Physical
Balanced
365Low
65Moderate
DTier

Mid-stage Pokemon like Nidorino rarely see competitive play outside of special formats. It's a waypoint on the road to Nidoking, which is where the real potential kicks in. Only weak to Ground and Psychic. Known as the Poison Pin Pokemon.

Nidorino's stats barely vary. 0 sit in respectable range with no real gaps. It's a blank slate for EV investment. Worth 2 Attack EVs, 1.06M XP medium-slow curve to max.

Base Stats
365Avg
HP61
C
Attack72
C
Defense57
D
Sp. Atk55
D
Sp. Def55
D
Speed65
C
Total365
Low <60
Avg 60-89
High 90-149
Top 150+
EV YieldDefeating Nidorino yields +2 Atk
HPAtk+2DefSpASpDSpe
Details
Catch120Moderate•Medium Slow1.06M XP•0.9m / 2'11"•19.5kg / 43 lbs•128Base XP
Pokedex Entries

It has a violent disposition and stabs foes with its horn, which oozes venom upon impact.

Brilliant Diamond / Shining Pearl

Nidorino Weakness

Good

Ground and Psychic-type moves hit Nidorino for super-effective damage. It resists 5 types, giving it decent defensive coverage. Only 2 weaknesses makes it relatively easy to build around defensively.

4xCriticali
None
2xWeaki
GroundPsychic
½xResisti
GrassFightingPoisonBugFairy
¼xResisti
None
0xImmunei
None
STAB (2)i
GrassFairy
2Weak
5Resist
0Immune
Scorei+1
SpikesGrounded — up to 25%
Toxic SpikesAbsorbs on switch
Abilities
Poison PointHas a 30% chance of poisoning attacking Pokémon on contact.
RivalryIncreases damage inflicted to 1.25× against Pokémon of the same gender, but decreases damage to 0.75× against the opposite gender.
HustleHAStrengthens physical moves to inflict 1.5× damage, but decreases their accuracy to 0.8×.

Nidorino is partway through a three-stage line between Nidoran♂ (male) and Nidoking. The chain involves an evolution item, so it's not a straightforward grind. So far, Defense got the biggest boost (+17 from Nidoran M). The final form adds another 140 stats on top.

How to Evolve

3 Forms
Nidoran♂ (male)
#032Nidoran♂ (male)
16
Level 16
Nidorino
#033Nidorino
Moon Stone
Nidoking
#034Nidoking
Stat Comparison 3 Stages
Nidoran♂ (male)
Poison
Nidorino
Poison
Nidoking
PoisonGround
HP
46
61+15
81+20
ATK
57
72+15
102+30
DEF
40
57+17
77+20
SP.ATK
40
55+15
85+30
SP.DEF
40
55+15
75+20
SPE
50
65+15
85+20
BST
273D-Tier
365D-Tier+92
505C-Tier+140
ROLE
Balanced
Balanced
Attacker
TYPE
Utility
Physical
Mixed
Breeding
Moderate

Breed with Nidorino to get Nidoran M eggs using 278 partners from the Ground and Monster egg groups.

Egg Groups
GroundMonster
Gender
♂100.0%
Hatch Time
20 cycles·5,140 steps
Quick~5 min with Flame Body
Breed With (best first)
raichupikachunidokinggolduckampharosvenusaurcharizardblastoisemeganiumferaligatrsceptileswampert
12 of 278·

The recommended build leans into Nidorino's strengths as a special attacker. Yacheberry provides extra utility, and max HP and Sp. Atk EVs back that up. Hustle rounds out the package.

Best Build

Special Tank
Ability
Hustle
Item
YacheberryRECOVERY
Nature
Rash+SPA
EVs

Best Nidorino Moveset

  • Echoed Voice
  • Sludge BombSTAB
  • Ice Beam
  • Shadow Claw

Recommended Teammates

Inteleon
InteleonGood
Cobalion
CobalionGood
Sandaconda
SandacondaGood
All 19 games

Coverage runs deep. Nidorino can hit 10 types beyond STAB, including Flying and Normal. The offense anchors on Sludge Bomb and Poison Jab while TMs handle everything else.

Level-Up Moves

Lv 1
Focus Energy
——30Normal
Lv 1
Leer
—10030Normal
Lv 1
Peck
3510035Flying
Lv 1
Poison Sting
1510035Poison
Lv 15
Fury Attack
158520Normal
Lv 22
Toxic Spikes
——20Poison
Lv 29
Double Kick
3010030Fighting
Lv 36
Horn Attack
6510025Normal
Lv 43
Helping Hand+5
——20Normal
Lv 50
Toxic
—9010Poison
Lv 57
Flatter
—10015Dark
Lv 64
Poison Jab
8010020Poison
Lv 71
Earth Power
9010010Ground

TM Moves

Src
TM45
Attract
—10015Normal
TM14
Blizzard
110705Ice
TM93
Cut
509530Normal
TM28
Dig
8010010Ground
TM32
Double Team
——15Normal
TM58
Endure+4
——10Normal
TM42
Facade
7010020Normal
TM13
Ice Beam
9010010Ice
TM23
Iron Tail
1007515Steel
TM84
Poison Jab
8010020Poison
TM17
Protect+4
——10Normal
TM18
Rain Dance
——5Water
TM44
Rest
——10Psychic
TM98
Rock Smash
4010015Fighting
TM65
Shadow Claw
7010015Ghost
TM34
Shock Wave
60—20Electric
TM82
Sleep Talk
——10Normal
TM36
Sludge Bomb
9010010Poison
TM96
Strength
8010015Normal
TM90
Substitute
——10Normal
TM11
Sunny Day
——5Fire
TM87
Swagger
—8515Normal
TM46
Thief
6010025Dark
TM25
Thunder
1107010Electric
TM24
Thunderbolt
9010015Electric
TM06
Toxic
—9010Poison
TM03
Water Pulse
6010020Water

Egg Moves

Nidorino doesn't have any Egg moves

Tutor Moves

Nidorino can't learn any Tutor moves
All 19 games

Nidorino appears at decent spawn rates across 20 spots in mid-game routes. Sort by Best below if you want the highest rate, or Earliest if you want the quickest access point in your playthrough.

