How shadow raids work in Pokémon GO
By Matt, MattSimplified
8 min read
Shadow raids are raids against Team GO Rocket's Shadow Pokémon at gyms they've taken over. They come in 1, 3 and 5 star. In 3 and 5 star raids the boss gets enraged partway through. While it's enraged you can barely damage it, so your group has to use Purified Gems to subdue it before you can finish it off. Beat it and you get a chance to catch a Shadow Pokémon of your own.
What you need
Your free daily pass from spinning a gym, a Premium Battle Pass or a Remote Raid Pass. Remote passes have worked for shadow raids since May 2025.
Not needed for 1 star, but you need them for 3 and 5 star, because an enraged boss barely takes damage until it's subdued. You can use up to five per raid.
1 star shadow raids are easy solo. 3 star can surprise you, and 5 star shadow legendaries need a group. How many you need depends on the boss, and I cover that in my weekly guide.
How to do a shadow raid
Five steps from spotting the gym to catching your Shadow Pokémon.
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Find a shadow raid
Look for a gym with Team GO Rocket's dark purple look. In the nearby menu, shadow raids are marked differently from normal raids, so they're easy to spot. Tap in and you'll see the boss wrapped in purple shadow flames.
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Join with a raid pass
Tap Battle. You can join in person with any raid pass, or from anywhere with a Remote Raid Pass.
Doing it with friends? Join the same lobby so you're all in together.
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Pick your team
The game suggests a team for you. That's fine for 1 star raids. For 3 and 5 star, swap in your strongest Pokémon that are super effective against the boss.
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Real raid clip
Subdue the boss with Purified Gems
You'll know the boss is enraged when a purple glow appears around it, and from then on you can barely damage it. Tap the Purified Gem button in the bottom left corner, which also shows how many gems you have. Once your group has used eight gems between you, the boss is subdued and your attacks start doing proper damage again.
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Catch your Shadow Pokémon
Like any raid, you get Premier Balls to catch it. Shadow raids don't give the bonus Premier Balls for your team, so throw carefully.
Enrage and Purified Gems, explained
This is the part that trips up returning players. Once the boss is enraged, your attacks barely scratch it. You have to subdue it with eight gems between your group before you can keep doing damage. Try it below: you can only use five yourself.
Enraged
Shadow Landorus
Example 5 star shadow raid boss0 of 8 gems used. While it's enraged, your attacks barely damage it.
- Only 3 and 5 star bosses get enraged. 1 star shadow raids play like normal raids.
- While it's enraged, you can't do much damage. Every gem counts towards subduing it, which is why the purple glow fades a bit with each one.
- Eight gems across the group subdues the boss, and then your attacks do full damage again.
- You can use up to five gems per raid, with a five second wait between each one.
- Don't hoard them. Beating the raid gives you more shards, so use your gems whenever you can.
How to get Purified Gems
You don't buy gems. You collect Shadow Shards, and every four shards automatically turn into one Purified Gem. You can hold up to ten gems, and once you're at ten you stop picking up shards, so use them.
| Where shards come from | Shards |
|---|---|
| Team GO Rocket Grunt | 1 |
| Leaders: Cliff, Arlo or Sierra | 3 |
| Giovanni | 4 |
| Beating a shadow raid | Several, more from bigger raids |
What you get for beating a shadow raid
On top of the catch, every shadow raid gives you items and Premier Balls. Bigger raids give more. Here's what I got from one 5 star Shadow Landorus raid.
Shadow Shards, Golden Razz Berries, Hyper Potions and Revives, plus XP and Stardust, and sometimes Rare Candy.
That one raid gave me 9 Shadow Shards, which is two gems' worth straight away. That's why you don't need to hoard them.
Your Premier Balls come from beating the boss, how much damage you did, Best Friends in the lobby and how fast you won.
Shadow raids don't give the usual team bonus for the gym, so you'll often get a few fewer than a normal raid. Raiding with Best Friends helps make up for it.
1, 3 and 5 star shadow raids compared
| 1 star | 3 star | 5 star | |
|---|---|---|---|
| The boss | Weaker Shadow Pokémon | Stronger Shadow Pokémon | Shadow legendaries |
| Players | Easy solo | Solo with good counters, or bring a friend | A group. How many depends on the boss |
| Purified Gems | Not needed | Yes, 8 across the group | Yes, 8 across the group |
| When | Every day | Every day | Every day, until the next Shadow legendary replaces it |
Shadow raid catches can have IVs as low as 6/6/6, instead of the 10/10/10 minimum in normal raids. Some raids also end with a Bonus Challenge before you catch.
