Don't let Kabutops's 495 base stat total fool you. Swift Swim is what makes it tick. It punches way above its weight class. We rate it C-Tier as a wallbreaker.

What is Kabutops weak to?

Watch for Exeggutor (Grass), Raikou (Electric), and Machamp (Fighting) when using Kabutops. They all hit it super-effectively with STAB. Exeggutor is the most dangerous since Grass moves deal 4x damage. Ground-type attackers are also a problem.

What is the best ability for Kabutops?

Run Swift Swim on Kabutops. It's the ability that defines how you build around it and the main reason it holds a competitive niche. Kabutops also gets Battle Armor and Weak Armor, but they don't compare. On wall sets, Swift Swim pairs with Kabutops's base 105 Defense to absorb physical hits on the switch.

What role does Kabutops play in battle?

Kabutops fills the wallbreaker role. It's a physical attacker with base 115 Attack. Base 80 Speed is workable. Faster than some, slower than many. And it's enough bulk to take a hit or two.

What are the best moves for Kabutops?

Run Liquidation, Stone Edge, Swords Dance, and Aqua Jet on Kabutops. Liquidation is the most common pick at 0% usage. Liquidation provides reliable STAB damage.

Kabutops - Weakness, Evolution, Moveset, EVs & Stats

Physical

Wallbreaker

CTier

80Speed · Above Avg

Kabutops Best Moveset

Dropped from A-tier to D as 115 Attack at 80 Speed behind Rock/Water TermStab lost ground in a faster format. AbilitySwift Swim doubles Speed in rain for a devastating physical attacker, but the rain dependency and 60/105/70 bulk limit the moveset outside that narrow condition.

●Gen I — Red, Blue & YellowC

Rock/Water with 115 Attack but no physical Rock or Water STAB in Gen I (Red & Blue). A physical attacker completely disconnected from its own typing.

Had a combined Special stat of 70

SRCMOVETYPECATPWRPOPROLE

Tutor

Swords Dance

Normal—COMMONUtility

Lv 40

Slash

Normal70COMMONCoverage

TM15

Hyper Beam

Normal150COMMONCoverage

HM3

Surf

Water90COMMONSTAB

TM14

Blizzard

Ice110RARECoverage

Kabutops Red & Blue Moves Kabutops Yellow Moves

Experimental

Utility

Ability

Unknown

Item

None

Utility Moveset

Swords Dance
SlashCoverage
Hyper Beam
SurfSTAB

Recommended Teammates

TaurosGood

SnorlaxGood

ChanseyDecent

★Gen II — Gold, Silver & CrystalA

Swords Dance plus Swift Swim made Kabutops a rain sweep threat in Gen II (Gold & Silver). Doubled Speed in rain turned it into a physical wrecking ball.

Best Moves

SRCMOVETYPECATPWRPOPROLE

Lv 65

Ancient Power

Rock60POPULARSTAB

Xfer

Swords Dance

Normal—COMMONUtility

Xfer

Substitute

Normal—COMMONUtility

Egg

Rapid Spin

Normal50COMMONCoverage

TM21

Frustration

Normal—RARECoverage

TM19

Giga Drain

Grass75RARECoverage

HM3

Surf

Water90RARESTAB

Kabutops Gold & Silver Moves Kabutops Crystal Moves

Best Build

Experimental

Utility

Ability

Unknown

Utility Moveset

Ancient PowerSTAB
Swords Dance
SubstituteUtility
Rapid Spin

Recommended Teammates

SkarmoryGood

TyranitarDecent

RhydonDecent

↓Gen III — Ruby, Sapphire & EmeraldB

Swift Swim rain sweeper, but Omastar did the special side better in Gen III (Ruby & Sapphire). Kabutops was the physical rain option.

Received Swift Swim and Battle Armor

SRCMOVETYPECATPWRPOPROLE

Tutor

Rock Slide

Rock75COMMONSTAB

Tutor

Swords Dance

Normal—COMMONUtility

TM31

Brick Break

Fighting75COMMONCoverage

Egg

Flail

Normal—RARECoverage

Lv 37

Endure

Normal—RAREPriority

TM10

Hidden Power (Bug)

Bug60RARECoverage

Kabutops Ruby & Sapphire Moves Kabutops Emerald Moves

Experimental

Physical Setup Sweeper

EVs

Atk

SpD

Spe

Physical Setup Sweeper Moveset

Rock SlideSTAB
Swords Dance
Brick Break
FlailCoverage

Recommended Teammates

KingdraDecent

↑Gen IV — Diamond, Pearl & PlatinumA

Physical Waterfall from the split plus Swords Dance plus Swift Swim in Gen IV (Diamond & Pearl). In rain, Kabutops was one of the scariest physical sweepers around.

