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How To Catch Mew
A Mythical Discovery Walkthrough
Pokemon Go has been one of the best mobile games since its launch in 2016. Fortunately, the most popular mythical Pokemon in the series has been added to Pokemon Go: Mew. Mew was introduced in a Special Research in 2018 and is available to all players.
Related: Pokemon Go: All Special Evolutions
Mew was a part of the very first Pokemon games, known as Red and Blue. Generation 1 has become some of the most beloved Pokemon for all the fans, and Mew was the climax of it all. Being the mythical Pokemon of the game meant it was the hardest to catch, and you had to beat the whole thing to even get the chance to catch them. Well, Pokemon Go makes that venture a tad bit easier for us, and we're here to help you through that process.
Updated September 14, 2023, by Sean Murray: If you're looking for how to catch Mew in Pokemon Go, you've come to the right place. We've refreshed this guide with improved formatting and a few more breakout tips to make catching your Mew that much easier.
How To Catch Mew
In order to catch Mew, players must complete the Special Research"A Mythical Discovery".
A Special Research is a story-stylized quest told by Professor Willow, most of the time with multiple steps in order to complete the research. For A Mythical Discovery, there are eight steps in order to catch Mew. These steps must be fully completed before the next stage is unlocked, and you are given a step completion reward.
Related: Pokemon Go: Spotlight Hour Guide
A Mythical Discovery Walkthrough
Step 1
Quest | Reward |
|---|---|
Spin 5 PokeStops | 500 XP |
Catch 10 Pokemon | 500 XP |
Transfer 5 Pokemon | 500 XP |
Completion Reward | 10 Great Balls, 1 Incubator, 3 Lure Modules |
Incubators are for hatching Pokemon eggs, which are obtained by spinning Pokestops. Lure Modules are great for luring Pokemon to your location for 30 minutes. Best saved for Community Days, where shiny odds are increased.
Step 2
Quest | Reward |
|---|---|
Earn 2 Candy while walking with your Buddy | 1000 XP |
Make 10 Great Throws | 1000 XP |
Hatch 3 Eggs | 1000 XP |
Completion Reward | 2,000 Stardust, 3 Incense, 20 Great Balls |
Great throws are accomplished by precisely throwing a Pokeball inside a Pokemon's hitbox. All Pokemon have a hitbox that is visible to you as a circle. Throwing a ball at the Pokemon while the circle appears big gives a "Nice" throw. While the smaller the circle and the more accurate the throw, you can get a "Great" throw, and even smaller an "Excellent" throw.
Step 3
Quest | Reward |
|---|---|
Reach Level 15 | 1500 XP |
Battle in 2 Raids | 1500 XP |
Battle in a Gym 2 times | 1500 XP |
Completion Reward | 1 Charged TM, 1 Fast TM, 2 Star Piece |
Raids can be battled with up to 20 people and normally appear above gyms and last for an hour. Whereas Gyms are a competition between team Valor (red), Mystic (blue), and Instinct (yellow). Players are able to battle their opposingteam's gym for a chance to take it over as their own team's gym.
Step 4
Quest | Reward |
|---|---|
Earn a Silver Kanto Medal | 2000 XP |
Evolve 20 Pokemon | 2000 XP |
Earn 5 Candies walking with your Buddy | 2000 XP |
Completion Reward | 4000 Stardust, 3 Lure Modules, 20 Great Balls |
In order to get a Silver Kanto Medal you must catch and register 50 Pokemon into your Pokedex from the Kanto region. Kanto are all generation 1 Pokemon, and normally, the most popular. A great way to get these medals fast is to keep your eye out for Pokemon Go Community Days as they spawn specific regional Pokemon in mass quantities.
Step 5
Quest | Reward |
|---|---|
Catch a Ditto | 2500 XP |
Catch 10 Ghost-type Pokemon | 2500 XP |
Make 20 Great Throws | 2500 XP |
Completion Reward | 1 Premium Raid Pass, 1 Lucky Egg, 15 Revives |
Ditto is a time-consuming and slightly difficult task. In order to catch a Ditto in Pokemon Go, you must search between 16 different Pokemon found in the wild because of Ditto's ability is to disguise themselves as other Pokemon. These sixteen Pokemon include: Weedle, Paras, Venonat, Voltorb, Hoothoot, Ledyba, Spinarak, Hoppip, Remoraid, Seedot, Whismur, Skitty, Gulpin, Numel, Bidoof, and Foongus.
Step 6
Quest | Reward |
|---|---|
Reach Level 25 | 3000 XP |
Evolve a Magikarp | 3000 XP |
Battle in 10 Raids | 3000 XP |
Completion Reward | 6000 Stardust, 5 Rare Candy, 3 Incense |
Completing Step 6 unlocks the Special Research "A Ripple in Time." This is an eight-step special research as well that gives players the opportunity to catch the mythical Pokemon Celebi.
Step 7
Quest | Reward |
|---|---|
Use 50 Berries to help catch Pokemon | 3500 XP |
Earn a Gold Kanto Medal | 3500 XP |
Make an Excellent Curveball Throw | 3500 XP |
Completion Reward | Mew, 20 Ultra Balls, 8000 Stardust |
A Gold Kanto Medal is obtained by catching and registering 100 Kanto region Pokemon into a Pokedex.
Step 8
Quest | Reward |
|---|---|
Claim Reward | 4000 XP |
Claim Reward | 4000 XP |
Claim Reward | 4000 XP |
Completion Reward | 10000 Stardust, 1 Super Incubator, 20 Mew Candy |
Upon completion, you are allowed to catch Mew. Mew will appear on-screen, and you will be given unlimited Pokeballs to catch them. Mew is not particularly a good raid Pokemon, but they will look great in your Pokedex!
For this specific research, Mew is shiny-locked, so players will not have the opportunity to obtain their shiny variant.
Next: Pokemon Go: Complete Guide
