Utility
Balanced
CTier
70Speed · Below Avg

Stats & Training

Butterfree's spread isn't flashy. Sp. Atk leads, Attack trails, 2 stats clear the bar. Tough to catch and worth 3 Sp. Atk and Sp. Def EVs, on a medium-fast 1M XP curve.

Base Stats
Avg
HP60
C
Attack45
D
Defense50
D
Sp. Atk80
C
Sp. Def80
C
Speed70
C
Total385
Details
Catch Rate
Challenging45 / 255
Growth Rate
Medium Fast1M XP
Height1.1 m
3'07"Small
Weight32.0 kg
70.5 lbsLight
Base XP178
Average
Abilities
Compound EyesTop Pick
Increases moves' accuracy to 1.3×.
Tinted LensHANot in game
Doubles damage inflicted with not-very-effective moves.
EV Yield
HPAtkDefSpA+2SpD+1Spe
Strong Special Attack training target
Pokedex Entries

It loves the honey of flowers and can locate flower patches that have even tiny amounts of pollen.

Platinum

Butterfree Weakness

Butterfree is weak to Rock, Fire, Electric, Ice, and Flying. Watch out for Rock attacks, those deal 4x damage. On the flip side, it's immune to Ground-type moves entirely. Butterfree's special bulk (base 80 Sp.Def) helps absorb special-type weaknesses, though physical moves exploit the lower Defense.

Butterfree Weakness and Resistance Chart
DamageTypes
4x (Critical)Rock
2x (Weak)Fire, Electric, Ice, Flying
0.5x (Resist)Bug
0.25x (Resist)Grass, Fighting
0x (Immune)Ground
Type ChartVulnerable
5Weak
3Resist
1Immune
Score-4
Gen IV Type Chart
  • Fairy type does not exist — Dragon has fewer checks
  • Physical / Special split now per-move (introduced Gen IV)
4xCritical
Rock
2xWeak
FireElectricIceFlying
½xResist
Bug
¼xResist
GrassFighting
0xImmune
Ground
STAB (5)
GrassPsychicDarkFightingBug
How to Beat Butterfree in Platinum (Best Counters)

In Platinum, Infernape can KO Butterfree with Fire Blast (102-120%). Dragonite threatens a KO with Outrage (190-223%). Zapdos's Thunderbolt also KOs at 109-128%.

Infernape
Infernape
FireFighting
A
Recommended Build
AbilityBlaze
ItemExpert Belt
NatureJolly
Moves
  • Close Combat
  • U Turn
  • Grass Knot
  • Fire Blast
Damage vs Butterfree
Close Combat
27-32%
U Turn
21-26%
Fire Blast 2x
102-120%KO
View Infernape builds →

Platinum Evolution

Butterfree is the final form in a three-stage chain from Caterpie through Metapod. Breeding this form produces Caterpie eggs (quick to hatch). Evolving from Caterpie gave Butterfree the biggest boost in Sp.Atk (+60), bringing the total to 385 stats. View every chain in the Evolution Chart.

How to Evolve

3 Forms
Caterpie
#010Caterpie
7
Level 7
Metapod
#011Metapod
10
Level 10
Butterfree
#012Butterfree
Stat Comparison 3 Stages
Caterpie
Bug
Metapod
Bug
Butterfree
BugFlying
HP
45
50+5
60+10
ATK
30
20-10
45+25
DEF
35
55+20
50-5
SP.ATK
20
25+5
90+65
SP.DEF
20
25+5
80+55
SPE
45
30-15
70+40
BST
195D-Tier
205D-Tier+10
395C-Tier+190
ROLE
Balanced
Balanced
Balanced
TYPE
Utility
Utility
Special

Breeding

Very Easy

Breed with Butterfree to get Caterpie eggs easily using 48 partners from the Bug egg group.

Egg Groups
Bug
Gender
♂50.0%♀50.0%
Hatch Time
15 cycles·3,855 steps
Quick~4 min with Flame Body
Breed With (best first)
flygondrapionmasquerainvolbeatillumiseparasectvibravaskorupiparastrapinchsurskitshuckle
12 of 48·

Platinum Butterfree Best Moveset

Focus Sash guarantees Butterfree survives one hit from full HP. That's enough to deal early damage and fire off Sleep Powder before going down. Compoundeyes and max Sp. Atk and Speed EVs maximize first-turn impact.

Best Build

Experimental
Special Attacker
Ability
Compound Eyes
Item
Focus SashSURVIVAL
Best Nature for Butterfree
Timid+SPE

Butterfree best EVs are Sp. Atk and Speed

EVs

Special Attacker Moveset

  • Sleep Powder
  • Bug BuzzSTAB
  • Stun Spore
  • ProtectFAST +4

Recommended Teammates

Gyarados
GyaradosDecent
Electivire
ElectivireDecent
Latias
LatiasDecent

Moves

TMs define Butterfree's movepool. The natural moves cover basics with Bug Buzz and Signal Beam, but the real versatility comes from technical machines giving it Psychic and Grass coverage and more. That's where the options open up.

