Overview
A Great Ball is a blue ball with red accents that sits between the regular Poké Ball and the Ultra Ball in catching strength. Its 1.5× catch modifier makes it useful for Pokémon that are harder to catch, while letting you save Ultra Balls for rarer encounters. It is particularly useful when you want to use a Pinap Berry for extra Candy and still improve your catching odds. Each throw uses one Great Ball from your Item Bag, even if you miss.
How to get it
Spin PokéStops and Gym Photo Discs once you reach Trainer Level 14.
Open Gifts, complete research, reach milestone Trainer levels, or claim weekly Adventure Sync rewards. Reaching at least the 25 km weekly Adventure Sync milestone awards a guaranteed bundle of 10 Great Balls.
Great Balls can appear in limited-time shop bundles and the Daily Free Box. Unlike regular Poké Balls, they do not have a permanent standalone bundle at a fixed price.
Selected PokéStop Showcase placements and monthly GO Pass reward ranks can also award Great Balls. Check the current reward list rather than expecting a specific ball from every Showcase.
The current leveling system awards Great Balls from Trainer Level 14 through Level 19: 10 at level 14, 15 at level 15, and 10 at each level from 16 through 19 (65 in total), before level-up rewards switch to Ultra Balls at level 20.
How to use it
Start a wild or research encounter, tap the ball selector, and choose a Great Ball. Some special encounters restrict which balls you can use.
Land the throw while the Pokémon is catchable. A ball is spent when thrown, even if you miss.
Worth knowing
Use these for moderately difficult catches when you want to preserve Ultra Balls for rare Pokémon. The throw and berry still matter.
Great Balls cannot replace the supplied Premier Balls in raid, Rocket, or Max Battle bonus encounters, even when you have hundreds in your bag.
What the catch multiplier actually means
A Great Ball’s 1.5× modifier improves your chance of catching a Pokémon, but it does not turn a 20% chance into 30%. To compare balls while keeping the Pokémon, throw and all other bonuses the same, use this formula:
New catch chance = 1 − (1 − p)ᵐ
Here, p is your catch chance with a regular Poké Ball, written as a decimal: 20% becomes 0.20. The small m means “raised to the power of m.” Use m = 1.5 for a Great Ball or m = 2 for an Ultra Ball.
With a 20% Poké Ball chance, the Great Ball calculation is 1 − (1 − 0.20)¹·⁵ ≈ 0.284, or 28.4%. An Ultra Ball gives 1 − (1 − 0.20)² = 0.36, or 36%. These examples compare ball bonuses; the starting chance varies with the Pokémon and the other catch bonuses.
Combine the ball with your throw and berry
You can improve your chances further by combining a Great Ball with a Razz Berry or a curveball. A Razz Berry adds a 1.5× modifier and a curveball adds a 1.7× modifier. Multiply the bonuses together to find m in the formula above.
Suppose a straight throw with a regular Poké Ball and no berry has a 20% catch chance. Switching to a Great Ball makes m = 1.5 and gives about a 28.4% chance.
With a Great Ball and a Razz Berry, m = 1.5 × 1.5 = 2.25. The calculation becomes 1 − 0.80²·²⁵, giving about a 39.5% chance.
With a Great Ball and a curveball, but no berry, m = 1.5 × 1.7 = 2.55. The calculation becomes 1 − 0.80²·⁵⁵, giving about a 43.4% chance.
Each example uses the same Pokémon and assumes the throw lands with the same target-ring accuracy. Medals and any encounter-specific bonuses also stay the same. Only the ball, berry or curveball bonus changes, so you can see how much each helps.
These chances apply when the ball connects. A smaller target ring gives a stronger accuracy bonus if your throw lands inside it. Wait for the Pokémon’s attack animation to finish and aim carefully: a stronger ball cannot help if the Pokémon knocks it away.
Why some guides say level 12
Under the current leveling system, Great Balls unlock at Trainer Level 14, where you receive 10 as a level-up reward and begin receiving them from PokéStops, Gyms, and Gifts. Under the original leveling system, they unlocked at level 12, which is why older guides list that milestone. Special Research and Timed Research can award Great Balls before level 14, but receiving them from research does not unlock them from Photo Discs early.
Throwing and catching accessories
Hold the ball to watch the target ring shrink. A throw that lands inside the ring can earn a Nice, Great, or Excellent bonus; a smaller ring gives a stronger accuracy bonus. Spin the ball before releasing it to attempt a curveball. Wait through an attack animation so the ball can connect.
Pokémon GO Plus + can throw Great Balls when you select them for button throws and press the device’s main button.
Automatic throwing uses regular Poké Balls.
Neither the original Pokémon GO Plus nor Poké Ball Plus can use Great Balls, and the Explorer Gadget also uses regular Poké Balls only.
The remembered-ball setting can keep Great Ball selected between ordinary encounters. If that stock runs out, the game falls back to regular Poké Balls. Watch the selected ball rather than assuming the previous choice remains available.
Great Ball with a Pinap or a Razz Berry?
A Pinap Berry is useful when Candy is the priority: it doubles ordinary catch Candy without adding a catch modifier. A Great Ball improves the ball side of that combination.
Choose a Razz Berry when a breakout would be more costly, or an Ultra Ball when you want to keep the Pinap Berry benefit while using a stronger ball.
A Silver Pinap Berry combines a catch boost with extra Candy, but is a scarcer item.
There is no single ball-and-berry combination to use on every Pokémon. A common species you can readily encounter again is a different decision from a rare spawn. Compare the target ring color, your remaining Great Balls and Ultra Balls, and whether catching this Pokémon matters more than saving your stronger items.
