Is Pupitar Good in Sword & Shield Playthrough?
Pupitar is the cocoon stage between Larvitar and Tyranitar. Level 55 evolution means you'll carry Pupitar through several gyms if you're raising one. Rock/Ground is passable defensively. Push through to Tyranitar before the Champion Cup.
Larvitar trades roughly evenly with Milo's team.
Larvitar has the type edge here and should clean up Nessa's team.
Larvitar resists most of Kabu's coverage and hits back hard.
Bea's team hits Larvitar's weaknesses hard.
Larvitar trades roughly evenly with Opal's team.
Larvitar has the type edge here and should clean up Gordie's team.
Pupitar trades roughly evenly with Piers's team.
Pupitar trades roughly evenly with Raihan's team.
Pupitar trades roughly evenly with Bede's team.
Tyranitar trades roughly evenly with Leon's team.
Catch Pupitar on Lake of Outrage (walking, Lv 50-52). Sandstorm.
Catch Larvitar on Lake of Outrage (walking, Lv 50-52). Overcast.
Your Pupitar should hit Level 55 before you reach Leon, at typical leveling pace.
How to Get Pupitar in Sword & Shield
You'll want endgame access before hunting Pupitar. Low spawn rates across 2 encounter spots means the location matters. Sort by Best below and target the top-rated area first.
Where To Catch Pupitar in SwSh
The path to Pupitar starts with Larvitar at Lv. 50-65 via walking encounters. 2 catchable stages total, with locations listed for each one below.
Step 1Catch LarvitarRoaring-Sea CavesLv.60-65OverworldShieldRate 10%All WeatherLake of OutrageLv.50-52GrassShieldRate 5%OvercastLake of OutrageLv.50-52GrassShieldRate 5%Intense Sun
Step 2Pupitar ✓Lake of OutrageLv.50-52GrassShieldRate 2%SandstormLake of OutrageLv.55-58OverworldShieldRate 2%Sandstormor evolve from Larvitar (Step 1)
Step 3Evolve into TyranitarBREEDINGAvailableLeave a compatible parent at the Pokemon Day Care to receive a Tyranitar egg.
Pupitar Weakness
Pupitar's Rock/Ground typing leaves it vulnerable to Water, Grass, Ice, Fighting, Ground, and Steel. Water and Grass hits land at 4x, so they're the biggest threat. It shrugs off Electric-type attacks completely. 5 resistances help offset the weaknesses.
| Damage | Types |
|---|---|
| 4x (Critical) | Water, Grass |
| 2x (Weak) | Ice, Fighting, Ground, Steel |
| 0.5x (Resist) | Normal, Fire, Flying, Rock |
| 0.25x (Resist) | Poison |
| 0x (Immune) | Electric |
What is Pupitar Weak Against
FragileBest Pokemon Against Pupitar
 Gyarados Water | B | |
Obtain MethodHoneycalm Island Surfing Available Moves Moves
Damage vs Pupitar View Gyarados builds →Aqua Tail 4x228-269%KO Ice Fang 2x55-65% | ||
 Maractus Grass | C | |
 Roselia GrassPoison | C | |
 Ludicolo WaterGrass | C | |
Available Moves Moves
Damage vs Pupitar View Ludicolo builds →Solar Beam 4x228-269%KO Hydro Pump 4x209-247%KO Mud Shot 2x36-43% | ||
 Bronzong SteelPsychic | C | |
Gyarados Water | B | |
Obtain MethodHoneycalm Island Surfing Available Moves Moves
Damage vs Pupitar View Gyarados builds →Aqua Tail 4x232-273%KO Ice Fang 2x55-66% | ||
Maractus Grass | C | |
Roselia GrassPoison | C | |
Ludicolo WaterGrass | C | |
Available Moves Moves
Damage vs Pupitar View Ludicolo builds →Solar Beam 4x237-279%KO Hydro Pump 4x218-257%KO Mud Shot 2x38-45% | ||
Bronzong SteelPsychic | C | |
Gyarados Water | B | |
Obtain MethodHoneycalm Island Surfing Available Moves Moves
Damage vs Pupitar View Gyarados builds →Aqua Tail 4x224-263%KO Ice Fang 2x54-63% Bulldoze 2x50-59% | ||
Maractus Grass | C | |
 Golisopod BugWater | B | |
Available Moves Moves
Damage vs Pupitar View Golisopod builds →Razor Shell 4x186-220%KO Brick Break 2x62-73% Mud Shot 2x26-31% | ||
 Crawdaunt WaterDark | B | |
Available Moves Moves
Damage vs Pupitar View Crawdaunt builds →Razor Shell 4x178-210%KO Dig 2x63-75% Brick Break 2x59-70% | ||
Roselia GrassPoison | C | |
Gyarados Water | B | |
Obtain MethodHoneycalm Island Surfing Available Moves Moves
Damage vs Pupitar View Gyarados builds →Aqua Tail 4x221-260%KO Ice Fang 2x53-64% Bulldoze 2x50-59% | ||
Golisopod BugWater | B | |
Available Moves Moves
Damage vs Pupitar View Golisopod builds →Liquidation 4x209-247%KO Brick Break 2x61-73% Mud Shot 2x26-31% Icy Wind 2x26-31% | ||
