Utility
Pivot
455Average
95Moderate
CTier

While most trainers evolve Primeape into Annihilape immediately, the unevolved form has a niche with Eviolite boosting its defenses. Only weak to Flying and Psychic. Sits at a decent but contested Speed tier. Known as the Pig Monkey Pokemon.

Primeape's built around physical offense. Attack leads the charge, Defense pays for it. Moderately hard to find, worth 2 Attack EVs. Follows a medium-fast 1M XP curve.

Base Stats
455Above
HP65
C
Attack105
B
Defense60
C
Sp. Atk60
C
Sp. Def70
C
Speed95
B
Total455
Low <60
Avg 60-89
High 90-149
Top 150+
EV YieldDefeating Primeape yields +2 Atk
HPAtk+2DefSpASpDSpe
Details
Catch75Challenging•Medium Fast1M XP•1m / 3'03"•32kg / 70.5 lbs•159Base XP
Pokedex Entries

If approached while asleep, it may awaken and angrily give chase in a groggy state of semi-sleep.

Gold

It becomes wildly furious if it even senses someone looking at it. It chases anyone that meets its glare.

Silver

Primeape Weakness

Avg

Flying and Psychic-type moves hit Primeape for super-effective damage. Its Fighting typing keeps the defensive matchups simple. Primeape leans offensive (base 105 Atk) rather than trying to tank its weaknesses.

Gen II Type Chart
  • Dark and Steel types added — Fairy does not exist yet
  • Moves are Physical or Special based on type, not per move
  • Special stat split into Sp.Atk and Sp.Def
4xCriticali
None
2xWeaki
FlyingPsychic
½xResisti
BugRockDark
¼xResisti
None
0xImmunei
None
STAB (5)i
NormalIceRockDarkSteel
2Weak
3Resist
0Immune
Scorei-1
SpikesGrounded — up to 25%
Toxic SpikesVulnerable
Abilities
Vital SpiritPrevents sleep.
Anger PointRaises Attack to the maximum of six stages upon receiving a critical hit.
DefiantHARaises Attack two stages upon having any stat lowered.

Primeape is partway through a three-stage line between Mankey and Annihilape. The chain involves an evolution item, so it's not a straightforward grind. So far, HP got the biggest boost (+25 from Mankey). The final form adds another 80 stats on top.

How to Evolve

2 Forms
Mankey
#056Mankey
28
Level 28
Primeape
#057Primeape
Stat Comparison 2 Stages
Mankey
Fighting
Primeape
Fighting
HP
40
65+25
ATK
80
105+25
DEF
35
60+25
SP.ATK
35
60+25
SP.DEF
45
70+25
SPE
70
95+25
BST
305D-Tier
455B-Tier+150
ROLE
Balanced
Attacker
TYPE
Physical
Physical
Breeding
Very Easy

Breed with Primeape to get Mankey eggs easily using 66 partners from the Ground egg group. Notable egg moves include Beat Up, Counter, Foresight and 3 more.

Egg Groups
Ground
Gender
♂50.0%♀50.0%
Hatch Time
20 cycles·5,140 steps
Quick~5 min with Flame Body
Egg Moves
6moves
Breed With (best first)
raichupikachunidokinggolduckampharosrhydondewgongarbokquagsirenidorinofarfetchdflaaffy
12 of 66·

The recommended build leans into Primeape's strengths as an attacker. Leftovers provides passive recovery each turn, and flexible EVs EVs back that up. An ability rounds out the package.

Best Build

Utility
Ability
Not in Gen 2
Item
LeftoversSUSTAIN
Nature
Not in Gen 2

Best Primeape Moveset

  • Cross ChopSTAB
  • Rock Slide
  • Body Slam
  • MeditateUtility

Recommended Teammates

Venomoth
VenomothGood
Qwilfish
QwilfishGood
Weezing
WeezingGood

Don't skip the egg moves. Primeape picks up Beat Up and Counter only through breeding, and both fill gaps the natural movepool can't. STAB runs through Cross Chop and Dynamic Punch while coverage across 8 types adds range.

