There are hundreds of Pokémon to choose from in Scarlet and Violet when building a competitive team.

Game Freak has done a good job of balancing this generation to give players the freedom to make lots of creative choices for a competitive team, but there are a few Pokémon that rise to the top of the pack. Keep reading to learn what makes these Pokémon so good, what roles they play in a competitive team, and our recommendations for moves, abilities, and hero items.

Season 18 of the competitive Pokémon Scarlet and Violet battles brings with it a number of previously banned Pokémon that are now allowed as “restricted” Pokémon, meaning you can use them, but only one per team. This drastically changes the meta, with virtually every competitive team now featuring at least one of these restricted Pokémon. We’ll be going over some of the best, but we’ll also talk about the best non-restricted Pokémon that still find plenty of play in this new era.

Please note that this guide is intended for the standard competitive doubles format. Some of these Pokémon may not be as viable in competitive singles.