
Is Rapidash Good in Yellow Playthrough?
Fast and hits hard enough for the Fire slot, but the competition in Yellow is steep. Charizard, Arcanine, and Ninetales all do the job too. Rapidash fits best on teams that skipped the Charmander gift and passed on Growlithe. A solid Pokemon that arrives to a crowded field.
Ponyta trades roughly evenly with Brock's team.
Misty's team hits Ponyta's weaknesses hard.
Lt. Surge's typing presses Ponyta's defenses.
Ponyta has the type edge here and should clean up Erika's team.
Rapidash resists most of Koga's coverage and hits back hard.
Rapidash trades roughly evenly with Sabrina's team.
Rapidash trades roughly evenly with Blaine's team.
Rapidash trades roughly evenly with Giovanni's team.
Rapidash trades roughly evenly with Lorelei's team.
Rapidash trades roughly evenly with Bruno's team.
Rapidash trades roughly evenly with Agatha's team.
Lance's team hits Rapidash's weaknesses hard.
Rapidash trades roughly evenly with Blue's team.
Catch Ponyta
Catch Ponyta on Route 17 (walking, Lv 28-32, uncommon).
Recommended Moves
- STARTING (Lv 28)
- LV 28FireEmberPower 60Accuracy 100%PP 25
- After Misty
- TM08NormalBody SlamPower 85Accuracy 100%PP 15S.S. Anne
- TM39NormalSwiftPower 60Accuracy 100%PP 20Route 12 Gate 2F
- After Lt. Surge
- TM10NormalDouble-EdgePower 100Accuracy 100%PP 15Rocket Hideout
- LV 32NormalStompPower 65Accuracy 100%PP 20
- After Erika
- TM40NormalSkull BashPower 100Accuracy 100%PP 15Safari Zone
- LV 43NormalTake DownPower 90Accuracy 85%PP 20
- After Blaine
- TM38FireFire BlastPower 180Accuracy 85%PP 5Prize for defeating Cinnabar Gym Leader Blaine
Evolve Ponyta to Rapidash
Ponyta evolves into Rapidash at Level 40. Your Ponyta should hit Level 40 before you reach Koga, at typical leveling pace.
Recommended Moves
- STARTING (Lv 40)
- LV 40FireEmberPower 60Accuracy 100%PP 25
- LV 40NormalStompPower 65Accuracy 100%PP 20
- After Misty
- TM08NormalBody SlamPower 85Accuracy 100%PP 15S.S. Anne
- After Lt. Surge
- TM15NormalHyper BeamPower 150Accuracy 90%PP 5Rocket Game Corner
- TM10NormalDouble-EdgePower 100Accuracy 100%PP 15Rocket Hideout
- After Erika
- TM40NormalSkull BashPower 100Accuracy 100%PP 15Safari Zone
- LV 47NormalTake DownPower 90Accuracy 85%PP 20
- After Blaine
- TM38FireFire BlastPower 180Accuracy 85%PP 5Prize for defeating Cinnabar Gym Leader Blaine
How to Get Rapidash in Yellow
No wild Rapidash anywhere, so a Ponyta from that one fire-route has to reach level 40 and change over.
Catch Ponyta at any of these 1 spot to eventually evolve into Rapidash.
Encountered via tall grass encounters
- 1Catch Ponyta
- 2Evolve Rapidashat Lv.40
How to Obtain Rapidash in Y
Step 1Catch Ponyta
Step 2Rapidash ✓
Rapidash Weakness
Type-wise, Rapidash takes extra damage from Water, Ground, and Rock. Rapidash leans offensive (base 100 Atk) rather than trying to tank its weaknesses.
| Damage | Types |
|---|---|
| 2x (Weak) | Water, Ground, Rock |
| 0.5x (Resist) | Fire, Grass, Bug |
- 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 Rapidash Weak Against
VulnerableBest Pokemon Against Rapidash
Omastar RockWater | C | |
Obtain MethodEvolve Omanyte (Cinnabar Island Gift) | ||
Vaporeon Water | B | |
Obtain MethodEvolve Eevee (Celadon City Gift) | ||
Sandslash Ground | C | |
Available Moves Moves
Damage vs Rapidash View Sandslash builds →Earthquake 2x109-129%KO Rock Slide 2x56-66% | ||
Rhydon GroundRock | S | |
Available Moves Moves
Damage vs Rapidash View Rhydon builds →Earthquake 2x136-161%KO Rock Slide 2x104-122%KO Surf 2x35-41% | ||
Gyarados Water | B | |
Obtain MethodEvolve Magikarp (Route 4 Gift) | ||
Kabutops RockWater | C | |
Obtain MethodEvolve Kabuto (Cinnabar Island Gift) | ||
Dewgong WaterIce | C | |
Lapras WaterIce | B | |
Obtain MethodSilph Co Gift | ||
Blastoise Water | C | |
Obtain MethodEvolve Squirtle (Vermilion City Gift) Available Moves Moves
Damage vs Rapidash View Blastoise builds →Surf 2x81-96% Earthquake 2x63-74% | ||
Nidoking PoisonGround | C | |
Available Moves Moves
Damage vs Rapidash View Nidoking builds →Earthquake 2x111-131%KO Surf 2x54-64% Rock Slide 2x56-66% | ||
Slowbro WaterPsychic | B | |
Obtain MethodRoute 12 Surfing Available Moves Moves
Damage vs Rapidash View Slowbro builds →Surf 2x94-111%KO Earthquake 2x58-69% | ||
Graveler RockGround | C | |
Available Moves Moves
Damage vs Rapidash View Graveler builds →Earthquake 2x105-124%KO Rock Slide 2x80-94% | ||
Nidoqueen PoisonGround | C | |
Available Moves Moves
Damage vs Rapidash View Nidoqueen builds →Earthquake 2x101-120%KO Surf 2x49-59% Rock Slide 2x52-61% | ||
Dugtrio Ground | B | |
Available Moves Moves
Damage vs Rapidash View Dugtrio builds →Dig 2x109-129%KO Rock Slide 2x56-66% | ||
Rapidash Evolutions
Ponyta's chain leads to Rapidash (at level 40). A Fire type at 500 stats, sitting in the Undiscovered group. Evolving from Ponyta gave Rapidash the biggest boost in HP (+15), bringing the total to 500 stats. View every chain in the Evolution Chart.
How to Evolve
Y Rapidash Best Moveset
105 Speed puts it ahead of most threats, and 100 Attack makes MoveBody Slam and MoveHyper Beam the stronger offensive options over MoveFire Blast from 80 Special. The physical moves outperform the Fire TermStab in raw output. Fast enough to choose which damage type finishes the target.
Best Build
Utility Moveset
- Fire Spin
- Body Slam
- Stomp
- Fire Blast
Recommended Teammates
Moves List
TMs define Rapidash's movepool. The natural moves cover basics with Fire Blast and Ember, but the real versatility comes from technical machines giving it Normal coverage. That's where the options open up.
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 16 TMs are obtainable before the Elite Four
Tutor Moves
Base Stats
Just loves to run. If it sees something faster than itself, it will give chase at top speed.
Rapidash Yellow Guide
In Yellow, Rapidash plays as a setup sweeper. It outspeeds most threats, so it can pressure opponents before they move.
Yes. Galarian Rapidash is a regional variant with different typing and a reworked stat spread. Introduced in Gen 8. Plays completely differently from the original.
Game Availability
Rapidash first appeared in Red & Blue and spans 20 games across 9 generations. It later gained a Galarian form in Generation 8, adding new dimensions to its competitive identity.
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 8SwShGalarian

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 Rapidash.