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Greetings, Trainers! The Steeled Resolve event is here, and with it comes a fresh reason to revisit one of Pokémon GO’s most iconic Steel types. Meltan, the Hex Nut Pokémon, is one of the featured Pokémon during the event, and Trainers may even have a chance to encounter its Shiny form. The key to catching Meltan is the Mystery Box, which can be obtained by sending a Pokémon from Pokémon GO to Pokémon HOME, Pokémon: Let’s Go, Pikachu! or Pokémon: Let’s Go, Eevee on Nintendo Switch. Its evolution Melmetal has long been a staple in Pokémon GO meta. But in today’s shifting battlefield, does this metallic powerhouse still shine as one of the top picks, or has the meta finally started to leave it behind? Let’s break it down and find out!
Melmetal: Stats, Profile and Typing
Melmetal
Steel
| Max CP | 4069 |
|---|---|
| ATK | 226 |
| DEF | 190 |
| HP | 264 |
| Weak to |    |
| Resists |            |
| Fast Attack |
|
| Charged Attack |
|
*Legacy Move
Melmetal, the Hex Nut Pokémon, is a pure Steel type Mythical Pokémon. It is weak to Fighting, Fire and Ground type attacks, but in exchange it packs one of the best defensive profiles in the game with a long list of resistances and a double resistance to Poison.
Shiny Meltan Family
Melmetal in Pokémon GO PvE
Raids
Melmetal’s PvE profile is easy to explain: usable, but not impressive. Melmetal’s best moveset is Thunder Shock and Double Iron Bash, and while that is good enough to make it usable, it still does not rank among the Best Steel Attackers for raids. Using our DPS Comparer Tool:
In raids, Melmetal is decent, but it is not a top-tier Steel attacker that you build a raid squad around. That said, Melmetal is not useless in PvE. Its Steel typing gives it a long list of resistances, and that can help it stay on the field comfortably against raid bosses, but when pure raid efficiency is the goal, Melmetal usually sits behind stronger dedicated options. Players can get far better value by powering up stronger dedicated Steel attackers instead.
Max Battles
Melmetal also has a Gigantamax form that can unleash its exclusive G-Max Move, G-Max Meltdown, which is a Steel type G-Max attack. While it may not be the only contender for Steel type damage, this typing still gives it a valuable offensive role in Max Battles, especially against bosses vulnerable to Steel attacks. Even as a defender, with a respectable 190 defense stat, Thunder Shock as a Fast Attack, and a long list of resistances typical of the Steel typing, it can hold its own in Max Battles, staying on the field for a solid amount of time.
How pokemon GO will handle G-Max Melmetal has yet to be seen, as currently Meltan is only obtainable via the Mystery Box. Will it just be available in the typical Gigantamax battles? We hope so!
Melmetal in Pokémon GO PvP
Ideal Moveset: Thunder Shock 
+ Double Iron Bash & Superpower /Rock Slide
PvP is where Melmetal earned its reputation. For long, Melmetal was a solid staple in Pokémon GO PvP—as one of the very few Pokémon viable across all three leagues. Its fast energy generation, broad neutral coverage, and Steel bulk let it pressure a wide variety of teams. Over time however, with move-updates and new additions to PvP rosters, Melmetal slowly lost its relevance and now remains more of an anti-meta pick.
Great League
Melmetal is a particularly intriguing case because it does not fit into one clearly defined role or follow a single consistent play pattern. Its performance shifts significantly depending on both the shield scenario and the charged moveset it uses.
In the Great League 1v1 shield scenario, the combination of Superpower and Double Iron Bash gives Melmetal a few notable wins, such as Empoleon, Wigglytuff, and Cradily, but it also picks up several important losses, including Corviknight, Forretress, Quagsire, Shelgon, and Talonflame. Replacing Double Iron Bash with Rock Slide improves Melmetal’s overall win-loss profile, adding new wins against Charjabug, Forretress (non-shadow), and Talonflame, though it also introduces fresh losses such as Florges and Cresselia. The win-loss ratio improves even further when Superpower is dropped instead, leaving Melmetal with Double Iron Bash and Rock Slide. With that set, it secures additional wins over Altaria, non-Shadow Sableye, and Charjabug, although it gives up matchups like Furret, Guzzlord, and Shadow Steelix.
At first glance, this would suggest that Double Iron Bash and Rock Slide is Melmetal’s best overall moveset. However, the picture becomes more complicated in other shield scenarios. In the zero-shield matchup, that same combination becomes relatively its weakest option. Although Melmetal performs better overall in the zero-shield than in the 1v1, its strongest results there come from running Rock Slide and Superpower, which adds wins against Charjabug, Malamar, and Talonflame while only sacrificing matchups such as Cresselia and Clefable. Then, in the 2v2 shield scenario, the pattern shifts once again, with Double Iron Bash and Superpower emerging as Melmetal’s best-performing set.
