It depends on what you mean by strongest. In play, the strongest card in Standard, as of September 24, 2026, is Dragapult ex: it won the 2026 World Championships (San Francisco, August 28 to 30) and was the most played deck there, in 43% of the Masters field. On paper, the biggest numbers are on cards no tournament allows: Ishihara-GX prints the highest fixed damage, 1,060, and six oversized Japanese promos print the highest HP, 1,000. On a card you can put in a deck, the HP record is 380, shared by three cards.
| What "strongest" means | Record, as of September 24, 2026 | Card | Allowed in tournaments |
|---|---|---|---|
| Wins in Standard | Won Worlds 2026, 43% of the Masters field | Dragapult ex | Yes |
| Highest fixed damage | 1,060 | Ishihara-GX (2018) | No |
| Highest HP | 1,000 | Six oversized Japanese promos | No |
| Highest HP on a playable card | 380 | Mega Venusaur ex, Mega Emboar ex, Wailord ex | Yes |
| Highest fixed damage in Standard | 330 | Mega Dragonite ex | Yes |
Strongest in play: Dragapult ex (September 2026)
Playing strength changes fastest, and results measure it. Standard has used cards with regulation marks H, I and J since April 10, 2026, when G rotated out (March 26 on Pokémon TCG Live); J first appeared on Ascended Heroes, on January 30, 2026. At the last International Championships of the 2026 season, at Worlds and at a Regional Championship of the 2027 season, all played in that format, Dragapult ex was the most played deck:
| Event (Masters) | Dates | Players | Dragapult ex decks | Winning deck |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| North America International Championships, New Orleans | June 12-14, 2026 | 3,752 | 36% | Lillie's Clefairy ex |
| World Championships, San Francisco | August 28-30, 2026 | 797 | 43% | Dragapult ex |
| Regional Championship, Baltimore (2027 season) | September 18-20, 2026 | 3,122 | 31% | A toolbox of Basic Pokémon ex led by Mega Kangaskhan ex |
At Worlds, Dragapult ex decks took first, third and fourth place in Masters, where Andrew Hedrick won with it, and first to fourth in Juniors; the Senior title went to an Alakazam deck. Its main attack, Phantom Dive, does 200 damage and puts 6 damage counters on the opponent's Benched Pokémon, so one hit can set up several Knock Outs, and as a Tera Pokémon it takes no damage from attacks while on the Bench.
Popularity overstates its edge, though. At Worlds its decks won about 46% of their matches (a tie counted as a third of a win) and made up 29% of the second day's decks against 43% of the full field, while Alakazam and Crustle decks, far fewer, won more of their matches. It is the deck to beat, not a deck that always wins: it did not win the other two events above. The next World Championships are in Singapore in August 2027: see Pokémon Worlds 2027. New to the game? Start with how to play Pokémon cards.
Strongest ever in play: the cards that were banned
Outside Japan, which keeps its own ban list, five cards have been banned from the main tournament format in the game's history for what they did to games:
- Sneasel (Neo Genesis), banned from the Modified format in 2001 for its damage output with no Weakness and no Retreat Cost.
- Slowking (Neo Genesis), banned from Modified from January 1, 2003: a mistranslation made its Mind Games Pokémon Power too strong.
- Lysandre's Trump Card (Phantom Forces), banned from Standard and Expanded from June 15, 2015: it shuffled both players' discard piles back into their decks, which removed the deck-out win, let Trainer cards be reused and dragged games on.
- Mismagius (Unbroken Bonds) and Bellelba & Brycen-Man (Cosmic Eclipse), banned from Standard in 2020 to break up hand-destruction combos early in the game and to weaken mill decks.
As of September 24, 2026, no card is banned in Standard, and the Expanded format, which allows cards from the Black & White series on, bans 27 cards, among them Shaymin-EX (Roaring Skies) and Forest of Giant Plants.
The damage record: 1,060, on Ishihara-GX
The highest damage number printed on any card is 1,060, on Ishihara-GX: 350 HP and one attack, 60 Congratulations!-GX. No other card prints 1,060. It was never released to the public: it was made for guests of a private party for the 60th birthday of Tsunekazu Ishihara, head of The Pokémon Company, held during the 2018 World Championships in Nashville, and between 30 and 200 copies are thought to exist. Doug Ferguson-GX, by the same illustrator, was a 2019 farewell gift to a departing executive of The Pokémon Company International: it also prints 350 HP, but its attack deals no damage, and 9 oversized and 9 standard-size copies were made.
1,060 is the highest fixed number. Attacks that multiply can go further on paper: Zeraora and Friends, a 2018 Japanese jumbo, does 100 damage for each Pokémon in play, 1,200 with twelve. On cards you can play, the highest fixed damage is 340, on Zacian V-UNION (legal in Expanded), and 330 in Standard, on Mega Dragonite ex (Ascended Heroes), which must discard two Energy to do it.
