At the beginning of every Pokémon game comes the important decision of choosing between the Fire, Water, and Grass starters. For some, this choice is simplified by having a favoritism toward Fire starters across the series, but Pokémon trainers are rarely faced with having to choose between the Fire starters from each of the generations.
Picking the Fire starter in Pokémon has always been a bold choice. Typically, the first gym is in someway difficult for the Fire starters and Fire starters alone, with Pokémon Red and Blue even having the second gym use Water type Pokémon. But overcoming these early game challenges often results in the reward of having the strongest final evolution out of the starters: In Generation 1, this was true for Charizard, and Cinderace has continued this tradition in Generation 8.
Considering that Fire starters are often defined by the rewards of their final evolutions, the best are the ones that have the highest potential. After all, the goal of trainers is to not only catch them all but to raise their Pokémon and bring the most out of them. Still, some Fire starters are great simply because of their dual-typings or their favorable match-ups in the region they are from - or even because of how cute they are. The following list considers all of these traits to determine which of Pokémon's Fire-type starters is the best.
#8: Tepig Is Cute But Unoriginal In Pokémon Black & White
Pokémon Black and White were daring when it came to building an entirely new Pokédex, but the games were more timid when it came to their Fire starter's design. The undeniably adorable Tepig suffers from being the third Fire-Fighting starter in a row, making them feel unoriginal in comparison to their predecessors. Indeed, these predecessors - Torchic and Chimchar - were popular in both the games and anime before Pokémon Black and White came out, so they set the bar perhaps too high for Tepig.
But Tepig can feel even less inspired when comparing them to the Spoink line. While having more than one pig-inspired Pokémon line is completely okay, there are too many similarities between the Tepig line and Spoink's evolution Grumpig. Namely, their dual toned bodies and the orbs on them make the Tepig line feel like a Fire-Fighting version of Grumpig (especially Pignite).
However, perhaps the most unfortunate part about the Tepig line in Pokémon are their stats. While Tepig's stats are in no way terrible, their strengths are limited to HP and Attack. Trainers using Tepig will thus have to rely on physical attacking Fire type moves while not having great defenses to bolster their high HP. This latter note is concerning, as being both Fire and Fighting leaves the Tepig line vulnerable to many super effective Physical and Special Attacking moves.
#7: Litten Was A Let Down In Pokémon Sun & Moon
Let's be clear: Litten is adorable and has a great design. But its evolutionary line somewhat falters as it continues. Some of the hype leading up to the release of Pokémon Sun and Moon was centered around the possibility that Litten's final evolution could have been one of the rare quadrupeds in the Pokémon universe, which has a tendency to make everything bipedal. Litten's final evolution Incineroar ended up following Pokémon's typical pattern by becoming not just bipedal but a wrestler. This latter fact makes Incineroar's Fire-Dark typing feel deceptive, as the wrestler design practically places them in the group of Fire-Fighting starters. Thus, Litten and Incineroar's designs were initially disappointments (although they later became favorites for some fans).
Additionally, the Litten line's stats are rather strange. Litten's base Speed is a whole 10 points higher than Incineroar's, which really exposes just how slow they are. Being slow is isn't always terrible in Pokémon, regardless of version, especially when pocket monsters with low speed have the defense and power to punish opponent teams. Incineroar has this to a degree, as their Defense and Special Defense stats are fairly strong and their typing has few vulnerabilities. However, the prevalence of Fighting and Ground type moves in the Pokémon meta makes Incineroar feel like a target waiting to get hit with a super effective move.
#6: Fennekin Was Peculiar But Effective In Pokémon X & Y
The Fennekin line is not without its controversies. The Pokémon X and Y starter's final evolution Delphox becomes a wand-wielding, humanoid fox after all. Nevertheless, their design and stats capture the mage theme very well (if not a little too on the nose).
Indeed, the Fennekin line's stats in Pokémon make for a great glass canon. With a base Special Attack of 114 and a Speed of 104, Delphox makes for a great team-opener as they can attempt to sweep an opponent squad as quickly as possible. But something that makes Delphox unique is their Special Defense of 100, which can allow them to take a bit of damage while dishing it out.
