Pokémon Go Medals list, all Platinum Medals and Catch Bonus explained

Medals in Pokémon Go act as a form of in-game achievement system, cataloguing your many accomplishments from across the game.

You'll be occasionally interrupted by full-screen prompts telling you about a Medal you've just unlocked as you play Pokémon Go - not unlike the full-screen prompts you get when you increase a Trainer level - with the Medal tier you've just unlocked.

These Medals are not only stat-trackers, which record everything you do in the game - from the distance walked to the number of Pokémon Types you have caught - but are also give you a variety of bonuses and rewards.

In October 2016, earning type-based medals offered a Catch Bonus, while in November 2020, Platinum Medals - a fourth tier - for certain categories would help unlock certain Trainer Levels 40 and above was introduced as part of the Go Beyond update and Season of Celebration.

On this page:

How does Pokémon Go's Catch Bonus work?

To get started with Medals, you can view all your Medals by tapping your Trainer icon in the bottom left corner of the map screen and scrolling down.

The Medals screen is sorted into two sets; the upper set displaying 'traditional' Medal goals - such as distance walked and how many big Magikarp you've caught - which don't give you any bonuses, and the lower set grouping together all the Medals by Type, which reward Catch Bonuses.

The higher the Medal, the stronger the Catch Bonus for that Type; Bronze is worth +1, Silver is +2 and Gold is +3.

If the Pokemon you're facing has multiple types - such as the Flying / Normal Type Pidgey and its evolutions - then it'll take the average of those two Catch Bonuses.

The question is, plus three what exactly? Well, that's a bit of a mystery, and it currently has the Pokémon Go community scratching their heads.

The leading theory is it's a percentage increase, which might not sound a lot, but if it's for the base capture rate before bonuses from using more powerful Pokéballs and Razz Berrys are applied, it could be quite powerful for likes of Dragonite which are inherently tough to capture.

But in general, the Catch Bonus means the more Pokémon you catch, the higher your chances of catching Pokémon will be in the future, which is particularly handy when even low-level Pokémon become hard to grab at higher levels.

Pokémon Go Catch Bonuses list, including Platinum Catch Bonus requirements explained

Each Medal in Pokémon Go has Bronze, Silver, Gold and Silver requirements, and for the Type-specific Medal, a corresponding Catch Bonus, which are all listed below.

Thanks to the Silph Road subreddit (virodoran and ginji in particular) for helping us flesh this list.

Type-specific Medals with Catch Bonuses:

Other Medals in Pokémon Go, including Platinum Medal requirements, listed

As well as the above Catch Bonus specific Medals, there are also other Medals you can unlock for completing activities in the game.

Most of these have no impact on the game itself, though some are requirements for unlocking specific Avatar equipment and certain Trainer Levels 40 and above.

Thanks to the Silph Road subreddit (virodoran and ginji in particular) for helping us flesh this list, which is written in the order these Medals appear in your Trainer profile.

** This originally debuted as "Train at Gyms", but in the summer of 2017, the feature was revamped to remove that feature. This medal was later reintroduced in December 2018 with the introduction of Trainer Battles.

It's the the Season of Timeless Travels in Pokémon Go, so make sure you complete the Timeless Travels quest! The Winter Holiday event has returned. During it, take the time 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.

Other things you should know about Catch Bonus and Medals in Pokémon Go

• There are medals for attending Go Fest events throughout the year. These are required you to attend the event in question, provided you have a ticket, and remain in your account as a badge afterward. Each individual has an event, so for example, Chicago Go Fest will have unique entry for 2017, 2018, 2019 and so on.
• Some medals will only display once you've started working towards it. For example, 'Pikachu' won't appear at all until you've caught your first Pikachu (if you want to start with a Pikachu in Pokémon Go, we have a handy guide for that), Wayfarer won't appear until you start reviewing entries and so on. The same applies to various Types and other objectives in the game, too.
• Once you have unlocked a Medal, you can then tap it to see your progress until the next Medal tier. Once you reach Gold, the figure will keep tracking your progress, allowing you to see exactly how many tiny Ratattas or Normal-type Pokémon you've accumulated in your illustrious Trainer career.
• Fun fact - each Medal is named after Trainer classes in the main games (which are the characters you fight on Routes and in dungeons).
• Creatures received through Trading also contribute to Medal progress, including the size specific Medals Fisherman and Youngster.