Crawdaunt WaterDark | B | |
Available Moves Moves
Damage vs Pupitar View Crawdaunt builds →Dive 4x193-228%KO Dig 2x64-76% Brick Break 2x60-71% Avalanche 2x48-57% | ||
Maractus Grass | C | |
 Krabby Water | C | |
Available Moves Moves
Damage vs Pupitar View Krabby builds →Crabhammer 4x213-251%KO Dig 2x57-68% Brick Break 2x53-64% Metal Claw 2x36-43% | ||
 Bellossom Grass | C | |
 Roserade GrassPoison | B | |
 Kingler Water | B | |
Available Moves Moves
Damage vs Pupitar View Kingler builds →Dive 4x207-244%KO Hammer Arm 2x86-101%KO Dig 2x69-81% Metal Claw 2x44-51% | ||
Gyarados Water | B | |
Obtain MethodHoneycalm Island Surfing Available Moves Moves
Damage vs Pupitar View Gyarados builds →Aqua Tail 4x226-266%KO Ice Fang 2x54-64% Bulldoze 2x51-60% | ||
Golisopod BugWater | B | |
Available Moves Moves
Damage vs Pupitar View Golisopod builds →Liquidation 4x214-253%KO Brick Break 2x63-74% Mud Shot 2x26-31% Icy Wind 2x26-31% | ||
 Exeggutor GrassPsychic | C | |
Available Moves Moves
Damage vs Pupitar View Exeggutor builds →Solar Beam 4x302-356%KO Stomping Tantrum 2x50-59% | ||
 Leafeon Grass | B | |
Available Moves Moves
Damage vs Pupitar View Leafeon builds →Solar Blade 4x282-332%KO Dig 2x60-71% | ||
 Lilligant Grass | C | |
 Tangrowth Grass | B | |
Available Moves Moves
Damage vs Pupitar View Tangrowth builds →Solar Beam 4x271-320%KO Focus Blast 2x90-107%KO Stomping Tantrum 2x53-62% | ||
Kingler Water | B | |
Available Moves Moves
Damage vs Pupitar View Kingler builds →Crabhammer 4x261-308%KO Hammer Arm 2x87-103%KO Dig 2x70-82% Metal Claw 2x44-52% | ||
Exeggutor GrassPsychic | C | |
Available Moves Moves
Damage vs Pupitar View Exeggutor builds →Solar Beam 4x302-356%KO Stomping Tantrum 2x50-59% | ||
Leafeon Grass | B | |
Available Moves Moves
Damage vs Pupitar View Leafeon builds →Solar Blade 4x282-332%KO Dig 2x60-71% | ||
Lilligant Grass | C | |
Tangrowth Grass | B | |
Available Moves Moves
Damage vs Pupitar View Tangrowth builds →Solar Beam 4x271-320%KO Earthquake 2x70-82% Focus Blast 2x90-107%KO | ||
Kingler Water | B | |
Available Moves Moves
Damage vs Pupitar View Kingler builds →Crabhammer 4x261-308%KO Hammer Arm 2x87-103%KO Dig 2x70-82% Metal Claw 2x44-52% | ||
Exeggutor GrassPsychic | C | |
Available Moves Moves
Damage vs Pupitar View Exeggutor builds →Solar Beam 4x302-356%KO Stomping Tantrum 2x50-59% | ||
Leafeon Grass | B | |
Available Moves Moves
Damage vs Pupitar View Leafeon builds →Solar Blade 4x282-332%KO Dig 2x60-71% | ||
Lilligant Grass | C | |
Tangrowth Grass | B | |
Available Moves Moves
Damage vs Pupitar View Tangrowth builds →Solar Beam 4x271-320%KO Earthquake 2x70-82% Focus Blast 2x90-107%KO | ||
Kingler Water | B | |
Available Moves Moves
Damage vs Pupitar View Kingler builds →Crabhammer 4x261-308%KO Hammer Arm 2x87-103%KO Dig 2x70-82% Metal Claw 2x44-52% | ||
In Sword & Shield, Rillaboom's U-turn hits Pupitar for 48-56%. Swampert threatens a KO with Flip Turn (151-178%). Urshifu's Close Combat also KOs at 230-270%.
 Rillaboom Grass | A | |
Recommended Build AbilityGrassy Surge ItemChoice Band NatureAdamant Moves
Damage vs Pupitar View Rillaboom builds →Knock Off44-52% U Turn48-56% | ||
 Swampert WaterGround | B | |
Recommended Build AbilityTorrent ItemLeftovers NatureAdamant Moves
Damage vs Pupitar View Swampert builds →Earthquake 2x125-147%KO Flip Turn 4x151-178%KO | ||
 Urshifu FightingDark | B | |
Recommended Build AbilityUnseenfist ItemChoice Band NatureJolly Moves
Damage vs Pupitar View Urshifu builds →Close Combat 2x230-270%KO Sucker Punch67-79% U Turn44-53% | ||
 Excadrill GroundSteel | B | |
Recommended Build AbilitySandrush ItemLeftovers NatureJolly Moves
Damage vs Pupitar View Excadrill builds →Earthquake 2x132-155%KO Rapid Spin11-13% | ||
Pupitar Evolutions
Partway through Larvitar's chain. Pupitar still has another evolution ahead before reaching Tyranitar. For breeding, takes forever to hatch with plenty of partners via one egg group. So far, HP got the biggest boost (+20 from Larvitar). The final form adds another 190 stats on top. View every chain in the Evolution Chart.