#5: Scorbunny Scored Big In Pokémon Sword & Shield
Scorbunny was originally received with hesitation, as their design made them appear as if they were going to be yet another Fire-Fighting starter. However, the Galarian bunny Pokémon has proven to be one of the best pocket monsters from Pokémon Sword and Shield. Its secondary stage Raboot in particular has become a favorite for its cool design.
Additionally, Scorbunny's stats are very strong. Like Delphox, Scorbunny's final evolution Cinderace is a strong glass cannon with a whopping 119 Speed and 116 Attack. Cinderace's defenses are spread more evenly, however, which leaves them somewhat more prepared for any battle they are in.
#4: Cyndaquil Was The Best In Pokémon Gold & Silver
Cyndaquil's adorable design has made it one of the most iconic starters in the Pokémon series. The fire hedgehog turns into the fear-inducing Typhlosion, however, whose Speed and high Attacking and Special Attacking stats make them incredibly useful in Pokémon Gold, Silver, and Crystal. Indeed, Johto even has Bug, Steel, and Ice Gyms, which makes Cyndaquil the most effective starter of the Gen 2 Pokémon games.
But what makes Cyndaquil even better now is that they have a Hisuian variant for their final evolution due to Pokémon Legends: Arceus. Hisuian Cyndaquil comes with the rare dual-typing of Fire-Ghost, which makes for a great hyper-offensive Pokémon. Add this typing with Typhlosion's 119 Special Attack stat and Pokémon trainers have a team-sweeper on their hands.
#3: Charmander Is Most Iconic Starter In Pokémon
The Charmander line are undoubtedly some of the most iconic Pokémon in the franchise, second only to Pikachu. However, they suffer because of Charizard's dual weakness to Rock, which is crippling in competitive play due to the prevalence of Stealth Rock in the meta. Despite this weakness, Charmander is still one of the top three Fire starters for both their cuteness and their second evolution Charmeleon's early access to Steel Claw - a must have for Pokémon Red, Blue, and Yellow.
Additionally, the Charmander line has received a lot of attention from the Pokémon series by being so popular. When Pokémon X and Y came out, Charizard was one of two Pokémon to receive two Mega Evolutions (with one of these getting rid of Charizard's dual weakness to rock). When Pokémon Sword and Shield came out, Charizard was again one of the few Pokémon to receive a special Gigantimax Form. This special treatment is practically guaranteed to continue into future games, so picking up Charmander whenever they are available is always a good idea.
#2: Chimchar Climbed High Into The List From Pokémon Diamond & Pearl
Chimchar was the second Fire-Fighting starter in the Pokémon series, but that does not take away from the special role they play on people's teams. When Pokémon Diamond and Pearl first came out, choosing Chimchar was actually an important decision for players to make if they wanted to have a Fire type on their team, as Sinnoh lacks many viable options for the type. As a result, choosing Chimchar over the other starters was strategic move.
But what makes Chimchar great goes beyond the scarcity of Fire types in Sinnoh. The Chimchar line has outrageous stats that make them excellent not just for the regular game but for post-game and competitive play. Chimchar's final evolution Infernape has nearly equal Speed, Attacking, and Special Attacking stats, with Speed being 108 and both attacking stats at 104. This gives Infernape a lot of options with which they can take down almost any Pokémon as fast as possible.
#1: Torchic Tops The Charts In Pokémon Ruby & Sapphire
Pokémon Emerald, Ruby, and Sapphire's Torchic is the best Fire starter in the Pokémon series. The cute chick Pokémon had humble beginnings as a slow yet surprisingly heavy hitter with a base Speed of 45 and base Special Attack of 70. Torchic continue to surprise as they level by learning Flying type moves like Peck despite being in a line of Fire-Fighting Pokémon.
But what really makes Torchic the best starter is their final evolution: Blaziken. Blaziken was once broken in competitive play with its scary 120 Attack, 110 Special Attack, and 80 Speed stats, which made the Pokémon the ultimate sweeper. But then Blaziken received its Mega Evolution, which had a mind-boggling 160 Attack stat that made it one of the most overpowered Pokémon in series history.
While some Pokémon are objectively stronger than others - like Blaziken - what ultimately makes one Pokémon better than another is how their trainers use them. If a lot of love and EV training is invested into Tepig, the pig Pokémon would have no problem walking over Torchic. Thus, it is ultimately up to players to decide which of the Pokémon series' Fire starters is truly the best.
