There are quite a few items in Pokemon Go and this guide will cover each item and how to use it. When you first begin your adventures in Pokemon Go you won’t have a lot of items. In addition, you may find yourself burning through Poke Balls trying to catch a Pokemon that’s being overly difficult. No matter what your issue may be, there’s never a time when you won’t be able to get a certain item you want or need. You may have to work for it, but you can always get every item available.
Most items in Pokemon Go are purchased with PokeCoins. We’ve already covered how best to earn PokeCoins, but note that you do not need to spend real money to obtain any of the items in the game. Yes, you can use real money to purchase more PokeCoins, but you can get items at PokeStops as well. Each PokeStop has a five minute restock timer, so if you wait five minutes you can stock up on more items even if you just accessed that same PokeStop.
Poke Balls
The item you’ll use the most in Pokemon Go are your Poke Balls. These items come in a variety of different types, but at first you’ll only have access to the normal Poke Ball. Use these items to catch Pokemon out in the wild. When you check in to a PokeStop you can almost always pick up a number of Poke Balls. In addition, they can be purchased from PokeStops with PokeCoins.
When you reach level 12 you can pick up Great Balls, at level 20 you can acquire Ultra Balls, and at level 30 you can get Master Balls. These more powerful Poke Balls will be required if you want to catch the rare and powerful Pokemon that you’ll come across as your level increases. These aren’t as easy to come by as a normal Poke Ball, so only use them when absolutely necessary. It’s also recommended to use a Razz Berry before one of these special balls to give you the best chance of catching the Pokemon.
Eggs and Incubators
Our egg hatching guide covers the basics of how eggs and incubators work. However, to sum it up you start the game with one incubator that will not break. When you find eggs you can place them in the incubator and then walk a specified distance to make the egg hatch. The longer you have to walk, the more rare the Pokemon inside will be.
There are also Lucky Eggs, which double the experience points (XP) earned over the next 30 minutes. It’s best to use Lucky Eggs just before capturing a gym or evolving a Pokemon in order to maximize your XP gain. At the very least, don’t use a Lucky Egg unless you’re prepared to play for another 30 minutes.
Potions
As you might have guessed, Potions are used to replenish the health of your Pokemon. You gain access to the normal Potion at level five, but there are more effective Potions available at higher levels. You can pick up Super Potions at level 10, Hyper Potions at 15 and Max Potions at 25. Each Potion type increases the amount of HP restored when used. A Max Potion will replenish all of your Pokemon’s health.
Revives
You want to use Revives when a Pokemon has fainted due to losing all of its HP. When this happens you can use a normal Revive (available at level five) to restore 50 percent of your Pokemon’s health and get them back in the fight. When you reach level 30 you can pick up Max Revives, which replenish all of your Pokemon’s health upon reviving them.
Lures and Incense
If you need to hunt for some Pokemon, your best bet is to use Lure Modules or Incense. Both of these items will attract Pokemon for 30 minutes. The difference is that Lure Modules can only be used at PokeStops and will benefit anyone near that PokeStop. Incense is used on your Trainer and therefore only helps you (without directly effecting other players).
Razz Berries
When you’re trying to catch a rare or high CP Pokemon, it’s almost always beneficial to use a Razz Berry first. Using this item will help you befriend the Pokemon, making them easier to catch. It won’t guarantee a catch, but your chances will be increased. To use a Razz Berry, open your bag in the lower right of the screen and tap on a Razz Berry.
Bag and Storage Upgrades
Your standard bag allows you to carry 350 items. When you reach the maximum number of items, you need to either use or discard items before you can hold anything else. However, you can increase the size of your bag by 50 items with each upgrade, all the way up to 1,000 total items. Unfortunately, if you have a bag that holds 1,000 items, there’s no way to upgrade at this time, but with biweekly updates coming to Pokemon Go, it’s not out of the question that additional bag upgrades may eventually happen.
For more tips and useful hints check out our Pokemon Go guide hub!
