Who are the best gen 5 Pokémon? With 156 Unova residents to choose from, there are a lot of candidates for the best gen 5 Pokémon. It’s never easy picking out the top dogs, but we can handle it. Collectively, the PT team chose their favorite creatures. Some are incredibly badass, while one or two might have you questioning us, but have a little faith.
Like our other guides, we won’t include any starter Pokémon, legendary Pokémon, or mythical Pokémon, as they have their own guides, and it gives the unsung heroes a moment in the spotlight. For even more great guides, be sure to read our articles covering the best dog pokémon, snake Pokémon, cat Pokémon, bear Pokémon, best gen 1 Pokémon, and the best gen 8 Pokémon.
Here are the best gen 5 Pokémon:
Chandelure
Be our guest, be our guest, come see why this ‘mon’s the best. Tying for the prize of the best sentient piece of furniture alongside Rotom and its many forms, Chandelure (Lampent’s evolution) is a fire/ghost-type that looks like an enchanted chandelier. It’s known to use its flames to hypnotize people to lure them in (Chandelure, get it?) before being said to not just burn its victims physically but to scorch their spirits too.
Chandelure is a fan favorite from Unova, especially thanks to a whopping base special attack stat of 145. Whoever handed out stats for Pokémon Black and White was on a wild one, because this is just one Pokémon in a batch of them that possess some truly impressive stats that forever changed the meta. Chandelure is so popular, in fact, that it even takes up a slot in the Pokémon x Tekken mashup Pokken Tournament DX for Switch. Now, I don’t know if you’ve ever slapped around a luchador Pikachu with a sentient chandelier, but I can promise you it’s very, very fun.
Whether it’s the fire or ghost side of Chandelure that trips you up, our fire Pokémon weakness and ghost Pokémon weakness guides are ready to help you stand tall.
Hydreigon
The pseudo-legendary line of generation five, following along the lines of Pokémon like Garchomp, Dragonite, and the fossil Pokémon Tyranitar; Hydreigon is known as the brutal Pokémon, and its joint dark/dragon-typing along with its fantastic move pool and stat spread make this one a fearsome threat no matter the generation. Each monster in the evolution line also contains a German number, with Deino, Zweilous, and Hydreigon all counting from ein, zwei, to drei, representing the three heads of this brutal beast.
Its fantastic typing gives it immunity to moves from ground Pokémon and psychic Pokémon, making it a decent threat to ground Pokémon, Garchomps, and earthquake users the land over. Sadly, it does leave it extremely weak to fairy, so the years haven’t been kind to Hydreigon. Still, at least it has an awesome shiny, which turns the previously blue heads of the beast a bright green, and it’s so popular that the shiny even appears in the anime. In fact, I snagged one myself during a Pokémon Go community day.
Dragons can be tricky to defeat, but our dragon Pokémon weakness guide holds the secret to beating them.
Braviary
Known as the valiant Pokémon and clearly inspired by an eagle, Braviary cuts an intimidating figure and is easily one of the best bird Pokémon in the franchise. While the first four Pokémon generations take influence from regions in Japan, the United States influences the Unova region, so of course, Game Freak has to include an eagle Pokémon. Its coloring even represents the red, white, and blue of the American flag!
With dual normal/flying-typing, sadly, Braviary isn’t quite as cool to use in battle as it is to look at. But it does have a handy dandy new form in Pokémon Legends: Arceus, with the Hisuian Braviary changing to psychic/flying-typing, and sporting a new colour scheme with bright purples and pinks. It certainly gets our vote for one of the best Pokémon Legends: Arceus new Pokémon.
To bring Braviary back down to earth, check out our flying Pokémon weakness guide.
Krookodile
Just look at this sneaky guy! I’m going to be honest: I absolutely love crocodiles and alligators, so any Pokémon based on them instantly gets shot up the ranks for me, but Krookodile isn’t just a banging member of the Crocodilia family; it also looks incredible. Known as the intimidation Pokémon, Krookodile’s thick black stripes cover all of its body, but the bands over its eyes help to create the look of a robber’s mask. Just top-tier Pokémon design here; incredible work, Game Freak.
Krookodile sports a useful typing of dual ground and dark Pokémon, making it immune to electric and psychic moves. It does still have quite a few common weaknesses, though, such as water, grass, ice, and fairy; perhaps explaining why Krookodile hasn’t risen up into common use like other ground-type Pokémon such as Garchomp. Still, it will always have a place in my heart.
Never forget, knowing the Dark Pokémon weaknesses is vital if you want to win a battle against Krookodile.
Excadrill
Remember earlier when I was talking about the impressive stats of some of the Unova region Pokémon? Meet Excadrill, who, with a whopping base 135 attack, is ahead of Zacian, Urshifu, Terrakion, Kyurem, and many others in the attacking department. You can just find this guy walking around. It’s just a regular ‘mon! I wouldn’t want to bump into one in the sewers of Unova, I tell you that.
Excadrill is a joint ground and steel Pokémon, making it immune to moves from poison
