NianticTeam Go Rocket Leader Arlo is a difficult opponent in Pokemon Go, and going up against his Shadow squad requires the perfect team in order to beat him.
If you win these fights, you’ll get the chance to capture one of his Shadow Pokemon, which can either be ‘purified’ for a CP boost or left as is with higher attack stats if you’re competitive-minded or looking to master Raid battles.
Below, you’ll find Arlo’s current lineup of Pokemon, their weaknesses, and the best counters you can use on your team to defeat them.
Arlo Pokemon Go lineup (April 2025)
Team Go Rocket Leader Arlo has long been a thorn in the side of Trainers in Pokemon Go (since 2019, in fact), and that’s no different this month, where he’ll always send out Shadow Alolan Grimer first, followed by two of six options.
Here’s his current lineup in Pokemon Go:
- Phase 1: Shadow Alolan Grimer
- Phase 2: Shadow Slowbro / Shadow Gyarados / Shadow Dugtrio
- Phase 3: Shadow Alolan Muk / Shadow Scizor / Shadow Metagross
Just like Giovanni, Arlo’s lineup changes during Team Rocket takeover events, the most recent of which was for the Fashion Week 2025: Taken Over event in January.
While the Might and Mastery season kicked off on March 4, 2025, no new takeovers have been announced just yet, meaning that Arlo’s current lineup is correct as of April 1, 2025.
NianticHow to beat Arlo in Pokemon Go
If you defeat enough Team Go Rocket Grunts at PokeStops, you’ll be able to piece together a Rocket Radar, which will allow you to locate and battle either Arlo, Cliff, or Sierra at random.
Let’s take a look at all the Pokemon that Arlo can send out into battle, their weaknesses, and the best counters you can use to defeat each one.
Arlo Pokemon Go counters phase 1
DEXERTOAlolan Grimer counters
Alolan Grimer is Poison/Dark-type, which means it’s weak to Ground-type attacks. It’s also resistant to Poison, Ghost, Grass, Dark, and Psychic-type moves, so don’t use those.
Here are some of the best Shadow Alolan Grimer counters:
| Shadow Alolan Grimer Counters | ||
 | Primal Groudon | Mud Shot (Fast Move) & Precipse Blades (Charged Move) |
 | Mega Garchomp | Mud Shot (Fast Move) & Earth Power (Charged Move) |
 | Mamoswine | Mud-Slap (Fast Move) & High Horsepower (Charged Move) |
 | Excadrill | Mud-Slap (Fast Move) & Scorching Sands (Charged Move) |
 | Mega Lucario | Force Palm (Fast Move) & Aura Sphere (Charged Move) |
 | Rhyperior | Mud-Slap (Fast Move) & Earthquake (Charged Move) |
Arlo Pokemon Go counters phase 2
Arlo will use either Shadow Gyarados, Shadow Slowbro, or Shadow Dugtrio in the second phase.Gyarados counters
Gyarados is a Water/Flying-type Pokemon, which means it’s weak against Electric and Rock-type attacks but resistant to Ground, Bug, Fighting, Fire, Steel, and Water-type moves.
Here are some of the best counters to defeat Shadow Gyarados:
| Shadow Gyarados Counters | ||
 | Raikou | Thunder Shock (Fast Move) & Wild Charge (Charged Move) |
 | Xurkitree | Thunder Shock (Fast Move) & Discharge (Charged Move) |
 | Mega Manectric | Thunder Fang (Fast Move) & Wild Charge (Charged Move) |
 | Magnezone | Spark (Fast Move) & Wild Charge (Charged Move) |
 | Rampardos | Smack Down (Fast Move) & Rock Slide (Charged Move) |
 | Rhyperior | Smack Down (Fast Move) & Rock Wrecker (Charged Move) |
Slowbro counters
Slowbro is a Water/Psychic-type Pokemon, which means it’s weak against Bug, Dark, Electric, Grass, and Ghost-type attacks. On the other hand, it’s resistant to Fighting, Fire, Ice, Steel, Water and Psychic-type moves.
