A Newbie’s Guide to Card Rarities in Pokemon TCG Pocket

Even if you’re an experienced Pokemon Trading Card expert, Pokemon TCG Pocket’s rarity system might initially be confusing. The Pokemon Company has simplified the card rarity mechanics to make the game more accessible to casual players. As a result, both veterans and newcomers may wonder how card rarities work and what the new symbols and categories mean. If you’re one of those players, don’t worry—this guide explains everything you need to know about Pokemon Pocket’s rarity system and walks you through the changes from the original physical Pokemon TCG.

How to Identify Card Rarities in Pokemon Pocket

Pokemon Pocket has eight rarity tiers: one-diamond, two-diamond, three-diamond, four-diamond, one-star, two-star, three-star, and crown. Each tier has a smaller card pool and is progressively rarer, with crown cards being the most elusive.

Rarity in Pokemon TCG Pocket is indicated by three symbols: diamond, star, and crown. These symbols are displayed under the illustrator’s name in the bottom-left corner. Different art styles and borders, such as full art, immersive art, and rainbow borders also distinguish rarity.

Here’s what each rarity in Pokemon Pocket means:

• One-diamond: Basic Pokemon
• Two-diamond: Basic or Stage One Pokemon
• Three-diamond: Stage One or Stage Two Pokemon
• Four-diamond: ex Pokemon
• One-star: A full art of a Basic, Stage One, or Stage Two Pokemon
• Two-star: A full art of an ex Pokemon
• Three-star: A special immersive card of an ex Pokemon
• Crown: Gold edition of rare ex Pokemon

How Pokemon Pocket Rarities Compare to Pokemon TCG

Since the Scarlet & Violet revamp in 2023, the physical Pokemon TCG uses three primary symbols to indicate card rarities: Circle, Diamond, and Star. Higher rarities, such as Hyper Rare, are marked with variants of these symbols. (For example, a three-star stamp at the bottom for Hyper Rare.)

Pokemon TCG Pocket simplifies this system further by removing the Circle symbol and rarities like Shiny Rare or Shiny Ultra Rare. While most of Pocket’s card rarities have equivalents in the physical game, not all physical rarities are represented in Pocket.

The following table shows Pocket rarities’ counterparts in Pokemon TCG.

Pokemon Pocket’s Pack Rarities

Pokemon Pocket offers three booster packs in each expansion. The current packs are Charizard, Pikachu, and Mewtwo. Each pack can be either Regular or Rare. Regular packs contain five cards of any type, with a very small chance of including three-star or crown cards. Rare packs, on the other hand, are guaranteed to contain at least one-star or better cards, but the odds of getting a rare pack are only 0.05%.

Card Price Based on Rarities

Pokemon Pocket allows players to purchase cards of all rarities, provided they have enough Pack Points. These points are earned by opening booster packs, meaning players who open the most packs—referred to as whales—have a guaranteed way to acquire rare cards.

The following table shows how many packs you need to open and how much real-life money you should spend to purchase a card from each rarity.

Card Drop Rates Based on Rarities

Booster packs in Pokemon Pocket contain five cards, with each slot having a different drop rate for various rarities. The cards in the back of the pack—slots four and five—have the highest chances of containing rare cards. In contrast, the cards in the front (slots one to three) are almost always guaranteed to be common Pokemon.

FAQs About Card Rarity in Pokemon TCG Pocket

Here are the most frequently asked questions about card rarities in Pokemon Pocket:

Which Rarity Is Missing in Pokemon Pocket?

Shiny Rare and Shiny Ultra Rare are currently unavailable in Pokemon TCG Pocket. While it’s unclear if they’ll be introduced in the future, it’s unlikely since the game focuses on simplified gameplay. Shiny cards might eventually appear as part of the one- to three-star illustration cards, not as a separate rarity tier.

What’s the Rarest Card in Pokemon Pocket?

The rarest cards in Pokemon TCG Pocket are the four Immersive three-stars and the three crown rarity cards: Golden Pikachu ex, Golden Charizard ex, and Golden Mewtwo ex. While these are ultra-rare in packs, you can purchase them from the Pack Point shop for 1,500 points each for immersive cards and 2,500 points for each golden edition crown card.

Are Promo Cards a Rarity in Pokemon Pocket?

Promo cards are not considered a rarity tier in Pokemon Pocket. You can earn them by opening exclusive one-card packs, typically awarded during limited-time events. Currently, there are 24 Promo cards in the Genetic Apex expansion, identifiable by the unique blue icon on the right flank of their illustrations.

Are There Secret Rare Cards in Pokemon Pocket?

As of now, the only secret rare in Pokemon Pocket is Mew. Pocket does not feature cards with a number higher than their expansion’s total count, unlike the physical Pokemon Trading Card Game. However, this may change in the future.

Do Rarities Affect Card Power in Pokemon Pocket?

As rarity increases, the card’s HP, ATK, and abilities may become stronger, but illustration-based rarities do not affect the card’s stats—these are simply alternative art versions of regular Pokemon cards. Rarities like one-star, two-star, three-star, and crown affect the card’s art style; they don’t impact the stats.