Here’s everything you need to know to beat Nihilego in Pokemon GO, including the best Pokemon to use to counter this Ultra Beast!
Catching every Ultra Beast in Pokemon GO is a difficult task as you’ll have to defeat all four in Raids to even have the chance of catching them.
Nihilego was the first Ultra Beast to ever appear in Pokemon GO back when it made its debut in GO Fest 2022. While players were surprised by its arrival in-game, they expected that beating it in Raids would be tough.
Here’s everything you need to know to defeat Nihilego in Raids!

How to Beat Nihilego in Pokemon GO – Full Raid Guide
Nihilego Type
Nihilego is a Poison/Rock-type Ultra Beast. This dual typing means it has plenty of weaknesses and resistances you have to consider before battling it.
Also before you start a Raid make sure to check out our Pokemon GO complete Raids guide to get all of the tips and tricks you need to beat tough Raid bosses.

Nihilego Weaknesses
- Ground
- Psychic
- Steel
- Water
Nihilego has a double weakness to Ground-type attacks, meaning they do 256% damage to it. Additionally, attacks of the other 3 types above will do 160% damage.
Nihilego Resistances
- Poison
- Bug
- Fairy
- Fire
- Flying
- Normal
The above types of attacks deal less damage to Nihilego. Due to its double resistance to Poison, those attacks will only deal 39.1% damage while the other types that Nihilego resists will deal 62.5% damage.
Read More: Every Ultra Beast in Pokemon GO

Best Pokemon to Counter Nihilego in Raids
The best counters to use in Nihilego Raids are strong Ground-type Pokemon like Excadrill, Garchomp, and Landorus.
However, any Pokemon with strong Ground-type attacks should deal a lot of damage to Nihilego and be very useful when taking down the boss.
These are our top 10 Pokemon to use against Nihilego:
Pokemon | Image | Fast Attack | Charged Attack |
---|---|---|---|
Excadrill | ![]() | Mud-Slap | Drill Run |
Landorus | ![]() | Mud Shot | Earth Power |
Garchomp | ![]() | Mud Shot | Earth Power |
Rhyperior | ![]() | Mud-Slap | Earthquake |
Groudon | ![]() | Mud Shot | Earthquake |
Krookodile | ![]() | Mud-Slap | Earthquake |
Golurk | ![]() | Mud-Slap | Earth Power |
Mamoswine | ![]() | Mud-Slap | Bulldoze |
Mega Kangaskhan | ![]() | Mud-Slap | Earthquake |
Golem | ![]() | Mud-Slap | Earthquake |
When is Nihilego in Pokemon GO Raids?
Nihilego is in Pokemon GO Raids during the Ultra Beast Arrival event which is taking place from 11 AM to 5 PM local time on November 27.
It will be available for players to battle in the Americas, Asia-Pacific, and Europe.