Physical
Balanced
90Speed · Above Avg

Meowth Best Moveset

Normal at 45 Attack and 90 Speed. AbilityTechnician boosts weak moves but 45 Attack behind it means the boosted damage still doesn't threaten anything. The moveset is a pre-evolution placeholder. Evolve to Persian for 70 Attack, 115 Speed, and Technician that produces real output.

SABCDEFEEEEEEEEERed, Blue & YellowIRB/YPEAKGold, Silver & CrystalIIGS/CRuby, Sapphire & EmeraldIIIRS/EDiamond, Pearl & PlatinumIVDP/PtBlack & White / B2W2VBW/B2W2X & Y / ORASVIXY/ORASSun & Moon / USUMVIISM/USUMSword & Shield / BDSPVIIISS/BDSPScarlet & Violet / Legends Z-AIXSV/LZACURRENT
Gen I — Red, Blue & YellowE

Meowth saw minimal competitive use in Gen I (Red, Blue & Yellow). This was Meowth's competitive peak. A key development: had a combined Special stat of 40.

Had a combined Special stat of 40

Best Moves

SRCMOVETYPECATPWRPOPROLE
Tutor
Body Slam
Normal85POPULARSTAB
Lv 40
Slash
Normal70COMMONSTAB
Xfer
Rage
Normal20COMMONSTAB
Lv 10
Bite
Dark60COMMONCoverage
Tutor
Double-Edge
Normal120COMMONSTAB
Xfer
Bubble Beam
Water65RARECoverage
TM24
Thunderbolt
Electric90RARECoverage
Lv 18
Pay Day
Normal40RARESTAB

Best Build

Experimental
Utility
Ability
Unknown
Item
None
Best Nature for Meowth
HardyNEUTRAL

Utility Moveset

  • Body SlamSTAB
  • SlashSTAB
  • RageSTAB
  • BiteCoverage
Gen II — Gold, Silver & CrystalE

Meowth saw minimal competitive use in Gen II (Gold, Silver & Crystal). Meowth maintained its position from the previous generation.

SRCMOVETYPECATPWRPOPROLE
TM27
Return
NormalPOPULARSTAB
TM30
Shadow Ball
Ghost80POPULARCoverage
Xfer
Bubble Beam
Water65POPULARCoverage
Tutor
Thunderbolt
Electric90POPULARCoverage
Experimental
Utility
Ability
Unknown
Item
MiracleberryRECOVERY
Best Nature for Meowth
HardyNEUTRAL

Utility Moveset

  • ReturnSTAB
  • Shadow Ball
  • Bubble Beam
  • ThunderboltCoverage
Gen III — Ruby, Sapphire & EmeraldE

Meowth saw minimal competitive use in Gen III (Ruby, Sapphire & Emerald). Meowth maintained its position from the previous generation. Its most popular set ran Pickup with Silkscarf, favoring a Jolly nature.

Received Pickup
SRCMOVETYPECATPWRPOPROLE
TM30
Shadow Ball
Ghost80POPULARCoverage
Tutor
Double-Edge
Normal120POPULARSTAB
Lv 50
Fake Out
Normal40POPULARSTAB
TM10
Hidden Power (Grass)
Grass60COMMONCoverage
Experimental
Physical Sweeper
Ability
Pickup
Item
Silk Scarf
Best Nature for Meowth
Jolly+SPE
EVs

Physical Sweeper Moveset

  • Shadow Ball
  • Double EdgeSTAB
  • Fake OutSTAB
  • Hidden Power Grass
Gen IV — Diamond, Pearl & PlatinumE

Meowth saw minimal competitive use in Gen IV (Diamond, Pearl & Platinum). Meowth maintained its position from the previous generation. Its most popular set ran Technician with Focus Sash, favoring a Jolly nature.

Gained Technician as second abilityPhysical/Special split overhauled move damage
SRCMOVETYPECATPWRPOPROLE
Lv 9
Fake Out
Normal40COMMONSTAB
Lv 6
Bite
Dark60COMMONCoverage
TM40
Aerial Ace
Flying60COMMONCoverage
TM89
U-turn
Bug70RARECoverage
Tutor
Icy Wind
Ice55RARECoverage
Tutor
Seed Bomb
Grass80RARECoverage
TM27
Return
NormalRARESTAB
Lv 25
Taunt
DarkRAREUtility
Experimental
Physical Attacker
Ability
Technician
Item
Focus SashSURVIVAL
Best Nature for Meowth
Jolly+SPE
EVs

Physical Attacker Moveset

  • Fake OutSTAB
  • BiteCoverage
  • Aerial Ace
  • U Turn
Gen V — Black & White / B2W2E

Meowth saw minimal competitive use in Gen V (Black & White / B2W2). Meowth maintained its position from the previous generation. Its most popular set ran Technician with Normalgem, favoring a Jolly nature.