Ten cards deal 1,000 damage
| Card | Released | HP |
|---|---|---|
| Shadow Lugia (Nintendo World promo) | 2005 | 300 |
| Reshiram (BW-P promo) | 2011, Japan | 1,000 |
| Reshiram (JR Pokémon Survey Team promo) | 2011, Japan | 1,000 |
| Zekrom (JR Pokémon Survey Team promo) | 2011, Japan | 1,000 |
| Mewtwo (BW-P promo) | 2011, Japan | 1,000 |
| Rayquaza (BW-P promo) | 2012, Japan | 1,000 |
| Zoroark and Legendary Pokémon (World of Illusions promo) | 2011 | 500 |
| Raikou, Entei & Suicune (Legends of Johto promo) | 2018 | 500 |
| Tornadus, Thundurus & Landorus (Forces of Nature promo) | 2018 | 500 |
| Reshiram, Zekrom & Kyurem (Legends of Unova promo) | 2018 | 500 |
All ten are jumbo cards, which cannot be used at official tournaments. Shadow Lugia has the lowest HP of the ten, and five pair their 1,000 damage with 1,000 HP.
Shadow Lugia: the famous one, with no record
Shadow Lugia is often named as the strongest card. It is a jumbo promo for Pokémon XD: Gale of Darkness, with 300 HP and one attack, Shadow Storm, 1,000 damage for four Psychic Energy. It was given out in Japan at Pokémon Festa 2005, then from October 2, 2005 at the Nintendo World Store in New York, which put it in front of Western collectors while the Japanese promos above stayed in Japan. That is the likeliest reason for its fame: it holds neither record.
The HP record: 1,000 on a promo, 380 on a card you can play
| HP | Cards | Which, counted September 24, 2026 |
|---|---|---|
| 1,000 | 6 | Mewtwo, Rayquaza and Reshiram (BW-P), Reshiram and Zekrom (JR), Zeraora and Friends (2018): all oversized Japanese promos |
| 500 | 5 | Zoroark and Legendary Pokémon, the three legendary-trio jumbos above, and Victini (JR promo) |
| 380 | 3 | Mega Venusaur ex, Mega Emboar ex, Wailord ex |
| 370 | 2 | Mega Dragonite ex, Mega Feraligatr ex |
| 360 | 4 | Mega Gardevoir ex, Mega Charizard X ex, Mega Charizard Y ex, Mega Meganium ex |
| 350 | 10 | Ishihara-GX, Doug Ferguson-GX and 8 Mega Evolution Pokémon ex |
| 340 | 18 | 13 cards from 2020 to 2025, Eternatus VMAX among them, and 5 Mega Evolution Pokémon ex |
The playable record has jumped once in the Mega Evolution era. Before it, no card you could play went above 340 HP; the first Mega Evolution set, on September 26, 2025, went straight to 380 with Mega Venusaur ex, and Mega Emboar ex (Ascended Heroes, January 30, 2026) and Wailord ex (Pitch Black, July 17, 2026) have tied it since. The table's counts include two Mega Evolution Pokémon ex already out in Japan and due in English with Delta Reign on November 6, 2026. Big HP has a price: a Mega Evolution Pokémon ex gives up three Prize cards when Knocked Out, a Pokémon ex such as Wailord ex two.
A huge HP figure does not make a card fake, and a normal one does not make it genuine: compare it with the real printing, as our guide to spotting fake Pokémon cards explains.
FAQ
What is the best Pokémon card in Standard in 2026?
As of September 24, 2026, Dragapult ex: it won the 2026 World Championships and was the most played deck at every event in the table above. The answer can change with each new set and rotation.
Which Pokémon card deals the most damage?
Ishihara-GX, with 1,060, the highest fixed damage ever printed. Ten jumbo promos, Shadow Lugia among them, print 1,000, and the attack of the Zeraora and Friends jumbo, 100 for each Pokémon in play, can reach 1,200. None of them can be played in a tournament.
Which Pokémon card has the most HP?
Six oversized Japanese promos print 1,000 HP. On a card you can play, the record is 380 HP, shared by Mega Venusaur ex, Mega Emboar ex and Wailord ex.
Is Shadow Lugia the strongest Pokémon card?
No. Its 1,000 damage is below Ishihara-GX's 1,060, and its 300 HP is the lowest of the ten cards that deal 1,000.
Is Shadow Lugia legal in tournaments?
No. It is a jumbo card, and jumbo cards cannot be used at official tournaments.
Is the strongest Pokémon card the most expensive?
Not usually. Dragapult ex, the card that won Worlds 2026, sells for $2.44 ungraded (23 real completed sales, as of September 24, 2026). The paper record holder is another matter: only 30 to 200 copies of Ishihara-GX are thought to exist. Value follows rarity (see our rarity guide), condition and demand, not HP or damage.
For the other end of the scale, see the funniest Pokémon cards ever printed.
