Utility
Balanced
266Low
40Very Slow
DTier

Nincada sits at the start of its evolution line — not yet at full power, but that changes fast. Most trainers push through to Ninjask as fast as possible. Part of the Gen 3 roster. Electric moves can't touch it, which offsets the 4 weaknesses somewhat.

Nothing fancy in Nincada's spread. It leans mixed with Defense out front. And you'll get 1 Defense EV per KO for it. Follows a standard growth curve.

Base Stats
266Below
HP31
F
Attack45
D
Defense90
B
Sp. Atk30
F
Sp. Def30
F
Speed40
D
Total266
Low <60
Avg 60-89
High 90-149
Top 150+
EV YieldDefeating Nincada yields +1 Def
HPAtkDef+1SpASpDSpe
Details
Catch255Guaranteed•Erratic600,000 XP•0.5m / 1'08"•5.5kg / 12.1 lbs•53Base XP
Pokedex Entries

It grows underground, sensing its surroundings using antennae instead of its virtually blind eyes.

Brilliant Diamond / Shining Pearl

Nincada Weakness

Avg

Type-wise, Nincada takes extra damage from Fire, Water, Ice, and Flying. Electric moves do nothing thanks to a full immunity. Nincada's physical bulk (base 90 Def) helps cushion physical weakness hits, but special attackers are the bigger threat.

4xCriticali
None
2xWeaki
FireWaterIceFlying
½xResisti
FightingPoisonGround
¼xResisti
None
0xImmunei
Electric
STAB (8)i
GrassPsychicDarkFireElectricPoisonRockSteel
4Weak
3Resist
1Immune
Scorei-2
SpikesGrounded — up to 25%
Toxic SpikesVulnerable
Abilities
Compound EyesIncreases moves' accuracy to 1.3×.
Run AwayHAEnsures success fleeing from wild battles.

Nincada can evolve into Ninjask and Shedinja. Nincada sits before the split, so check the evolution methods below to pick your path. Evolving adds up to 190 stat points total.

How to Evolve

2 Evolutions
Nincada
#290Nincada
Ninjask
#291NinjaskLevel 20
Shedinja
#292ShedinjaLevel 20
Stat Comparison 3 Stages
Nincada
BugGround
Ninjask
BugFlying
Shedinja
BugGhost
HP
31
61+30
1-30
ATK
45
90+45
90+45
DEF
90
45-45
45-45
SP.ATK
30
50+20
30
SP.DEF
30
50+20
30
SPE
40
160+120
40
BST
266D-Tier
456C-Tier+190
236C-Tier-30
ROLE
Balanced
Pivot
Trick Room
TYPE
Utility
Physical
Physical
Breeding
Very Easy

Breed Nincada easily from the Bug egg group. Pass egg moves like Bug Bite, Bug Buzz, Endure and 5 more to offspring.

Egg Groups
Bug
Gender
♂50.0%♀50.0%
Hatch Time
15 cycles·3,855 steps
Quick~4 min with Flame Body
Egg Moves
8moves

Nothing fancy here. Nincada builds around Air Balloon for temporary Ground immunity, Mild nature for the right stat lean, and max Sp. Atk and Speed EVs. Compoundeyes does its job quietly.

Best Build

Special Attacker
Ability
Compoundeyes
Item
Air Balloon
Nature
Mild+SPA
EVs

Best Nincada Moveset

  • Sleep Talk
  • Hone Claws
  • ConfideUtility
  • Unknown

Recommended Teammates

Golisopod
GolisopodExcellent
Armaldo
ArmaldoExcellent

The egg pool carries weight here. Bug Bite and Bug Buzz aren't available any other way for Nincada, and they meaningfully change what it threatens. Stack those on top of Bug Buzz and Dig for solid options.

Level-Up Moves

Lv 1
Harden
——30Normal
Lv 1
Scratch
4010035Normal
Lv 5
Absorb
4010025Grass
Lv 9
Sand Attack
—10015Ground
Lv 13
Fury Swipes
188015Normal
Lv 17
Mud-Slap
2010010Ground
Lv 21
Metal Claw
509535Steel
Lv 25
Mind Reader
——5Normal
Lv 29
Bide+1
——10Normal
Lv 33
False Swipe
4010040Normal
Lv 37
Dig
8010010Ground

TM Moves

Src
TM40
Aerial Ace
60—20Flying
TM100
Confide
——20Normal
TM32
Double Team
——15Normal
TM42
Facade
7010020Normal
TM54
False Swipe
4010040Normal
TM21
Frustration
—10020Normal
TM10
Hidden Power
6010015Normal
TM28
Leech Life
8010010Bug
TM17
Protect+4
——10Normal
TM44
Rest
——10Psychic
TM27
Return
—10020Normal
TM48
Round
6010015Normal
TM37
Sandstorm
——10Rock
TM30
Shadow Ball
8010015Ghost
TM88
Sleep Talk
——10Normal
TM22
Solar Beam
20010010Grass
TM90
Substitute
——10Normal
TM11
Sunny Day
——5Fire
TM87
Swagger
—8515Normal
TM06
Toxic
—9010Poison
TM81
X-Scissor
8010015Bug

Egg Moves

Src
Egg
Bug Bite
6010020Bug
Egg
Bug Buzz
9010010Bug
Egg
Endure+4
——10Normal
Egg
Feint Attack
60—20Dark
Egg
Final Gambit
—1005Fighting
Egg
Gust
4010035Flying
Egg
Night Slash
7010015Dark
Egg
Silver Wind
601005Bug

Tutor Moves

Src
Tutor
Bug Bite
6010020Bug
Tutor
Giga Drain
7510010Grass
Tutor
Snore
5010015Normal
Tutor
Spite
—10010Ghost

Transfer Moves

Src
Gen 6
Cut
509530Normal
Gen 3
Double-Edge
12010015Normal
Gen 6
Flash
—10020Normal
Gen 4
Fury Cutter
409520Bug
Gen 6
Hone Claws
——15Dark
Gen 3
Mimic
——10Normal
Gen 4
Natural Gift
—10015Normal
Gen 6
Secret Power
7010020Normal
Gen 4
String Shot
—9540Bug
Gen 6
Struggle Bug
5010020Bug

Nincada can't be caught in Ultra Sun & Ultra Moon. Bring it over from Ruby, Emerald, or Brilliant Diamond instead. The encounter info below covers the source games.

Nincada is not available as a wild encounter in this game.

Also found in:

RubyEmeraldDiamondPlatinumHeartGoldX

  • At 266 BST, Nincada is firmly in pre-evolution territory. Evolve it into Ninjask before bringing it to any serious fight.

  • Nincada's biggest threats include Blaziken (Fire), Milotic (Water), and Cloyster (Ice), all carrying super-effective STAB moves. Flying-type attackers are also a problem. At base 40 Speed, Nincada won't outrun any of these threats so switching to a resist is usually the safer play.

  • Nincada can evolve into Ninjask and Shedinja depending on the method. Nincada is the base form in a 3-stage evolutionary line.

  • Compound Eyes is the go-to ability for Nincada. It increases moves' accuracy to 1.3×. Its hidden ability Run Away can work in specific setups.

  • Nincada is leaning toward the physical side (base 45 Attack). Fragile — can't afford to take many hits, too. But the speed tells the real story — base 40 Speed is low. Priority moves or Trick Room are the way to go.

  • Nincada appears in 14 games, including Ruby & Sapphire, FireRed & LeafGreen, and Emerald.

Debuting in Ruby & Sapphire, Nincada appears in 14 games across 7 generations. A reliable presence in a solid number of games, typically found through catching or hatching as a base form.