Pokemon Go: All Legendary Pokemon & how to catch them (2024)

Daniel Megarry
Legendary Pokemon Rayquaza and Suicune in Pokemon Go

Legendaries are the hardest creatures to find and capture in Pokemon Go, which makes them the most desirable among completionists and competitive trainers. Here’s the full list of all the Legendary Pokemon currently available in Niantic’s game, as well as their Shiny and Shadow variations.

Legendary Pokemon have been the most sought-after ‘mon for trainers to find ever since the original Pokemon games were released back in the 1990s. These unique creatures are incredibly rare, so everyone wants to add at least one to their team.

Whether it’s more recent Legendaries like Regidrago or Regieleki, or classic creatures Zapdos, Moltres, and Articuno, most Legendary Pokemon are available to obtain in Pokemon Go. However, some are still not available in the game.

So, here’s every Legendary Pokemon you can get in Pokemon Go, including some tips on how to catch them.


Contents


All Legendary Pokemon in Pokemon Go (2024)

Here are all of the Legendaries that have made their debut in Pokemon Go so far:

Legendary Pokemon
Release Date Shiny Availability
Articuno Articuno in Pokemon Go July 2017 Yes
Galarian Articuno Galarian Articuno July 2022 No
Moltres Moltres in Pokemon Go July 2017 Yes
Galarian Moltres Galarian Moltres July 2022 No
Zapdos Zapdos in Pokemon Go August 2017 Yes
Galarian Zapdos Galarian Zapdos July 2022 No
Mewtwo Mewtwo Pokemon Go August 2017 Yes
Armored Mewtwo armored mewtwo July 2019 No
Raikou Raikou August 2017 Yes
Entei Entei Pokemon Go August 2017 Yes
Suicune Pokemon Brilliant Diamond & Shining Pearl Suicine profile image September 2017 Yes
Lugia Pokemon Go Lugia July 2017 Yes
Ho-Oh Ho-Oh November 2017 Yes
Regirock Regirock Pokemon Go August 2018 Yes
Regice Brilliant Diamond & Shining Pearl Regice profile image June 2018 Yes
Registeel Brilliant Diamond & Shining Pearl Registeel profile image July 2018 Yes
Latias Latias April 2018 Yes
Latios Pokemon Brilliant Diamond & Shining Pearl Latios profile image April 2018 Yes
Kyogre Kyogre January 2018 Yes
Groudon Pokemon Go Groudon December 2017 Yes
Rayquaza Rayquaza February 2018 Yes
Uxie Uxie April 2019 Yes
Mesprit Mesprit April 2019 Yes
Azelf Azelf April 2019 Yes
Dialga Dialga March 2019 Yes
Dialga (Origin) February 2024 Yes
Palkia Palkia January 2019 Yes
Palkia (Origin) pokemon palkia origin February 2024 Yes
Giratina (Altered) Giratina Altered Forme October 2018 Yes
Giratina (Origin) Pokemon Go Giratina Origin Forme Master League April 2019 Yes
Heatran Heatran Pokemon Go December 2018 Yes
Regigigas Pokemon Brilliant Diamond & Shining Pearl Regigigas profile image November 2019 Yes
Cresselia Cresselia November 2018 Yes
Cobalion Cobalion November 2019 Yes
Terrakion Terrakion November 2019 Yes
Virizion Virizion December 2019 Yes
Tornadus Tornadus February 2020 Yes
Thundurus Thundurus March 2020 Yes
Landorus Landorus Pokemon Go March 2020 Yes
Enamorus enamorus pokemon February 2024 No
Therian Forme Thundurus Therian Forme Thundurus March 2021 Yes
Therian Forme Tornadus Therian Forme Tornadus March 2021 Yes
Therian Forme Landorus Therian Forme Landorus April 2021 Yes
Reshiram Reshiram May 2020 Yes
Zekrom Zekrom June 2020 Yes
Kyurem Kyurem in Pokemon Go July 2020 Yes
Xerneas Xerneas May 2021 Yes
Yveltal Yveltal May 2021 Yes
Zygarde   July 2023 No
Tapu Koko Tapu Koko in Pokemon GO March 2022 No
Tapu Lele Tapu Lele in Pokemon Go March 2022 Yes
Tapu Bulu Tapu Bulu in Pokemon Go raids April 2022 Yes
Tapu Fini Tapu Fini in Pokemon Go May 2022 Yes
Cosmog Cosmog September 2022 No
Cosmoem Cosmoem in Pokemon Go October 2022 No
Solgaleo Solgaleo November 2022 No
Lunala Lunala November 2022 No
Zacian Zacian August 2021 No
Zamazenta Zamazenta August 2021 No
Regidrago Regidrago March 2023 No
Regieleki Regieleki in Pokemon Go March 2023 No

If you’re wondering why fan-favorite Pokemon like Darkrai and Deoxys don’t appear on this list, that’s because they’re technically Mythical creatures, not Legendaries.

