How get a Master Ball in Pokémon Go
The best Poké Ball.
The Master Ball, after years of waiting, has finally arrived in Pokémon Go.
Invented by Silph Co, the Master Ball is considered the best Poké Ball in the Pokémon universe due to how it always successfully catches whichever Pokémon it is thrown at. It continues to do so in Pokémon Go, granting you the chance to get a very rare Pokémon.
Below you’ll learn how to get the Master Ball in Pokémon Go, so you can use this powerful Poké Ball yourself.
On this page:
How to get a Master Ball in Pokémon Go
At the time of writing, you can purchase the pay-to-play Masterwork Research: Master Ball quest. Doing so will unlock said quest, which has no deadline, and complete it to earn another Master Ball in Pokémon Go. The quest, however, is only on sale during the Galarian Expedition event - ending on Friday 11th October at 8pm (local time) - so, if you're reading this page past that date, sadly the quest is no longer available. Hopefully the Master Ball will return (for free) soon!
Originally the Master Ball could be obtained by completing quest step 5 of the Let’s GO! special research quest released as part of the Season of Rising Heroes. This quest was available until Thursday 1st June 2023 at 10am (local time), so, if you missed it, you lost your first chance to get a Master Ball.
If you're yet to finish this special research, however, you can still earn the Master Ball it offer.
The second chance to obtain a Master Ball in Pokémon Go was via the Timed Investigation: Master Ball quest, which ran from Friday 1st September to Tuesday 21st November 2023 at 8pm (local time). This quest was designed to take a good amount of time to complete and those who did not complete it were able to purchase a pay-to-play special research quest to earn their second Master Ball until Tuesday 28th November 2023. This quest was called Special Research: Master Ball and does not have deadline, so you might still be working through it.
The fourth chance to grab a Master Ball rolled around on Tuesday 14th May 2024 through the free Masterwork Research: Catching Wonders quest. While this quest allowed players to grab a Master Ball for free, it would take them a while as Masterwork are designed to span a long period of time.
Master Balls do stack in Pokémon Go, so you can have more than one in your inventory at the same time, and according to the official Pokémon Go blog, there will be more opportunities to obtain Master Balls in future.
The Max Out Season is here and includes a new global event, Wild Area! You can now catch Dynamax Pokémon through Max Battles. First, however, you need to visit Power Spots to collect Max Particles and complete the To the Max! quest. Don't forget to try out Routes, Gift Exchange and Party Play while you're hunting down rare Pokémon, fighting in the Go Battle League or competing in PokéStop Showcases.
Pokémon Go Master Ball explained
The Master Ball is the best Poké Ball in the Pokémon universe and it retains this status in Pokémon Go. A Master Ball will always successfully catch a Pokémon whether it’s a Pidgey or a legendary Pokémon.
In Pokémon Go, you can use a Master Ball on Pokémon you encounter in the wild, successfully defeated in Raids, find by using Daily Adventure Incense or spawn from Lure Modules.
We recommend saving your Master Ball for a rare Pokémon, such as one of the Galarian legendary bird variants found via Daily Adventure Incense who have high flee rates or a Pokémon like Mesprit who are both regional and rarely appear in raids. (Or you could do what I usually do and keep it in your bag forever…)
Thankfully, Master Balls in Pokémon Go do stack. This means you're able to have more than one in your inventory at a time, which grants you more options if you're planning on being very selective with your Master Ball useage.
Just remember that once you’ve used all of your current Master Balls, you’ll have to wait until Pokémon Go decides to release another.
Hope you choose wisely when throwing the Master Ball!