
Is Primeape Good in Red & Blue Playthrough?
One of the few Fighting-types in Red and Blue, and that alone gives Primeape value. Handles Brock, threatens Giovanni's team, and puts pressure on Lorelei's Lapras. Fast and aggressive but can't take many hits. Play to its speed and don't leave it in on bad matchups.
Brock's typing presses Mankey's defenses.
Misty's typing presses Mankey's defenses.
Mankey has the type edge here and should clean up Lt. Surge's team.
Erika's typing presses Mankey's defenses.
Primeape trades roughly evenly with Koga's team.
Sabrina's team hits Primeape's weaknesses hard.
Primeape has the type edge here and should clean up Blaine's team.
Primeape has the type edge here and should clean up Giovanni's team.
Primeape has the type edge here and should clean up Lorelei's team.
Primeape has the type edge here and should clean up Bruno's team.
Primeape trades roughly evenly with Agatha's team.
Primeape trades roughly evenly with Lance's team.
Primeape trades roughly evenly with Blue's team.
Catch Mankey
Catch Mankey on Route 5 (walking, Lv 10-16, common).
Recommended Moves
- After Brock
- TM28GroundDigPower 100Accuracy 100%PP 10Returned by the Team Rocket thief after you defeat him in Cerulean City
- After Misty
- TM08NormalBody SlamPower 85Accuracy 100%PP 15S.S. Anne
- After Lt. Surge
- TM17FightingSubmissionPower 120Accuracy 80%PP 25Celadon Department Store
- TM05NormalMega KickPower 120Accuracy 75%PP 5Celadon Department Store
- TM10NormalDouble-EdgePower 100Accuracy 100%PP 15Rocket Hideout
- TM24ElectricThunderboltPower 95Accuracy 100%PP 15Prize for defeating Vermilion Gym Leader Lt. Surge
- After Erika
- TM40NormalSkull BashPower 100Accuracy 100%PP 15Safari Zone
- LV 39NormalThrashPower 90Accuracy 100%PP 20
Evolve Mankey to Primeape
Mankey evolves into Primeape at Level 28. Your Mankey should hit Level 28 before you reach Koga, at typical leveling pace.
Recommended Moves
- After Brock
- TM28GroundDigPower 100Accuracy 100%PP 10Returned by the Team Rocket thief after you defeat him in Cerulean City
- After Lt. Surge
- TM17FightingSubmissionPower 120Accuracy 80%PP 25Celadon Department Store
- TM15NormalHyper BeamPower 150Accuracy 90%PP 5Rocket Game Corner
- TM05NormalMega KickPower 120Accuracy 75%PP 5Celadon Department Store
- TM10NormalDouble-EdgePower 100Accuracy 100%PP 15Rocket Hideout
- TM24ElectricThunderboltPower 95Accuracy 100%PP 15Prize for defeating Vermilion Gym Leader Lt. Surge
- After Erika
- TM40NormalSkull BashPower 100Accuracy 100%PP 15Safari Zone
- LV 46NormalThrashPower 90Accuracy 100%PP 20
How to Get Primeape in Red & Blue
Mankey reaches level 28 and becomes Primeape, the only way to get one since no wild Primeape exists. Red catches the base; Blue must import a Mankey first.
Catch Mankey at any of these 4 spots to eventually evolve into Primeape.
Encountered via tall grass encounters
- 1Catch Mankey
- 2Evolve Primeapeat Lv.28
How to Obtain Primeape in RB
The path to Primeape starts with Mankey at Lv. 10-20 via walking encounters. 1 catchable stage total, with locations listed for each one below.
Step 2Primeape ✓
Primeape Weakness
Flying and Psychic 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.
| Damage | Types |
|---|---|
| 2x (Weak) | Flying, Psychic |
| 0.5x (Resist) | Bug, Rock |
- 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
What is Primeape Weak Against
AvgPrimeape Evolutions
You get Primeape from Mankey at level 28. This Fighting type hits 445 total but remains in the Undiscovered group. Evolving from Mankey gave Primeape the biggest boost in HP (+25), bringing the total to 445 stats. View every chain in the Evolution Chart.
How to Evolve
RB Primeape Best Moveset
105 Attack and 95 Speed, fast enough to outrun key threats. MoveBody Slam and MoveEarthquake often do more useful damage than Fighting TermStab since Psychic-types dominate the top. Hits hard physically but avoids the type matchups that shut Fighting down.
Best Build
Utility Moveset
- Rock Slide
- Submission
- Hyper Beam
- Body Slam
Recommended Teammates
Moves List
Without TMs, Primeape's movepool is bare bones. With them, you get Normal and Ground coverage and more on top of Submission and Karate Chop for STAB. The natural kit handles basics, but TMs are doing the real work.
How to Read the Moves Table
Tabs
- Level-Up
- Learned by leveling up.
- TM
- Taught by a Technical Machine.
- 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.
Tier (S to D)
Each move's competitive rank in RankedBoost's system. TM 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 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 25 TMs are obtainable before the Elite Four
Tutor Moves
Base Stats
Always furious and tenacious to boot. It will not abandon chasing its quarry until it is caught.
Primeape Red & Blue Guide
In Red & Blue, Primeape has 445 BST, so weigh it against what your team already covers.
In Red & Blue, use Primeape as a pivot. Physical side carries the damage. Speed is middling, Submission is the primary attack.
Game Availability
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.
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 8SwSh

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
Explore
Where to go next after Primeape.