Physical
Trick Room
325Low
25Very Slow
DTier

Grimer sits at the start of its evolution line — not yet at full power, but that changes fast. Most trainers push through to Muk as fast as possible. Only weak to Ground, Psychic, and Bug. Known as the Sludge Pokemon.

HP and Attack carry most of Grimer's stat budget. Speed's the obvious dump stat. Common in the wild and yields 1 HP EV. Follows a medium-fast 1M XP curve.

Base Stats
325Avg
HP80
C
Attack80
C
Defense50
D
Sp. Atk40
D
Sp. Def50
D
Speed25
F
Total325
Low <60
Avg 60-89
High 90-149
Top 150+
EV YieldDefeating Grimer yields +1 HP
HP+1AtkDefSpASpDSpe
Details
Catch190Easy•Medium Fast1M XP•0.9m / 2'11"•30kg / 66.1 lbs•65Base XP
Pokedex Entries

Appears in filthy areas. Thrives by sucking up polluted sludge that is pumped out of factories.

Red / Blue

Grimer Weakness

Vulnerable

Grimer is weak to Ground, Psychic, and Bug-type moves. Standard number of weaknesses for the Poison typing.

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
None
2xWeaki
GroundPsychicBug
½xResisti
GrassFightingPoison
¼xResisti
None
0xImmunei
None
STAB (2)i
GrassBug
3Weak
3Resist
0Immune
Scorei-3
SpikesGrounded — up to 25%
Toxic SpikesAbsorbs on switch
Abilities
StenchHas a 10% chance of making target Pokémon flinch with each hit.
Sticky HoldPrevents a held item from being removed by other Pokémon.
Poison TouchHAHas a 30% chance of poisoning target Pokémon upon contact.

Grimer evolves into Muk, but can't breed. At 325 stats as a Poison type, evolution is the only path. Evolving adds up to 175 stat points total.

How to Evolve

2 Forms
Grimer
#088Grimer
38
Level 38
Muk
#089Muk
Stat Comparison 2 Stages
Grimer
Poison
Muk
Poison
HP
80
105+25
ATK
80
105+25
DEF
50
75+25
SP.ATK
40
65+25
SP.DEF
50
100+50
SPE
25
50+25
BST
325C-Tier
500B-Tier+175
ROLE
Trick Room
Tank
TYPE
Physical
Physical
Breeding not available · Introduced in Gen 2

Best Build

Gen 1 build content has limited support (no abilities, held items, or natures).

Try selecting a different game/generation filter, or check back later.

TMs carry this one. Grimer learns Sludge naturally for STAB, but the offensive range comes almost entirely from technical machines. Normal and Fire and beyond give it real matchup play.

Level-Up Moves

Lv 1
Disable
—5520Normal
Lv 1
Pound
4010035Normal
Lv 30
Poison Gas
—5540Poison
Lv 33
Minimize
——20Normal
Lv 37
Sludge
6510020Poison
Lv 42
Harden
——30Normal
Lv 48
Screech
—8540Normal
Lv 55
Acid Armor
——40Poison

TM Moves

Src
TM34
Bide+1
——10Normal
TM08
Body Slam
8510015Normal
TM32
Double Team
——15Normal
TM47
Explosion
2501005Normal
TM38
Fire Blast
120855Fire
TM21
Mega Drain
4010010Grass
TM31
Mimic
——10Normal
TM20
Rage
2010020Normal
TM44
Rest
——10Psychic
TM36
Self-Destruct
2001005Normal
TM50
Substitute
——10Normal
TM25
Thunder
1107010Electric
TM24
Thunderbolt
9510015Electric
TM06
Toxic
—9010Poison

Egg Moves

Grimer doesn't have any Egg moves

Tutor Moves

Grimer can't learn any Tutor moves

Grimer appears at high spawn rates across 8 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.

Best Locations

Grimer's encounter pool splits between Blue and Red. You've got 8 walking spots at Lv. 30-35 total, but your version determines which ones actually show up.

Pokémon Mansion - 1F
BlueGrassLv.30-32CommonMidBuilding
EFFORTLESS
Pokémon Mansion - 2F
BlueGrassLv.30-34CommonMidBuilding
EFFORTLESS
Pokémon Mansion - 1F
RedGrassLv.30RareMidBuilding
CHALLENGING
Pokémon Mansion - 2F
RedGrassLv.30RareMidBuilding
CHALLENGING
Pokémon Mansion - B1F
BlueGrassLv.31-33CommonLateBuilding
EFFORTLESS
Pokémon Mansion - 3F
BlueGrassLv.31-35CommonLateBuilding
EFFORTLESS
Pokémon Mansion - 3F
RedGrassLv.34RareLateBuilding
CHALLENGING
Pokémon Mansion - B1F
RedGrassLv.35RareLateBuilding
CHALLENGING

  • Grimer is meant to evolve into Muk. At 325 BST, the stats aren't there for competitive play yet. Pre-evolution Pokemon rarely hold up against fully evolved threats.

  • Grimer's biggest threats include Golem (Ground), Starmie (Psychic), and Scyther (Bug), all carrying super-effective STAB moves. At base 25 Speed, Grimer won't outrun any of these threats so switching to a resist is usually the safer play.

  • Grimer can evolve into Muk and Alolan Muk depending on the method. Grimer is the base form in a 3-stage evolutionary line.

  • Base 25 Speed is low. Priority moves or Trick Room are the way to go. On offense, Grimer is a physical attacker with base 80 Attack. Best used as a trick room.

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

Since debuting in Red & Blue, Grimer has appeared in 19 titles over 9 generations. Along the way, it received an Alolan form in Generation 7, keeping it relevant across different competitive metas.