Mixed
Balanced
405Average
60Moderate
DTier

Ivysaur sits in the middle of its evolution line — stronger than Bulbasaur but not yet at full power. Most trainers push through to Venusaur as fast as possible. Watch the Bug matchup though — quadruple damage means one hit can end it. Known as the Seed Pokemon.

You won't find a real weakness in Ivysaur's stat line. It's well-rounded for the Seed Pokemon, and what it does with that depends on moveset and items. Yields 2 Special and Special stat exp, on a 1.06M XP medium-slow curve.

Base Stats
405Above
HP60
C
Attack62
C
Defense63
C
Sp. Atk80
C
Sp. Def80
C
Speed60
C
Total405
Low <60
Avg 60-89
High 90-149
Top 150+
EV YieldDefeating Ivysaur yields +1 SpA, +1 SpD
HPAtkDefSpA+1SpD+1Spe
Details
Catch45Challenging•Medium Slow1.06M XP•1m / 3'03"•13kg / 28.7 lbs•142Base XP
Pokedex Entries

The bulb on its back grows by drawing energy. It gives off an aroma when it is ready to bloom.

Yellow

Ivysaur Weakness

Fragile

Type-wise, Ivysaur takes extra damage from Bug, Fire, Ice, Flying, and Psychic. Watch out for Bug attacks, those deal 4x damage. The Grass/Poison typing picks up 4 resistances to work with.

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
Bug
2xWeaki
FireIceFlyingPsychic
½xResisti
WaterElectricFighting
¼xResisti
Grass
0xImmunei
None
STAB (5)i
WaterGroundRockGrassBug
5Weak
4Resist
0Immune
Scorei-7
SpikesGrounded — up to 25%
Toxic SpikesAbsorbs on switch
4x Bug — U-turn, Bug Buzz, Megahorn
Abilities
OvergrowStrengthens grass moves to inflict 1.5× damage at 1/3 max HP or less.
ChlorophyllHADoubles Speed during strong sunlight.

This Grass/Poison-type links Bulbasaur to Venusaur. Ivysaur has 405 stats but sits in the Undiscovered egg group. HP has grown the most so far (+15), but there's still another 120 stats to gain in the final evolution.

How to Evolve

3 Forms
Bulbasaur
#001Bulbasaur
16
Level 16
Ivysaur
#002Ivysaur
32
Level 32
Venusaur
#003Venusaur
Stat Comparison 3 Stages
Bulbasaur
GrassPoison
Ivysaur
GrassPoison
Venusaur
GrassPoison
HP
45
60+15
80+20
ATK
49
62+13
82+20
DEF
49
63+14
83+20
SP.ATK
65
80+15
100+20
SP.DEF
65
80+15
100+20
SPE
45
60+15
80+20
BST
318C-Tier
405D-Tier+87
525B-Tier+120
ROLE
Balanced
Balanced
Attacker
TYPE
Utility
Special
Mixed
Breeding not available · Introduced in Gen 2

Best Build

Support
Ability
Not in Gen 1
Item
Not in Gen 1
Nature
Not in Gen 1

Best Ivysaur Moveset

  • Razor LeafSTAB
  • Sleep PowderSTAB
  • Mega DrainSTAB
  • Leech SeedSTAB

Recommended Teammates

Squirtle
SquirtleGood
Wartortle
WartortleGood
Bulbasaur
BulbasaurGood

Most of Ivysaur's flexibility comes from TMs. Same-type output runs through Solar Beam and Razor Leaf, but Normal and the rest of the TM pool push it from predictable to genuinely threatening.

Level-Up Moves

Lv 1
Growl
—10040Normal
Lv 1
Leech Seed
—9010Grass
Lv 1
Tackle
3510035Normal
Lv 7
Leech Seed
—9010Grass
Lv 13
Vine Whip
4510025Grass
Lv 22
Poison Powder
—7535Poison
Lv 30
Razor Leaf
559525Grass
Lv 38
Growth
——20Normal
Lv 46
Sleep Powder
—7515Grass
Lv 54
Solar Beam
12010010Grass

TM Moves

Src
TM34
Bide+1
——10Normal
TM08
Body Slam
8510015Normal
HM01
Cut
509530Normal
TM32
Double Team
——15Normal
TM10
Double-Edge
12010015Normal
TM21
Mega Drain
4010010Grass
TM31
Mimic
——10Normal
TM20
Rage
2010020Normal
TM33
Reflect
——20Psychic
TM44
Rest
——10Psychic
TM22
Solar Beam
12010010Grass
TM50
Substitute
——10Normal
TM03
Swords Dance
——30Normal
TM09
Take Down
908520Normal
TM06
Toxic
—9010Poison

Egg Moves

Ivysaur doesn't have any Egg moves

Tutor Moves

Ivysaur can't learn any Tutor moves

Can't catch Ivysaur directly. Start with Bulbasaur but it's a rare spawn from the locations below, then evolve at level 16. The 2-stage line from Bulbasaur to Ivysaur is where the leveling time goes.

How to Obtain Ivysaur in Yellow

  1. Bulbasaur
    Step 1Catch Bulbasaur
    Cerulean City
    Gift from NPCLv.10LimitedEarlyCity
    MODERATE
  2. Ivysaur
    Step 2Ivysaur ✓

  • At 405 BST, Ivysaur is firmly in pre-evolution territory. Evolve it into Venusaur before bringing it to any serious fight.

  • Ivysaur's biggest threats include Scyther (Bug), Charizard (Fire), and Cloyster (Ice), all carrying super-effective STAB moves. Scyther is the most dangerous since Bug moves deal 4x damage. Flying and Psychic-type attackers are also a problem. With 5 weakness types, most competitive teams carry at least one counter.

  • Bulbasaur evolves into Ivysaur at level 16. Ivysaur evolves into Venusaur at level 32. Ivysaur is a middle-stage evolution in the Bulbasaur line.

  • Ivysaur is a mixed attacker — base 62 Attack and 80 Special. Enough bulk to take a hit or two, too. But the speed tells the real story — at base 60 Speed, it won't be moving first often.

  • Ivysaur appears in 21 games, including Yellow, Red & Blue, and Gold & Silver.

Present since Red & Blue, Ivysaur appears in 21 games spanning 9 generations. Gen 1 originals like Ivysaur have the longest track record of availability in the series.