Is Caterpie Good in Emerald Playthrough?
Caterpie requires a trade for a Bug type Emerald doesn't need. AbilityShield Dust blocks secondary effects. The goal is Butterfree with AbilityCompound Eyes, but Beautifly fills the same niche natively without the import cost.
Roxanne's Pokemon outpace and outclass Caterpie here.
Brawly's typing presses Caterpie's defenses.
Wattson's Pokemon outpace and outclass Caterpie here.
Flannery's team hits Caterpie's weaknesses hard.
Norman's typing presses Caterpie's defenses.
Winona's Pokemon outpace and outclass Caterpie here.
Tate & Liza's Pokemon outpace and outclass Caterpie here.
Juan's typing presses Caterpie's defenses.
Sidney's Pokemon outpace and outclass Caterpie here.
Phoebe's Pokemon outpace and outclass Caterpie here.
Glacia's Pokemon outpace and outclass Caterpie here.
Drake's Pokemon outpace and outclass Caterpie here.
Wallace's Pokemon outpace and outclass Caterpie here.
Trade
Caterpie cannot be caught in this game. It must be traded in from a compatible game where it appears in the wild. Cross-region trading typically becomes available after defeating the Elite Four.
Recommended Moves
- STARTING (Lv 5)
- LV 5NormalTacklePower 35Accuracy 95%PP 35
How to Get Caterpie in Emerald
Caterpie has no encounters in Emerald. Trade one in if you want it, since this bug skips the Hoenn dex. Wurmple is the bug you will actually trip over on early routes.
How to Obtain Caterpie in E
- Step 1Caterpie ✓CARTRIDGE TRADEfrom FireRed & LeafGreenAvailableCatch in FireRed & LeafGreen via Walking · Viridian Forest, then trade to the current game via link cable.LATER APPEARANCEfrom Red & BlueNot TradeableAppears in Red & Blue via Walking · Viridian Forest. Forward-only transfer — no path back to this game from a later one.LATER APPEARANCEfrom YellowNot TradeableAppears in Yellow via Walking · Viridian Forest. Forward-only transfer — no path back to this game from a later one.LATER APPEARANCEfrom Gold & SilverNot TradeableAppears in Gold & Silver via Headbutt · Route 38. Forward-only transfer — no path back to this game from a later one.LATER APPEARANCEfrom CrystalNot TradeableAppears in Crystal via Walking · Route 24. Forward-only transfer — no path back to this game from a later one.
- Step 2Evolve into Metapod
- Step 3Evolve into Butterfree
How to Get Shiny Caterpie in Emerald
Caterpie skips Hoenn completely, so trade one from FireRed or LeafGreen, where it inches through Viridian Forest; hunt the shiny in that tall grass before sending it into Emerald. See every game where Shiny Caterpie can be hunted
Caterpie Weakness
Type-wise, Caterpie takes extra damage from Fire, Flying, and Rock. Standard number of weaknesses for the Bug typing.
| Damage | Types |
|---|---|
| 2x (Weak) | Fire, Flying, Rock |
| 0.5x (Resist) | Grass, Fighting, Ground |
- Dark and Steel types added — Fairy does not exist yet
- Moves are Physical or Special based on type, not per move
What is Caterpie Weak Against
AvgBest Pokemon Against Caterpie
 Ho-Oh Fire | S | |
Obtain MethodNavel Rock Interact Encounter Available Moves Moves
Damage vs Caterpie View Ho-Oh builds →Overheat 2x438-516%KO Fly 2x183-216%KO | ||
 Blaziken FireFighting | B | |
Obtain MethodEvolve Torchic (Route 101 Gift) Available Moves Moves
Damage vs Caterpie View Blaziken builds →Overheat 2x438-516%KO Aerial Ace 2x98-116%KO Rock Tomb 2x82-96% | ||
 Rayquaza Dragon | S | |
Obtain MethodSky Pillar Interact Encounter Available Moves Moves
Damage vs Caterpie View Rayquaza builds →Overheat 2x382-450%KO Fly 2x208-245%KO Ancient Power 2x119-140%KO | ||
 Camerupt FireGround | C | |
Available Moves Moves
Damage vs Caterpie View Camerupt builds →Eruption 2x451-530%KO Rock Slide 2x104-123%KO | ||
 Typhlosion Fire | C | |
Obtain MethodEvolve Cyndaquil (Littleroot Town Gift) Available Moves Moves
Damage vs Caterpie View Typhlosion builds →Overheat 2x435-512%KO Aerial Ace 2x73-87% | ||
 Altaria Dragon | C | |
Available Moves Moves
Damage vs Caterpie View Altaria builds →Sky Attack 2x218-256%KO Fire Blast 2x173-204%KO | ||
 Houndoom DarkFire | B | |
 Skarmory Steel | A | |
 Torkoal Fire | C | |
 Ninetales Fire | C | |
 Salamence Dragon | S | |
Available Moves Moves
Damage vs Caterpie View Salamence builds →Fly 2x190-223%KO Fire Blast 2x251-295%KO Rock Tomb 2x91-107%KO | ||
 Lugia Psychic | S | |
Obtain MethodNavel Rock Interact Encounter | ||
 Magcargo FireRock | C | |
Available Moves Moves
Damage vs Caterpie View Magcargo builds →Overheat 2x370-435%KO Rock Slide 2x91-108%KO | ||
 Dodrio Normal | B | |
Caterpie Evolutions
Three stages ahead. Caterpie grows into Metapod, then pushes on to Butterfree. Check the evolution methods below. For breeding, quick to hatch with a decent partner pool via one egg group. Evolving adds up to 200 stat points total. View every chain in the Evolution Chart.
How to Evolve
Breeding
Breed Caterpie easily with 37 breeding partners from the Bug egg group.
E Caterpie Best Moveset
Stats near single digits across the board. AbilityShield Dust blocks secondary effects on incoming moves, which is the one useful trait at this stage. Butterfree two evolutions away is the destination.
Best Build
Caterpie best EVs are Attack
Utility Moveset
- String Shot
Recommended Teammates
Moves List
Not a lot to pick from. Caterpie gets Bug STAB for same-type damage, and Normal coverage rounds things out. You're building around what's available rather than choosing from a deep bench.
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
Its voracious appetite compels it to devour leaves bigger than itself without hesitation. It releases a terribly strong odor from its antennae.
Caterpie Emerald Guide
No. Caterpie isn't catchable in Emerald. Catch one in FireRed or LeafGreen, then trade it over.
In Emerald, Caterpie has 195 BST and evolves into Metapod. Compare the two forms before you give either one a team slot.
Game Availability
One of the original 151, Caterpie has appeared in 19 games: most mainline games. From Red & Blue through the latest titles, it's rarely been left out of a regional Pokedex.
Click a game to view version-specific details
- Gen 1RBDebut
Red & Blue - Gen 1Y
Yellow - Gen 2GS
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 7Let's Go
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
Explore
Where to go next after Caterpie.
Keep playing · EmeraldEmerald Tier ListThe best Pokemon ranked tier by tierSee Emerald Tier List