Does maximum Combat Power change for different Pokemon? [duplicate]

Question

Does each Pokemon in Pokemon Go have its own maximum CP? What does the bar above the Pokemon represent?

If so what is the Pokemon with the highest maximum CP?

Answer 1

How is CP calculated?

Pokemon GO calculates CP as follows:

CP = MAX(10, FLOOR(Stamina^0.5 * Attack * Def^0.5 / 10))

Each stat (Stamina, Attack, and Defense) are based on three things: the Pokemon species' modifier for that ability, plus the individual Pokemon's modifier for that ability (called an IV), times the level modifier of the Pokemon.

TotalCpMultiplier is approximately 0.095 * Sqrt(PokemonLevel)

Your trainer level + 1.5 is the highest level a Pokemon can be. Every time you power up a Pokemon, its level goes up by 0.5.

What is the highest possible CP?

The strongest Pokemon will have the best base stats, highest level and the best IVs. The level cap for players is 40, so the strongest Pokemon will have a level of 41.5. Then, that Pokemon would have 15 in each of its IVs (Stamina, Attack, and Defense). Finally, the Pokemon would naturally have powerful stats.

Of all Pokemon in Pokemon GO, Mewtwo has the potential for the largest CP, at 4144 CP. However, legendary Pokemon are not attainable in the game right now. The strongest non-legendary is Dragonite with 3500 CP. Very few Pokemon can compete with that - Lapras doesn't clear 2900, Snorlax is barely past 3100, and even Moltres and Mew are stuck in the 3200s.

Answer 2

Every Pokemon has an individually assigned max CP, which is determined by the Pokemon's individual max stats (HP, attack, defense, and speed). For example, Dragonite has the highest CP of any available Pokemon (3500), but while that's the highest CP a Dragonite can get to, that doesn't mean that your Dragonite will be capable of reaching that level.

When you catch a Pokemon, it'll have bonuses to each stat (called Individual Values, or IVs) that add anywhere from 0 to 15 points to each stat. Thus a Pokemon with max IVs will have a higher CP than one with the lowest possible IVs.

The bar above the Pokemon will go up as you power up the Pokemon and raise its CP, but it actually represents the Pokemon's level (no clue why Niantic doesn't just show us the level as a number). When you fully powered up a Pokemon, the bar will be full showing the Pokemon is at the highest level possible (for your player level), and so you can have two Pokemon with full bars but different CPs.

That said, the max CP you can raise a Pokemon to is dependent on your player level. As you level up, you'll be able to level up your Pokemon further, and further raise the Pokemon's CP and stats.

And answering your question on which Pokemon has the highest CP, right now the answer is Dragonite until Mewtwo becomes available. Don't forget though that even with the highest CP Pokemon protecting a gym, someone with the right type advantages and decent dodging skills will have no problem taking your Pokemon down.

Information from thesilphroad.com