The Pokemon franchise has been going for over 26 years now, and one of the biggest foundations it lies on is the fact that every pocket monster in each game has its own type or type combination. Types are a game-defining mechanic for the franchise because Pokemon battles depend on type combinations and how they affect each other much more than they do moves or Abilities, and even more so when it comes to things like stats and a Pokemon's Nature. With Gen 6, the franchise expanded its type selection by adding the Fairy type, which was retroactively added to existing critters and quickly became one of the community's dearest types due to how cute Fairy Pokemon tend to be, as well as how powerful they are in battle.
With the addition of Fairy, the type chart across the Pokemon franchise had to change and be rebalanced, and while some types and type combinations are still much better than others now, the various permutations hit a decent spot over time. Type combinations are usually categorized based on their performance in terms of both offense and defense, but the discrepancies can be huge due to how less favorable types combine with one another compared to the top picks.
Poison and Dark
Pokemon that are both Poison and Dark are exceptionally good in terms of defense because they are only weak to Ground moves, while they take reduced damage from four types and zero damage from Psychic monsters. Offensively, Poison and Dark only cover four types combined, which is comparatively not great because supereffective moves are such an important part of Pokemon battles. Thanks to regional variants and Pokemon Legends: Arceus, this type combination also got more representation in the series, which is good because the only other Pokemon that use it are all from Gen 4.
The existing Poison/Dark Pokemon are:
- Stunky
- Skuntank
- Drapion
- Alolan Grimer
- Alolan Muk
- Hisuian Qwilfish
- Overqwil
Flying and Ground
Although Flying and Ground are a rare type combination in the Pokemon series, this combo is particularly good due to Ground-types being naturally immune to Electric moves, which would be supereffective against Flying. On the other hand, Flying-types are immune to Ground moves, which means that this type combination is only hit by supereffective damage from two types, while it takes no damage from another two and resists three. On the offensive side, this is one of the strongest combos in the series due to it dealing supereffective damage to eight different types.
The existing Flying/Ground Pokemon are:
- Gligar
- Gliscor
- Landorus
Bug and Steel
Steel-type Pokemon are usually among the best in the franchise due to their incredible defensive capabilities, but what makes Bug and Steel such a power combo is that they are only weak to Fire moves, while they resist eight types and take zero damage from Poison. Defensively, this is one of the best possible scenarios because it's safe to switch Bug/Steel Pokemon in most of the time, and they can often be left on the battlefield unless facing a very powerful Fire monster. Offensively, they deal supereffective damage to six different types, which is also great.
The existing Bug/Steel Pokemon are:
- Forretress
- Scizor
- Mega Scizor
- Wormadam
- Escavalier
- Genesect
- Durant
Water and Fairy
Water is arguably one of the best types in the Pokemon franchise due to its innate resistances and weaknesses as well as its offensive capabilities. Likewise, Fairy is almost always considered among the best three types in the franchise alongside Steel and Dragon, thus making Water and Fairy a fantastic pair for all purposes. Offensively, Water/Fairy-type Pokemon hit supereffective damage against six types, and defensively they have three weaknesses, six resistances, and are immune to Dragon-type moves.
The existing Water/Fairy Pokemon are:
- Marill
- Azumarill
- Primarina
- Tapu Fini
Water and Ground
Much like with Water/Fairy monsters, Water/Ground is often one of the absolute best Pokemon type combinations due to a mix of offensive and defensive stats that often pair extremely well with species that use this combo. An example comes from Gastrodon and Quagsire, both of which have seen plenty of usage in official tournaments like the recent London Pokemon World Championship. Water/Ground pocket monsters take supereffective damage from Grass moves only, whereas they deal double damage to six types.
The existing Water/Ground Pokemon are:
- Wooper
- Quagsire
- Marshtomp
- Swampert
- Mega Swampert
- Barboach
- Whiscash
- Palpitoad
- Seismitoad
Normal and Ghost
Although this is a very recent addition to the Pokemon franchise, Normal and Ghost has been one of the best unused Pokemon type combinations for a long time, and a highly requested one. Now that it's in the game, the reason why it's such a good pairing is made even clearer by the pocket monsters that use it: Hisuian Zorua and Zoroark. Normal/Ghost Pokemon are only weak to Dark moves, but they are immune to Normal, Fighting, and Ghost-type moves, which makes them quite a threat on the battlefield. On top of that, Zorua and Zoroark's signature Ability is Illusion, which makes this type combo all the more difficult to manage when they disguise as Pokemon that take advantage from being hit by Dark moves.
The existing Normal/Ghost Pokemon are:
- Hisuian Zorua
- Hisuian Zoroark
Fairy and Steel
Last but not least, the Pokemon type combination that is widely considered the best in the franchise is Fairy and Steel, and unsurprisingly so. Combining two of the most powerful types out of three yields Pokemon that are not balanced in the slightest, with a total of two weaknesses, nine resistances, and two immunities - one of which is to Dragon-types. For example, both Zacian and Mega Mawile were among the best Pokemon in the franchise in their respective generations, and for good reason. Alongside their defensive boons, Fairy and Steel hit with supereffective damage against six types, and several of them are among the best out there.
The existing Fairy/Steel Pokemon are:
- Mawile
- Mega Mawile
- Klefki
- Magearna
- Zacian