How to Catch Pokemon Using Curveballs, Lures, Incense in Pokemon GO

This Pokemon Go Capturing guide offers advice on how to master the art of capturing in Pokémon Go. We've listed several tips to help players improve their capture approach and collect better Pokémon.

Check out our Pokémon GO guide hub for more guides and tips that'll help you level up faster, earn more Candy, get more Stardust, and lots more!

How to Catch Pokemon in Pokemon GO

Capturing Pokémon is your primary objective in Pokémon Go, at least until you collect enough critters to perform more advanced tasks, like claiming gyms and battling trainers. Finding and catching rare Pokémon is a subtle art. We’ll show you how to hone your capturing skills so you can be the very best.

Practice Your Throw

Capturing Pokémon comes down to having decent timing and aim. The shrinking inner circle you see when throwing a PokéBall determines the capture difficulty. A green ring indicates an easy capture, orange is more difficult, and red is the most challenging.

You’ll want to hit the Pokémon when the capture ring is at its smallest to achieve a skilled throw. Skilled throws earn you an additional XP bonus, allowing you to level up faster. Practice your throw by capturing as many easy Pokémon as possible. You still earn XP for each capture, while also improving your throw for more difficult species.

Level Up to Find Rare Pokémon

In the early stages of Pokémon Go, you’ll notice that your Pokémon have a fairly low CP. Don’t worry, as the more you level up, the more you’ll run into Pokémon with better CP. It may seem like a grind at first, but just focus on levelling up so that you will run into stronger Pokémon. Once you start catching Pokémon with higher CP, you can shift your efforts toward preparing your strongest fighters for gym battles.

Use Incense and Lure Modules

If you want to find more Pokémon during your excursions, consider using either Incense or Lure Modules. These items essentially work like bait to attract more wild Pokémon to you. Your choice to use one or the other depends on your mobility at the time of use. Incense will create a scent ring around your trainer, which will attract Pokémon to your location, even while walking.

Likewise, Lure Modules attract more Pokémon to a particular PokéStop, and can be used by other friendly trainers. If you see a pink confetti-like cloud around a PokéStop on your map, that means someone has activated a Lure Module for everyone at the stop to benefit from.

Take advantage of PokéStops with active Lure Modules in order to find more Pokémon without having to use a Lure of your own. Don’t forget to spin the PokéStop icon every five minutes to snag free inventory items as well.

Pokemon GO Curveball Throw

Curveball Throws are a great method for catching smaller or more active pokemon. Start by moving the ball in a circular motion until stars start to appear around it, throw it to the left or right of your target and it will curve towards them.

That's all you need to know about how to catch pokemon in Pokemon GO. If you're well into Pokemon Go, it would be a good idea to learn how to evolve Eevee into Jolteon, Flareon, or Vaporeon You should also check out our Pokemon GO Raids Guide for info on how to take on the strongest enemies in the game.