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Top 10 best Pokémon cards in the world

We pick the 10 best Pokémon cards of all time, from hard hitters like Zoroark GX to old-school chase cards like First Edition Charizard.

Three of the best Pokemon cards on a blue background

We’ve scoured thousands of ‘mons to bring you this list of the best Pokémon cards of all time, based on a combination of personality, unique looks, in-game power, and our own personal favorites. The Pokémon Trading Card Game has been going for over 25 years, with new expansion sets adding hundreds more cool Pokémon cards to the game every few months – we’ve whittled the 16,000+ down to just ten.

Pokémon TCG tournament players, be warned – we’re not choosing these based on competitive viability – if you’re after the most powerful choices, read our guide to the strongest Pokémon cards. We’re not going on pure cash value, either – our full list of the most expensive and rare Pokémon cards has that covered.

If you like, you can skip ahead for a full explanation of how we chose our favorite cards. Put simply, we think the best Pokémon cards in the world are the ones with the full package: cards beloved by the community for great art, distinctiveness, and impact on the game as a whole. The top Pokémon cards we’ve listed below all excel in one or more of those categories.

Why you can trust us ✔ We spend hours testing games, toys, and services. Our advice is honest and unbiased to help you buy the best. Find out how we test.

First edition Charizard

The most famous Pokémon card.

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First edition Charizard specifications:
Set Base set
Release date January 9, 1999
HP 120
Pokémon type Fire
Reasons to buy
  • Will realize your childhood dreams
Reasons to avoid
  • Costs as much as a house

The classic. The original. The essential card that every player wants, but few get their hands on. The First edition Charizard has been tantalising children in the playground and turning the heads of collectors for over twenty years. Charizard remains one of the most recognisable mascots of the entire franchise, and the holographic (or shiny) Charizard Pokémon card has only expanded in mythos as it’s aged.

But the very best, the one to really rave about, is a first edition shadowless shiny Charizard. Like all shadowless Pokémon cards, this bad boy was a printing error which doesn’t include the usual dark shadow around its image box. While most were corrected or removed from sale, some slipped through, with their printing fault only adding to their uniqueness, as well as their price.

In 2022, a mint condition first edition shadowless holographic Charizard sold for $420,000/ £334,000 making it the second most expensive Pokémon card ever sold. If you’re going to go after this (orange) white whale, make sure you know how to spot fake Pokémon cards.

Raichu

The happiest Pokémon card.

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Raichu specifications:
Set Next Destinies
Release date February 8, 2012
HP 90
Pokémon Type Lightning
Reasons to buy
  • Encapsulates the joy of Pokémon
  • Common and cheap to buy
Reasons to avoid
  • Pretty weak in gameplay

Lots of Pokémon cards are full of joy and merriment – it’s one of the game’s standout features – but of all the thousands of smiling ‘mons out there, this excruciatingly adorable Raichu with a party balloon, from 2012’s Next Destinies set, has by far the most glee.

It’s not the most powerful or damaging – its attacks are deeply average; it’s far from being one of the highest HP Pokémon cards around; and it’s very common, only costing a couple of bucks to pick one up online.

But that’s not the point of this card – we rank it among the best of all time because of the way it makes us feel. This happy little electric mouse is just ambling down the road on a sunny day, four brightly colored balloons clutched in its mitt, grinning like an idiot, excited at the adventures it’s walking towards. This Raichu encapsulates the light-hearted joy and wanderlust of Pokémon in general, and it belongs in every collection.

Base Set Pikachu

The best Pikachu Pokémon card.

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Base Set Pikachu specifications:
Set Base set
Release date January 9, 1999
HP 40
Pokémon type Lightning
Reasons to buy
  • You want the original Pokémon icon
  • You’re collecting Base Set Pokémon
Reasons to avoid
  • You prefer Pikachu’s new look
  • You don’t want to pay for nostalgia

The best Pikachu Pokémon card was sure to appear on this list. Pokémon’s principal mascot and a familiar cuddly toy the world over, name recognition alone has earned Pikachu a high status among the cream of the imaginary-creature crop. But for us, the best showing of Pikachu was the first, on the original Japanese Pikachu card.

And that’s largely because of the art. Pikachu’s not fighting, not running around, and not really doing anything at all. It’s sitting with a slightly gormless expression on its face, while lightning bolts shoot from its chubby cheeks, and two stubby arms protrude above its rotund belly. This is Pikachu at its cutest. Why would anyone want to face off against this fella? Much better to lean in for a good hug.

Professor Oak

The best trainer Pokémon card.

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Professor Oak specifications:
Set Base set
Release date January 9, 1999
Card type Trainer
Reasons to buy
  • You want the first version of this iconic character
  • You like busted and banned cards
Reasons to avoid
  • You can’t play him in anything but Unlimited

With his stern expression and slightly drab appearance, you could be forgiven for dismissing Professor Oak as an old fuddy-duddy. A card that’s more amusing for its dated artwork than actually useful. But, although it was rotated out years ago, you shouldn’t go casting shade on it too soon. Back in the day, this was the trainer to have.

