Is Venusaur good in Pokemon GO?

Yes. Venusaur is B-tier for Poison raid attacker and has 5 other ranked roles.

What are the best Venusaur IVs for Great League?

The rank-1 Great League spread is 4/13/14 (Attack/Defense/HP), which reaches the 1500 CP cap at level 20.5. Low Attack with high Defense and HP wins in capped leagues. Use the IV checker on this page to rank your own copy among all 4,096 spreads.

What are the best Venusaur IVs for Ultra League?

The rank-1 Ultra League spread is 4/14/15 (Attack/Defense/HP), which reaches the 2500 CP cap at level 38. Low Attack with high Defense and HP wins in capped leagues. Use the IV checker on this page to rank your own copy among all 4,096 spreads.

Is Venusaur a good raid attacker?

Venusaur ranks #44 of 344 grass attackers with 13.2 DPS. That is outside the top 15, so it is not a raid priority.

Can Venusaur be shiny in Pokemon GO?

Yes. Shiny Venusaur is available from evolution, photobomb, raid, research, wild. A shiny is worth keeping for the collection no matter its IVs.

Is Shadow Venusaur worth keeping?

Shadow Venusaur hits 20% harder and takes 20% more damage. The Shadow form is B-tier for Poison raid attacker, so keep it.

#003 · Generation 1

Venusaur

grass poison

Forms & variants

Max CP (L40 / L50): 2,720 / 3,075
Raid catch CP (L20 / L25): 1,554 / 1,943
Research CP (L15): 1,166
Buddy distance: 3 km
2nd charged move: 10,000 dust · 25 candy

Shiny
Shadow
Tradable
Mega
Dynamax

Keep

Keep to evolve

Venusaur will not win battles on its own, but Venusaur is A-tier for Grass raid attacker. Keep the good-IV copies and the candy to evolve one.

Battle roles

B
Poison raid attackershadow#11 Poison · 14.0 DPS
As a Shadow it ranks #11 of 197 Poison-type attackers with Vine Whip / Sludge Bomb.
C
Great League#389 of 1154 · score 77.9
It is ranked #389 in Great League on PvPoke with Vine Whip / Frenzy Plant / Sludge.
C
Ultra League#216 of 851 · score 81.7
It is ranked #216 in Ultra League on PvPoke with Vine Whip / Frenzy Plant / Sludge.
C
Poison raid attacker#27 Poison · 11.9 DPS
It ranks #27 of 197 Poison-type attackers with Vine Whip / Sludge Bomb.
C
Grass raid attackershadow#18 Grass · 15.5 DPS
As a Shadow it ranks #18 of 344 Grass-type attackers with Vine Whip / Frenzy Plant (needs an Elite TM).
C
Max Battle tankdynamax#43 of 157 tanks
C-tier Max Battle tank (#43 of 157 by Defence × HP): it takes the boss's hits and shields the party with Max Guard.
–
Master Leagueshadow#259 of 409 · score 56.5
Ranked #259 of 409; not competitive in Master League.

Worth evolving into

Mega Venusaur
A Grass raid attacker (mega)A Poison raid attacker (mega)

Collection value

Can Mega Evolve: keep your highest-Attack copy for raid days.
Has a Gigantamax form (G-Max Vine Lash): Gigantamax copies only come from Max Battle Days and cannot be re-obtained otherwise.
4 costume/event variants: costumed copies cannot be re-obtained outside their event.
Shadow version exists: Shadows hit 20% harder and are worth a raid slot even with low IVs.

Tiers: S = meta-defining, A = strong, B = playable, C = niche. PvP from PvPoke overall rankings; raids from computed DPS/TDO within each attacking type; Max Battles from GO Hub tier lists.

Base stats

Attack198

Defense189

Stamina190

Base stats. Bars are scaled to the strongest Pokemon in the game.

Weak to

fire×1.6
flying×1.6
ice×1.6
psychic×1.6

Resists

grass×0.391
electric×0.625
fairy×0.625
fighting×0.625
water×0.625

Evolution line

Bulbasaur
→25 candyIvysaur
→100 candyVenusaur

Check your Pokemon's IVs

Ranks all 4,096 spreads for each league

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PvP rankings (GO Battle League)

