Top 10 Best Pokémon Trainers
Being a Pokémon Trainer isn't just about throwing Poké Balls and hoping for the best. It takes strategy, dedication, and a bond with your Pokémon that goes beyond simple commands. Some trainers rise above the rest, proving themselves in battle, mastering their skills, and even changing the way the Pokémon world sees competition. But who truly stands out as the best?This list is shaped by fans like you who have voted for the trainers they believe deserve the top spots. Maybe you admire a trainer's skill in battle, their leadership, or the way they train their Pokémon to be the best they can be. Some have conquered the Pokémon League, while others have carved their own paths to greatness. No matter the journey, these trainers have earned their place in Pokémon history.
A Pokémon Trainer from Pallet Town who travels across multiple regions to become a Pokémon Master. He is known for his strong bond with Pikachu and his numerous battles in various Pokémon Leagues. Not only is Ash one of the nicest guys in the world (which everyone should know), but he is also way stronger than other people say. After all, the reason why people say Ash is bad is because he's apparently bad in battle. Yes, he never won a league, but winning a league is way harder in the anime than in the games. If the gym leader only has two Pokémon, you need to use the same amount of Pokémon. If Red from Origins were in the real anime, I don't know the number of times he would lose to Brock or Giovanni.
Also, once you have all badges, you need to beat all participating trainers, the Elite Four, and the champion without losing! In the game, not only do you not fight against trainers in a tournament, but if you lose to the league, you can retry any time. So Ash isn't that bad. Also, being the main character of the anime, the writers make him lose to trainers like Cameron and Ritchie even if this doesn't make sense.
And speaking of Ritchie, I think that since Ash reached the Indigo League, he has lost every league on purpose. You see, if Ash wins the league, he won't have free time to explore the other regions. Maybe at the Indigo League, he said to himself that exploring the world is better than trying to win the league. That would explain why he used Charizard against Ritchie. And for the fight against Tyson and Alain, he used the connection he has with his Pokémon to tell them to faint because he's that cool. And that's why at each region, he puts his Pokémon at the PC to bond with new ones.
Even if my theory is false, let me remember that he's ten years old, that he won the Orange League and the Battle Frontier, and that he's the only trainer we saw make Tobias's Darkrai and Latios faint. He also has Ash-Greninja, and he almost beat Alain (whether it was on purpose or not). So yeah, Ash is awesome for me.
A highly skilled Trainer from Pallet Town who became the Pokémon Champion of the Kanto region. He is often depicted as a silent protagonist with exceptional battling abilities. Red is the original and first of the series, so we gotta give credit to that. Depending on the version we're talking about, Red ends up owning all three starters of Kanto, Mewtwo, the Articuno-Zapdos-Moltres trio, or even a well-built team that anyone can get behind. Maybe some versions didn't do one or the other, but still. Each Red always has amazing feats and looks way more badass than Ash while he's at it.
Why? Red should come first, Giovanni should come second, Ash should come third. It's totally wrong. You see, Red has completed his Pokedex, so he would also have a Venusaur and, of course, Blastoise, which could choke Charizard out. Including that, Red also has the trio birds, Mewtwo, and a Mega Charizard, of course.
Then why is Red in second place, and why is everybody supporting Ash? Okay, if they had a battle, Red's Mega Charizard and Mewtwo would be enough to chip Ash's Pokémon out of battle, making Red the winner.
The Gym Leader of Cerulean City who specializes in Water-type Pokémon. She travels with Ash in the early seasons of his journey. She is my favorite character. She should be third, and Brock should be fourth.
The former Pewter City Gym Leader who specializes in Rock-type Pokémon and later travels as a Pokémon Breeder. He accompanies Ash through multiple regions while aspiring to become a Pokémon Doctor. He is one of the best friends Ash has ever had.
What are you saying? Brock could beat everybody with his great intelligence.
The Champion of the Sinnoh region, known for her strategic prowess and powerful team led by Garchomp. She also researches Pokémon mythology and ancient legends. Is it really any question? Cynthia is the hardest Pokemon champion out of every existing one, and she's extremely versatile. Each Pokemon she owns has a potential countering move to their weaknesses, and all her Pokemon have perfect EVs. It's no wonder she's a favorite.
Cynthia is one of the most powerful trainers. She kicks people's asses without batting an eye. She also inspires others and is an actual hands-down boss.
Why is Cynthia this low? She is the best Pokémon trainer. She trains her Pokémon pretty well and could squash anyone in battle.
