16 Pokémon Go Tips That Will Make You the Ultimate Master

Face it: Pokémon Go is everywhere and you definitely have the app on your phone. If you haven't opened it yet to play, it's totally OK. Take three deep breaths and read our ultimate guide on how to maximize your experience playing the game.

Do you consider yourself an obsessed fan and pro? You should definitely still read these tricks or pass them on to someone who you want to start playing the game!

01
Make Pikachu your starter Pokémon.

Make Pikachu your starter Pokémon.

Any Pokémon fan adores Pikachu, and thankfully you can make him your starter Pokémon. Follow this simple YouTube tutorial and you'll have Pikachu easily!

02
Spin the pokéball before you throw it.

Spin the pokéball before you throw it.

Before catching a Pokémon, give your pokéball a spin and you'll gain more experience (XP) points out of it.

03
Throw the pokéball when the circle is the smallest.

Throw the pokéball when the circle is the smallest.

When you're trying to catch a Pokémon, try and make sure it's when the colored circle is the smallest. It increases your chance of getting it!

04
Find out what the different colored rings around the Pokémon mean.

Find out what the different colored rings around the Pokémon mean.

The difficulty of catching different Pokémon depends on the colored rings around them. Green means it's relatively easy to catch; yellow is OK; and orange means it's very hard to catch.

05
See what Pokémon are near you.

See what Pokémon are near you.

If you tap on the bar in the right corner, you'll see a pop-up screen of nearby Pokémon. If a Pokémon has one footprint below it, that means it's close. Two or more mean it's farther away and you just need to walk toward it. If you see a Pokémon's silhouette in gray, it means you haven't seen this Pokémon yet.

06
Visit PokéStops over and over again.

Visit PokéStops over and over again.

PokéStops, which are noted by a blue pokéball, are stops where you can collect certain items. The best part about them? You can visit them often, usually within five minutes.

07
Level up as much as you can.

Level up as much as you can.

The more you level up as a trainer, the more Pokémon with higher combat points (CP) you'll see. A Pokémon with higher CP means they'll be better when they battle.

08
Remember to put your egg in an incubator.

Remember to put your egg in an incubator.

Collecting an egg is awesome, but don't forget to put it in the incubator. If you have multiple eggs, you'll need to buy more incubators.

09
click to play video

Evolve your egg with a record player . . .

Do you have an egg that needs to hatch? Unfortunately, you can't drive or do other hacks to reach the necessary steps to make it hatch. However, this YouTube video shows that letting it sit for a spin on a record player helps!

10

. . . Or a pet!

Alternatively, you can also use your pet to help hatch your egg.

11
Get extra candy by transferring your Pokémon to Professor Willow.

Get extra candy by transferring your Pokémon to Professor Willow.

To evolve Pokémon, you need to collect a certain amount of their specific candy. To do so, you need to catch the Pokémon as many times as you can and then transfer it to Professor Willow. You'll get a candy every time you do so.

12
Turn off AR mode.

Turn off AR mode.

Save your battery and make catching Pokémon easier by turning off the augmented reality. It's a tiny toggle button that you just swipe off at the top right of your screen. Your battery will be saved and the Pokémon will move less as you're trying to catch them.

13
Use this map to find Pokémon, gyms, and PokéStops.

Use this map to find Pokémon, gyms, and PokéStops.

Look for different PokéStops, gyms, and Pokémon with this crowdsourced map. Anyone can add to it and it's a great tool to maximize your Pokémon catching potential.

14
Download this Pokémon Go chat app.

Download this Pokémon Go chat app.

Chat with other Pokémon trainers using GoChat (free, available for both iOS and Android). You can see different tips or messages players have left at certain locations and chat with other people, too.

15
Download the offline Google map of your location.

Download the offline Google map of your location.

Reduce your battery and data usage by downloading the Google map of your location and using it offline. The idea is since the game uses Google Maps API, it'll register the offline version. It's unclear whether or not this actually helps, but several players believe it does.

16
Turn on battery saver mode.

Turn on battery saver mode.

Truly save your battery by turning on battery saver mode. Trust us — or carry around dozens of portable chargers.