Mixed
Trick Room
425Average
30Very Slow
CTier

That 4x Fire, Poison, and Flying weakness is something every Parasect user needs to plan around. Moves last in most matchups but can take a hit. Known as the Mushroom Pokemon.

Nothing fancy in Parasect's spread. It leans mixed with Attack out front. And you'll get 3 Attack and Defense stat exp per KO for it. Follows a medium-fast 1M XP curve.

Base Stats
425Above
HP60
C
Attack95
B
Defense80
C
Sp. Atk80
C
Sp. Def80
C
Speed30
F
Total425
Low <60
Avg 60-89
High 90-149
Top 150+
EV YieldDefeating Parasect yields +2 Atk, +1 Def
HPAtk+2Def+1SpASpDSpe
Details
Catch75Challenging•Medium Fast1M XP•1m / 3'03"•29.5kg / 65 lbs•142Base XP
Pokedex Entries

A host-parasite pair in which the parasite mushroom has taken over the host bug. Prefers damp places.

Red / Blue

Parasect Weakness

Fragile

Parasect's Bug/Grass typing leaves it vulnerable to Fire, Poison, Flying, Ice, Bug, and Rock moves. Fire, Poison, and Flying hits land at 4x, so they're the biggest threat. The Bug/Grass typing picks up 5 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
FirePoisonFlying
2xWeaki
IceBugRock
½xResisti
WaterElectricFighting
¼xResisti
GrassGround
0xImmunei
None
STAB (5)i
GrassPoisonWaterGroundRock
6Weak
5Resist
0Immune
Scorei-11
Stealth Rock25% on switch
SpikesGrounded — up to 25%
Toxic SpikesVulnerable
4x Fire — Flamethrower, Fire Blast, Lava Plume
4x Poison — Sludge Bomb, Sludge Wave, Toxic
4x Flying — Brave Bird, Hurricane, Air Slash
Abilities
Effect SporeHas a 30% chance of inflcting either paralysis, poison, or sleep on attacking Pokémon on contact.
Dry SkinCauses 1/8 max HP in damage each turn during strong sunlight, but heals for 1/8 max HP during rain. Increases damage from fire moves to 1.25×, but absorbs water moves, healing for 1/4 max HP.
DampHAPrevents self destruct, explosion, and aftermath from working while the Pokémon is in battle.
Dry Skin grants Water immunity

Evolve Paras at level 24 to get Parasect. At 425 stats, this Bug/Grass type caps the chain without any egg option. The evolution from Paras pushed Parasect to 425 total stats. Special saw the largest single gain at +35.

How to Evolve

2 Forms
Paras
#046Paras
24
Level 24
Parasect
#047Parasect
Stat Comparison 2 Stages
Paras
BugGrass
Parasect
BugGrass
HP
35
60+25
ATK
70
95+25
DEF
55
80+25
SP.ATK
45
60+15
SP.DEF
55
80+25
SPE
25
30+5
BST
285D-Tier
405C-Tier+120
ROLE
Balanced
Trick Room
TYPE
Physical
Physical
Breeding not available · Introduced in Gen 2

Best Build

Utility
Ability
Not in Gen 1
Item
Not in Gen 1
Nature
Not in Gen 1

Best Parasect Moveset

  • SporeUtility
  • Mega DrainSTAB
  • SlashCoverage
  • Swords Dance

Recommended Teammates

Snorlax
SnorlaxDecent
Tauros
TaurosDecent

The level-up pool is slim, so TMs matter here. Parasect's Normal and Ground coverage all comes from technical machines, built on top of Solar Beam and Leech Life for same-type damage. Double-Edge and Hyper Beam are the payoff moves.