A Pokémon Trainer from the Hoenn region who starts her journey alongside Ash and competes in Pokémon Contests. She is the daughter of the Petalburg City Gym Leader, Norman. She is the best coordinator and trainer after Ash. She should be number 2 on this list. Her skills are more or less the same as Ash's. She has also tied with Ash. Her unique technique-making ability is the same as Ash's. So, she deserves the 2nd spot.
May, one of the top coordinators. I don't know how to spell coordinators, so sorry if I am wrong.
Well, she is great at being a coordinator.
She deserves the second spot. Her unique battling style is the same as Ash. She is best after Ash.
The leader of Team Rocket and the Viridian City Gym Leader who specializes in Ground-type Pokémon. He oversees criminal operations aimed at controlling powerful Pokémon. He knew how dangerous Mewtwo was, and he gathered the Master Ball as the last way out if he would fail to control Mewtwo. Giovanni was going to save the world.
He is good even though he is Team Rocket and bad. SPOILER (Mewtwo escaped)
A mysterious Trainer who dominated the Sinnoh Pokémon League using powerful Legendary Pokémon, including Darkrai and Latios. He remains one of the most formidable opponents Ash has ever faced. Tobias is by far the strongest trainer ever in the Pokémon anime. In the Sinnoh League, Ash, whom you have kept at the first place, was easily taken down by only two of Tobias's Pokémon.
He might be the most powerful trainer till now. He might have even more powerful Pokémon than Darkrai and Latias on his team.
He defeated all of Ash's six Pokémon with only Darkrai and Latios. He won the final match with only Darkrai.
A Pokémon Trainer from Pallet Town and the grandson of Professor Oak. Initially Ash's rival, he later becomes a Pokémon researcher. Gary is a brilliant trainer and rival. If you were to take this bluntly, I always thought Gary and Blue were more or less the same character, just as how Ash was based on Red. So, because I liked Blue and I loved Gary as a character, this gets my vote.
Gary is a tough guy, at least better than an average trainer, and he won many battles against Ash too.
At least he knows his Pokémon!
He is a good rival but he is also a great friend for Ash.
A Pokémon Coordinator from the Sinnoh region who competes in Contests with the goal of becoming a Top Coordinator. She travels with Ash and Brock throughout her journey. I love Dawn because of her character. She's confident, she doesn't dwell on her mistakes, and she keeps learning. She's not afraid to get emotional when winning or losing in competitions. She's sweet, smart, and she has one of the best stories plot-wise.
Sure, she starts off as a bit of an airhead and a whiner, but she loses it halfway into the anime season. I grew to like her after that. Sure, maybe some would say May did it better, but I really liked Dawn's character better. (That and Gen 4 was my entry to the series, and I had a child-crush on Dawn ever since I first saw her character design.)
The Newcomers
The undefeated Champion of the Galar region who is known for his signature Charizard and strong battle strategies. He serves as a mentor to younger Trainers, including his younger brother, Hop.
A Dragon-type specialist and the strongest Gym Leader in Galar before challenging the Champion. He is known for his strategic use of weather-based battle tactics.
A Trainer from the Unova region who aspires to become a Dragon Master. She eventually becomes the Unova Pokémon Champion. Iris is the best trainer in the entire world. It's a pity she didn't have a Chikorita.
Other trainers like Red, Ash, Gold, etc., are awesome, but your character in the game has opportunities to become even greater in terms of Pokemon abilities because they're not stuck to a script. Such is the legacy of a Silent Protagonist. You transcend every boundary known to the Pokemon world, considering you have the ability to face every champion and former protagonist (like Red) and come out on top. You can capture every legendary in a region whereas many other trainers can only dream of.
The only downside as a silent protagonist in a Pokemon game is that you can't really grow a bond like the rest of the characters or the original protagonists do. Sure, you can play with your pokemon and bond with them in recent games, but your bond with characters is stuck to a script, and you can't really explore that depth all that much. Which is a shame because many of the characters have great characterizations based on the Anime and Comics, which were brought up by their protagonists because they had a bond with the protagonist.
A Pokémon Trainer from the Kalos region who competes in Pokémon Showcases with the goal of becoming a Kalos Queen. She is childhood friends with Ash and develops a strong bond with him during their journey. Serena may not be my full favorite because of how much I like other characters, but she gets a vote from me because I love how deep her lore is with Ash in the anime. Her story makes her affections with Ash believable and even makes me support the ship. It also helps that she's not bland as shown by her personality and the fact that she's one of the characters who gets multiple changes of appearances and outfits throughout the series.
