Is Steelix Good in Ruby & Sapphire Playthrough?
Trade Onix with Metal Coat, plus import from FRLG. AbilityRock Head for recoil-free attacks and AbilitySturdy for surviving big hits. Two trade barriers. RS has Aggron natively for the Steel physical tank role. Steelix is a strong Pokemon behind too many import walls.
Roxanne's typing presses Steelix's defenses.
Steelix trades roughly evenly with Brawly's team.
Steelix trades roughly evenly with Wattson's team.
Steelix has the type edge here and should clean up Flannery's team.
Steelix trades roughly evenly with Norman's team.
Winona's team hits Steelix's weaknesses hard.
Tate & Liza's team hits Steelix's weaknesses hard.
Steelix trades roughly evenly with Wallace's team.
Steelix trades roughly evenly with Sidney's team.
Steelix trades roughly evenly with Phoebe's team.
Steelix trades roughly evenly with Glacia's team.
Steelix trades roughly evenly with Drake's team.
Steelix trades roughly evenly with Steven's team.
Trade
Steelix cannot be caught in this game. It must be traded in from a compatible game where it appears in the wild. Cross-region trading typically becomes available after defeating the Elite Four.
Recommended Moves
- After Wattson
- TM28GroundDigPower 90Accuracy 100%PP 10Route 114
- HM04NormalStrengthPower 80Accuracy 100%PP 15Rusturf Tunnel
- After Norman
- TM15NormalHyper BeamPower 150Accuracy 90%PP 5Lilycove Department Store
- TM42NormalFacadePower 70Accuracy 100%PP 20Prize for defeating Norman
- After Tate & Liza
- TM26GroundEarthquakePower 150Accuracy 100%PP 10Seafloor Cavern
- LV 45SteelIron TailPower 150Accuracy 75%PP 15
- LV 49DarkCrunchPower 80Accuracy 100%PP 15
- LV 57NormalDouble-EdgePower 120Accuracy 100%PP 15
How to Get Steelix in Ruby & Sapphire
To get Steelix, trade an Onix while it holds a Metal Coat. Both stages are absent from the Hoenn wild, so the line begins outside the region.
How to Obtain Steelix in RS
- Step 1Obtain OnixCARTRIDGE TRADEfrom FireRed & LeafGreenAvailableCatch in FireRed & LeafGreen via Walking · Victory Road, then trade to the current game via link cable.LATER APPEARANCEfrom Red & BlueNot TradeableAppears in Red & Blue via Walking · Victory Road. Forward-only transfer — no path back to this game from a later one.LATER APPEARANCEfrom YellowNot TradeableAppears in Yellow via Walking · Victory Road. Forward-only transfer — no path back to this game from a later one.LATER APPEARANCEfrom Gold & SilverNot TradeableAppears in Gold & Silver via Walking · Mt. Silver. Forward-only transfer — no path back to this game from a later one.LATER APPEARANCEfrom CrystalNot TradeableAppears in Crystal via Walking · Mt. Silver. Forward-only transfer — no path back to this game from a later one.
- Step 2Steelix ✓
How to Get Shiny Steelix in Ruby & Sapphire
Steelix has no home in Ruby & Sapphire, so a shiny must be traded in from a Generation III game that carries its line. See every game where Shiny Steelix can be hunted
Steelix Weakness
Steelix is weak to Fire, Water, Fighting, and Ground. On the flip side, it's immune to Electric and Poison-type moves entirely. With 9 resistances, the defensive profile is strong. Steelix's physical bulk (base 200 Def) helps cushion physical weakness hits, but special attackers are the bigger threat.
