Is Pikachu Good in HeartGold & SoulSilver Playthrough?
Viridian Forest catch in the Kanto postgame. HGSS brings back the walking companion feature, so Pikachu follows you around like Yellow. But by the Kanto gyms, the team is locked in. A nostalgic pick, not a practical one.
Falkner's Pokemon outpace and outclass Pichu here.
Bugsy's Pokemon outpace and outclass Pichu here.
Pichu trades roughly evenly with Whitney's team.
Raichu has the type edge here and should clean up Morty's team.
Raichu has the type edge here and should clean up Chuck's team.
Raichu has the type edge here and should clean up Jasmine's team.
Raichu has the type edge here and should clean up Pryce's team.
Raichu trades roughly evenly with Clair's team.
Raichu has the type edge here and should clean up Brock's team.
Raichu has the type edge here and should clean up Misty's team.
Raichu has the type edge here and should clean up Lt. Surge's team.
Raichu trades roughly evenly with Erika's team.
Raichu has the type edge here and should clean up Janine's team.
Raichu has the type edge here and should clean up Sabrina's team.
Raichu has the type edge here and should clean up Blaine's team.
Raichu has the type edge here and should clean up Blue's team.
Raichu resists most of Will's coverage and hits back hard.
Raichu has the type edge here and should clean up Koga's team.
Raichu trades roughly evenly with Bruno's team.
Raichu has the type edge here and should clean up Karen's team.
Raichu has the type edge here and should clean up Lance's team.
Catch Pichu
Catch Pichu in Ilex Forest (interact, Lv 30, limited). Requires Pikachu-colored Pichu in party. Bring the event Pikachu-colored Pichu to Ilex Forest to encounter the Spiky-eared Pichu.
Recommended Moves
- STARTING (Lv 30)
- LV 30ElectricThunder ShockPower 60Accuracy 100%PP 30
- After Bugsy
- TM25ElectricThunderPower 180Accuracy 70%PP 10Goldenrod Department Store
- TM24ElectricThunderboltPower 143Accuracy 100%PP 15Goldenrod Game Corner
- TUTORNormalHeadbuttPower 70Accuracy 100%PP 15Ilex Forest
- After Morty
- TM57ElectricCharge BeamPower 75Accuracy 90%PP 10Olivine City
- After Jasmine
- TM23SteelIron TailPower 100Accuracy 75%PP 15Prize for defeating Jasmine
- TM43NormalSecret PowerPower 70Accuracy 100%PP 20Lake of Rage
- TM10NormalHidden PowerPower 60Accuracy 100%PP 15Lake of Rage
Evolve Pichu to Raichu
Pikachu evolves into Raichu with a Thunder Stone. You can usually obtain this item before you reach Morty.
Recommended Moves
- STARTING (Lv 19)
- LV 19ElectricThunderboltPower 143Accuracy 100%PP 15
- After Bugsy
- TM25ElectricThunderPower 180Accuracy 70%PP 10Goldenrod Department Store
- TM15NormalHyper BeamPower 150Accuracy 90%PP 5Goldenrod Department Store
- TM52FightingFocus BlastPower 120Accuracy 70%PP 5Goldenrod Department Store
- TM28GroundDigPower 80Accuracy 100%PP 10National Park
- After Whitney
- HM04NormalStrengthPower 80Accuracy 100%PP 15Gift from a Hiker on Route 42
- After Chuck
- TM01FightingFocus PunchPower 150Accuracy 100%PP 20Prize for defeating Chuck
- After Jasmine
- TM23SteelIron TailPower 100Accuracy 75%PP 15Prize for defeating Jasmine
How to Get Pikachu in HeartGold & SoulSilver
Pikachu is a rare catch in the Viridian area at low levels, blinking through the grass and Forest. There is also an in-game trade in Saffron City, where an NPC swaps a Pikachu of a different language origin, handy for breeding tricks.
Wild Pikachu may be holding when caught:
Oran Berry (50% chance) It may be used or held by a Pokemon to heal the user by just 10 HP.
Light Ball (5% chance) An item to be held by PIKACHU. It is a puzzling orb that raises the Attack and Sp. Atk stat.2 locations to catch Pikachu1 location to catch Pichu
Encountered via tall grass encounters
Badge 8Catch Pichu at any of the 1 location below, then level it up with high friendship — it evolves into Pikachu.
Badge 2Where To Catch Pikachu in HGSS
Pichu is your first catch on the way to Pikachu. You'll find fixed and walking encounters from Lv. 4-30 across 8 total spots in the chain.