Level-Up Moves

Lv 1
Leech Life
2010010Bug
Lv 1
Scratch
4010035Normal
Lv 1
Stun Spore
—7530Grass
Lv 13
Stun Spore
—7530Grass
Lv 20
Leech Life
2010010Bug
Lv 30
Spore
—10015Grass
Lv 39
Slash
7010020Normal
Lv 48
Growth
——20Normal

TM Moves

Src
TM34
Bide+1
——10Normal
TM08
Body Slam
8510015Normal
HM01
Cut
509530Normal
TM28
Dig
10010010Ground
TM32
Double Team
——15Normal
TM10
Double-Edge
12010015Normal
TM15
Hyper Beam
150905Normal
TM21
Mega Drain
4010010Grass
TM31
Mimic
——10Normal
TM20
Rage
2010020Normal
TM33
Reflect
——20Psychic
TM44
Rest
——10Psychic
TM40
Skull Bash
10010010Normal
TM22
Solar Beam
12010010Grass
TM50
Substitute
——10Normal
TM03
Swords Dance
——30Normal
TM09
Take Down
908520Normal
TM06
Toxic
—9010Poison

Egg Moves

Parasect doesn't have any Egg moves

Tutor Moves

Parasect can't learn any Tutor moves

8 encounter spots for Parasect at decent spawn rates starting from mid-game routes. Best and Earliest sort options below help narrow down your approach based on odds vs. Accessibility.

Where To Catch Parasect in Red & Blue

To get Parasect, start by catching Paras through walking encounters at Lv. 8-64. The chain covers 2 catchable stages before reaching the final form.

  1. Paras
    Step 1Catch Paras
    Mt. Moon - 1F
    BlueGrassLv.8UncommonEarlyCave
    EASY
    Mt. Moon - 1F
    RedGrassLv.8UncommonEarlyCave
    EASY
    Mt. Moon - B1F
    BlueGrassLv.10UncommonEarlyCave
    EASY
    Mt. Moon - B1F
    RedGrassLv.10UncommonEarlyCave
    EASY
    Mt. Moon - B2F
    RedGrassLv.10-12UncommonEarlyCave
    EASY
    Mt. Moon - B2F
    BlueGrassLv.10-12UncommonEarlyCave
    EASY
    Safari Zone - East
    RedGrassLv.22UncommonMidFacility
    EASY
    Safari Zone - East
    BlueGrassLv.22UncommonMidFacility
    EASY
    Safari Zone - North
    RedGrassLv.23UncommonMidFacility
    EASY
    Safari Zone - North
    BlueGrassLv.23UncommonMidFacility
    EASY
  2. Parasect
    Step 2Parasect ✓
    Safari Zone - East
    RedGrassLv.25RareMidFacility
    CHALLENGING
    Safari Zone - East
    BlueGrassLv.25RareMidFacility
    CHALLENGING
    Safari Zone - Center
    RedGrassLv.30RareMidFacility
    CHALLENGING
    Safari Zone - Center
    BlueGrassLv.30RareMidFacility
    CHALLENGING
    Cerulean Cave - B1F
    BlueGrassLv.64UncommonPostCave
    EASY
    Cerulean Cave - B1F
    RedGrassLv.64UncommonPostCave
    EASY
    Cerulean Cave - 1F
    BlueGrassLv.52RarePostCave
    CHALLENGING
    Cerulean Cave - 1F
    RedGrassLv.52RarePostCave
    CHALLENGING
    or evolve from Paras (Step 1)

  • Parasect works as a trick room with 425 BST behind it. C-Tier on our list — a situational pick that fills a niche.

  • Watch for Arcanine (Fire), Nidoking (Poison), and Aerodactyl (Flying) when using Parasect. They all hit it super-effectively with STAB. Arcanine is the most dangerous since Fire moves deal 4x damage. Ice, Bug, and Rock-type attackers are also a problem. With 6 weakness types, most competitive teams carry at least one counter. At base 30 Speed, Parasect won't outrun any of these threats so switching to a resist is usually the safer play.

  • Paras evolves into Parasect at level 24. Parasect is the fully evolved form. It sits at 425 BST in its evolved form.

  • Parasect is a mixed attacker — base 95 Attack and 80 Special. Enough bulk to take a hit or two, too. But the speed tells the real story — base 30 Speed is low. Priority moves or Trick Room are the way to go. Fits the trick room role.

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

Present since Red & Blue, Parasect appears in 19 games spanning 9 generations. Gen 1 originals like Parasect have the longest track record of availability in the series.