Physical/Special split overhauled move damage

SRCMOVETYPECATPWRPOPROLE

HM7

Waterfall

Water80COMMONSTAB

TM71

Stone Edge

Rock100COMMONSTAB

Lv 31

Aqua Jet

Water40COMMONSTAB

TM75

Swords Dance

Normal—COMMONUtility

TM81

X-Scissor

Bug80RARECoverage

Kabutops Diamond & Pearl Moves Kabutops Platinum Moves

Experimental

Physical Setup Sweeper

EVs

Atk

Def

Spe

Physical Setup Sweeper Moveset

WaterfallSTAB
Stone EdgeSTAB
Aqua JetSTAB
Swords Dance

Recommended Teammates

KingdraGood

LudicoloGood

BronzongGood

↓Gen V — Black & White / B2W2B

Drizzle plus Swift Swim ban hurt in Gen V (Black & White). Without permanent rain, Kabutops needed manual Rain Dance, costing a precious turn of setup.

Gained Weak Armor as hidden abilityHidden Abilities became available

SRCMOVETYPECATPWRPOPROLE

TM71

Stone Edge

Rock100COMMONSTAB

Lv 31

Aqua Jet

Water40COMMONSTAB

HM5

Waterfall

Water80COMMONSTAB

TM75

Swords Dance

Normal—COMMONUtility

Egg

Rapid Spin

Normal50RARECoverage

Kabutops Black & White Moves Kabutops Black 2 & White 2 Moves

Experimental

Physical Attacker

EVs

Atk

Spe

Physical Attacker Moveset

Stone EdgeSTAB
Aqua JetSTAB
WaterfallSTAB
Swords Dance

Recommended Teammates

Rotom-WashGood

TyranitarDecent

Landorus-TherianDecent

↓Gen VI — X & Y / ORASC

Rain nerfed to five turns in Gen VI (X & Y). Kabutops couldn't set up Swords Dance AND maintain rain in such a short window.

Fairy type added to the gameMega Evolution became available

SRCMOVETYPECATPWRPOPROLE

HM5

Waterfall

Water80COMMONSTAB

TM71

Stone Edge

Rock100COMMONSTAB

Lv 31

Aqua Jet

Water40COMMONSTAB

Egg

Rapid Spin

Normal50COMMONCoverage

TM75

Swords Dance

Normal—RAREUtility

Tutor

Superpower

Fighting120RARECoverage

Egg

Knock Off

Dark65RARECoverage

Kabutops X & Y Moves Kabutops ORAS Moves

Experimental

Physical Sweeper

EVs

Atk

SpD

Spe

Physical Sweeper Moveset

WaterfallSTAB
Stone EdgeSTAB
Aqua JetSTAB
Rapid Spin

Recommended Teammates

PolitoedGood

FerrothornGood

KingdraGood

↓Gen VII — Sun & Moon / USUMD

Same rain problems in Gen VII (Sun & Moon). The format's power level climbed beyond what manual rain plus physical setup could achieve.

Z-Moves became available

SRCMOVETYPECATPWRPOPROLE

TM71

Stone Edge

Rock100COMMONSTAB

TM75

Swords Dance

Normal—COMMONUtility

Lv 31

Aqua Jet

Water40COMMONSTAB

Tutor

Liquidation

Water85COMMONSTAB

TM98

Waterfall

Water80RARESTAB

Tutor

Superpower

Fighting120RARECoverage

Kabutops Sun & Moon Moves Kabutops Ultra Sun & Ultra Moon Moves

Experimental

Physical Setup Sweeper

Item

Rockiumz

EVs

Atk

Def

Spe

Physical Setup Sweeper Moveset

Stone EdgeSTAB
Swords Dance
Aqua JetSTAB
LiquidationSTAB

Recommended Teammates

PelipperGood

FerrothornDecent

Swampert-MegaDecent

→Gen VIII — Sword & Shield / BDSPD

Power creep was final in Gen VIII (Sword & Shield). Even in lower tiers, Kabutops couldn't consistently set up both rain and Swords Dance.