Where To Catch Nidorino in Brilliant Diamond & Shining Pearl

Nidoran♂ (male) is your first catch on the way to Nidorino. You'll find walking and special encounters from Lv. 2-63 across 38 total spots in the chain.

  1. Nidoran♂ (male)
    Step 1Catch Nidoran♂ (male)
    Route 201
    Shining PearlUsing PokeRadarLv.320%EarlyRoute
    CHALLENGING
    Route 201
    Brilliant DiamondUsing PokeRadarLv.22%EarlyRoute
    LEGENDARY
    Bogsunk Cavern
    Brilliant DiamondGrassLv.58-63PostSwampPost-game
    Bogsunk Cavern
    Shining PearlGrassLv.58-63PostSwampPost-game
    Dazzling Cave
    Brilliant DiamondGrassLv.58-63PostCavePost-game
    Dazzling Cave
    Shining PearlGrassLv.58-63PostCavePost-game
    Grassland Cave
    Shining PearlGrassLv.58-63PostCavePost-game
    Grassland Cave
    Brilliant DiamondGrassLv.58-63PostCavePost-game
    Riverbank Cave
    Brilliant DiamondGrassLv.58-63PostCavePost-game
    Riverbank Cave
    Shining PearlGrassLv.58-63PostCavePost-game
    Stargleam Cavern
    Brilliant DiamondGrassLv.58-63PostCavePost-game
    Stargleam Cavern
    Shining PearlGrassLv.58-63PostCavePost-game
    Still-Water Cavern
    Brilliant DiamondGrassLv.58-63PostCavePost-game
    Still-Water Cavern
    Shining PearlGrassLv.58-63PostCavePost-game
    Sunlit Cavern
    Brilliant DiamondGrassLv.58-63PostCavePost-game
    Sunlit Cavern
    Shining PearlGrassLv.58-63PostCavePost-game
    Swampy Cave
    Brilliant DiamondGrassLv.58-63PostSwampPost-game
    Swampy Cave
    Shining PearlGrassLv.58-63PostSwampPost-game
  2. Nidorino
    Step 2Nidorino ✓
    Valor Lakefront
    Shining PearlUsing PokeRadarLv.21-2220%MidWater
    CHALLENGING
    Route 221
    Shining PearlUsing PokeRadarLv.2920%MidRoute
    CHALLENGING
    Valor Lakefront
    Brilliant DiamondUsing PokeRadarLv.222%MidWater
    LEGENDARY
    Route 221
    Brilliant DiamondUsing PokeRadarLv.302%MidRoute
    LEGENDARY
    Bogsunk Cavern
    Brilliant DiamondGrassLv.58-63PostSwampPost-game
    Bogsunk Cavern
    Shining PearlGrassLv.58-63PostSwampPost-game
    Dazzling Cave
    Brilliant DiamondGrassLv.58-63PostCavePost-game
    Dazzling Cave
    Shining PearlGrassLv.58-63PostCavePost-game
    Grassland Cave
    Brilliant DiamondGrassLv.58-63PostCavePost-game
    Grassland Cave
    Shining PearlGrassLv.58-63PostCavePost-game
    Riverbank Cave
    Brilliant DiamondGrassLv.58-63PostCavePost-game
    Riverbank Cave
    Shining PearlGrassLv.58-63PostCavePost-game
    Stargleam Cavern
    Brilliant DiamondGrassLv.58-63PostCavePost-game
    Stargleam Cavern
    Shining PearlGrassLv.58-63PostCavePost-game
    Still-Water Cavern
    Brilliant DiamondGrassLv.58-63PostCavePost-game
    Still-Water Cavern
    Shining PearlGrassLv.58-63PostCavePost-game
    Sunlit Cavern
    Brilliant DiamondGrassLv.58-63PostCavePost-game
    Sunlit Cavern
    Shining PearlGrassLv.58-63PostCavePost-game
    Swampy Cave
    Brilliant DiamondGrassLv.58-63PostSwampPost-game
    Swampy Cave
    Shining PearlGrassLv.58-63PostSwampPost-game
    or evolve from Nidoran♂ (male) (Step 1)

  • Nidorino isn't fully evolved, so it's not built for competitive play. You'll want to evolve it into Nidoking to unlock its full potential. At 365 BST, it's a stepping stone rather than a team anchor.

  • Watch for Rhydon (Ground) and Alakazam (Psychic) when using Nidorino. They all hit it super-effectively with STAB. Only 2 weaknesses means fewer dedicated counters to worry about.

  • Nidoran M evolves into Nidorino at level 16. Nidorino evolves into Nidoking using a Moon Stone. Nidorino is a middle-stage evolution in the Nidoran M line.

  • Poison Point has a 30% chance of poisoning attacking Pokémon on contact — that's the one you want on Nidorino. Hustle is the hidden ability. Niche, but it has its uses. Rivalry works too if your team needs something different.

  • Nidorino fills the balanced role. It's a physical attacker with base 72 Attack. At base 65 Speed, it won't be moving first often.

  • Nidorino appears in 19 games, including Yellow, Red & Blue, and Gold & Silver.

Nidorino has been part of the series since Red & Blue, appearing in 19 titles across all 9 generations. As a Gen 1 original, it's one of the most consistently available Pokemon in the franchise.