- Step 2Pikachu ✓Viridian ForestLv.4-7GrassRate 6%Morning/dayViridian ForestLv.4GrassRate 5%NightSaffron CityIn-game tradeLimitedTrade for (give Pikachu)or evolve from Pichu (Step 1)
- Step 3Evolve into Raichu
Bring the right balls: check Pikachu catch odds in the HeartGold & SoulSilver Catch Rate Calculator before you throw.
How to Get Shiny Pikachu in HeartGold & SoulSilver
Pikachu scampers through Viridian Forest, so breed it Masuda-style with a foreign-language parent at 1 in 1,638. Compare Shiny Pikachu odds across every game
Shiny Pikachu Evolution
3 Forms
HeartGold & SoulSilver Shiny Pikachu Calculator
3 MethodsThe best route is Masuda Method, about 1 in 1,639 on each try.
Masuda Method: Breed with a parent from a different-language game. Works on any breedable line.
Full Odds: Walk through grass, surf, or fish. Every encounter is its own independent shiny roll.
Soft Reset: Save in front of a static, gift, or legendary encounter, then reset until it sparkles.
How many you have done, or plan to do.
| Chance | Encounters | Time |
|---|---|---|
| 10%lucky few | 173-- | -- |
| 25%one in four | 472-- | -- |
| 50%coin flip | 1,136-- | -- |
| 90%very likely | 3,773-- | -- |
Time assumes -- at your pace and does not change your shiny odds.
How is this calculated?
Every encounter has the same shiny chance, the Shiny Odds Per Try shown above. Each one is a separate roll that does not care how many you have already done, so the more you hunt, the higher your overall chance of at least one shiny. The formula below turns your odds and your number of tries into that combined chance.
chance after N tries = 1 − (1 − p)^N, where p = 1 / odds per try
Example at 1 in 8,192 (classic full odds): about 864 encounters for a 10 percent chance, 5,678 for 50 percent, and 18,862 for 90 percent.
The table above flips that around: it shows how many encounters it takes to reach a 10, 25, 50, and 90 percent chance at your current odds. Turning on boosts like the Shiny Charm, sandwiches, or chains improves your odds, so the encounter numbers drop.
These are estimates, not promises. Most games have no pity counter, meaning no guaranteed shiny no matter how many you hunt, so even Very Likely is not guaranteed: some hunters find one early, others go well past that point.
Planning a longer hunt? Set up Pikachu in the HeartGold & SoulSilver Shiny Odds Calculator to compare every method side by side.
Pikachu Weakness
Ground moves hit Pikachu for super-effective damage. Few weaknesses and 3 resistances make the typing clean. Just 1 weak spot to worry about, which keeps teambuilding straightforward.
| Damage | Types |
|---|---|
| 2x (Weak) | Ground |
| 0.5x (Resist) | Electric, Flying, Steel |
- Fairy type does not exist — Dragon has fewer checks
- Physical / Special split now per-move (introduced Gen IV)
What is Pikachu Weak Against
GoodBest Pokemon Against Pikachu
Pikachu Evolutions
Sitting between Pichu and Raichu, Pikachu is part of a chain that requires an evolution item. Not your typical level-up setup. So far, Speed got the biggest boost (+30 from Pichu). The final form adds another 185 stats on top. View every chain in the Evolution Chart.
How to Evolve
Breeding
Breed with Pikachu to get Pichu eggs easily using 35 partners from the Fairy and Field egg groups. Notable egg moves include Bide, Charge, Double Slap and 8 more.
HGSS Pikachu Best Moveset
Held ItemLight Ball doubles both offensive stats, turning 55 Attack and 50 Sp. Atk into usable numbers from both sides. The moveset fires mixed Electric and coverage attacks at 90 Speed. 35 HP and 30 Defense collapse to any physical hit that connects.
Best Build
Pikachu best EVs are Attack and Speed
Physical Sweeper Moveset
- Volt Tackle
- Thunderbolt
- Quick Attack
- Grass Knot
Recommended Teammates
Moves List
Don't skip the egg moves. Pikachu picks up Bide and Charge only through breeding, and both fill gaps the natural movepool can't. STAB runs through Volt Tackle and Thunder while coverage across 7 types adds range.
How to Read the Moves Table
Tabs
- Level-Up
- Learned by leveling up.
- TM
- Taught by a Technical Machine.
- Egg
- Inherited via breeding.
