Utility
Balanced
320Low
40Very Slow
DTier

Popplio sits at the start of its evolution line — not yet at full power, but that changes fast. Most trainers push through to Primarina as fast as possible. Only weak to Electric and Grass. Known as the Sea Lion Pokemon.

Nothing fancy in Popplio's spread. It leans mixed with Sp. Atk out front. And you'll get 1 Sp. Atk EV per KO for it. Follows a 1.06M XP medium-slow curve.

Base Stats
320Avg
HP50
D
Attack54
D
Defense54
D
Sp. Atk66
C
Sp. Def56
D
Speed40
D
Total320
Low <60
Avg 60-89
High 90-149
Top 150+
EV YieldDefeating Popplio yields +1 SpA
HPAtkDefSpA+1SpDSpe
Details
Catch45ChallengingMedium Slow1.06M XP0.4m / 1'04"7.5kg / 16.5 lbs64Base XP
Pokedex Entries

It creates special bouncy balloons to send at its opponents. When the balloons pop, the sheer force of their bursting is what deals damage.

Sword

If Popplio want to create big, powerful balloons, they must be persistent. It takes daily practice for these Pokémon to develop their skills.

Shield

Popplio Weakness

Good

Popplio is weak to Electric and Grass-type moves. The Water typing picks up 4 resistances to work with. Popplio's Water typing only leaves 2 gaps to cover.

4xCriticali
None
¼xResisti
None
0xImmunei
None
2Weak
4Resist
0Immune
Scorei0
SpikesGrounded — up to 25%
Toxic SpikesVulnerable
Abilities
TorrentStrengthens water moves to inflict 1.5× damage at 1/3 max HP or less.
Liquid VoiceHASound-based moves become Water-type.

Popplio kicks off a three-stage evolution line through Brionne all the way to Primarina. For breeding, quick to hatch with a massive partner pool via two egg groups. Evolving adds up to 210 stat points total.

How to Evolve

3 Forms
Stat Comparison 3 Stages
Popplio
Water
Brionne
Water
Primarina
WaterFairy
HP
50
60+10
80+20
ATK
54
69+15
74+5
DEF
54
69+15
74+5
SP.ATK
66
91+25
126+35
SP.DEF
56
81+25
116+35
SPE
40
50+10
60+10
BST
320D-Tier
420D-Tier+100
530B-Tier+110
ROLE
Balanced
Balanced
Wallbreaker
TYPE
Utility
Special
Special
Breeding
Easy

Breed Popplio easily with 138 breeding partners from the Ground and Water1 egg groups. Pass egg moves like Aqua Ring, Life Dew, Perish Song to offspring.

Egg Groups
GroundWater1
Gender
87.5%12.5%
Hatch Time
15 cycles·3,855 steps
Quick~4 min with Flame Body
Egg Moves
3moves
Breed With (best first)
raichuazumarillpikachunidokinggolduckblastoisekingdramiloticwalreinrhydonshiftryexploud

Best Build

No build content available for this Pokemon in Gen 8.

Try selecting a different game/generation filter, or check back later.

Breeding opens up real options for Popplio. Aqua Ring and Life Dew come exclusively from egg moves, and they're worth the effort. The rest of the kit covers basics through Hydro Pump and Surf and Normal and Fairy coverage and more.

Level-Up Moves

Lv 1
Growl
10040Normal
Lv 1
Pound
4010035Normal
Lv 3
Water Gun
4010025Water
Lv 6
Disarming Voice
4015Fairy
Lv 9
Aqua Jet+1
4010020Water
Lv 12
Baby-Doll Eyes+1
10030Fairy
Lv 15
Icy Wind
559515Ice
Lv 18
Sing
5515Normal
Lv 21
Bubble Beam
6510020Water
Lv 24
Encore
1005Normal
Lv 27
Misty Terrain
10Fairy
Lv 30
Hyper Voice
9010010Normal
Lv 33
Moonblast
9510015Fairy
Lv 36
Hydro Pump
110805Water

TM Moves

Src
TM78
Acrobatics
5510015Flying
TR17
Amnesia
20Psychic
TM31
Attract
10015Normal
TR06
Blizzard
110705Ice
TM55
Brine
6510010Water
TM29
Charm
10020Fairy
TM45
Dive
8010010Water
TM87
Draining Kiss
5010010Fairy
TR30
Encore
1005Normal
TR26
Endure+4
10Normal
TM39
Facade
7010020Normal
TM35
Hail
10Ice
TM41
Helping Hand+5
20Normal
TR03
Hydro Pump
110805Water
TR42
Hyper Voice
9010010Normal
TR05
Ice Beam
9010010Ice
TM27
Icy Wind
559515Ice
TR31
Iron Tail
1007515Steel
TM89
Misty Terrain
10Fairy
TR90
Play Rough
909010Fairy
TM25
Protect+4
10Normal
TM33
Rain Dance
5Water
TM21
Rest
10Psychic
TM76
Round
6010015Normal
TR84
Scald
8010015Water
TR27
Sleep Talk
10Normal
TM24
Snore
5010015Normal
TR20
Substitute
10Normal
TR04
Surf
9010015Water
TR35
Uproar
9010010Normal
TR16
Waterfall
8010015Water
TM36
Whirlpool
358515Water
TM71
Wonder Room
10Psychic
TR85
Work Up
30Normal

Egg Moves

Src
Egg
Aqua Ring
20Water
Egg
Life Dew
10Water
Egg
Perish Song
5Normal

Tutor Moves

Src
Tutor
Flip Turn
6010020Water
Tutor
Triple Axel
209010Ice

Popplio doesn't appear in Sword & Shield. Transfer it from Sun or Ultra Sun to add it to your collection. Check the source games below for encounter details.

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

Also found in:

  • At 320 BST, Popplio is firmly in pre-evolution territory. Evolve it into Brionne before bringing it to any serious fight.

  • Popplio's biggest threats include Jolteon (Electric) and Kartana (Grass), all carrying super-effective STAB moves. Only 2 weaknesses means fewer dedicated counters to worry about. At base 40 Speed, Popplio won't outrun any of these threats so switching to a resist is usually the safer play.

  • Popplio evolves into Brionne at level 17. Popplio is the base form in a 3-stage evolutionary line.

  • Torrent is the go-to ability for Popplio. It strengthens water moves to inflict 1.5× damage at 1/3 max HP or less. Its hidden ability Liquid Voice can work in specific setups.

  • Popplio is leaning toward the special side (base 66 Sp. Atk). 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.

  • Popplio can be found in Scarlet & Violet, Sword & Shield, Sun & Moon, and Ultra Sun & Ultra Moon.

Since Sun & Moon, Popplio has been obtainable in 4 games. A Generation 7 debut means a shorter history, but Popplio has appeared steadily across every generation since.