Pokemon GO Gym Defender Tier List August 2021

We've put together a list of the best and worst Pokemon to leave in your team's gym for the month of August 2021.

The good thing about all the Pokemon GO events is that Niantic Labs hasn't had much time to mess with the Gym attack and defense meta. Trainers will likely see a lot of familiar faces on this list—either because they're in every single gym or are commonly complained about in general.

Pokemon GO Gym Defender Tier List August 2021

S-Tier

• Blissey
• Chansey
• Snorlax

No surprises here. Any trainer who has faced a Blissey or Chansey will tell you just how annoying, tedious, and frustrating that battle is. Why. Won't. They. Go. Down!

Their stamina and defense, of course. That's why they won't go down—and why trainers see them pretty much everywhere. Both Chansey and Blissey have a stamina stat that hovers either just above or below 500 and a defense stat around 200. These two can take one hell of a beating.

Snorlax is a fine alternative, as well. Its stamina and defense hang just below the two pink nightmares mentioned above.

A-Tier

• Slaking
• Milotic
• Metagross
• Drifblim

Slaking benefits from the same stamina/defense match-up as the S-Tier choices do, but is outclassed by all of them, so we've placed it in the A-Tier as an "alright, if you're out of other choices" option. Meanwhile, Metagross with Meteor Mash is a dangerous combination both offensive and defensively, making it a must-have if not placed already.

Drifblim and Milotic are the situational choices of the group. Drifblim matches well with a composition of fighting-type vulnerable allies to challenge that overkill mono-type Machamp or Lucario. Milotic is one of the toughest water-types in Pokemon GO and has a short list of vulnerabilities, itself. Unfortunately, it doesn't pack much of a punch, so it's typically meant to run out the clock, if anything.

B-Tier

• Tyranitar
• Rhyperior
• Gardevoir
• Togekiss
• Dragonite

B-Tier choices are essentially the tougher-skinned offensive choices. Trainers will usually see these guys in Raids or Attack teams, but can be used to flesh out a Gym composition just as easily.

Former-titan yet still total powerhouse, Dragonite, and "newcomer" Tyranitar fall into this category. Their sheer power, alone, makes them a threat, with enough hide to take a beating and enough strength to give it back. Rhyperior follows this rule, too, but can be harder to get due to its special evolution requirement.

Gardevoir and Togekiss are the situation choices of the B-Tier. Togekiss is a tougher Pokemon than Gardevoir, but Gardevoir can knock out most fighting-types with relative ease.

C-Tier

• Garchomp
• Gyrados
• Conkeldurr
• Venusaur
• Swampert
• Magnezone

Almost every choice in the C-Tier is situational. They've got a lot of upsides, but a lot of downsides, as well. Garchomp is half an exception—being in the C-Tier only because it's outmatched by better dragon-types like Dragonite.

We've broken down the circumstances for the rest below. Typically, they do best when paired with one or more of the options already listed above:

• Gyrados can stop a good portion of attackers, but should only be used in teams that already challenge electric-types.
• Conkeldurr may be the best fighting-type defensive choice, but that doesn't mean much when fighting-types are also a common offensive choice.
• Venusaur has the bulk but also has a ton of vulnerabilities that leave it wide open to attack. We recommend saving this Pokemon
• Swampert can pair pretty well with Venusaur—or any other strong grass/steel type like Metagross. Otherwise, it's a sitting duck for grass-type attackers.
• Magnezone is the worst of the group, unfortunately. It has a high number of resistances, but its vulnerabilities are already popular offensive choices which it simply doesn't have the defense to ignore. The right Pokemon can tear through this guy like tissue paper.

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