- Tutor
- NPC tutor (cost: items, BP, money).
- Reminder
- An NPC reteaches any move this Pokemon could have learned by leveling up.
- Transfer
- Carried over from an older game using Pokemon HOME.
- Event
- Given out through Mystery Gift events.
Visual Signals
CAT (Category)
How the move deals damage and which stats it uses.
A small dot on the icon's corner marks the move as contact. That triggers abilities like Static, Flame Body, Rough Skin, or Iron Barbs, plus items like Rocky Helmet and Sticky Barb.
Tier (S to D)
Each move's competitive rank in RankedBoost's system. TM, Egg, and Tutor sort by tier by default (best first). On Level-Up, click the Tier header to do the same.
PWR (Power)
Base damage. Numbers shown in a type color include STAB (base × 1.5). Hover any colored number to see the math.
— means no power (status moves) or variable power.
Sorting & Filter
Click any column header to sort. Level-Up opens with Lv 1 at the top. TM, Egg, and Tutor open with the highest-tier moves at the top.
Search filters by move name or type. The Filter button limits the list to STAB, Physical, Special, or Status moves.
Level-Up Moves
TM Moves
All 22 TMs are obtainable before the Elite Four
Egg Moves
Tutor Moves
Reminder Moves
Base Stats
This intelligent Pokémon roasts hard berries with electricity to make them tender enough to eat.
It raises its tail to check its surroundings. The tail is sometimes struck by lightning in this pose.
Pikachu Event Distributions
In HeartGold & SoulSilver, Pikachu is a dependable Mystery Gift returnee, distributed time and again.
Ash's PIKACHU!HeartGoldSoulSilverDiamondPearlPlatinumNot shiny
Pikachu gift (OT NZone)HeartGoldSoulSilverDiamondPearlPlatinumNot shiny
Pikachu That Learned Present!HeartGoldSoulSilverDiamondPearlPlatinumNot shiny
Pikachu That Learned Present!HeartGoldSoulSilverDiamondPearlPlatinumNot shiny
Birthday Commemoration GiftHeartGoldSoulSilverDiamondPearlPlatinumNot shiny
Birthday Commemoration GiftHeartGoldSoulSilverDiamondPearlPlatinumNot shiny
Sleeping Pikachu GiftHeartGoldSoulSilverDiamondPearlPlatinumNot shiny
Moving Commemoration GiftHeartGoldSoulSilverDiamondPearlPlatinumNot shiny
Pikachu Special Gift!HeartGoldSoulSilverDiamondPearlNot shiny
Pikachu HeartGold & SoulSilver Guide
Trade a Pikachu to a trainer in Saffron City. This is an NPC trade, so the Pikachu you receive is yours immediately, no transfer cable needed.
Yes. Wild Pikachu in HeartGold & SoulSilver can hold Oran Berry (50%) or Light Ball (5%). Use Thief (TM46) or Covet to swipe the held item without affecting your catch chance. Quickest way to farm rare items like Oran Berry.
For HeartGold & SoulSilver, you can run Pikachu through the first few routes without issues. 300 BST won't carry you far though. Get it to Raichu as fast as you can.
Game Availability
Since debuting in Red & Blue, Pikachu has appeared in 22 titles over 9 generations. Along the way, it received a Gigantamax form in Generation 8, keeping it relevant across different competitive metas.
Click a game to view version-specific details
- Gen 1RBDebut
Red & Blue - Gen 1Y
Yellow - Gen 2GS
Gold & Silver - Gen 2C
Crystal - Gen 3RS
Ruby & Sapphire - Gen 3E
Emerald - Gen 3FRLG
FireRed & LeafGreen - Gen 4DP
Diamond & Pearl - Gen 4Pt
Platinum - Gen 4HGSS
HeartGold & SoulSilver - Gen 5BW
Black & White - Gen 5B2W2
Black 2 & White 2 - Gen 6XY
X & Y - Gen 6ORAS
Omega Ruby & Alpha Sapphire - Gen 7SM
Sun & Moon - Gen 7USUM
Ultra Sun & Ultra Moon - Gen 7Let's Go
Let's Go Pikachu & Eevee - Gen 8SwShGigantamax
Sword & Shield - Gen 8BDSP
Brilliant Diamond & Shining Pearl - Gen 8PLA
Legends: Arceus - Gen 9SV
Scarlet & Violet - Gen 9LZA
Legends: Z-A - Gen 10WW
Winds & Waves
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