Special
Balanced
395Low
70Moderate
CTier

Butterfree's Bug/Flying typing gives it an immunity to Ground. The 5 weaknesses are the tradeoff, but that immunity creates real opportunities. It needs some investment to avoid getting outsped. Known as the Butterfly Pokemon.

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
395Avg
HP60
C
Attack45
D
Defense50
D
Sp. Atk90
B
Sp. Def80
C
Speed70
C
Total395
Low <60
Avg 60-89
High 90-149
Top 150+
EV YieldDefeating Butterfree yields +2 SpA, +1 SpD
HPAtkDefSpA+2SpD+1Spe
Details
Catch45Challenging•Medium Fast1M XP•1.1m / 3'07"•32kg / 70.5 lbs•178Base XP
Pokedex Entries

It flits from flower to flower, collecting honey. It can even identify distant flowers in bloom.

Crystal

Butterfree Weakness

Vulnerable

Butterfree is weak to Rock, Fire, Electric, Ice, and Flying-type moves. 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.

Gen II Type Chart
  • Dark and Steel types added — Fairy does not exist yet
  • Moves are Physical or Special based on type, not per move
  • Special stat split into Sp.Atk and Sp.Def
4xCriticali
Rock
2xWeaki
FireElectricIceFlying
½xResisti
Bug
¼xResisti
GrassFighting
0xImmunei
Ground
STAB (5)i
GrassPsychicDarkFightingBug
5Weak
3Resist
1Immune
Scorei-4
Stealth Rock50% on switch
4x Rock — Stone Edge, Rock Slide, Stealth Rock
Abilities
Compound EyesIncreases moves' accuracy to 1.3×.
Tinted LensHADoubles damage inflicted with not-very-effective moves.

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 (+70), bringing the total to 395 stats.

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 23 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)
parasectparasshuckleforretressvenomothgligarariadosbutterfreebeedrillledianyanmavenonat
12 of 23·

For an attacker, Butterfree wants flexible EVs EVs and Leftovers. The a nature nature tilts toward balanced duty, and an ability contributes without taking a move slot.

Best Build

Support
Ability
Not in Gen 2
Item
LeftoversSUSTAIN
Nature
Not in Gen 2

Best Butterfree Moveset

  • Sleep Powder
  • PsychicCoverage
  • Stun Spore
  • Giga Drain

Recommended Teammates

Starmie
StarmieDecent
Beedrill
BeedrillDecent
Ledian
LedianDecent

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

Level-Up Moves

Lv 1
Confusion
5010025Psychic
Lv 10
Confusion
5010025Psychic
Lv 13
Poison Powder
—7535Poison
Lv 14
Stun Spore
—7530Grass
Lv 15
Sleep Powder
—7515Grass
Lv 18
Supersonic
—5520Normal
Lv 23
Whirlwind-6
——20Normal
Lv 28
Gust
4010035Flying
Lv 34
Psybeam
6510020Psychic
Lv 40
Safeguard
——25Normal

TM Moves

Src
TM45
Attract
—10015Normal
TM03
Curse
——10Ghost
TM32
Double Team
——15Normal
TM20
Endure+4
——10Normal
HM05
Flash
—7020Normal
TM21
Frustration
—10020Normal
TM19
Giga Drain
751005Grass
TM10
Hidden Power
6010015Normal
TM15
Hyper Beam
150905Normal
TM50
Nightmare
—10015Ghost
TM17
Protect+4
——10Normal
TM29
Psychic
9010010Psychic
TM44
Rest
——10Psychic
TM27
Return
—10020Normal
TM35
Sleep Talk
——10Normal
TM13
Snore
4010015Normal
TM22
Solar Beam
12010010Grass
TM11
Sunny Day
——5Fire
TM34
Swagger
—8515Normal
TM12
Sweet Scent
—10020Normal
TM39
Swift
60—20Normal
TM06
Toxic
—8510Poison

Egg Moves

Butterfree doesn't have any Egg moves

Tutor Moves

Butterfree can't learn any Tutor moves

Reminder Moves

Src
Rem
Harden
——30Normal
Rem
String Shot
—9540Bug
Rem
Tackle
3510035Normal

A handful of locations for Butterfree with decent spawn rates across early-game routes. The sort toggle below swaps between best odds and earliest access, so you can approach it based on where you are in the game.

Where To Catch Butterfree in Crystal

To get Butterfree, start by catching Caterpie through walking and headbutt encounters at Lv. 3-18. The chain covers 3 catchable stages before reaching the final form.

  1. Caterpie
    Step 1Catch Caterpie
    Route 30
    GrassLv.3-4CommonEarlyRouteMorning/day
    EFFORTLESS
    Route 2
    GrassLv.3CommonEarlyRouteMorning/day
    EFFORTLESS
    Route 31
    GrassLv.4CommonEarlyRouteMorning/day
    EFFORTLESS
    Ilex Forest
    GrassLv.5CommonEarlyForestMorning/day
    EFFORTLESS
    Route 24
    GrassLv.8-10CommonEarlyRouteMorning/day
    EFFORTLESS
    Route 25
    GrassLv.10CommonEarlyRouteMorning/day
    EFFORTLESS
    National Park - Bug Catching Contest
    GrassLv.7-18UncommonEarlyFacility
    EASY
    Ilex Forest
    Headbutting special treesLv.10UncommonEarlyForest
    EASY
    National Park
    GrassLv.10RareEarlyFacilityMorning/day
    CHALLENGING
  2. Metapod
    Step 2Catch or Evolve Metapod
    Ilex Forest
    GrassLv.7UncommonEarlyForestMorning/day
    EASY
    National Park - Bug Catching Contest
    GrassLv.9-18UncommonEarlyFacility
    EASY
    Route 24
    GrassLv.12UncommonEarlyRouteMorning
    EASY
    Route 25
    GrassLv.12UncommonEarlyRouteMorning/day
    EASY
    Ilex Forest
    Headbutting special treesLv.10RareEarlyForest
    CHALLENGING
    or evolve from Caterpie (Step 1)
  3. Butterfree
    Step 3Butterfree ✓
    Route 2
    GrassLv.7UncommonEarlyRouteMorning/day
    EASY
    Ilex Forest
    Headbutting treesLv.10RareEarlyForest
    HARD
    National Park - Bug Catching Contest
    GrassLv.12-15RareEarlyFacility
    CHALLENGING
    Route 24
    GrassLv.14RareEarlyRouteMorning/day
    CHALLENGING
    Route 25
    GrassLv.14RareEarlyRouteMorning/day
    CHALLENGING
    or evolve from Metapod (Step 2)

  • Don't let Butterfree's 395 base stat total fool you. Tinted Lens is what makes it tick — it punches way above its weight class. We rate it C-Tier.

  • 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.

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

  • Butterfree fills the balanced role. It's a special attacker with base 90 Sp. Atk. Base 70 Speed is workable — faster than some, slower than many.

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

Butterfree first appeared in Red & Blue and spans 19 games across 9 generations. It later gained a Gigantamax form in Generation 8, adding new dimensions to its competitive identity.