Special
Balanced
395Low
70Moderate
CTier

Butterfree's Bug/Flying typing gives it an immunity to Ground. The 6 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

In battle, it flaps its wings at high speed to release highly toxic dust into the air.

Red / Blue

Butterfree Weakness

Fragile

Butterfree is weak to Rock, Fire, Electric, Ice, Poison, 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 I Type Chart
  • Only 15 types exist — Dark, Steel, and Fairy are absent
  • Ghost has no effect on Psychic (a known bug, fixed in Gen II)
  • Special stat governs both offense and defense — no Sp.Atk / Sp.Def split
4xCriticali
Rock
2xWeaki
FireElectricIcePoisonFlying
½xResisti
Bug
¼xResisti
GrassFighting
0xImmunei
Ground
STAB (4)i
GrassPoisonFightingBug
6Weak
3Resist
1Immune
Scorei-6
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 evolved form of Caterpie, reached at level 10. A Bug/Flying type at 395 stats that still can't breed. 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 not available · Introduced in Gen 2

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

Best Build

Utility
Ability
Not in Gen 1
Item
Not in Gen 1
Nature
Not in Gen 1

Best Butterfree Moveset

  • Sleep Powder
  • PsychicCoverage
  • Mega Drain
  • Stun Spore

Recommended Teammates

Snorlax
SnorlaxDecent
Golem
GolemDecent
Blastoise
BlastoiseDecent

TMs define Butterfree's movepool. The natural moves cover basics with Bug and Flying STAB, 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 12
Confusion
5010025Psychic
Lv 15
Poison Powder
—7535Poison
Lv 16
Stun Spore
—7530Grass
Lv 17
Sleep Powder
—7515Grass
Lv 21
Supersonic
—5520Normal
Lv 26
Whirlwind-6
——20Normal
Lv 32
Psybeam
6510020Psychic

TM Moves

Src
TM34
Bide+1
——10Normal
TM32
Double Team
——15Normal
TM10
Double-Edge
12010015Normal
TM15
Hyper Beam
150905Normal
TM21
Mega Drain
4010010Grass
TM31
Mimic
——10Normal
TM29
Psychic
9010010Psychic
TM46
Psywave
—10015Psychic
TM20
Rage
2010020Normal
TM02
Razor Wind
8010010Normal
TM33
Reflect
——20Psychic
TM44
Rest
——10Psychic
TM22
Solar Beam
12010010Grass
TM50
Substitute
——10Normal
TM39
Swift
60—20Normal
TM09
Take Down
908520Normal
TM30
Teleport-6
——20Psychic
TM06
Toxic
—9010Poison
TM04
Whirlwind-6
——20Normal

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

Can't catch Butterfree directly. Start with Caterpie at solid rates from the locations below, then evolve at level 10. The 3-stage chain from Caterpie to Butterfree is where the leveling time goes.

How to Obtain Butterfree in Red & Blue

To get Butterfree, start by catching Caterpie through walking encounters at Lv. 3-9. The chain covers 2 catchable stages before reaching the final form.

  1. Caterpie
    Step 1Catch Caterpie
    Viridian Forest
    BlueGrassLv.3-5CommonEarlyForest
    EFFORTLESS
    Route 24
    BlueGrassLv.7CommonEarlyRoute
    EFFORTLESS
    Route 25
    BlueGrassLv.8CommonEarlyRoute
    EFFORTLESS
    Route 2
    BlueGrassLv.3-5UncommonEarlyRoute
    EASY
    Viridian Forest
    RedGrassLv.3RareEarlyForest
    CHALLENGING
    Route 25
    RedGrassLv.8RareEarlyRoute
    CHALLENGING
  2. Metapod
    Step 2Catch or Evolve Metapod
    Viridian Forest
    BlueGrassLv.4-6CommonEarlyForest
    EFFORTLESS
    Route 24
    BlueGrassLv.8UncommonEarlyRoute
    EASY
    Route 25
    BlueGrassLv.9UncommonEarlyRoute
    EASY
    Viridian Forest
    RedGrassLv.4RareEarlyForest
    CHALLENGING
    Route 25
    RedGrassLv.7RareEarlyRoute
    CHALLENGING
    or evolve from Caterpie (Step 1)
  3. Butterfree
    Step 3Butterfree ✓

  • 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, Poison, and Flying-type attackers are also a problem. With 6 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.