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Smogon Singles OU Updated

Smogon Singles OU tier list

Smogon's flagship 6v6 singles meta. The Pokémon defining the OverUsed tier this month, ranked by raw centralization.

6 tiers · 34 Pokémon ranked
S
Tier-defining

Every team accounts for these three. Most teams run one.

Dragapult No. 887 Dragapult Sylveon No. 700 Sylveon Tyranitar No. 248 Tyranitar
A+
Top of the meta

Universal threats with multiple viable sets. Show up across team archetypes.

Garchomp No. 445 Garchomp Metagross No. 376 Metagross Greninja No. 658 Greninja Ursaluna No. 901 Ursaluna Okidogi No. 1014 Okidogi Ursaluna No. 901 Ursaluna
A
Reliable OU

Established roles, well-known counters, but always relevant in teambuilding.

Dragonite No. 149 Dragonite Gardevoir No. 282 Gardevoir Whimsicott No. 547 Whimsicott Aegislash No. 681 Aegislash Excadrill No. 530 Excadrill Umbreon No. 197 Umbreon Dragapult No. 887 Dragapult Milotic No. 350 Milotic
B+
Solid but conditional

Win the matchups they're built for; lose hard when their checks show up.

Impidimp No. 859 Impidimp Sandygast No. 769 Sandygast Bronzong No. 437 Bronzong Weavile No. 461 Weavile Regieleki No. 894 Regieleki Walking Wake No. 1009 Walking Wake
B
Niche viable

Reward teambuilding around them. Specialist picks.

Samurott No. 503 Samurott Jellicent No. 593 Jellicent Gliscor No. 472 Gliscor Kartana No. 798 Kartana Dragapult No. 887 Dragapult Lycanroc No. 745 Lycanroc
C
Off-meta

Have a winning niche but require significant teammate scaffolding.

Quagsire No. 195 Quagsire Azumarill No. 184 Azumarill Bronzong No. 437 Bronzong Thundurus No. 642 Thundurus Excadrill No. 530 Excadrill

How this tier list works

Smogon’s OU tier is defined by usage statistics, not by what we think is “the best.” When a Pokémon’s usage in OU-legal ladder games rises above 4.52%, it’s OU. Above 13%, it’s competitive. Below, it drops to UU or further.

This tier list reflects our editorial read on centralization — how much you have to account for a Pokémon when teambuilding, not just whether it’s strong. A wallbreaker that hits hard but loses to the four most common defensive cores isn’t S-tier here; a balanced threat that forces a 1-2 slot answer on every team is.

The current shape of OU

This month’s OU is being defined by two ongoing tensions:

  1. The setup-sweeper economy. Dragapult-led offense remains the dominant volt-turn pivot, but Gholdengo’s appearance rate puts a hard ceiling on hazard-stacking strategies. If you can’t break a Gholdengo without spending two turns, your offense plan is incomplete.
  2. Defensive cores are converging. The combined usage of Toxapex + Corviknight + Garganacl has shifted enough teams toward “stall outlasts offense” that we expect a Choice Specs revenge meta to develop by mid-quarter.

What we’re watching

  • Gholdengo + Future Sight pivots. Slowking-Galar has slipped slightly in usage; if Future Sight teams continue to dip, expect Gholdengo’s S-rank to firm up.
  • Iron Valiant rises. The recent Booster Energy nerf cooled it, but its set diversity (Mixed Booster vs Choice Specs vs Sword Dance) is keeping it in B+.

Where this tier list sits on the calendar

This list is refreshed monthly. The next major refresh will come after the next Smogon usage stats drop and any banlist movement. We don’t track the Suspect Test ladder; this reflects the standard OU ruleset only.