Physical
Balanced
180Low
30Very Slow
DTier

Almost nobody uses Sunkern in battle. It exists to evolve into Sunflora, which is a completely different story. Get it there and you won't regret it. Part of the Gen 2 roster. 5 type weaknesses to keep in mind.

You won't find a real weakness in Sunkern's stat line. It's well-rounded for the Seed Pokemon, and what it does with that depends on moveset and items. Yields 1 Sp. Atk EV, on a 1.06M XP medium-slow curve.

Base Stats
180Low
HP30
F
Attack30
F
Defense30
F
Sp. Atk30
F
Sp. Def30
F
Speed30
F
Total180
Low <60
Avg 60-89
High 90-149
Top 150+
EV YieldDefeating Sunkern yields +1 SpA
HPAtkDefSpA+1SpDSpe
Details
Catch235EasyMedium Slow1.06M XP0.3m / 1'00"1.8kg / 4 lbs36Base XP
Pokedex Entries

Sunkern tries to move as little as it possibly can. It does so because it tries to conserve all the nutrients it has stored in its body for its evolution. It will not eat a thing, subsisting only on morning dew.

Omega Ruby / Alpha Sapphire

Sunkern Weakness

Fragile

Sunkern's Grass typing leaves it vulnerable to Fire, Ice, Poison, Flying, and Bug moves. The Grass typing picks up 4 resistances to work with.

4xCriticali
None
¼xResisti
None
0xImmunei
None
5Weak
4Resist
0Immune
Scorei-6
SpikesGrounded — up to 25%
Toxic SpikesVulnerable
Abilities
ChlorophyllDoubles Speed during strong sunlight.
Solar PowerIncreases Special Attack to 1.5× but costs 1/8 max HP after each turn during strong sunlight.
Early BirdHAMakes sleep pass twice as quickly.

To get Sunflora from Sunkern, you need an evolution item. The evolution method matters here. The evolved forms gain up to 245 total stats over Sunkern.

How to Evolve

2 Forms
Stat Comparison 2 Stages
Sunkern
Grass
HP
30
75+45
ATK
30
75+45
DEF
30
55+25
SP.ATK
30
105+75
SP.DEF
30
85+55
SPE
30
30
BST
180D-Tier
425C-Tier+245
ROLE
Balanced
Attacker
TYPE
Utility
Special
Breeding
Very Easy

Breed Sunkern easily from the Plant egg group. Pass egg moves like Bide, Curse, Encore and 10 more to offspring.

Egg Groups
Plant
Gender
50.0%50.0%
Hatch Time
20 cycles·5,140 steps
Quick~5 min with Flame Body
Egg Moves
13moves

Best Build

No build content available for this Pokemon in Gen 6.

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

The natural movepool does the job, but Bide and Curse from the egg pool give Sunkern something extra. Pair those with Solar Beam and Energy Ball for STAB and Normal and Poison coverage for reach, and the kit fills out nicely.

Level-Up Moves

Lv 1
Absorb
2010025Grass
Lv 1
Growth
20Normal
Lv 4
Ingrain
20Grass
Lv 7
Grass Whistle
5515Grass
Lv 10
Mega Drain
4010015Grass
Lv 13
Leech Seed
9010Grass
Lv 16
Razor Leaf
559525Grass
Lv 19
Worry Seed
10010Grass
Lv 22
Giga Drain
7510010Grass
Lv 25
Endeavor
1005Normal
Lv 28
Synthesis
5Grass
Lv 31
Natural Gift
10015Normal
Lv 34
Solar Beam
12010010Grass
Lv 37
Double-Edge
12010015Normal
Lv 40
Sunny Day
5Fire
Lv 43
Seed Bomb
8010015Grass

TM Moves

Src
TM45
Attract
10015Normal
TM100
Confide
20Normal
HM01
Cut
509530Normal
TM32
Double Team
15Normal
TM53
Energy Ball
9010010Grass
TM42
Facade
7010020Normal
TM70
Flash
10020Normal
TM21
Frustration
10020Normal
TM86
Grass Knot
10020Grass
TM10
Hidden Power
6010015Normal
TM16
Light Screen
30Psychic
TM96
Nature Power
20Normal
TM17
Protect+4
10Normal
TM44
Rest
10Psychic
TM27
Return
10020Normal
TM48
Round
6010015Normal
TM20
Safeguard
25Normal
TM94
Secret Power
7010020Normal
TM88
Sleep Talk
10Normal
TM36
Sludge Bomb
9010010Poison
TM22
Solar Beam
12010010Grass
TM90
Substitute
10Normal
TM11
Sunny Day
5Fire
TM87
Swagger
9015Normal
TM75
Swords Dance
20Normal
TM06
Toxic
9010Poison

