Physical
Balanced
66Speed · Below Avg

Cottonee Best Moveset

Grass/Fairy at 37 Sp. Atk and 66 Speed with AbilityPrankster giving priority to status moves. The stats are pre-evolution level but priority MoveEncore, MoveStun Spore, and MoveTailwind have real competitive value. The moveset is pure support that acts first. Evolve to Whimsicott for the same Prankster on better stats.

SABCDEFFFFFFBlack & White / B2W2VBW/B2W2PEAKX & Y / ORASVIXY/ORASSun & Moon / USUMVIISM/USUMSword & Shield / BDSPVIIISS/BDSPScarlet & Violet / Legends Z-AIXSV/LZACURRENT
Gen V — Black & White / B2W2F

Cottonee was a niche pick at best in Gen V (Black & White / B2W2), rarely seen in standard play. This was Cottonee's competitive peak. Its most popular set ran Prankster with Heatrock, favoring a Bold nature.

Hidden Abilities became available

Best Moves

SRCMOVETYPECATPWRPOPROLE
Lv 8
Leech Seed
GrassPOPULARSTAB
Lv 40
Sunny Day
FirePOPULARUtility
Egg
Memento
DarkPOPULARUtility
TM12
Taunt
DarkPOPULARUtility

Best Build

Experimental
Wall
Ability
Prankster
Item
Heat Rock
Best Nature for Cottonee
Bold+DEF

Cottonee best EVs are HP and Defense

EVs

Wall Moveset

  • Leech SeedSTAB
  • Sunny Day
  • MementoUtility
  • TauntUtility
Gen VI — X & Y / ORASF

Cottonee was a niche pick at best in Gen VI (X & Y / ORAS), rarely seen in standard play. Cottonee maintained its position from the previous generation. Its most popular set ran Prankster with Focus Sash, favoring a Serious nature.

Gained Fairy as second typeFairy type added to the gameMega Evolution became available
SRCMOVETYPECATPWRPOPROLE
Lv 8
Leech Seed
GrassPOPULARSTAB
TM90
Substitute
NormalPOPULARUtility
Egg
Encore
NormalCOMMONUtility
TM17
Protect
NormalCOMMONPriority
Lv 44
Endeavor
NormalCOMMONCoverage
Experimental
Support
Ability
Prankster
Item
Focus SashSURVIVAL
Best Nature for Cottonee
SeriousNEUTRAL

Support Moveset

  • Leech SeedSTAB
  • SubstituteUtility
  • EncoreUtility
  • ProtectFAST +4
Gen VII — Sun & Moon / USUMF

Cottonee was a niche pick at best in Gen VII (Sun & Moon / USUM), rarely seen in standard play. Cottonee maintained its position from the previous generation. Its most popular set ran Prankster with Focus Sash, favoring a Naive nature.

Z-Moves became available
SRCMOVETYPECATPWRPOPROLE
Lv 8
Leech Seed
GrassCOMMONSTAB
TM90
Substitute
NormalCOMMONUtility
Lv 44
Endeavor
NormalCOMMONCoverage
TM17
Protect
NormalCOMMONPriority
Egg
Encore
NormalRAREUtility
Experimental
Bulky Support
Ability
Prankster
Item
Focus SashSURVIVAL
Best Nature for Cottonee
Naive+SPE
EVs

Bulky Support Moveset

  • Leech SeedSTAB
  • SubstituteUtility
  • EndeavorCoverage
  • ProtectFAST +4
Gen VIII — Sword & Shield / BDSPF

Cottonee was a niche pick at best in Gen VIII (Sword & Shield / BDSP), rarely seen in standard play. Cottonee maintained its position from the previous generation. Its most popular set ran Prankster with Eviolite, favoring a Calm nature.

Gigantamax became availableDynamax became available
SRCMOVETYPECATPWRPOPROLE
Lv 30
Leech Seed
GrassPOPULARSTAB
Lv 45
Cotton Guard
GrassCOMMONSTAB
Xfer
Toxic
PoisonCOMMONUtility
TM21
Rest
PsychicCOMMONRecovery
TR20
Substitute
NormalRAREUtility
TR30
Encore
NormalRAREUtility
TM25
Protect
NormalRAREPriority
Experimental
Wall
Ability
Prankster
Item
EvioliteBULK
Best Nature for Cottonee
Calm+SPD
EVs

Wall Moveset

  • Leech SeedSTAB
  • Cotton GuardSTAB
  • ToxicUtility
  • RestRecovery
Gen IX — Scarlet & Violet / Legends Z-AF

Cottonee was a niche pick at best in Gen IX (Scarlet & Violet / Legends Z-A), rarely seen in standard play. Cottonee maintained its position from the previous generation. Its most popular set ran Prankster with Focus Sash, favoring a Bold nature.