Level-Up Moves

Lv 1
Confusion
D5010025Psychic
Lv 10
Confusion
D5010025Psychic
Lv 12
Poison Powder
——7535Poison
Lv 12
Sleep Powder
S—7515Grass
Lv 12
Stun Spore
A—7530Grass
Lv 16
Gust
D4010035Flying
Lv 18
Supersonic
——5520Normal
Lv 22
Whirlwind-6
D——20Normal
Lv 24
Psybeam
D6510020Psychic
Lv 28
Silver Wind
C601005Bug
Lv 30
Tailwind
D——15Flying
Lv 34
Safeguard
D——25Normal
Lv 36
Captivate
——10020Normal
Lv 40
Bug Buzz
S9010010Bug

TM Moves

TM
TM40
Aerial Ace
D60—20Flying
TM45
Attract
——10015Normal
TM78
Captivate
——10020Normal
HM05
Defog
———15Flying
TM32
Double Team
———15Normal
TM85
Dream Eater
—10010015Psychic
TM58
Endure+4
———10Normal
TM53
Energy Ball
C8010010Grass
TM42
Facade
D7010020Normal
TM70
Flash
D—10020Normal
TM21
Frustration
D—10020Normal
TM19
Giga Drain
C6010010Grass
TM68
Giga Impact
C150905Normal
TM10
Hidden Power
—6010015Normal
TM15
Hyper Beam
C150905Normal
TM83
Natural Gift
D—10015Normal
TM17
Protect+4
B——10Normal
TM77
Psych Up
———10Normal
TM29
Psychic
C9010010Psychic
TM18
Rain Dance
C——5Water
TM44
Rest
C——10Psychic
TM27
Return
D—10020Normal
TM51
Roost
B——10Flying
TM20
Safeguard
D——25Normal
TM43
Secret Power
—7010020Normal
TM30
Shadow Ball
C8010015Ghost
TM62
Silver Wind
C601005Bug
TM48
Skill Swap
———10Psychic
TM82
Sleep Talk
C——10Normal
TM22
Solar Beam
C12010010Grass
TM90
Substitute
C——10Normal
TM11
Sunny Day
C——5Fire
TM87
Swagger
——9015Normal
TM46
Thief
—6010025Dark
TM06
Toxic
C—8510Poison
TM89
U-turn
D7010020Bug

Egg Moves

Butterfree doesn't have any Egg moves

Tutor Moves

Tut
Tutor
Air Cutter
C559525Flying
Tutor
Ominous Wind
D601005Ghost
Tutor
Signal Beam
C7510015Bug
Tutor
Snore
D4010015Normal
Tutor
Swift
—60—20Normal
Tutor
Twister
—4010020Dragon

Reminder Moves

Rem
Rem
Bug Bite
D6010020Bug
Rem
Harden
———30Normal
Rem
Iron Defense
B——15Steel
Rem
String Shot
——9540Bug
Rem
Tackle
—3510035Normal

Transfer Moves

Gen
Gen 3
Double-Edge
D12010015Normal
Gen 3
Mimic
———10Normal

How to Get Butterfree in Platinum

You're catching Caterpie first, not Butterfree. Caterpie appears at moderate rates in the encounters below. The step cards map the full 3-stage chain with evolution methods between each stage.

How to Obtain Butterfree in Platinum

The path to Butterfree starts with Caterpie at Lv. 10-13 via walking encounters. 2 catchable stages total, with locations listed for each one below.

  1. Caterpie
    Step 1Catch Caterpie
    Route 204 - North
    Grass Lv.10 Route
    RareEarly
    Dual-slot: FireRed
    Route 204 - South
    Grass Lv.10 Route
    RareEarly
    Dual-slot: FireRed
    Eterna Forest
    Grass Lv.13 Forest
    RareEarly
    Dual-slot: FireRed
  2. Metapod
    Step 2Catch or Evolve Metapod
    Eterna Forest
    Grass Lv.13 Forest
    RareEarly
    Dual-slot: FireRed
    or evolve from Caterpie (Step 1)
  3. Butterfree
    Step 3Butterfree ✓

Butterfree Guide

  • In Platinum, Butterfree's biggest threats include Golem (Rock), Charizard (Fire), and Raikou (Electric), all carrying super-effective STAB moves. Golem is the most dangerous since Rock moves deal 4x damage. Ice and Flying-type attackers are also a problem. With 5 weakness types, most competitive teams carry at least one counter.

  • In Platinum, Metapod evolves into Butterfree at level 10. Butterfree is the final evolution in a 3-stage line starting from Caterpie.

  • Honestly, in Platinum Butterfree is a tough sell at 385 BST. Plenty of stronger Bug/Flying options exist. Fun pick, not a practical one.

  • In Platinum, Don't let Butterfree's 385 base stat total fool you. Tinted Lens is what makes it tick. It punches way above its weight class. We rate it C-Tier. Sleep Powder with Focus Sash is the standard set.

  • In Platinum, Run Tinted Lens on Butterfree. It's the ability that defines how you build around it and the main reason it holds a competitive niche. Butterfree also gets Compound Eyes, but they don't compare.

Game Availability

Butterfree first appeared in Red & Blue and spans 19 games across 10 generations. It later gained a Gigantamax form in Generation 8, adding new dimensions to its competitive identity.

Click a game to view version-specific details

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