The 10 best fish Pokémon, ranked

With every new game release, more and more Pokémon are added to the Pokédex. After over 26 years as a franchise, there are over 900 different Pokémon to collect if you truly wanna catch ’em all.

Fish Pokémon are just some of the many cool creatures you’ll find in the Poké universe. You’ll need to traverse lakes, oceans, and occasionally use a fishing rod to catch these aquatic critters. But if you persevere, you can gain some great partners.

There are a ton of fish Pokémon to choose from, so we’ve compiled a list of ten of the best fish Pokémon to help you pick some new friends on your journey to becoming a Pokémon master. As we said, there are a lot of fish Pokémon so don’t be too disappointed if your favorite isn’t on the list: in our humble opinion, they’re all great.

10. Tynamo

Tynamo is a rarity in that it’s a fish Pokémon that’s not a Water-type. This eel-like Pokémon is actually Electric-type and eventually evolves into the “Elefish Pokémon” Eelektross. Tynamo might not be the strongest or fastest Pokémon but this cute creature has great potential to round out your team. Nobody expects an Electric fish and the adorable eel’s Levitate ability makes it so that it effectively has no weaknesses; Ground-type moves will have no effect on the little guy.

9. Wishiwashi

Wishiwashi might not be much to look at in its solo form but when it teams up with other Wishiwashi, watch out. The aptly named “Small Fry Pokémon” has some of the worst stats in the game on its own but its school form more than makes up for any individual weaknesses: almost every stat is boosted to near-legendary level when Wishiwashi gains this ability at level 20. This little fish proves the old adage true; there really is strength in numbers.

8. Feebas

Feebas is not much of a catch in its initial form; the Pokémon has a similar move-set to Magikarp and some laughably weak stats. However, like Magikarp, the little fish has a huge glow-up when it evolves into the beautiful Milotic. Catching a Feebas is notoriously frustrating in most games but if you do, you can be rewarded with its super strong evolved form later on.

7. Mantine

Mantine is an adorable fish Pokémon whose design is heavily inspired by manta rays. It evolves from Mantyke but only when you have a Remoraid in your party. This symbiotic relationship is similar to the one manta rays and remoras have in real life, assuming that Remoraid helps Mantine remove any unwanted parasites that attach themselves to the ray-like Pokémon. With a face like Mantine’s, how could you pass up a chance to befriend this Pokémon?

6. Lumineon

Lumineon is a gorgeous fish with glittering fins that it uses to lure its prey. The glowing fins help put the “neon” in its name. The shimmering fish has decent stats and a solid move-set, which can make it an asset to any Pokémon team. It’s such a pretty Pokémon though that we can’t blame you if you catch it for its beauty alone.

5. Starmie

Starmie is a starfish Pokémon and it uses its red gem-like core to power its attacks. The Water/Psychic dual-type Pokémon has great Speed and Special Attack and would be a fantastic part of any competitive Pokémon team. If you want to add a Starmie to your team, give a Water Stone to a Staryu and it will evolve into the colorful Starmie.

4. Horsea

Horsea is one of the original 150 Pokémon and the adorable sea horse Pokémon is still one of the cutest Water-type Pokémon in the franchise. Horsea isn’t all that strong but does it really have to be when it looks this cute? Don’t worry though; if you raise a Horsea long enough, you’ll be well-rewarded. Its final evolution is the elegant Kingdra, a Dragon/Water-type Pokémon with amazing stats. If you decide you want a Kingdra, wait until Horsea evolves into Seadra and make it hold a Dragon Scale.

3. Stunfisk

Stunfisk may seem like a silly Pokémon — and honestly, it is — but the awkward Pokémon is one of our favorites. This Pokémon resembles a flounder crossed with a sunfish and lies around in mud waiting to shock its prey. That’s right; the dual-type Electric/Ground Stunfisk is another fish Pokémon that isn’t Water-type. This fish out of water is truly underrated and the only thing that could improve it, is an equally preposterous (and stronger) evolved form.

2. Lanturn

Leave it to Pokémon to make an anglerfish look this cute. Lanturn is a dual-type Water/Electric Pokémon with a light hanging from its head (hence the name Lanturn) which it uses to blind its prey before it swallows them whole. This adorable Pokémon is surprisingly metal and underrated due to its less-than-stellar stats. Still, with some EV training and a good move-set, Lanturn can be a great asset to any trainer’s team.

1. Magikarp

Last but certainly not least, we have Magikarp, the quintessential ugly duckling fish Pokémon. Magikarp is a thing of memes and legends but even though it starts off weak, it has the potential to become one of the mightiest Pokémon on this list. Magikarp is inspired by a Japanese folk tale about a koi fish beating the odds and swimming to the top of a waterfall; the gods are so impressed with the little koi that they transform it into a grand dragon, to better reflect its strength.

When Magikarp evolves into Gyarados, it becomes one of the strongest Pokémon in the games. This weak little Pokémon is an inspiration and motivates us to believe in ourselves. If Magikarp can keep splashing in the face of adversity, we can also make it through life’s toughest battles.

We hope you enjoyed our ranking of the best fish Pokémon! There is a lot of great fish that didn’t make it onto this list (sorry Sharpedo) but we hope you can look past any omissions and appreciate just how great fish Pokémon are.