Terastallization became available
SRCMOVETYPECATPWRPOPROLE
Lv 30
Leech Seed
GrassCOMMONSTAB
TM103
Substitute
NormalCOMMONUtility
TM122
Encore
NormalCOMMONUtility
TM7
Protect
NormalCOMMONPriority
Lv 42
Endeavor
NormalCOMMONCoverage
Experimental
Support
Ability
Prankster
Item
Focus SashSURVIVAL
Best Nature for Cottonee
Bold+DEF
EVs

Support Moveset

  • Leech SeedSTAB
  • SubstituteUtility
  • EncoreUtility
  • ProtectFAST +4

Cottonee Weakness

Type-wise, Cottonee takes extra damage from Poison, Fire, Ice, Flying, and Steel. Watch out for Poison attacks, those deal 4x damage. Dragon moves do nothing thanks to a full immunity. 6 resistances give it solid defensive coverage on top of that.

Cottonee Weakness and Resistance Chart
DamageTypes
4x (Critical)Poison
2x (Weak)Fire, Ice, Flying, Steel
0.5x (Resist)Water, Electric, Grass, Fighting, Ground, Dark
0x (Immune)Dragon

What is Cottonee Weak Against

Vulnerable
5Weak
6Resist
1Immune
Score-3
4xCritical
¼xResist
None
0xImmune

What is Cottonee Strong Against

6Strong
3Resisted
0Immune
Score+3

Best Pokemon Against Cottonee

Miraidon can KO Cottonee with Dazzling Gleam (105-124%). Koraidon threatens a KO with Flare Blitz (128-151%).

Evolution

Evolving Cottonee into Whimsicott takes an evolution item. It's not a simple level-up, so check the chain details below. Evolving adds up to 200 stat points total. View every chain in the Evolution Chart.

How to Evolve

2 Forms
Stat Comparison 2 Stages
Cottonee
GrassFairy
Whimsicott
GrassFairy
HP
40
60+20
ATK
27
67+40
DEF
60
85+25
SP.ATK
37
77+40
SP.DEF
50
75+25
SPE
66
116+50
BST
280D-Tier
480C-Tier+200
ROLE
Balanced
Pivot
TYPE
Utility
Special

Breeding

Very Easy

Breed Cottonee easily with 66 breeding partners from the Fairy and Plant egg groups.

Egg Groups
Gender
50.0%50.0%
Hatch Time
20 cycles·5,140 steps
Quick~5 min with Flame Body
Breed With (best first)
togekissmanaphyraichuazumarilltogedemarutogeticpachirisupikachuroseradevenusaurmeganiumtorterra

How to Get Cottonee

All 8 games

moderate rates for Cottonee across 2 locations in endgame routes. Nothing complicated. Check the sorted list below, compare the top few options, and head to whichever is closest.

Where To Catch Cottonee in SV

The path to Cottonee starts with Cottonee at Lv. 50-80 via walking encounters. 2 catchable stages total, with locations listed for each one below.

  1. Cottonee
    Step 1Cottonee
    Coastal Biome
    Lv.50-80Overworld
  2. Whimsicott
    Step 2Catch or Evolve into Whimsicott
    Coastal Biome
    Lv.50-80Overworld
    or evolve from Cottonee (Step 1)

Base Stats

Cottonee's spread isn't flashy. Speed leads, Attack trails, 0 stats clear the bar. Common in the wild and worth 1 Speed EV, on a medium-fast 1M XP curve.

Base Stats
Below
HP40
D
Attack27
F
Defense60
C
Sp. Atk37
F
Sp. Def50
D
Speed66
C
Total280
Details
Catch Rate
Easy190 / 255
Growth Rate
Medium Fast1M XP
Height0.3 m
Weight0.6 kg
Base XP56
Abilities
Prankster
Raises non-damaging moves' priority by one stage.
Infiltrator
Bypasses light screen, reflect, and safeguard.
ChlorophyllHidden Ability
Doubles Speed during strong sunlight.
EV Yield
HPAtkDefSpASpDSpe+1
Speed training source
Pokedex Entry

Weaving together the cotton of both Cottonee and Eldegoss produces exquisite cloth that’s highly prized by many luxury brands.

Pokemon Shield

Cottonee Guide

  • Cottonee does the job early-game if you need a Grass/Fairy type on your team. Evolve it into Whimsicott before the later gyms and it holds up fine through the story.

Game Availability

Introduced in Black & White, Cottonee has appeared in 8 games across 6 generations. Later debuts mean fewer total appearances, but it's been a consistent presence since its introduction.

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