Who's in shadow raids this week, and how many people you need?See my weekly guideAre shadow raids worth your raid passes?
Yes. Shadow Pokémon get a 20% attack bonus, but they also take about 20% more damage. For anything with decent bulk (good defence or HP), trading a bit of survivability for 20% more damage is worth it, so the Shadow version is almost always the better attacker.
If it's bulky enough, the extra damage wins. That's why Shadows are almost always better.
What to do with your Shadow Pokémon
Every Shadow Pokémon comes with Frustration. It does very little damage, and it makes the Pokémon pretty useless until it's gone.
You can only remove it with a regular Charged TM during certain Team GO Rocket events, which usually happen about once a season. Until then you're stuck with it, so keep your best Shadows ready for that event.
Shadow Pokémon can't Mega Evolve. If a Pokémon has a Mega Evolution, I purify one copy so I can Mega it.
Everything else I keep as a Shadow. You can only have one Mega active at a time, so there's no point losing the 20% attack bonus on the rest.
I use my gems any time. You always get more after the battle, and I've pretty much always got more than I need. The only time I run short is when there are just two or three of us in the lobby and the others don't know how to use Purified Gems, so if you're raiding with newer players, show them the gem button first.
Matt, MattSimplifiedRemote shadow raids and inviting friends
Since May 2025 you can join shadow raids with a Remote Raid Pass, and you can invite friends into your lobby the same way as a normal raid.
Remote shadow raids count towards the daily remote raid limit of 10. Some events raise it for the day. If a friend has already hit their limit, the game tells you when you invite them, like the screen here, so just invite someone else.
What is a Shadow Raid Day?
Every so often one Shadow legendary gets its own Shadow Raid Day, like Shadow Raikou and Shadow Entei did in 2026. For a few hours you usually get:
- Extra free Raid Passes from spinning gyms
- A better shiny chance for the featured Pokémon
- A higher remote raid limit (20 on recent Shadow Raid Days)
- An optional ticket for even more passes and bonuses, usually US$4.99 (A$7.99)
Simple strategies that work
Every grunt you beat on a walk is a shard. Do this and you'll rarely run out of gems.
3 star shadow raids feel harder than they should. Bring a friend or two if your team isn't built up yet.
Each 5 star shadow legendary runs every day until the next one replaces it, so you don't have to rush.
Shadow raid catches can have lower IVs than normal raid catches. Don't stress, level matters far more than IVs for damage. Hunting a hundo anyway? Check the hundo CPs.
Shadow raid FAQ
What do you get from a shadow raid?
Shadow Shards, Golden Razz Berries, potions, Revives, XP and Stardust, sometimes Rare Candy, plus a chance to catch the Shadow Pokémon. Bigger raids give more.
Can you do a shadow raid on your own?
1 star, yes. 3 star, sometimes, with strong counters. 5 star shadow legendaries need a group, and you can't subdue the boss alone anyway, because you can only use 5 of the 8 gems it needs.
Do remote shadow raids count towards the remote raid limit?
Yes. They count towards the daily limit of 10 remote raids, which some events raise for the day.
Can you do shadow raids remotely?
Yes. Since May 2025 you can join shadow raids with a Remote Raid Pass, the same as normal raids.
Do you need Purified Gems for shadow raids?
Not to enter, and not for 1 star. For 3 and 5 star, yes: once the boss is enraged you can barely damage it until your group has used eight gems to subdue it.
How many Purified Gems does it take to subdue a shadow raid boss?
Eight in total across everyone in the raid. Each player can use up to five.
Why don't I get extra Premier Balls in shadow raids?
Shadow raids don't give the team bonus Premier Balls that normal raids do. You still get the usual base amount.
Should I purify the Shadow Pokémon I catch?
Mostly no. Shadows get a 20% attack bonus, so keep them as Shadows. The exception is a Pokémon with a Mega Evolution: purify one copy so you can Mega Evolve it, and keep the rest as Shadows.
Can you Mega Evolve a Shadow Pokémon?
No. Shadow Pokémon can't Mega Evolve, so you need a regular or purified copy for that.
How do you get rid of Frustration?
With a regular Charged TM, but only during certain Team GO Rocket events, which usually come around about once a season. Outside those events, Frustration can't be removed.
Are Shadow Pokémon better than regular ones?
Almost always for raids. They deal 20% more damage and take about 20% more damage, and for anything with decent bulk the extra damage is worth it.
More new and returning player guides
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