Letting you discard your hand, and draw seven cards in its place, Professor Oak was vital to cycling through your deck, chucking out the duds, and beelining that frightening Gyarados sitting at its heart. Combined with his fatherly role in the anime TV series, Professor Oak cemented himself as the most iconic trainer card in the whole TCG.

Mewtwo & Mew GX

The best double tag team Pokémon card.

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Mewtwo & Mew GX specifications:
Set Sun and Moon: Unified Minds
Release date August 2, 2019
HP 270
Pokémon type Psychic
Reasons to buy
  • You’re a fan of Generation 1 legendary Pokémon
  • You play Expanded
Reasons to avoid
  • You don’t want cards that have rotated out of Standard

Pokemon’s Tag Team cards like Mewtwo and Mew GX became a quick favourite following their release in Sun & Moon’s Team Up expansion. Combining two much-loved Pokémon into a single, potent duo, the powerful cards bag a pair of familiar faces in one.

There’s the hilariously mismatched Magikarp and Wailord, the romantic pairing of Latias and Latios, and the fire-themed Reshiram & Charizard. But no pair stands a chance against Mewtwo and Mew GX.

The cards packs the power you’d expect from two Legendary Pokémon. Its Perfection Ability is one of the most versatile in the whole TCG, letting you use the attacks of any Pokémon-GX or Pokémon-EX sitting on your bench, or languishing in your discard pile.

Fill your deck with high damage dealers, and discard them as soon as you can, and you’ll be rewarded with a wide array of effective abilities that can knock out your enemy in no time.

Arceus & Dialga & Palkia GX

The best triple tag team Pokémon card

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Arceus & Dialga & Palkia GX specifications:
Set Cosmic Eclipse
Release date November 1, 2019
HP 280
Pokémon type Dragon
Reasons to buy
  • Powerful in-game effect
  • Three God Pokémon on one card
Reasons to avoid
  • Art is a little cluttered

Getting three legendaries for the price of one is a good start for any card, but Arceus & Dialga & Palkia TAG TEAM GX goes one step further by having a moveset that simply blew opponents away, back when it first came out in 2019’s Cosmic Eclipse expansion.

High total HP and a 150-damage attack that pulls 3 Energy cards from your deck is good – but the GX special ability Altered Creation proved utterly meta-changing, allowing you to permanently upgrade the attack damage of all Pokémon on your side by 30 for the rest of the game – and take two prize cards instead of one whenever one of those Pokémon KOs one of your opponent’s. An already strong offensive Pokémon that can instantly buff your whole team and help you win the game twice as fast, it’s hardly surprising this card became so popular for so long.

Looks-wise, it’s far from our favorite – the 4th generation Legendary Pokémon are big beasts with lots of extraneous details, and they just don’t look very good crammed into one card, even with the lovely rainbow colors and holo treatment.

But this card makes our list for sheer impact – Arceus, Dialga, and Palkia are god Pokémon, and their Tag Team card is, accordingly, godlike.

Zoroark GX

The best meta-shaking Pokémon card.

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Zoroark GX specifications:
Set Shining Legends
Release date October 6, 2017
HP 210
Pokémon type Darkness
Reasons to buy
  • You love Dark type Pokémon
  • You want to bring a legend back in Expanded format
Reasons to avoid
  • You’re a pure Standard format player
  • You aren’t much of a collector

Following its release in 2017’s Shining Legends expansion, no Pokémon deck was complete without Zoroark GX. It dominated the meta as quickly as it could knock out your opponent’s Pokémon. And to be clear, that was very quick.

Its Riotous Beating attack dealt 20 damage for each of your Pokémon in play, while its Trade ability let you draw two cards after discarding one. Combined, you could beef up Zoroark with key Pokemon trainer cards, and swat back your opponent’s creatures, in a single blow.

It was a staple of all decks, and any that didn’t use Zoroark were built entirely to counter it. Attempting to treat it like any other powerful Pokémon was futile, and many existing strategies and builds were made obsolete overnight upon its release.

This card dictated the game so much that popular sentiment to Zoroark is mixed to this day. Some see it as a fabled card that earnt all the fear surrounding it, while, for others, it was simply a game-breaking addition. Either way, in its time, it was a powerhouse Pokémon like no other.

Lugia Legend

The most beautiful Pokémon card.

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Lugia Legend specifications:
Set HeartGold & SoulSilver
Release date February 10, 2010
HP 130
Pokémon type Water
Reasons to buy
  • You’re a Pokémon TCG art enjoyer
Reasons to avoid
  • You hate wonky card formatting
  • You don’t like jumbo cards

There’s a lot of pretty Pokémon cards. The husky mystique of Hydriegon-EX, the vivid cuteness of Surfing Pikachu, or the tangible wonder of Cubone. But for our money, the best looking card is Lugia Legend, of 2010’s HeartGold & SoulSilver series.