Level-Up Moves

Lv 1
Leer
—10030Normal
Lv 1
Low Kick
—9020Fighting
Lv 1
Rage
2010020Normal
Lv 1
Scratch
4010035Normal
Lv 9
Low Kick
—9020Fighting
Lv 15
Karate Chop
5010025Fighting
Lv 21
Fury Swipes
188015Normal
Lv 27
Focus Energy
——30Normal
Lv 28
Rage
2010020Normal
Lv 36
Seismic Toss
—10020Fighting
Lv 45
Cross Chop
100805Fighting
Lv 54
Screech
—8540Normal
Lv 63
Thrash
12010020Normal

TM Moves

Src
TM45
Attract
—10015Normal
TM03
Curse
——10Ghost
TM40
Defense Curl
——40Normal
TM43
Detect+4
——5Fighting
TM28
Dig
6010010Ground
TM32
Double Team
——15Normal
TM01
Dynamic Punch
100505Fighting
TM20
Endure+4
——10Normal
TM48
Fire Punch
7510015Fire
TM21
Frustration
—10020Normal
TM02
Headbutt
7010015Normal
TM10
Hidden Power
6010015Normal
TM15
Hyper Beam
150905Normal
TM33
Ice Punch
7510015Ice
TM23
Iron Tail
1007515Steel
TM31
Mud-Slap
2010010Ground
TM17
Protect+4
——10Normal
TM09
Psych Up
——10Normal
TM44
Rest
——10Psychic
TM27
Return
—10020Normal
TM08
Rock Smash
2010015Fighting
TM35
Sleep Talk
——10Normal
TM13
Snore
4010015Normal
HM04
Strength
8010015Normal
TM11
Sunny Day
——5Fire
TM34
Swagger
—8515Normal
TM39
Swift
60—20Normal
TM46
Thief
6010025Dark
TM25
Thunder
1207010Electric
TM41
Thunder Punch
7510015Electric
TM06
Toxic
—8510Poison

Egg Moves

Src
Egg
Beat Up
—10010Dark
Egg
Counter-5
—10020Fighting
Egg
Foresight
—10040Normal
Egg
Meditate
——40Psychic
Egg
Reversal
—10015Fighting
Egg
Rock Slide
759010Rock

Tutor Moves

Primeape can't learn any Tutor moves

Primeape sits at moderate rates across 1 spots in early-game routes. Pick one from the sorted list and commit to it. Jumping between areas wastes more time than waiting in the right location.

Where To Catch Primeape in Gold & Silver

To get Primeape, start by catching Mankey through walking encounters at Lv. 13-15. The chain covers 2 catchable stages before reaching the final form.

  1. Mankey
    Step 1Catch Mankey
    Route 9
    GrassLv.13CommonEarlyRoute
    EFFORTLESS
    Route 42
    GrassLv.15CommonEarlyRoute
    EFFORTLESS
  2. Primeape
    Step 2Primeape ✓
    Route 9
    GrassLv.15RareEarlyRoute
    CHALLENGING
    or evolve from Mankey (Step 1)

  • Primeape isn't fully evolved, so it's not built for competitive play. You'll want to evolve it into Annihilape to unlock its full potential. At 455 BST, it's a stepping stone rather than a team anchor.

  • Watch for Aerodactyl (Flying) and Alakazam (Psychic) when using Primeape. They all hit it super-effectively with STAB. Only 2 weaknesses means fewer dedicated counters to worry about.

  • Mankey evolves into Primeape at level 28. Primeape evolves into Annihilape using a Rage Fist 20 Times. Primeape is a middle-stage evolution in the Mankey line.

  • Primeape fills the pivot role. It's leaning toward the physical side (base 105 Attack). Base 95 Speed is workable — faster than some, slower than many.

  • Primeape appears in 20 games, including Yellow, Red & Blue, and Gold & Silver.

Primeape has been part of the series since Red & Blue, appearing in 20 titles across all 9 generations. As a Gen 1 original, it's one of the most consistently available Pokemon in the franchise.