a Pokémon can have within its species.

In Pokémon GO, Shiny Pokémon may be encountered randomly in all types of encounters: the wild, from hatching Eggs, by completing Field Research tasks, or by winning Raid Battles. During Community Day events, featured Pokémon have an increased chance of being Shiny in the wild. Shiny Pokémon are represented by a icon. When a Shiny Pokémon is encountered in the wild, the icon appears at the upper left of the Pokémon's CP. When browsing the Pokémon Box, the icon appears at the upper left of its sprite. Upon capturing a Shiny Pokémon in the wild, its name is shown in yellow text instead of white. Shiny encounters are random for each player, meaning that if two players attempt to catch the same Pokémon, one player may encounter a Shiny Pokémon and the other may not.

All Pokémon seen in the overworld appear non-Shiny, but when a player attempts to capture a Pokémon, it may appear as a Shiny Pokémon. Likewise, during a Raid Battle, the Raid Boss always appears non-Shiny during battle, but it may become Shiny during the bonus challenge. Similarly, all Shadow Pokémon used by Team GO Rocket members appear non-Shiny in battle, but certain ones have a chance of becoming Shiny during the bonus challenge.

Shiny Pokémon from Raid Battles and from Team GO Rocket have a 100% catch rate when successfully hit with a Premier Ball.

Only the Shiny forms of certain Pokémon have been released, often coinciding with a special event or update. For most evolution families, only the first-stage Pokémon is obtainable as Shiny, including those with baby Pokémon; however, there have been several exceptions for evolution families with baby Pokémon and during limited-time events.

Shiny rates

Unlike in the core series, Shiny rates vary across different species but are constant across all encounter methods.^[1] The following lists the various Shiny rate estimates that have been observed.^[2][3]

• The standard base Shiny rate is 0.2% (1 in 500). This applies to the vast majority of species.
• Some species have a permanently boosted Shiny rate of 1.6% (1 in 62.5; ×8). This often applies to:
  • Pokémon that rarely or never spawn in the wild (e.g. Pineco, Alolan Marowak, and baby Pokémon)
  • Eligible Shadow Pokémon
  • Evolved Pokémon that can be caught in Mega Raids
• Some species have a permanently less-boosted Shiny rate of 0.8% (1 in 125; ×4). This applies to some rare species (e.g. Gible).
• Legendary and Mythical Pokémon all have a rate of 5% (1 in 20; ×25)

During some limited-time events, the Shiny rates for certain Pokémon are temporarily and significantly boosted.

• Featured Pokémon during Community Days all have a boosted Shiny rate of 4% (1 in 25; ×20).
  • During past December Community Day celebrations, featured Pokémon of that year have a slightly boosted rate of 1% (1 in 100; ×5).
• Featured Pokémon during three-hour Raid Days have a boosted rate of 10% (1 in 10; ×50).
• Featured Pokémon during Limited Research events have been observed to have various boosted rates across events, including 10% (1 in 10; ×50), 5% (1 in 20; ×25), or 2.5% (1 in 40; ×12.5)
• Featured Pokémon from GO Fest and Safari Zone global tie-ins have been observed to have a boosted rate of 4% (1 in 25; ×20) prior to November 5, 2018, and 1.6% (1 in 62.5; ×8) afterwards.
• During GO Fest 2020, ticket holders observed a 1.6% (1 in 62.5; ×8) rate across all eligible species. ^[4]
• Meltan has been observed to have a rate of 1.6% (1 in 62.5; ×8) during the limited times when its Shiny form was available. ^[5]

Pokémon released as Shiny

The following lists the evolution families available as Shiny along with their respective release dates, corresponding events, and Shiny rates.