Alola Starters in 2026: Rowlet, Litten, and Popplio Compared for Collectors
By Dexhaul Team · August 31, 2026
The three Alola starters split collectors along very different lines.
Rowlet drives plush sales. Litten converts through competitive play nostalgia. Popplio stays underrated until Primarina's card shows up and changes the conversation.
Understanding which one fits your collection depends on whether you prioritize figure shelves, card binders, or something you can actually display in both.
Pokémon Sun and Moon launched in November 2016, which puts Rowlet, Litten, and Popplio approaching a decade in the franchise. That's long enough for a real secondary market to develop: dedicated fans, regional exclusives, and Mega Series Illustration Rares that most collectors haven't found yet.
Rowlet: The Plush Leader
Rowlet is the clear frontrunner for plush collectors. Its round silhouette and bow-tie leaf translate well into fabric, and manufacturers across Japan and the US have noticed.
The Sanei All Star Collection Rowlet (PP54) is the standard reference point. At $26.99 it sits mid-tier in terms of price, but the construction quality and accuracy to the official model put it ahead of most alternatives. Sanei's All Star line uses weighted pellets in the base, so Rowlet stands upright on a flat surface without constant repositioning.
Collectors on a tighter budget have a real option: the Funko POP Rowlet lists at $9.79 from independent sellers right now. It won't replace a Sanei plush on the shelf, but it's a credible desk piece and a practical gift at that price.
On the card side, Rowlet picked up an Illustration Rare in ME03: Perfect Order. The card shows Rowlet perched against a soft forest background and runs $9.00 raw from multiple independent sellers.
That's a below-average price for a current-era Illustration Rare, which typically lands between $12 and $25 for comparable artwork quality. The Alola starters simply haven't had the spotlight event that would push that price up.
Litten and Incineroar: The Competitive Crossover
Litten's collector value comes almost entirely from what it becomes.
Incineroar is one of the rare Pokémon with a genuine crossover fanbase.
Super Smash Bros Ultimate added it at launch in December 2018, bringing in fighting-game players who had never touched a main-series title. That audience still buys cards and plush. A Litten collector and an Incineroar collector often want the same shelf space.
For the plush side of Litten, the Sanei 7-inch at $24.99 is the go-to. The Pokémon Center Fit Litten (No.725) carries a slight premium for the Japanese exclusive status and the denser, hand-sized form factor. Both are legitimate choices; the Fit version is the better display piece, the Sanei is the better cuddle plush.
On the TCG side, Incineroar ex in Temporal Forces (SV05, card 187/162) is the card that most collectors are targeting. It's an Ultra Rare with a striking full-art version available for $4 raw, which is low for a current Scarlet and Violet ex. The Special Collection Box pairs Incineroar ex with Torterra ex and includes booster packs, making it the best single purchase if you want an in-format playable alongside display cards.
Popplio and Primarina: The Quiet Achiever
Popplio has the softest plush market of the three starters, which is also why it's the best value right now.
The PP56 All Star Collection Popplio runs $16 from Ichiba Japan. That's the entry price for a legitimate Sanei product, and it's $10 less than the Rowlet equivalent. If you're building a starter set display and watching your spend, Popplio is where the value sits right now.
The "I Choose You" Popplio plush from Takara Tomy Arts at $39.99 is the premium option: larger, heavier, and designed around the 2017 movie release. That format tends to hold secondary-market value better than standard plush lines because production runs were shorter.
Primarina is where this line surprises people on the card side. The ME05: Pitch Black Illustration Rare for Primarina shows the Water/Fairy final evolution in a watercolor-style composition.
Raw copies are sitting at $5.00 right now at independent sellers. That is genuinely low for a current Mega Series Illustration Rare with this level of artistic execution.
The 30th Anniversary Angle
The current Pokémon 30th Anniversary Celebration TCG arc (releasing September 16) focuses its spotlight on Kanto and Johto. Rowlet, Litten, and Popplio are Alola Pokémon, so they're not headlining the set the way Mew ex and Mewtwo ex are.
What they do have is the 30th anniversary merchandise line. The MONCOLLÉ Figure Set shown at the top of this guide brings all three starters together in one official 30th anniversary release: precise Takara Tomy sculpts at $25 for the set. For collectors who want all three on a single shelf without hunting individual figures, this is the most efficient path right now.
The Kanto-first framing of the 30th Anniversary TCG is actually the clearest reason Alola starter Illustration Rares are priced the way they are. When a major TCG event redirects collector attention toward Gen 1, Alola singles lose price pressure. That opens a window for collectors who know what they're looking at.
The Mega Series arc ends with ME06: Delta Reign in November 2026. Once the arc closes, these Illustration Rares from ME03 and ME05 become finite sets within the Scarlet and Violet era.
Rowlet at $9 and Primarina at $5 raw are current prices for cards from a print run that stops being added to after November. That's worth noting before you decide whether to wait.
Which Starter Should You Collect?
Rowlet if you prioritize display plush and want the deepest existing product selection.
Litten and Incineroar if you want a collection with crossover appeal: Smash Bros fans, competitive TCG players, and mainstream Pokémon collectors all land in the same place with Incineroar.
Popplio and Primarina if you want the highest return on display space per dollar right now. The PP56 plush at $16 and the Primarina Pitch Black IR at $5 are both legitimate display pieces at prices that don't reflect their quality.
The Moncolle 30th Anniversary three-starter set works for collectors who want all three at once and don't need plush scale. At $25 for Rowlet, Litten, and Popplio together in official Takara Tomy sculpts, it's a practical starting point or a compact display addition to a larger shelf.
Browse Alola starter plush, figures, and cards from independent shops at DexHaul. DexHaul is independent and not affiliated with The Pokémon Company or Nintendo.