Gigantamax became availableDynamax became available

SRCMOVETYPECATPWRPOPROLE

TR16

Waterfall

Water80COMMONSTAB

TR0

Swords Dance

Normal—COMMONUtility

Lv 70

Stone Edge

Rock100COMMONSTAB

Xfer

Rapid Spin

Normal50COMMONCoverage

TM43

Brick Break

Fighting75RARECoverage

Lv 15

Aqua Jet

Water40RARESTAB

Kabutops Sword & Shield Moves Kabutops BDSP Moves

Experimental

Physical Setup Sweeper

EVs

Atk

Def

Spe

Physical Setup Sweeper Moveset

WaterfallSTAB
Swords Dance
Stone EdgeSTAB
Rapid Spin

Recommended Teammates

PelipperGood

FerrothornGood

KingdraGood

Kabutops Weakness

Grass, Electric, Fighting, and Ground moves hit Kabutops for super-effective damage. Grass hits land at 4x, so they're the biggest threat. It resists 5 types, giving it decent defensive coverage. Kabutops's physical bulk (base 105 Def) helps cushion physical weakness hits, but special attackers are the bigger threat.

Kabutops Weakness and Resistance Chart
Damage	Types
4x (Critical)	Grass
2x (Weak)	Electric, Fighting, Ground
0.5x (Resist)	Normal, Ice, Poison, Flying
0.25x (Resist)	Fire

What is Kabutops Weak Against

Vulnerable

4Weak

5Resist

0Immune

Score-4

4xCritical

Grass

2xWeak

Electric Fighting Ground

½xResist

Normal Ice Poison Flying

¼xResist

Fire

0xImmune

None

What is Kabutops Strong Against

6Strong

0Resisted

0Immune

Score+6

2xStrong

Fire Ice Ground Flying Bug Rock

½xResisted

None

0xImmune

None

Best Pokemon Against Kabutops

Tyranitar's Stone Edge hits Kabutops for 67-80%.

Alomomola	A
Recommended Build AbilityRegenerator ItemHeavy-Duty Boots NatureRelaxed Moves Flip Turn WishRecovery ProtectPriority ScaldSTAB Damage vs Kabutops Flip Turn 13-15% Scald 15-18% View Alomomola builds →
Tyranitar	B
Recommended Build AbilitySand Stream ItemChoice Band NatureAdamant Moves Knock Off Stone Edge Ice Punch Low Kick Damage vs Kabutops Knock Off 44-52% Stone Edge 67-80% View Tyranitar builds →
Moltres	B
Recommended Build AbilityFlame Body ItemHeavy-Duty Boots NatureBold Moves RoostRecovery FlamethrowerSTAB U Turn Will O Wisp Damage vs Kabutops Flamethrower 10-12% U Turn 17-20% View Moltres builds →
Heatran	B
Recommended Build AbilityFlashfire ItemLeftovers NatureTimid Moves Earth Power Magma Storm Stealth Rock TauntUtility View Heatran builds →
Slowking-Galar
Recommended Build AbilityRegenerator ItemHeavy-Duty Boots NatureSassy Moves Sludge Bomb Chilly Reception Future Sight Thunder Wave View Slowking-Galar builds →

Evolution

Kabutops is the evolved form of Kabuto. Breeding produces Kabuto eggs, and they're slow to hatch. Evolving from Kabuto gave Kabutops the biggest boost in Attack (+35), bringing the total to 495 stats. View every chain in the Evolution Chart.

How to Evolve

2 Forms

#140Kabuto

Level 40

#141Kabutops

Stat Comparison 2 Stages

Kabuto

RockWater

Kabutops

RockWater

60+30

ATK

115+35

DEF

105+15

SP.ATK

65+10

SP.DEF

70+25

SPE

80+25

BST

355D-Tier

495C-Tier+140

ROLE

Balanced

Wallbreaker

TYPE

Physical

Breeding

Moderate

Breed with Kabutops to get Kabuto eggs using 114 partners from the Water1 and Water3 egg groups.

Egg Groups

Water 1 Water 3

Gender

♂87.5%♀12.5%

Hatch Time

30 cycles·7,710 steps

Moderate~8 min with Flame Body

Breed With (best first)

How to Get Kabutops

All 19 games

Kabutops can't be caught in Brilliant Diamond & Shining Pearl. Transfer Kabuto from Red & Blue, Yellow, or Sword & Shield and evolve through the 2-stage line to get it. The step cards below map the full chain.