Overall, Melmetal’s performance is highly shield and moveset dependent, making it one of the more flexible but also more difficult Pokémon to pin down with a single “best” configuration. With such possible variety, Melmetal can function as a disruptive anti-meta option. It is a legitimate off-meta pick with real play.
Melmetal’s ideal IV spread for Great League is: 1/15/14, 1499 CP, Level 15.5.
Ultra League
A similar pattern continues in Ultra League. Melmetal is solid, annoying, playable, and can work well as a pressure piece on the right team, but its performance still varies noticeably depending on both the moveset and the shield scenario.
In the 1v1 matchup, Melmetal delivers a respectable showing, finishing with only slightly fewer wins than losses. Its notable wins include Clefable, Cradily, Empoleon, and Tinkaton, while key losses come against Bellibolt, Virizion, Malamar, Jellicent, and Lapras. When running Rock Slide and Superpower, Melmetal picks up new wins such as Talonflame, Lapras, Galarian Moltres, and Feraligatr, but this comes at the cost of several additional losses, including Florges, Cobalion, Tinkaton, Cresselia, and Lickilicky. By contrast, the Double Iron Bash and Rock Slide combination secures many of the same new wins while suffering fewer additional losses, with Empoleon and Guzzlord among the main setbacks.
In zero-shield scenario, Rock Slide and Superpower emerges as Melmetal’s strongest moveset. It gains important wins over Shadow Ampharos, Blastoise, Talonflame, and Tentacruel, while only giving up a smaller set of matchups, including Guzzlord and Togekiss. For the 2v2 matchup, Rock Slide paired with Double Iron Bash once again stands out as the preferred option. In this configuration, Melmetal posts a positive win-loss record and even adds Jellicent to its list of victories.
Melmetal’s ideal IV spread for Ultra League is: 0/13/15, 2495 CP, Level 26.
Master League
Melmetal has suffered a dramatic fall from grace in Master League. Once a defining force that seemed to appear on nearly every team, it now has little meaningful presence in the format, and for good reason. While it can still scrape out a few notable wins against targets such as Lugia, Dialga (Origin), and Xerneas, those victories are far outweighed by a far longer list of troubling losses, including Crowned Zacian and Zamazenta, Metagross, Zekrom, Reshiram, and Rhyperior. That combination of limited upside and a growing number of unfavorable matchups has pushed Melmetal well out of the modern Master League spotlight.
Melmetal’s ideal IV spread for Master League is: 15/15/15, 4069 CP, Level 50.
Is Melmetal Worth the Grind?
If your main goal is raid performance, Melmetal is hard to call a standout investment. It is usable, fairly bulky, and has some niche value but it still does not compete with the very best Steel attackers in PvE. Its value looks a bit better in future Max Battles, where Gigantamax Melmetal can make use of G-Max Meltdown for meaningful damage against favorable bosses. Its bulk and long list of resistances also help it stay on the field well, giving it a bit more practical value than its standard raid role might suggest.
PvP is where the equation becomes more interesting. Melmetal is no longer the all-purpose monster it once was, and its fall from Master League relevance is especially hard to ignore. Even so, it still has some life as a flexible anti-meta pick in Great League and Ultra League, where its shield-dependent movesets and spammy playstyle can create real pressure in the right hands. The catch is that Melmetal is no longer a straightforward investment. It demands matchup knowledge, smart move selection, and the right team support to get the most from it.
There is, however, one extra factor that can make the grind feel much more worthwhile: the chance to catch Shiny Meltan during the event. Since Shiny Meltan is not always available, those limited windows add collector value to every Mystery Box session. That alone can make the grind much easier to justify, especially for players who care about rare shinies as much as battle performance.
Parting Words
Melmetal is in a weird spot these days. It is not the monster it used to be, and it is definitely not the kind of Pokémon you rush to build for raids. But at the same time, it is not totally without value either. It can still do some work in PvP, it has some niche use in Max Battles, and for a lot of players, the chance to hunt a Shiny Meltan is honestly going to be one of the biggest reasons to bother with the grind at all.
That is really what Melmetal comes down to now: not a must-have, but still a nice one to have. If you like flexible anti-meta picks, want a unique Gigantamax option, or just want to take advantage of those limited shiny windows, Melmetal is still a pretty easy Pokémon to appreciate.
Let us know Trainers! Do you have a shiny Meltan or is this the event you were waiting for? Do you like Melmetal’s design? Is it one of your favorite Pokémon from Generation VII?
And as always, stay safe, and may you encounter a Shiny Meltan!