Gained Unnerve as hidden abilityHidden Abilities became available
SRCMOVETYPECATPWRPOPROLE
Lv 9
Fake Out
Normal40COMMONSTAB
Tutor
Covet
Normal60COMMONSTAB
TM40
Aerial Ace
Flying60COMMONCoverage
Lv 6
Bite
Dark60COMMONCoverage
Experimental
Physical Attacker
Ability
Technician
Item
Normal Gem
Best Nature for Meowth
Jolly+SPE
EVs

Physical Attacker Moveset

  • Fake OutSTAB
  • CovetSTAB
  • Aerial Ace
  • BiteCoverage

Recommended Teammates

Gen VI — X & Y / ORASE

Meowth saw minimal competitive use in Gen VI (X & Y / ORAS). Meowth maintained its position from the previous generation. Its most popular set ran Pickup with Nomelberry, favoring a Hardy nature.

Fairy type added to the gameMega Evolution became available
SRCMOVETYPECATPWRPOPROLE
Egg
Iron Tail
Steel100POPULARCoverage
TM65
Shadow Claw
Ghost70POPULARCoverage
TM24
Thunderbolt
Electric90POPULARCoverage
Xfer
Double-Edge
Normal120POPULARSTAB
Experimental
Utility
Ability
Pickup
Item
Nomel BerryRECOVERY
Best Nature for Meowth
HardyNEUTRAL
EVs

Utility Moveset

  • Iron Tail
  • Shadow Claw
  • ThunderboltCoverage
  • Double EdgeSTAB
Gen VII — Sun & Moon / USUME

Meowth saw minimal competitive use in Gen VII (Sun & Moon / USUM). Meowth maintained its position from the previous generation. Its most popular set ran Technician with Life Orb, favoring a Adamant nature.

Z-Moves became available
SRCMOVETYPECATPWRPOPROLE
Lv 9
Fake Out
Normal40COMMONSTAB
Tutor
Knock Off
Dark65COMMONCoverage
Egg
Foul Play
Dark95COMMONCoverage
Lv 50
Feint
Normal30COMMONSTAB
Lv 41
Assurance
Dark60RARECoverage
Xfer
Double-Edge
Normal120RARESTAB
Experimental
Physical Sweeper
Ability
Technician
Item
Life OrbPOWER
Best Nature for Meowth
EVs

Physical Sweeper Moveset

  • Fake OutSTAB
  • Knock Off
  • Foul Play
  • FeintFAST +2
Gen VIII — Sword & Shield / BDSPE

Meowth saw minimal competitive use in Gen VIII (Sword & Shield / BDSP). Meowth maintained its position from the previous generation. Its most popular set ran Technician with Normalgem, favoring a Adamant nature.

Gigantamax became availableDynamax became available
SRCMOVETYPECATPWRPOPROLE
TR58
Dark Pulse
Dark80POPULARCoverage
Lv 44
Play Rough
Fairy90POPULARCoverage
Lv 36
Slash
Normal70POPULARSTAB
Xfer
Aerial Ace
Flying60COMMONCoverage
TR1
Body Slam
Normal85RARESTAB
Experimental
Physical Tank
Ability
Technician
Item
Normal Gem
Best Nature for Meowth
EVs

Physical Tank Moveset

  • Dark Pulse
  • Play Rough
  • SlashSTAB
  • Aerial Ace
Gen IX — Scarlet & Violet / Legends Z-AE

Meowth saw minimal competitive use in Gen IX (Scarlet & Violet / Legends Z-A). Meowth maintained its position from the previous generation. Its most popular set ran Technician with Focus Sash, favoring a Jolly nature.

Terastallization became available
SRCMOVETYPECATPWRPOPROLE
TM181
Knock Off
Dark65COMMONCoverage
Lv 1
Fake Out
Normal40COMMONSTAB
TM205
Endeavor
NormalCOMMONSTAB
TM82
Thunder Wave
ElectricCOMMONUtility
Experimental
Physical Sweeper
Ability
Technician
Item
Focus SashSURVIVAL
Best Nature for Meowth
Jolly+SPE
EVs

Physical Sweeper Moveset

  • Knock Off
  • Fake OutSTAB
  • EndeavorSTAB
  • Thunder Wave

Meowth Weakness

Meowth is weak to Fighting. On the flip side, it's immune to Ghost-type moves entirely. Just 1 weak spot to worry about, which keeps teambuilding straightforward.