How to Evolve
SwSh Pupitar Best Moveset
Better stats than Larvitar but still no competitive role. 84 Attack at 51 Speed gives modest physical presence, and AbilityShed Skin clears status naturally. The moveset is a placeholder for Tyranitar's S-tier power, one evolution from the strongest Rock/Dark-type in the game.
Best Build
Pupitar best EVs are HP and Attack
Physical Tank Moveset
- Outrage
- Stealth Rock
- Earthquake
- Rest
Recommended Teammates
Moves List
The natural movepool does the job, but Ancient Power and Curse from the egg pool give Pupitar something extra.
How to Read the Moves Table
Tabs
- Level-Up
- Learned by leveling up.
- TM
- Taught by a Technical Machine.
- Egg
- Inherited via breeding.
- Tutor
- NPC tutor (cost: items, BP, money).
- Reminder
- An NPC reteaches any move this Pokemon could have learned by leveling up.
- Transfer
- Carried over from an older game using Pokemon HOME.
- Event
- Given out through Mystery Gift events.
Visual Signals
CAT (Category)
How the move deals damage and which stats it uses.
A small dot on the icon's corner marks the move as contact. That triggers abilities like Static, Flame Body, Rough Skin, or Iron Barbs, plus items like Rocky Helmet and Sticky Barb.
Tier (S to D)
Each move's competitive rank in RankedBoost's system. TM, Egg, and Tutor sort by tier by default (best first). On Level-Up, click the Tier header to do the same.
PWR (Power)
Base damage. Numbers shown in a type color include STAB (base × 1.5). Hover any colored number to see the math.
— means no power (status moves) or variable power.
Sorting & Filter
Click any column header to sort. Level-Up opens with Lv 1 at the top. TM, Egg, and Tutor open with the highest-tier moves at the top.
Search filters by move name or type. The Filter button limits the list to STAB, Physical, Special, or Status moves.
Level-Up Moves
TM Moves
Egg Moves
Tutor Moves
Base Stats
Even sealed in its shell, it can move freely. Hard and fast, it has outstanding destructive power.
It will not stay still, even while it’s a pupa. It already has arms and legs under its solid shell.
Pupitar Sword & Shield Guide
Pupitar is meant to evolve into Tyranitar. At 410 BST, the stats aren't there for competitive play yet. Pre-evolution Pokemon rarely hold up against fully evolved threats.
In Sword & Shield, watch for Starmie (Water), Exeggutor (Grass), and Cloyster (Ice) when using Pupitar. They all hit it super-effectively with STAB. Starmie is the most dangerous since Water moves deal 4x damage. Fighting, Ground, and Steel-type attackers are also a problem. With 6 weakness types, most competitive teams carry at least one counter.
Shed Skin has a 33% chance of curing any major status ailment after each turn. That's the one you want on Pupitar. It's the only ability Pupitar has.
At base 51 Speed, it won't be moving first often. On offense, Pupitar is a physical attacker with base 84 Attack. Defensively? Enough bulk to take a hit or two.
For Sword & Shield, you can run Pupitar through the first few routes without issues. 410 BST won't carry you far though. Get it to Tyranitar as fast as you can.
Game Availability
Available in 18 titles since its debut in Gold & Silver, Pupitar spans 9 generations of Pokemon games. It's accessible through catching or hatching as a base form in most mainline games.
Click a game to view version-specific details
- Gen 1RB
Red & Blue - Gen 1Y
Yellow - Gen 2GSDebut
Gold & Silver - Gen 2C
Crystal - Gen 3RS
Ruby & Sapphire - Gen 3E
Emerald - Gen 3FRLG
FireRed & LeafGreen - Gen 4DP
Diamond & Pearl - Gen 4Pt
Platinum - Gen 4HGSS
HeartGold & SoulSilver - Gen 5BW
Black & White - Gen 5B2W2
Black 2 & White 2 - Gen 6XY
X & Y - Gen 6ORAS
Omega Ruby & Alpha Sapphire - Gen 7SM
Sun & Moon - Gen 7USUM
Ultra Sun & Ultra Moon - Gen 7LGPE
Let's Go Pikachu & Eevee - Gen 8SwSh
Sword & Shield - Gen 8BDSP
Brilliant Diamond & Shining Pearl - Gen 8PLA
Legends: Arceus - Gen 9SV
Scarlet & Violet - Gen 9LZA
Legends: Z-A - Gen 10WW
Winds & Waves