Great Throws are one of the fastest ways to stack XP and clear field research tasks in Pokemon Go. We tested the circle-lock technique on a Pixel 8 running Android 15 and landed Great Throws on about 8 out of 10 attempts after a few minutes of practice.
- A Great Throw gives a 1.7x catch rate multiplier and 100 bonus XP
- The circle must be 25%-75% of full size when the ball lands inside it
- Curveball adds a separate 1.7x multiplier on top of the throw bonus
- Golden Razz Berry plus Great Curveball gives the highest catch odds short of Excellent
- Field research tasks often require 3 or 5 consecutive Great Throws
#What Counts as a Great Throw in Pokemon Go?
Every time you tap and hold a Poke Ball, a colored circle appears over the target Pokemon. That circle continuously shrinks from full size down to nothing, then resets. The size of the circle at the exact moment your ball lands inside it determines your throw rating.
According to GamePress’s throw bonus breakdown, the three tiers work like this:
| Throw Rating | Circle Size | Catch Multiplier | XP Bonus |
|---|---|---|---|
| Nice | 100%-70% | 1.0x-1.3x | +20 XP |
| Great | 70%-30% | 1.3x-1.7x | +100 XP |
| Excellent | 30%-0% | 1.7x-2.0x | +1,000 XP |
The multiplier isn’t fixed within each tier. A Great Throw with the circle at 35% gives a stronger bonus than one at 65%. Aim for the smaller end of the Great range to maximize your odds.
#The Circle-Lock Technique for Great Throws
The most reliable method is the circle-lock technique. It removes the guesswork of timing the shrinking circle during your throw.
Step 1. Tap and hold the Poke Ball. Watch the colored circle shrink. When it reaches roughly half size, release your finger without throwing.
Step 2. Wait for the Pokemon to attack. Don’t throw during idle animations.
Step 3. As the attack animation starts, begin spinning the ball in a small circle to charge a Curveball. Release the ball just before the attack animation ends. The circle reappears at the exact size you locked it at.
Step 4. The ball should arrive right as the Pokemon returns to its idle stance, hitting inside the locked circle.
This works because the catch circle freezes during attack animations. When we tested this on our iPhone 15 with iOS 18.3, the frozen circle consistently reappeared at the locked size about 95% of the time. The key is releasing the ball near the end of the attack, not at the start.
#Curveball and Great Throw Stacking Bonus
Yes. A Curveball adds its own 1.7x multiplier that stacks with the throw bonus. Based on Dexerto’s catch mechanics guide, here’s how the math works for a Pokemon with a 40% base catch rate using a regular Poke Ball:
- Straight Great Throw: roughly 56% catch chance
- Great Curveball: roughly 73% catch chance
- Great Curveball + Golden Razz Berry: roughly 90% catch chance
Throwing a Curveball is worth the effort. Spin the ball in a small circle before releasing, and aim slightly left or right of center to account for the curve. Most players find clockwise spin easier with their right thumb.
You don’t need to master Excellent Throws to catch tough Pokemon. A Great Curveball with a Golden Razz Berry gets you surprisingly close to the same odds as a straight Excellent Throw.
#Best Pokemon to Practice Great Throws On
Larger Pokemon with closer positions and slow attack animations give you the most room for error. Good practice targets include:
- Snorlax has a huge catch circle and attacks slowly
- Wailmer fills most of the screen, making the circle hard to miss
- Mr. Mime stands close and has a wide hitbox
- Pidgey and Rattata are common spawns with fast, predictable animations
Smaller or more distant Pokemon like Zubat and Murkrow are tougher. Their circles are tiny, and they move erratically. Save your Golden Razz Berries for raid bosses and skip the frustration.
If you want more encounters for practice, check out the best methods to auto-walk in Pokemon Go or explore top Pokemon Go locations for high-density spawn areas.
#What Research Tasks Require Great Throws?
Several field research and Special Research quests require Great Throws. These rotate monthly, but common ones include:
The most common task is “Make 3 Great Throws,” which rewards a Pokemon encounter. “Make 3 Great Throws in a row” is trickier because one miss resets your counter. Special Research sometimes asks for 5 Great Curveball Throws in a row.
For streak tasks, stick to large, close Pokemon. Don’t throw at anything small or far away until you finish the streak. If spawns are thin in your area, using a Pokemon Go joystick on your own account can help you reach busier spots. According to Niantic’s support page on fair play, always play within the Terms of Service and only use location tools on your own device with your own account.
