Overview
The Beast Ball is a blue, patterned special event Poké Ball designed for catching Ultra Beasts, replacing normal encounter balls and greatly increasing your chance of catching the target Pokémon. Pokémon GO supplies Beast Balls only when an event specifically enables them; starting an Ultra Beast encounter outside of those events does not guarantee that you will receive any.
Event reporting indicates that a Beast Ball applies an approximate 20x catch rate modifier compared to a standard Premier Ball, turning the target ring green or orange on bosses that normally have a 2% base catch rate. Featured events have also enabled Beast Balls for Necrozma encounters, even though Necrozma is a Legendary Pokémon rather than an Ultra Beast.
How to get it
Play an event that explicitly enables Beast Balls for its raid or research encounters.
Beast Balls are supplied directly inside eligible encounters rather than collected from PokéStop spins, bought in the in-game shop, or stored in the Item Bag.
How to use it
Use the balls provided on the catch screen. In eligible raids they replace Premier Balls.
Any unused Beast Balls expire as soon as the encounter ends.
Worth knowing
Beast Balls are not guaranteed at every Ultra Beast raid; standard Ultra Wormhole raids award Premier Balls unless an event explicitly activates Beast Balls.
Using a Pinap Berry or Silver Pinap Berry is often practical during Beast Ball encounters, since the higher chance of catching makes extra Candy more valuable than another catch boost.
Notable Beast Ball events
Beast Balls first appeared at the in-person GO Fest events in 2022: Berlin on July 1–3 for Pheromosa, Seattle on July 22–24 for Buzzwole, and Sapporo on August 5–7 for Xurkitree through event research. The GO Fest Finale on August 27, 2022 extended their use to Ultra Beast raid encounters.
Ultra Beast Arrival: Global on November 27, 2022 unlocked their raid use through a community goal of 100,000 referred Trainers. At GO Fest 2024: Global on July 13–14, the Inbound from Ultra Space challenge enabled them again, including for Necrozma raids. Event eligibility has included Nihilego, Buzzwole, Pheromosa, Xurkitree, Celesteela, Kartana, Guzzlord, Stakataka, and Blacephalon.
Beast Balls cannot be bought as a permanent shop item. The historical events listed here explain when they have appeared, rather than describing a research or raid bonus that is always active.
Other appearances include the seasonal World of Wonders Special Research Poipole encounter in March–May 2024 and Necrozma Fusion Raid Day on December 14, 2024. That Raid Day supplied Beast Balls as an unannounced bonus when catching unfused Necrozma after defeating Dusk Mane Necrozma or Dawn Wings Necrozma, with Solar Fusion Energy and Lunar Fusion Energy rewards scaling alongside the raid performance metrics.
How Beast Ball encounters work
In eligible Ultra Beast and Necrozma raids, the number of Beast Balls you receive depends on your individual damage dealt, whether your team controls the Gym, and how quickly the group defeats the boss. Special Research encounters that enable Beast Balls—such as the 2022 in-person GO Fest research or the World of Wonders Poipole encounter—instead provide an unlimited supply of Beast Balls until you complete the scripted catch.
In both cases, Beast Balls are supplied strictly for that catch screen; you cannot store them in your Item Bag or bring them to another encounter. In a raid encounter, if you run out of Beast Balls before catching the boss, the Pokémon flees.
Because Beast Balls provide such a high chance of catching the boss, you can adjust which Berry you feed on the catch screen. A Pinap Berry doubles catch Candy, a Silver Pinap Berry grants extra Candy alongside a modest catch rate modifier, and a Golden Razz Berry prioritizes securing the Pokémon. Keep making careful throws: a high catch rate cannot rescue a Beast Ball that misses or is knocked away during an attack animation.
An Ultra Wormhole or an Ultra Beast raid does not by itself promise Beast Balls. Check the event bonus and the balls shown after the battle. Necrozma’s appearances with Beast Balls are an event exception, not evidence that it is classified as an Ultra Beast.
