In the main games, this purple blob knows one move - Transform - which allows it to copy the appearance and moveset of the opposing Pokémon, and it’s this ability which is recreated in Pokémon Go. The Ditto disguises in Pokémon Go change, too, so it’s a good idea to know which creatures its currently appearing as if you want to find one, especially if you wish to add a shiny Ditto to your collection. On this page: Here’s how it looks when you have caught a Pokémon which transforms into Ditto: This means that you don’t know whether the Pokémon around you are ‘real’ or are actually a Ditto. The chances of them being a Ditto appear to be very slim - the exact stats on its rarity are unclear currently - so it’s a case of catching as many Pokémon as you can until one appears. When you have it, it’ll slot into your Pokémon Bag like any other, and can be given Candy to upgrade, and taken into Gyms for battle. Ditto has also been made available through completing certain activities, like the September 2021 Research Breakthrough and the Pokémon Go Tour: Kanto Special Research quest.
Ekans (Gen 1) Gastly (Gen 1) Spinarak (Gen 2 - new for June) Natu (Gen 2) Surskit (Gen 3) Numel (Gen 3 - new for June) Bidoof (Gen 4 - new for June) Finneon (Gen 4) Lillipup (Gen 5) Dwebble (Gen 5) Swirlix (Gen 6)
In short - finding a Ditto is a challenge, so be patient and best of luck!
The Season of Mythical Wishes continues with the Winter Holiday event, which has brought Mega Glalie to Pokémon Go. Don’t forget to partake in the new Go Battle League season.
Elsewhere, be sure to use Daily Adventure Incense for the chance of encountering Galarian Articuno, Galarian Zapdos and Galarian Moltres.
It was made available to all players - both in the wild or from completing a specific activity, such as a Research Breakthrough - at the start of the Season of Mischief on Wednesday, 1st September 2021.
There are two rules, however, for catching a shiny Ditto:
The first rule is that if one of Pokémon which can be a Ditto - such as Drowzee - appears in its shiny form when you attempt to catch it, this Pokémon will not transform into a Ditto.
This ensures you won’t miss out on the opportunity to catch a shiny version of this Pokémon, such as shiny Drowzee, which you may need for your collection.
The second rule is if you do successfully find a Pokémon which turns into Ditto upon being caught, then there is a chance it will turn into a shiny Ditto.
Basically, if you want a shiny Ditto, then you need to keep catching the non-shiny versions of the Pokémon listed above until you get lucky!
Thankfully, the chances of a shiny Ditto are higher than most other creatures - with Silph Road reddit estimates placing it at around a 1 in 64 chance.
A Ditto will appear in the wild for everyone, and isn’t just a common Pokémon that can transform at random - so if you catch one, other players nearby can get the same one too. It can also appear as a result of a Lure or Incense.
According to the Pokémon Go sub-Reddit, you can take Ditto into the Gym with some surprising results. Whether attacking or defending, it’ll turn into the opposing Pokémon and assuming their moves, but will keep its own CP and stats. While you’ll lose a bit of time during the opening of the match before transforming, in theory you could take a higher CP Ditto into battle and put up a good fight. The first Pokémon Ditto will come up against is the one it’ll assume for the rest of the Gym battle, so make sure you use it right to your advantage. If more than one Ditto face one another in a Gym, neither will transform. If so, it’ll use its only other move outside of Transform - Struggle. Ditto is a Normal Type Pokémon and has no evolutions. Its Pokedex entry reads: “Ditto rearranges its cell structure to transform itself into other shapes. However, if it tries to transform itself into something by relying on its memory, this Pokémon manages to get details wrong.” Though they are rare to come by, you can catch multiple Dittos - which makes sense, since they have their own Candy that’s required for them to be powered up (thanks, The Silph Road sub-Reddit for confirming this). The walking distance as a Buddy Pokémon is 3km - the same as the starters, Abra evolution chain and much more.
Good luck catching Ditto in Pokémon Go!