Here are some of the best counters to take down Shadow Slowbro:
| Shadow Slowbro Counters | ||
 | Dawn Wings Necrozma | Shadow Claw (Fast Move) & Moongeist Beam (Charged Move) |
 | Mega Gengar | Shadow Claw (Fast Move) & Shadow Ball (Charged Move) |
 | Mega Banette | Shadow Claw (Fast Move) & Shadow Ball (Charged Move) |
 | Tyranitar | Bite (Fast Move) & Brutal Swing (Charged Move) |
| Raikou | Thunder Shock (Fast Move) & Wild Charge (Charged Move) |
| Xurkitree | Thunder Shock (Fast Move) & Discharge (Charged Move) |
Dugtrio counters
Dugtrio is a dual Ground-type Pokemon, which makes it weak against Grass, Ice, and Water-type attacks. It’s resistant to Poison, Rock, and Electric-type moves.
Here are some of the best counters to use against Shadow Dugtrio:
| Shadow Dugtrio Counters | ||
 | Mega Sceptile | Fury Cutter (Fast Move) & Frenzy Plant (Charged Move) |
 | Mega Swampert | Water Gun (Fast Move) & Hydro Canon (Charged Move) |
 | Shaymin (Sky Forme) | Magical Leaf (Fast Move) & Grass Knot (Charged Move) |
 | Mega Blastoise | Smack Down (Fast Move) & Meteor Beam (Charged Move) |
 | Zarude | Vince Whip (Fast Move) & Power Whip (Charged Move) |
 | Primal Kyogre | Waterfall (Fast Move) & Origin Pulse (Charged Move) |
Arlo Pokemon Go counters phase 3
Arlo will send out Shadow Alolan Muk, Shadow Scizor, or Shadow Metagross in the third phase.Alolan Muk counters
Alolan Muk is a Poison/Dark-type Pokemon, which means it’s weak to Ground-type attacks and resistant to Dark, Ghost, Grass, Poison, Psychic-type moves.
Here are some of the top Shadow Alolan Muk counters you can use:
| Shadow Alolan Muk Counters | ||
| Primal Groudon | Mud Shot (Fast Move) & Precipice Blades (Charged Move) |
| Mega Garchomp | Mud Shot (Fast Move) & Earth Power (Charged Move) |
| Rhyperior | Mud-Slap (Fast Move) & Earthquake (Charged Move) |
| Excadrill | Mud-Slap (Fast Move) & Scorching Sands (Charged Move) |
| Mamoswine | Mud-Slap (Fast Move) & High Horsepower (Charged Move) |
| Mega Swampert | Mud Shot (Fast Move) & Earthquake (Charged Move) |
Scizor counters
Scizor is a dual Bug/Steel-type Pokemon, which means its only weakness is Fire-type attacks. It has loads of resistance, including Grass, Poison, Bug, Dragon, Fairy, Ice, Normal, Psychic, and Steel-type moves.
Here are some of the best Shadow Scizor counters you can use:
| Shadow Scizor Counters | ||
 | Mega Blaziken | Fire Spin (Fast Move) & Blast Burn (Charged Move) |
 | Mega Charizard Y | Fire Spin (Fast Move) & Blast Burn (Charged Move) |
 | Reshiram | Fire Fang (Fast Move) & Fusion Flare (Charged Move) |
 | Darmanitan Standard Mode | Fire Fang (Fast Move) & Overheat (Charged Move) |
 | Moltres | Fire Spin (Fast Move) & Overheat (Charged Move) |
 | Chandelure | Fire Spin (Fast Move) & Overheat (Charged Move) |
Metagross counters
Metagross is a dual Steel/Psychic-type Pokemon, which means it’s weak to Dark, Fire, Ghost, and Ground-type attacks. It’s also resistant to Poison, Psychic, Dragon, Fairy, Flying, Grass, Ice, Normal, Rock, and Steel-type moves.
