How many cards are in a Pokémon deck?

A Pokémon TCG deck must be exactly 60 cards. You can have only 4 cards with the same name, except for Basic Energy cards, and the deck must include at least one Basic Pokémon.

How do you win a game of Pokémon cards?

There are three ways to win: take all of your Prize cards, Knock Out all of your opponent's Pokémon in play, or have your opponent start their turn with no cards left in their deck to draw.

How many Prize cards do you start with?

Each player sets aside 6 Prize cards face down during setup. You take one each time you Knock Out an opposing Pokémon, 2 if it is a Pokémon ex and 3 if it is a Mega Evolution Pokémon ex.

Can the player who goes first attack?

No. On the first turn of the game, the starting player skips the attack. That player also cannot play a Supporter card on their first turn.

How many Pokémon can you have on your Bench?

You can have up to 5 Pokémon on your Bench at one time, plus one Active Pokémon in the Active Spot.

Introduction to the Pokémon Trading Card Game: How to Play

December 16, 2022 Richard Weiss

Last updated: October 6, 2026

Key Takeaways

Each player uses a deck of exactly 60 cards and sets aside 6 Prize cards at the start of the game.
You win by taking all of your Prize cards, by Knocking Out all of your opponent's Pokémon in play, or if your opponent has no cards to draw at the start of their turn.
A deck can hold up to 4 cards with the same name, except Basic Energy, and needs at least one Basic Pokémon.
You have one Active Pokémon and up to 5 Pokémon on your Bench.
Each turn has three parts: draw a card, take your actions, then attack. The player who goes first cannot attack or play a Supporter card on their first turn.

What you need to play
The three card types
Building a deck
Setting up the game
Playing a turn
Attacking and Prize cards
How to win
Where to get cards
Sources

To play the Pokémon Trading Card Game, each player brings a 60-card deck, draws 7 cards, puts a Basic Pokémon in the Active Spot and sets aside 6 Prize cards. Players take turns drawing, playing cards and attacking, and the first player to take all of their Prize cards wins.

The rules below follow The Pokémon Company's official rulebook, last updated July 2026.

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What You Need to Play

A 60-card deck for each player. A preconstructed deck is the easiest way to start.
A coin. The winner of the opening coin flip decides which player goes first, and some cards ask for coin flips.
Damage counters. You place 1 damage counter for every 10 damage a Pokémon takes.
A flat play surface. A playmat keeps your cards off the table. Shop our TCG playmats or design a custom playmat, and add card sleeves to protect your deck.

The Three Card Types

Every card in a deck is a Pokémon, an Energy card or a Trainer card.

Card type	What it does	Key rule
Basic Pokémon	Battles in the Active Spot or waits on the Bench	Play as many as you want from your hand to your Bench
Stage 1 and Stage 2 Pokémon	Evolution cards played on top of the Pokémon they evolve from	A Pokémon cannot evolve on its first turn in play
Energy	Powers attacks and pays Retreat Costs	Attach one Energy card per turn
Item (Trainer)	One-time effect, then discarded	Play as many as you want
Pokémon Tool (Trainer)	Attaches to one of your Pokémon	Play as many as you want. One Tool per Pokémon
Supporter (Trainer)	Played like an Item card	One per turn. Not on the first turn of the player who goes first
Stadium (Trainer)	Stays in play after you play it	One per turn. Only one Stadium can be in play at a time

The game has 11 Energy types: Grass, Fire, Water, Lightning, Psychic, Fighting, Darkness, Metal, Fairy, Dragon and Colorless.

Building a Deck

The deck building rules are short:

Your deck must be exactly 60 cards.
You can have only 4 cards with the same name, except for Basic Energy cards.
Your deck must have at least one Basic Pokémon.

You do not need a Pokémon-EX or Pokémon-GX in your deck. Those are older card types, and no rule requires them.

For a first deck, the official rulebook suggests picking one or two Energy types, 12 to 15 Energy cards and around 20 to 25 Trainer cards, with Pokémon filling the rest.

Setting Up the Game

Flip a coin. The winner decides which player goes first.
Shuffle your 60-card deck and draw the top 7 cards.
Put one Basic Pokémon from your hand face down as your Active Pokémon.
Put up to 5 more Basic Pokémon face down on your Bench.
Put the top 6 cards of your deck to the side, face down, as your Prize cards.
Both players flip their Active and Benched Pokémon face up and start the game.

If you have no Basic Pokémon in your opening hand, reveal your hand, shuffle it back into your deck and draw 7 more cards. This is called a mulligan, and your opponent may draw an extra card each time you take one.

Playing a Turn

Each turn has three main parts.

Draw a card.
Do any of these in any order: put Basic Pokémon on your Bench, evolve your Pokémon, attach one Energy card from your hand to one of your Pokémon, play Trainer cards, retreat your Active Pokémon (once per turn) and use Abilities.
Attack. Then your turn ends.

To retreat, you discard Energy from your Active Pokémon equal to its Retreat Cost, then switch it with a Pokémon from your Bench. You can still attack with the new Active Pokémon that turn.

Two first-turn rules matter. The player who goes first skips the attack and cannot play a Supporter card on that turn. Neither player can evolve a Pokémon on their own first turn.

Attacking, Knock Outs and Prize Cards

To attack, your Active Pokémon needs the Energy shown in the attack's cost. Check your opponent's Active Pokémon for Weakness or Resistance to your Pokémon's type, then place the damage counters. A Pokémon with Weakness takes more damage, and a Pokémon with Resistance takes less.

A Pokémon is Knocked Out when its damage equals or exceeds its HP. It goes to the discard pile with every card attached to it, and the attacking player takes one Prize card. Some Pokémon give up more:

Pokémon ex: your opponent takes 2 Prize cards when one is Knocked Out.
Mega Evolution Pokémon ex: your opponent takes 3 Prize cards.

Attacks can also leave the Active Pokémon Asleep, Burned, Confused, Paralyzed or Poisoned. These are called Special Conditions, and a Pokémon recovers from them when it moves to the Bench or evolves.

How to Win

There are three ways to win:

Take all of your Prize cards.
Knock Out all of your opponent's Pokémon in play.
Your opponent has no cards in their deck at the beginning of their turn.

Where to Get Cards

The rulebook recommends starting with a preconstructed 60-card deck, then adding to your collection with booster packs. A booster box is a sealed box of packs, and an Elite Trainer Box pairs packs with accessories. Packs are also where collectors find a holo card, a reverse holo, a full art card or a special illustration rare.

If you want specific cards for a deck, shop our Pokémon cards. For the collecting side of the game, see the most valuable Pokémon cards of all time.