Meowth Weakness and Resistance Chart
DamageTypes
2x (Weak)Fighting
0x (Immune)Ghost

What is Meowth Weak Against

Good
1Weak
0Resist
1Immune
Score+1
4xCritical
None
2xWeak
½xResist
None
¼xResist
None
0xImmune

What is Meowth Strong Against

0Strong
2Resisted
1Immune
Score-3
2xStrong
None
½xResisted
0xImmune

Best Pokemon Against Meowth

Machamp can KO Meowth with Close Combat (433-510%). Mienfoo threatens a KO with High Jump Kick (234-276%). Mudbray deals 72-86% with Earthquake.

Evolution

From here, Meowth's line branches into Persian and Perrserker. That's 2 possible evolutions, each with its own method. Evolving adds up to 150 stat points total. View every chain in the Evolution Chart.

How to Evolve

3 Evolutions
Stat Comparison 4 Stages
Meowth
Normal
Persian
Normal
HP
40
65+25
70+30
65+25
ATK
45
70+25
110+65
70+25
DEF
35
60+25
100+65
60+25
SP.ATK
40
65+25
50+10
65+25
SP.DEF
40
65+25
60+20
65+25
SPE
90
115+25
50-40
115+25
BST
290D-Tier
440C-Tier+150
440C-Tier+150
440C-Tier+150
ROLE
Balanced
Pivot
Attacker
Pivot
TYPE
Utility
Physical
Physical
Physical

Breeding

Very Easy

Breed Meowth easily with 278 breeding partners from the Ground egg group.

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

How to Get Meowth

All 21 games

high spawn rates in early-game routes across 14 locations. Meowth's one of the easier catches on the list. Knock it out fast and save your time for harder targets.

Where To Catch Meowth in SV

The path to Meowth starts with Meowth at Lv. 14-32 via walking encounters. 1 catchable stage total, with locations listed for each one below.

  1. Meowth
    Step 1Meowth
    East Province (Area Three) - Near Town
    Lv.14-32Overworld
    Rate 36%
    West Province (Area Three) - Near Town
    Lv.14-32Overworld
    Rate 36%
    West Province (Area Two) - Near Town
    Lv.14-32Overworld
    Rate 36%
    East Province (Area Three) - Grass
    Lv.14-32Overworld
    Rate 18%
    West Province (Area Three) - Grass
    Lv.14-32Overworld
    Rate 18%
    West Province (Area Two) - Grass
    Lv.14-32Overworld
    Rate 18%
    East Province (Area Three) - Mine
    Lv.14-32Overworld
    Rate 9%

Base Stats

Speed and Attack carry most of Meowth's stat budget. Defense's the obvious dump stat. Easy to catch and yields 1 Speed EV. Follows a medium-fast 1M XP curve.

Base Stats
Below
HP40
D
Attack45
D
Defense35
F
Sp. Atk40
D
Sp. Def40
D
Speed90
B
Total290
Details
Catch Rate
Guaranteed255 / 255
Growth Rate
Medium Fast1M XP
Height0.4 m
Weight4.2 kg
Base XP58
Abilities
Pickup
Picks up other Pokémon's used and Flung held items. May also pick up an item after battle.
Technician
Strengthens moves of 60 base power or less to 1.5× their power.
UnnerveHidden Ability
Prevents opposing Pokémon from eating held Berries.
EV Yield
HPAtkDefSpASpDSpe+1
Speed training source
Pokedex Entry

All it does is sleep during the daytime. At night, it patrols its territory with its eyes aglow.

Pokemon Legends: Z-A

Meowth Guide

  • You can run Meowth through the first few routes without issues. 290 BST won't carry you far though. Get it to Persian as fast as you can.

  • Meowth has 2 regional forms: Alolan and Galarian. Each one changes the typing and stat distribution. Added Alolan in Gen 7 and Galarian in Gen 8.

Game Availability

Since debuting in Red & Blue, Meowth has appeared in 21 titles over 10 generations. Along the way, it received an Alolan form in Generation 7 and Gigantamax and Galarian forms in Generation 8, keeping it relevant across different competitive metas.

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