League	Tier	Rank	Score	Recommended moves	Typical build
Great League	C	#389 / 1154	77.9	Vine Whip · Frenzy Plant · Sludge	L20.5 · 4/13/14
Great LeagueShadow	–	#432 / 1154	76.7	Vine Whip · Frenzy Plant · Sludge	L20.5 · 4/13/14
Ultra League	C	#216 / 851	81.7	Vine Whip · Frenzy Plant · Sludge	L38 · 4/14/15
Ultra LeagueShadow	C	#255 / 851	80.8	Vine Whip · Frenzy Plant · Sludge	L38 · 4/14/15
Master League	–	#268 / 409	55.8	Vine Whip · Frenzy Plant · Sludge	L50 · 15/15/15
Master LeagueShadow	–	#259 / 409	56.5	Vine Whip · Frenzy Plant · Sludge	L50 · 15/15/15
Ultra Premier	B	#89 / 689	88.8	Vine Whip · Frenzy Plant · Sludge
Ultra PremierShadow	B	#105 / 689	88.2	Vine Whip · Frenzy Plant · Sludge
Master Premier	B	#35 / 274	82.2	Vine Whip · Frenzy Plant · Sludge	L50 · 15/15/15
Master PremierShadow	C	#62 / 274	77.6	Vine Whip · Frenzy Plant · Sludge	L50 · 15/15/15

Source: PvPoke overall rankings. Score is relative to the league meta (100 = best). Typical build is the IV spread PvPoke assumes.

Max Battles (Dynamax & Gigantamax)

Venusaur can Dynamax, and a Gigantamax version exists. Only copies caught in Max Battles (or from Max research) can enter Power Spot battles.

Max Moves

grassMax Overgrowthfrom Razor Leaf250 / 300 / 350 power
Max Guard+20 / +40 / +60 HP shield
Max Spiritheals 8 / 12 / 16% HP

The Gigantamax form swaps its grass Max Move for G-Max Vine Lash (350 / 400 / 450 power).

Max Battle roles

AttackerB Gigantamax
Tank (Max Guard)C GigantamaxC Dynamax

Max Move power is per level 1 / 2 / 3; levels are unlocked with Max Particles and Candy. Tiers are computed from level-3 Max Move damage, Defence × HP and HP at level 40; thresholds on the guide page.

Raid attacker rankings

Attacking type	Tier	Rank	DPS	TDO	Best moves
poisonShadow	B	#11 / 197	14.0	228	Vine Whip · Sludge Bomb
grassShadow	C	#18 / 344	15.5	251	Vine Whip · Frenzy PlantElite TM
poison	C	#27 / 197	11.9	232	Vine Whip · Sludge Bomb
grass	–	#44 / 344	13.2	256	Vine Whip · Frenzy PlantElite TM

Level 40, 15/15/15, neutral target. DPS = damage per second, TDO = total damage output before fainting. Rank is among every Pokemon using that attacking type.

Moves

Fast move	Type	Raid power	Energy	Duration	DPS	PvP power	PvP energy	Speed
Razor LeafSTAB	grass	13	+7	1.0s	13.0	9	+4	2 turns
Vine WhipSTAB	grass	6	+5	0.5s	12.0	5	+8	2 turns

Charged move	Type	Raid power	Energy	Duration	Dmg/energy	PvP power	PvP energy
Sludge BombSTAB	poison	85	-50	2.5s	1.70	80	-50
Petal BlizzardSTAB	grass	110	-100	2.5s	1.10	110	-65
Solar BeamSTAB	grass	180	-100	5.0s	1.80	150	-80
SludgeSTAB	poison	50	-33	2.0s	1.52	70	-40
Frenzy PlantElite TMSTAB	grass	100	-50	2.5s	2.00	100	-45

Questions people ask

Is Venusaur good in Pokemon GO?: Yes. Venusaur is B-tier for Poison raid attacker and has 5 other ranked roles.
Should I keep or transfer Venusaur?: Venusaur will not win battles on its own, but Venusaur is A-tier for Grass raid attacker. Keep the good-IV copies and the candy to evolve one.
What are the best Venusaur IVs for Great League?: The rank-1 Great League spread is 4/13/14 (Attack/Defense/HP), which reaches the 1500 CP cap at level 20.5. Low Attack with high Defense and HP wins in capped leagues. Use the IV checker on this page to rank your own copy among all 4,096 spreads.
What are the best Venusaur IVs for Ultra League?: The rank-1 Ultra League spread is 4/14/15 (Attack/Defense/HP), which reaches the 2500 CP cap at level 38. Low Attack with high Defense and HP wins in capped leagues. Use the IV checker on this page to rank your own copy among all 4,096 spreads.
Is Venusaur a good raid attacker?: Venusaur ranks #44 of 344 grass attackers with 13.2 DPS. That is outside the top 15, so it is not a raid priority.
Can Venusaur be shiny in Pokemon GO?: Yes. Shiny Venusaur is available from evolution, photobomb, raid, research, wild. A shiny is worth keeping for the collection no matter its IVs.
Is Shadow Venusaur worth keeping?: Shadow Venusaur hits 20% harder and takes 20% more damage. The Shadow form is B-tier for Poison raid attacker, so keep it.

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Costumes & event variants (4)

Party HatEvent costume
CloneEvent costume
Party HatGender variant
CloneGender variant