Pokemon GO Raid Boss schedule for April 2024

Pokemon GO Raid Boss schedule for April 2024
Images via Niantic

Written by 

Ben Williams & Daniel Megarry

Last updated 

18th Apr 2024 10:17

Contents

With this Pokemon GO Raid schedule, you'll be able to find out the full April lineup including 5-Star Raid Bosses, Mega Raid Bosses, and Shadow Raid Bosses.

Raid Battles are an important part of the Pokemon GO experience. They can be difficult to win, especially at higher tiers, but taking part in them is the main way to add rare Legendary Pokemon like Regice or Ultra Beasts like Guzzlord to your collection.

Not only does the Raid Boss lineup change each month, but the more common 1-Star and 3-Star Bosses are constantly shifting based on the current events that are taking place in the game, which is why it's so important to keep track of the schedule.

Pokemon GO Raid Boss schedule for April 2024

Here are all of the Raid Bosses you'll be able to take on throughout April in Pokemon GO, as well as the dates that they'll be appearing in Raids:

Mega Raid Bosses in April

Pokemon Dates
Mega Venusaur March 21 - April 4
Mega Charizard X April 4 - April 13
Mega Heracross April 13 - April 25
Mega Aggron April 25 - May 2

5-Star Raid Bosses in April

Pokemon Dates
Tapu Lele March 21 - April 4
Kartana (Northern Hemisphere) April 4 - April 12
Celesteela (Southern Hemisphere) April 4 - April 12
Tapu Bulu April 12 - April 25
Registeel April 25 - May 2

Tapu Lele and Tapu Bulu will both know the featured attack Nature's Madness when caught from Raids this season. This is a Fairy-type Charged Move that has 80 Power in PvP and lowers the opponent's defence. 

Current 3-Star Raid Bosses

  • Bombirdier
  • Crobat
  • Granbull
  • Swadloon

Depending on the specific Raid Boss and its CP, a 3-Star Raid is normally the highest-level Raid that a player can beat by themselves in Pokemon GO. Be aware that you'll need a strong team of counters to do this.

Current 1-Star Raid Bosses

  • Cottonee
  • Grimer
  • Mareanie
  • Nincada
  • Phantump

The best thing about 1-Star Raids is that they're usually pretty easy to defeat solo, as long as you have a decent team of Pokemon that can target their weaknesses.

3-Star Raid Bosses and 1-Star Raid Bosses change regularly to coincide with special events in the game, so check back often for the latest lineup!

Shadow Raid Bosses in April 2024

A Shadow Raid appearing in Pokemon Go
Click to enlarge

Every weekend during April, Shadow Entei will be appearing in Shadow Raids. These are 'local only' Raid Battles, which means you can't use Remote Raid Passes to take them on - you'll need to be there in person.

There will also be several 3-Star and 1-Star Pokemon appearing in Shadow Raids throughout the month, so keep an eye out for those.

Pokemon GO Raid Hour schedule for April 2024

A Pokemon GO promo shot featuring Raid and gym leader Pokemon including Tyranitar, Charizard, and Gyarados
Click to enlarge

Raid Hours take place every Wednesday between 6PM and 7PM local time. During that hour, the current 5-Star Raid Boss will appear more frequently at Gyms in your area.

Here's the Raid Hour schedule for the current month:

  • April 3 - Tapu Lele
  • April 10 - Kartana (Northern Hemisphere) or Celesteela (Southern Hemisphere)
  • April 17 - Tapu Bulu
  • April 24 - Tapu Bulu

Raid Hours are great if you normally struggle to find enough Trainers to team up with to win 5-Star Raids, as there are often more people out and about playing Pokemon GO during these hours.

You can also use the Campfire app to organise meetups if you're still struggling to find enough Trainers to Raid within your area.

How to catch a Raid Boss in Pokemon GO

Once you've defeated a Raid Boss in Pokemon GO, you'll be given a limited amount of Premier Balls to attempt to catch it. It's not guaranteed that you'll be successful, so it's important to have some patience.

In my experience, the best way to catch a Raid Boss is to use a Golden Razz Berry or Silver Pinap Berry, wait for the Pokemon to shake around, and then throw an Excellent Curveball as soon as it stops moving.

While 1-Star and 3-Star Raid Bosses are relatively easy to catch, 5-Star Legendaries have an incredibly low catch rate, so take it slow and don't be too disheartened if you don't manage to catch it.

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Side note: If you're battling a Mega Raid Boss, you'll be given the opportunity to catch that Pokemon in its regular form, not its Mega-Evolved form. You'll need to stock up on Mega Energy to initiate that process.

So there you have it, that's everything you need to know about the current Pokemon GO Raid boss schedule in April 2024 - covering all bosses from 1-Stars to 5-Stars, Mega Raids, and Shadow Raids.

Looking to master the GO Battle League? Our best Great League team guide and our best Ultra League team guide should help. You can also visit our Pokemon homepage for the latest news and guides.

Ben is a Senior Guides Writer at GGRecon. Alongside his BA (Hons) in Business Management is a wealth of gaming and entertainment writing experience, having previously occupied roles as a Copywriter in e-commerce at Overclockers and Guides & SEO Writer at GameByte and FragHero. When not whipping up guides and reviews, Ben’ll be off playing the latest Pokemon games, Overwatch 2, Spider-Man, The Witcher, and Final Fantasy - all before reading manga and listening to Ice Nine Kills.

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