| Damage | Types |
|---|---|
| 2x (Weak) | Fire, Water, Fighting, Ground |
| 0.5x (Resist) | Normal, Flying, Psychic, Bug, Ghost, Dragon, Dark, Steel |
| 0.25x (Resist) | Rock |
| 0x (Immune) | Electric, Poison |
- Dark and Steel types added — Fairy does not exist yet
- Moves are Physical or Special based on type, not per move
What is Steelix Weak Against
ExcellentBest Pokemon Against Steelix
 Hariyama Fighting | B | |
Available Moves Moves
Damage vs Steelix View Hariyama builds →Focus Punch 2x73-86% Earthquake 2x33-39% Surf 2x33-40% | ||
 Heracross BugFighting | A | |
Available Moves Moves
Damage vs Steelix View Heracross builds →Focus Punch 2x75-89% Earthquake 2x33-40% | ||
 Breloom GrassFighting | B | |
 Blaziken FireFighting | B | |
Obtain MethodEvolve Torchic (Route 101 Gift) Available Moves Moves
Damage vs Steelix View Blaziken builds →Focus Punch 2x73-86% Overheat 2x162-191%KO Earthquake 2x33-39% | ||
 Machoke Fighting | C | |
Available Moves Moves
Damage vs Steelix View Machoke builds →Focus Punch 2x62-73% Earthquake 2x28-33% Fire Blast 2x50-59% | ||
 Donphan Ground | B | |
Available Moves Moves
Damage vs Steelix View Donphan builds →Earthquake 2x50-58% Rock Smash 2x7-9% | ||
 Pelipper Water | C | |
Obtain MethodDewford Town Surfing | ||
 Ludicolo WaterGrass | C | |
Available Moves Moves
Damage vs Steelix View Ludicolo builds →Surf 2x94-111%KO Focus Punch 2x31-37% | ||
 Swampert WaterGround | S | |
Obtain MethodEvolve Mudkip (Route 101 Gift) Available Moves Moves
Damage vs Steelix View Swampert builds →Earthquake 2x46-54% Focus Punch 2x44-52% Surf 2x89-105%KO | ||
 Walrein IceWater | C | |
Obtain MethodEvolve Spheal (Shoal Cave Surfing) Available Moves Moves
Damage vs Steelix View Walrein builds →Surf 2x98-115%KO Earthquake 2x24-28% Rock Smash 2x5-7% | ||
 Sandslash Ground | A | |
Available Moves Moves
Damage vs Steelix View Sandslash builds →Earthquake 2x42-50% Focus Punch 2x41-49% | ||
 Rhydon GroundRock | B | |
Available Moves Moves
Damage vs Steelix View Rhydon builds →Earthquake 2x52-61% Focus Punch 2x52-61% Fire Blast 2x46-54% Surf 2x37-44% | ||
 Medicham FightingPsychic | C | |
Available Moves Moves
Damage vs Steelix View Medicham builds →Focus Punch 2x42-50% Fire Punch 2x36-43% | ||
 Camerupt FireGround | C | |
Available Moves Moves
Damage vs Steelix View Camerupt builds →Eruption 2x167-197%KO Earthquake 2x42-50% Rock Smash 2x6-8% | ||
Steelix Evolutions
Getting Steelix requires a trade, not just grinding levels. The chain starts at Onix. Breed this form to get Onix eggs (average hatch time). HP grew the most through evolution (+40 over Onix), and Steelix peaks at 510 total stats. View every chain in the Evolution Chart.
How to Evolve
Breeding
Breed with Steelix to get Onix eggs easily using 23 partners from the Mineral egg group. Notable egg moves include Block, Explosion, Flail and 1 more.
RS Steelix Best Moveset
Steel/Ground resists a massive number of types with Electric immunity. 200 Defense blocks physical attackers unconditionally. AbilityRock Head eliminates recoil from MoveDouble-Edge. MoveEarthquake for Ground TermStab, MoveRoar for forcing switches. Held ItemLeftovers sustains. The ultimate physical tank.
Best Build
Steelix best EVs are HP and Sp. Def
Wall Moveset
- Earthquake
- Roar
- Explosion
- Toxic
Recommended Teammates
Moves List
Breeding opens up real options for Steelix. Block and Explosion come exclusively from egg moves, and they're worth the effort. The rest of the kit covers basics through Iron Tail and Earthquake and Normal and Rock coverage and more.
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 23 TMs are obtainable before the Elite Four
Egg Moves
Tutor Moves
Base Stats
STEELIX lives even further underground than ONIX. This POKéMON is known to dig towards the earth’s core. There are records of this POKéMON reaching a depth of over six-tenths of a mile underground.
Steelix Ruby & Sapphire Guide
No. Steelix isn't catchable in Ruby & Sapphire. Obtain one in FireRed or LeafGreen, then trade it over.
Game Availability
Since debuting in Gold & Silver, Steelix has appeared in 18 titles over 8 generations. Along the way, it received a Mega form in Generation 6, keeping it relevant across different competitive metas.
Click a game to view version-specific details
- Gen 1RB
Red & Blue - Gen 1Y
Yellow - Gen 2GSDebut
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 6ORASMega
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 Steelix.
Keep playing · Ruby & SapphireRuby & Sapphire Tier ListThe best Pokemon ranked tier by tierSee Ruby & Sapphire Tier List