Here are some of the best Shadow Metagross counters for your team:
| Shadow Metagross Counters | ||
| Dawn Wings Necrozma | Shadow Claw (Fast Move) & Moongeist Beam (Charged Move) |
 | Primal Groudon | Mud Shot (Fast Move) & Precipice Blades (Charged Move) |
| Mega Gengar | Shadow Claw (Fast Move) & Shadow Ball (Charged Move) |
| Mega Blaziken | Fire Spin (Fast Move) & Blaze Kick (Charged Move) |
| Mega Charizard Y | Fire Spin (Fast Move) & Blast Burn (Charged Move) |
 | Chandelure | Fire Spin (Fast Move) & Shadow Ball (Charged Move) |
Pokemon Go boss guides
For more guides like this, check out our other boss guides (and bookmark them) because we update them each time their lineup changes in the game:.
- How to beat Giovanni
- How to beat Leader Sierra
- How to beat Leader Arlo
- How to beat Leader Cliff
- How to beat all Rocket Grunts
Best team to beat Arlo
DEXERTOOne of the best teams you can take into battle against Arlo in Pokemon Go right now is the trio of Mamoswine, Mega Blaziken, and Xurkitree.
- Alolan Grimer and Alolan Muk are fairly easy Pokemon to take down, so a common Ground-type like Mamoswine or Excadrill will stomp them.
- As a powerful Fire-type, Mega Blaziken (or its regular version) is the ideal Pokemon to take care of Scizor and Metagross.
- If you don’t have the required Mega Energy, go with its regular form.
- For Gyarados and Slowbro, a good Electric-type Pokemon like Xurkitree, Raikou, or Magnezone will work nicely. You can even use a Mega Ampharos with Charge Beam and Power Gem to cover both types, too.
- The tricky addition to this team is Dugtrio, which is only weak to Grass, Ice, and Water-type moves. If you happen to come across one, switch your Electric Pokemon for Mega Sceptile or Mega Swampert.
Remember that you can rematch Arlo as often as you like until you defeat him, so if you find yourself struggling, you’ll be able to leave and switch up your team before you return for the win.
Every Arlo Shadow Boss ranked by difficulty
Ever since Arlo and Team Go Rocket joined Pokemon Go, each boss has had a wide range of party members and Shadow Boss ‘mon. Over the years there have been plenty of Pocket Monsters to fight, including tough opponents like Scizor, Charizard, Cradily, and more.
So, considering stats, bulk, moveset, and other factors, we’ve made a handy graph explaining just how tough every single one of Arlo’s Shadow Boss Pokemon has been so far — and Registeel is by far the most difficult:
DexertoWhenever a new lineup rolls around for Arlo, we’ll update the graph above for a look back at where each ‘mon ranks.
How to find Arlo
The only way to track down Arlo is to beat at least six different Team Go Rocket Grunts and earn six different Mysterious Component parts, which combine to assemble a Rocket Radar.
With a Rocket Radar active, when you encounter Team Go Rocket members either at Poke Stops or by clicking on a Team Go Rocket Balloon, you’ll encounter either Sierra, Cliff, or Arlo.
Keep clicking on these encounters until you find Arlo, and you can then battle and defeat him to earn yourself a Shadow Alola Grimer.
How to beat Team Rocket Leaders in Pokemon Go
Alongside Arlo, you’ll also be able to go head to head with a few other Team Go Rocket Leaders, so check out our guides to defeat Cliff, Sierra, and their boss, Giovanni.
That’s everything you need to defeat Leader Arlo in April 2025. For more on all things Pokemon Go, check out our regularly updated Spotlight Hour, events schedule, and current Raid bosses guides. And if you’re brand new to the game, our how to play Pokemon Go guide will get you up to speed.