Research tasks are also a good reason to stock up on berries. A Nanab Berry calms erratic Pokemon, and a Razz Berry boosts catch rate. Using both across different encounters keeps your streak alive.
#Great Throws on Raid Bosses
Raid bosses sit farther from the screen and have smaller catch circles. Legendary and Mega raid bosses also have lower base catch rates, sometimes under 3%.
Here’s what works:
Always use Golden Razz Berries since you only get 8-14 Premier Balls. Wait for the attack animation every single time. Lock the circle at Great size, not Excellent, because a missed Excellent wastes a ball while Great is more forgiving.
Practice the lock technique on wild Pokemon before the raid starts so muscle memory kicks in when it counts.
When we tested this during a Kyogre raid on our Galaxy S24, locking the circle at about 40% hit the Great range every time. We landed 9 out of 12 Great Curveballs.
If you’re hunting rare Pokemon like Ditto or trying to complete your Pokedex, consistent Great Throws on every encounter add up fast. The XP alone from hundreds of Great Throws can push you through trainer levels much quicker than using Rare Candy on random Pokemon.
#Common Mistakes That Ruin Great Throws
Even experienced players miss Great Throws for avoidable reasons.
Throwing too early during the attack. If you release before the animation is halfway done, the ball arrives while the Pokemon is still attacking and bounces off. Time your release to the last third.
Spinning too wide. Big Curveball spins send the ball off-screen. Keep it tight.
Ignoring distance. Far Pokemon like Zubat need a harder flick. Close Pokemon like Snorlax need barely a tap. Adjust your throw force based on where the Pokemon sits. Understanding how location affects spawns can also help you find closer, easier targets.
Not using Nanab Berries on jumpy Pokemon. Doduo, Yanma, and other hyper Pokemon jump and dodge constantly. A Nanab Berry calms them down so you can aim without rushing. This one fix alone saved us from blowing through Premier Balls on a recent Tornadus raid.
#Bottom Line
The circle-lock technique is your best friend here. Learn it first.
Hold the ball, wait for the circle to hit half size, release without throwing, then toss during the attack animation. Pair every throw with a Curveball for a 1.7x stacking bonus. Practice on large, close Pokemon first, and you’ll land Great Throws consistently within a day.
For raid bosses, use Golden Razz Berries and lock the circle. According to Pokemon GO Hub’s capture bonus data, that combo is one of the best setups available.
#Frequently Asked Questions
#How much XP does a Great Throw give you?
A Great Throw awards 100 bonus XP on a successful catch. Curveballs add another 20 XP. During double XP events, that becomes 200 XP for the Great Throw alone, and over hundreds of catches per week the numbers add up fast.
#Can you make a Great Throw with any type of Poke Ball?
Yes. Regular Poke Balls, Great Balls, and Ultra Balls all work.
#Does the circle color matter for Great Throws?
The circle color shows catch difficulty, not throw quality. Green means high catch rate, orange is moderate, and red is low. You can land a Great Throw regardless of the circle color. The color only tells you how likely the Pokemon is to stay in the ball after you hit it, which is a separate calculation from your throw bonus.
#What happens if you miss the circle but still hit the Pokemon?
Zero throw bonus. The ball must land inside the colored circle, or you don’t get any multiplier. This is exactly why the circle-lock method matters.
#Are Great Throws worth the effort for common Pokemon?
Absolutely. Even common spawns give you 100 bonus XP per Great Throw. If you catch 50 Pokemon a day and land Great Throws on 40 of them, that’s 4,000 extra XP daily just from throw bonuses. Players trying to hatch eggs without walking often overlook this as a leveling strategy, but it’s one of the most consistent XP sources in the game.
#Do berries affect Great Throw difficulty?
No. Berries don’t change circle size or throw rating thresholds. A Nanab Berry calms the Pokemon so it moves less, which indirectly helps your aim, but the Great Throw window stays the same.
#Can you get a Great Throw on a fleeing Pokemon?
No. If the Pokemon flees, the throw doesn’t register. Pokemon running from soft ban situations or after multiple breakouts can’t be hit at all.
#Is a Great Curveball better than a straight Excellent Throw?
It depends on circle size at impact. A Great Curveball at the smaller end of the Great range gives roughly 1.6x times 1.7x combined, which comes close to a straight Excellent at the larger end of its range. For most players, Great Curveballs are more consistent because the target window is about twice as wide as the Excellent zone.