How to Obtain Kabutops in BDSP

Step 1Obtain Kabuto
CARTRIDGE TRADE
from Sword & Shield
Available
Catch in Sword & Shield via Surfing · Roaring-Sea Caves · Overcast, then trade to the current game via link cable.
LATER APPEARANCE
from Red & Blue
Not Tradeable
Appears in Red & Blue via Gift · Cinnabar Island · Revive Dome Fossil. Forward-only transfer — no path back to this game from a later one.
LATER APPEARANCE
from Yellow
Not Tradeable
Appears in Yellow via Gift · Cinnabar Island · Revive Dome Fossil. Forward-only transfer — no path back to this game from a later one.
LATER APPEARANCE
from FireRed & LeafGreen
Not Tradeable
Appears in FireRed & LeafGreen via Gift · Cinnabar Island · Revive Dome Fossil. Forward-only transfer — no path back to this game from a later one.
LATER APPEARANCE
from Diamond & Pearl
Not Tradeable
Appears in Diamond & Pearl via Gift · Oreburgh City · Revive Dome Fossil. Forward-only transfer — no path back to this game from a later one.
LATER APPEARANCE
from Platinum
Not Tradeable
Appears in Platinum via Gift · Oreburgh City · Revive Dome Fossil. Forward-only transfer — no path back to this game from a later one.
LATER APPEARANCE
from HeartGold & SoulSilver
Not Tradeable
Appears in HeartGold & SoulSilver via Gift · Pewter City · Revive Dome Fossil. Forward-only transfer — no path back to this game from a later one.
Train until Level 40 to evolve into Kabutops
Step 2Kabutops ✓

Base Stats

Kabutops's spread isn't flashy. Attack leads, HP trails, 3 stats clear the bar. Tough to catch and worth 2 Attack EVs, on a medium-fast 1M XP curve.

Base Stats

Above

HP60

Attack115

Defense105

Sp. Atk65

Sp. Def70

Speed80

Total495

Details

Catch Rate

Challenging45 / 255

Growth Rate

Medium Fast1M XP

Height1.3 m

Weight40.5 kg

Base XP173

Abilities

Swift Swim

Doubles Speed during rain.

Battle Armor

Protects against critical hits.

Weak ArmorHidden Ability

Raises Speed and lowers Defense by one stage each upon being hit by a physical move.

EV Yield

HPAtk+2DefSpASpDSpe

Attack training target

Pokedex Entry

Kabutops slices its prey apart and sucks out the fluids. The discarded body parts become food for other Pokémon.

Pokemon Legends: Z-A

Kabutops Guide

Don't let Kabutops's 495 base stat total fool you. Swift Swim is what makes it tick. It punches way above its weight class. We rate it C-Tier as a wallbreaker.
Watch for Exeggutor (Grass), Raikou (Electric), and Machamp (Fighting) when using Kabutops. They all hit it super-effectively with STAB. Exeggutor is the most dangerous since Grass moves deal 4x damage. Ground-type attackers are also a problem.
Run Swift Swim on Kabutops. It's the ability that defines how you build around it and the main reason it holds a competitive niche. Kabutops also gets Battle Armor and Weak Armor, but they don't compare. On wall sets, Swift Swim pairs with Kabutops's base 105 Defense to absorb physical hits on the switch.
Kabutops fills the wallbreaker role. It's a physical attacker with base 115 Attack. Base 80 Speed is workable. Faster than some, slower than many. And it's enough bulk to take a hit or two.
Run Liquidation, Stone Edge, Swords Dance, and Aqua Jet on Kabutops. Liquidation is the most common pick at 0% usage. Liquidation provides reliable STAB damage.

Game Availability

Kabutops has been part of the series since Red & Blue, appearing in 19 titles across all 10 generations. As a Gen 1 original, it's one of the most consistently available Pokemon in the franchise.

Click a game to view version-specific details

Settings

Kabutops

Kabutops Best Moveset

Best Moves

Best Build

Kabutops Weakness

What is Kabutops Weak Against

Best Pokemon Against Kabutops

Evolution

How to Evolve

Breeding

How to Get Kabutops

How to Obtain Kabutops in BDSP

How to Obtain Kabutops in SwSh

How to Obtain Kabutops in LGPE

How to Obtain Kabutops in USUM

Base Stats