Quite a few Mythical Pokemon are also only obtainable by completing limited-time Special Research stories, so it’s often not possible to obtain them any other way.

All Shadow Legendaries in Pokemon Go

Shadow Pokemon are a rare variation of Pokemon in the game left behind by Team GO Rocket. These are corrupted creatures that you can recognize by their red eyes and purple auras that deal 20% more damage but also take 20% more damage from enemies. 

Here’s the complete list of all the Legendary Pokemon that have a Shadow version in Pokemon Go.

Articuno Ho-Oh
Zapdos Regirock
Moltres Regice
Mewtwo Registeel
Raikou Latias
Entei Latios
Suicune Kyogre
Lugia Regigigas

How to catch Legendaries in Pokemon Go

The main way to catch a Legendary in Pokemon Go is to first beat one in a 5-Star Raid Battle. These battles occur at Gyms, and you’ll typically need to team up with at least five other Trainers to win.

Once you’ve beaten a Legendary, you’ll be given a limited number of Premier Balls to try to capture it. Their catch rates are very low, so there’s never a guarantee that you’ll catch a Legendary you’ve just beaten.

The Legendary Zekrom appearing in Pokemon Go
Catching a Legendary requires a mix of timing, patience, and luck.

You can increase your chances by landing Excellent Throws and Curve Balls. You can also get more Premier Balls to throw by performing well in the battle or battling in a Gym that matches your team’s color.

Make sure you have enough Raid Passes before going Legendary hunting, though, as you’ll need these valuable items to participate. We’ve got a guide to getting more Remote Raid Passes right here.

Things work a little differently for the Galarian versions of Articuno, Moltres, and Zapdos. These three regional variants can only be encountered in the wild when using a Daily Adventure Incense, although they are very rare to find.

Cosmog also works differently from other Legendaries in the game. The only way to get one is to work through the Cosmic Companion Special Research story. Completing this story is also how you can evolve it into either Solgaleo or Lunala.

Which Legendary Pokemon are currently available to catch?

The Galarian forms of the Legendary Birds (Articuno, Zapdos, and Moltres) are always available in the game. However, they only appear using the Daily Adventure Incense and they have a very high flee rate.

The Lake Trio (Uxie, Mesprit, and Azelf) can also be found in the wild, or 5-star Raid battles, however they are region-locked.

During April, Shadow Entei will be available at Shadow Raids every weekend, while Tapu Bulu and Registeel will be featured in 5-Star Raid. Tapu Bulu will also have its own Raid Hour as well as Tapu Lele. 

Niantic regularly rotates the Legendaries that appear in 5-Star Raid Battles, so the best way to keep up to date with what’s available to catch is to check our Raid Boss guide, which is updated each month.

There will usually only be one Legendary available to catch at a time, although this sometimes changes if there’s a special event. During Pokemon Go Fest 2021, for example, every single Legendary showed up!

What Legendaries are not in Pokemon Go yet?

The following Legendaries have not made their Pokemon Go debut yet:

  • Type: Null
  • Silvally
  • Necrozma
  • Eternatus
  • Kubfu
  • Urshifu
  • Glastrier
  • Spectrier
  • Calyrex
  • Enamorus (Therian Forme)
  • Wo-Chien
  • Chien-Pao
  • Ting-Lu
  • Chi-Yu
  • Koraidon
  • Miraidon
  • Okidogi
  • Munkidori
  • Fezandipiti
  • Ogerpon
  • Terapagos

It’s likely that all of these Pokemon will appear in Pokemon Go eventually, but there could be a long wait as Niantic only tends to debut a few new Legendaries each year.

For more Pokemon Go content, check out some of our other guides:

How to get the Master Ball in Pokemon GoBest Pokemon in Pokemon Go | Current Raid bosses | How to get Remote Raid Passes | Pokemon Go catching tips

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About The Author

Daniel graduated from university with a degree in Journalism and English Language, before spending five years at GAY TIMES covering LGBTQ+ news and entertainment. He then made the switch to video game journalism where he produces news, features, and guides for Pokemon, Fortnite, Nintendo, and PlayStation games. Daniel also has a passion for any games with queer representation.