All merging hues, pronounced features, and hand-drawn water effects, few cards have ever looked so appealing. And the artwork is split across two cards for maximium artistic potential (probably). Is it the most beautiful card? Well, it’s not to everyone’s taste, and it ain’t redefining any aesthetic tenets of the art world.

But if you’re in the mood for hanging a vicious flying sea creature on your wall – one that firmly captures all the spirit of Pokémon – you could do little better than Lugia. Slightly psychedelic in design, with a hint of gaudiness, you certainly won’t be forgetting it any time soon.

Presentation Blastoise

The best collector’s Pokémon card.

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Presentation Blastoise specifications:
Set N/A
Release date 1998
HP 100
Pokémon type Water
Reasons to buy
  • You’re a collector
  • You love TCG oddities
Reasons to avoid
  • Expensive
  • Hard to find

If pure rarity is your preferred metric for testing a card’s quality, Charizard’s watery Generation 1 cousin, Blastoise, might catch your attention. The Presentation Blastoise card sold in January 2021 for a cool $360,000 / £260,000 at auction, and while it’s since been surpassed, at the time it clinched the title for most expensive Pokémon card ever sold.

Created for Wizards of the Coast as a demonstration piece, and used as part of their pitch to Nintendo for producing an English variant of the TCG, only two were ever printed.

But besides its rarity and printing peculiarities (including a missing energy symbol, different fonts, and misspellings), the card also carries a certain gravitas. This is an artefact from the days before the Pokémon TCG existed outside of Japan, and played a role in bringing the game to an international audience. Any card with such a role in the TCG’s history deserves a spot on this list.

Hama-chan’s Slowking

The weirdest Pokémon card around.

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Hama-chan’s Slowking specifications:
Set Promo card
Release date August 15, 1999
HP 70
Pokémon type Psychic
Reasons to buy
  • You love the goofy little guy
Reasons to avoid
  • You think it’s just too silly

As for the weirdest card that can’t be measured by any usual metric of the TCG, look no further than Hama-Chan’s Slowking. Printed as a promotional card in the September 1999 issue of Japanese toys and manga magazine CoroCoro Comic, the card is more of a child’s drawing of Slowking than a serious card.

Not artistically incredible, and certainly not useful in-game, it nevertheless deserves praise as the best spoof card to ever grace the game.

How we chose the best Pokémon cards

When choosing the best Pokémon cards of all time, we’ve decided not to focus on just one aspect of any card, because the Pokémon TCG isn’t just for competitive players (who want powerful cards to win games), nor just for collectors after the most valuable, tradeable choices; nor even casual fans looking for the cutest Pokémon – it’s for all these people.

To make the right picks to help out all those groups of fans, we’ve chosen these cards based on three main factors:

  • Looks
  • Distinctiveness and personality
  • Game and community impact

Looks

We all know beauty is in the eye of the beholder, but Pokémon cards aren’t just game components – they’re standalone pieces of art, with each trying to catch your eye and capture your heart at the same time.

Whether you’re slamming them down on a tournament table, or displaying them for posterity in a binder, Pokémon cards are simply better when their art and design is on point, with beautiful composition, colors, and holographic effects.

Appearance isn’t everything (we still love you, Grimer, you weird-looking, living blob of dirty oil) but it’s an important factor when trying to whittle down over 16,000 cards to find the best.

Distinctiveness and personality

Like all static art pieces, Pokémon cards have the tough job of conveying the unique characteristics, style, tone, behavior, and demeanor of the Pokémon they’re depicting – without including motion, sound, or dialog. As there are now over 1000 Pokémon and counting, making each card properly distinct from the others is also getting ever more difficult.

Playing the Pokémon videogames, we can see the way each Pokémon moves, hear its distinctive cries, see how it lives its life, and interacts with both human characters and other types of Pokémon. In trading card form, all we have to work with is the artistic presentation, and the in-game stats and attacks printed on the card.

That’s why, in our opinion, some of the best Pokémon cards are the ones we feel best stand out from the crowd and embody their monster – both in appearance and game mechanics.

Game and community impact

Like all multiplayer games and fandoms, the Pokémon TCG is defined by its community more than anything else – so looking back at the best Pokémon cards means looking back at the cards that have been most loved, most feared, and most desired by players since the TCG launched in 1996.

That’s why we’ve factored into our choices an element of community impact. This could mean that a card’s in-game effectiveness completely reshaped the competitive meta for a time; or that its rarity has made it a mythical chase card that every player’s heard of; or even that its art is so unique and desirable that it’s developed its own cult following.

In short, we’ve chosen the cards most people have cared about, talked about, and quested after for their collections.

Well, that’s all our top Pokémon cards for now! For more expert info on the TCG and its wider universe, check out our list of all the different Pokémon sets, and our definitive answer to that huge question: how many Pokémon are there? For extra videogame stats, try our sister site Pocket Tactics’ complete Pokédex, updated for 2024.