Best Pokemon trainer... Not good in battles but cares for her Pokemon deeply, which most of the others forget...
The Saffron City Gym Leader who specializes in Psychic-type Pokémon. She is known for her strong psychic abilities, which include telekinesis and mind control. Sabrina is a favorite gym leader of mine only because of her characterization in the anime and the comic series Pokemon Adventures. I loved how much more personality they gave her. Despite being the enemy in some versions, she was an interesting and powerful individual. Was she the most powerful or most fun? No, but I like her character enough for it to be one of my votes. (Plus, being a psychic on top of being a Psychic gym leader gives bonus points.)
Why is Sabrina this low? She controls the mighty Thu-fi-zer, that's Articuno, Zapdos, and Moltres combined. Also, in the games, I can never beat her without glitching to level 100.
A skilled Pokémon Trainer who appears in multiple game adaptations, sometimes as a rival and other times as an ally. Her team is well-balanced, and she is known for her confident and playful personality. She's crafty, tricky, sly, and fun. Especially if you read the Pokémon Adventures comics, she's a load of fun and never runs out of surprises.
Green or Blue is Red's rival and is very strong, considering he took down the Elite Four and Champion with ease. This is shown in Pokémon Generations.
The enigmatic leader of Team Plasma who can understand and communicate with Pokémon. He believes Pokémon should be freed from human influence but later questions his ideology after battling the player. Such an interesting character. His morals are intriguing as well as his personality. Definitely should be higher up.
Very tough. Obviously he can defeat Cynthia.
A Trainer from the Alola region who works with Type: Null to grow stronger and opposes the actions of the Aether Foundation. He is the brother of Lillie and the son of Lusamine. Best character, best trainer, best boy, best dark and ground-type trainer, best blond boy.
The renowned Pokémon Professor of the Kanto region who provides new Trainers with their first Pokémon. He researches the relationships between humans and Pokémon and is the grandfather of Gary. Professor Oak is quite a great trainer. You see, he is a professor. Like in one of the episodes, Oak showed a really strong Pidgey.
Professor means he should be good or better than an average trainer. Also, he taught Ash's Pokemon new attacks, defenses, etc.
Professor Oak counts because, back in the first National Kanto League tournament, he became the first champion in the world. Red won the seventh Kanto tourney.
A strong Pokémon Trainer and Mega Evolution researcher who seeks to become the strongest Mega Evolution user. He wins the Kalos League and works with Lysandre before realizing Team Flare's true intentions. Go Charizard! ... I voted only for Charizard.
Alain crushed Ash and Primal Groudon. He should be number two only because Red's Charizard beat Mewtwo.
Alain has a Mega Charizard X, stronger than Ash's Pikachu and Cameron's Lucario.
The Champion of the Hoenn region, specializing in Steel-type Pokémon. He is also passionate about rare stones and frequently researches them. Come on, Steven is way better than Ash. Reason one: Ash lost in the quarterfinals and Steven is the Hoenn champion.
Steven is my favorite trainer. His best Pokemon is Mega Metagross.
A member of the Elite Four and later the Champion of the Kanto and Johto regions. He specializes in Dragon-type Pokémon and often opposes villainous organizations. Why is he "weaker" than Clemont, Serena, Dawn, Cilan, etc.? He's a frigging Elite Four member and champion.
Dragonite... Why do you paralyze me so? WHY?
The former Pokémon Champion of the Unova region who values the emotional connection between Trainers and Pokémon. He mentors younger Trainers and helps protect Unova from threats like Team Plasma.
The leader of Team Skull, a group of rebellious Trainers in Alola, who acts as an enforcer for the Aether Foundation. He specializes in Bug-type Pokémon and has a troubled past with Professor Kukui.
A Dragon-type specialist and a member of the Hoenn Elite Four. He is a seasoned sailor who emphasizes experience and strategy in battle.
Clemont originates in Pokemon XY, created by Nintendo & game freak. is a gym leader of the lumoise city. He specialized in electric Pokemon and is known as a genius... read more I honestly think Clemont is best boi. He protecc, he attacc, but most importantly... HE SMILE BACC.
He's by far a better trainer than Ash since Ash is overpowered. His inventions (besides the Aipom arm) always blow up. He's awkward, and he might be overprotective, but he will always be the best character.
Clemont appeared in Pokémon XY: The Series. He almost beat Ash, but his Luxray didn't have any power left. Clemont also has a crush on Serena.