Egg Moves

Src
Egg
Bide+1
10Normal
Egg
Curse
10Ghost
Egg
Encore
1005Normal
Egg
Endure+4
10Normal
Egg
Grass Whistle
5515Grass
Egg
Grassy Terrain
10Grass
Egg
Helping Hand+5
20Normal
Egg
Ingrain
20Grass
Egg
Leech Seed
9010Grass
Egg
Morning Sun
5Normal
Egg
Natural Gift
10015Normal
Egg
Nature Power
20Normal
Egg
Sweet Scent
10020Normal

Tutor Moves

Src
Tutor
After You
15Normal
Tutor
Earth Power
9010010Ground
Tutor
Endeavor
1005Normal
Tutor
Giga Drain
7510010Grass
Tutor
Helping Hand+5
20Normal
Tutor
Seed Bomb
8010015Grass
Tutor
Snore
5010015Normal
Tutor
Synthesis
5Grass
Tutor
Uproar
9010010Normal
Tutor
Worry Seed
10010Grass

Transfer Moves

Src
Gen 4
Bullet Seed
2510030Grass
Gen 4
Captivate
10020Normal
Gen 3
Mimic
10Normal

high spawn rates for Sunkern across 12 locations in late-game routes. Nothing complicated. Check the sorted list below, compare the top few options, and head to whichever is closest.

Best Locations

You can catch Sunkern through 12 walking encounters from Lv. 36-38, but availability differs between Omega Ruby and Alpha Sapphire. Some spots are exclusive to one version.

Mirage Spots - Area 5
Omega RubyGrassLv.36-3880%Late
EFFORTLESS
Mirage Spots - Area 5
Alpha SapphireGrassLv.36-3880%Late
EFFORTLESS
Mirage Spots - Area 1
Alpha SapphireGrassLv.36-3814%Late
MODERATE
Mirage Spots - Area 1
Omega RubyGrassLv.36-3814%Late
MODERATE
Mirage Spots - Area 2
Alpha SapphireGrassLv.36-3814%Late
MODERATE
Mirage Spots - Area 2
Omega RubyGrassLv.36-3814%Late
MODERATE
Mirage Spots - Area 3
Omega RubyGrassLv.36-3814%Late
MODERATE
Mirage Spots - Area 3
Alpha SapphireGrassLv.36-3814%Late
MODERATE
Mirage Spots - Area 4
Omega RubyGrassLv.36-3814%Late
MODERATE
Mirage Spots - Area 4
Alpha SapphireGrassLv.36-3814%Late
MODERATE
Mirage Spots - Area 7
Omega RubyGrassLv.36-386%Late
CHALLENGING
Mirage Spots - Area 7
Alpha SapphireGrassLv.36-386%Late
CHALLENGING
  • At 180 BST, Sunkern is firmly in pre-evolution territory. Evolve it into Sunflora before bringing it to any serious fight.

  • Watch for Arcanine (Fire), Lapras (Ice), and Nidoking (Poison) when using Sunkern. They all hit it super-effectively with STAB. Flying and Bug-type attackers are also a problem. With 5 weakness types, most competitive teams carry at least one counter. At base 30 Speed, Sunkern won't outrun any of these threats so switching to a resist is usually the safer play.

  • Sunkern evolves into Sunflora using a Sun Stone. Sunkern is the base form of this evolutionary line.

  • Sunkern gets Chlorophyll, Solar Power, and Early Bird. But Chlorophyll is the one that matters — it's the centerpiece of every viable set. Build around that.

  • Sunkern is a physical attacker with base 30 Attack. Fragile — can't afford to take many hits, too. But the speed tells the real story — base 30 Speed is low. Priority moves or Trick Room are the way to go.

  • Sunkern appears in 16 games, including Gold & Silver, Crystal, and Ruby & Sapphire.

Since Gold & Silver, Sunkern has been in 16 games. Requiring an item-based evolution to obtain means it's consistently available but requires more effort than simply catching it in the wild.