Mixed
Pivot
455Average
125Very Fast
CTier

Ground and Ghost moves don't affect Swellow at all — that's the advantage of Normal/Flying typing. It comfortably outruns most offensive threats. Comfortably outruns most offensive threats. Known as the Swallow Pokemon.

The stat budget goes to damage. Speed and Attack carry the offense, Sp. Def doesn't even come close. A Swallow Pokemon on a 1.06M XP medium-slow curve, worth 2 Speed EVs per KO.

Base Stats
455Above
HP60
C
Attack85
C
Defense60
C
Sp. Atk75
C
Sp. Def50
D
Speed125
A
Total455
Low <60
Avg 60-89
High 90-149
Top 150+
EV YieldDefeating Swellow yields +2 Spe
HPAtkDefSpASpDSpe+2
Details
Catch45Challenging•Medium Slow1.06M XP•0.7m / 2'04"•19.8kg / 43.7 lbs•159Base XP
Pokedex Entries

It circles the sky in search of prey and dives sharply to catch its target.

Brilliant Diamond / Shining Pearl

Swellow Weakness

Good

Electric, Ice, and Rock-type moves hit Swellow for super-effective damage. The upside? Ground and Ghost-type moves can't touch it at all. At base 125 Speed, Swellow outspeeds most threats and doesn't need to tank what it can outrun.

4xCriticali
None
2xWeaki
ElectricIceRock
½xResisti
GrassBug
¼xResisti
None
0xImmunei
GroundGhost
STAB (3)i
GrassFightingBug
3Weak
2Resist
2Immune
Scorei+2
Stealth Rock25% on switch
Abilities
GutsIncreases Attack to 1.5× with a major status ailment.
ScrappyHALets the Pokémon's normal and fighting moves hit ghost Pokémon.

Evolved from Taillow. Swellow is the final form in this two-stage line. No compatible partners for breeding via one egg group. Eggs are quick to hatch. Sp.Atk grew the most through evolution (+45 over Taillow), and Swellow peaks at 455 total stats.

How to Evolve

2 Forms
Taillow
#276Taillow
22
Level 22
Swellow
#277Swellow
Stat Comparison 2 Stages
Taillow
NormalFlying
Swellow
NormalFlying
HP
40
60+20
ATK
55
85+30
DEF
30
60+30
SP.ATK
30
75+45
SP.DEF
30
50+20
SPE
85
125+40
BST
270D-Tier
455C-Tier+185
ROLE
Balanced
Pivot
TYPE
Physical
Mixed
Breeding
Very Easy

Breed with Swellow to get Taillow eggs easily from the Flying egg group. Notable egg moves include Boomburst, Brave Bird, Hurricane and 3 more.

Egg Groups
Flying
Gender
♂50.0%♀50.0%
Hatch Time
15 cycles·3,855 steps
Quick~4 min with Flame Body
Egg Moves
6moves

Start with max Sp. Atk and Speed EVs. Modest nature gives Swellow the right special lean, Flame Orb adds self-burn for Guts activation, and Scrappy works in the background. Boomburst is the main damage option.

Best Build

Special Sweeper
Ability
Scrappy
Item
Flame Orb
Nature
Modest+SPA
EVs

Best Swellow Moveset

  • BoomburstSTAB
  • Heat Wave
  • ProtectFAST +4
  • Air SlashSTAB

Recommended Teammates

Tyranitar
TyranitarDecent

Without breeding, Swellow misses out on Boomburst and Brave Bird. That's 6 egg moves adding depth that the base kit lacks. STAB comes from Giga Impact and Hyper Beam, with Fighting and Steel coverage and more rounding things out.

Level-Up Moves

Lv 1
Air Slash
759515Flying
Lv 1
Brave Bird
12010015Flying
Lv 1
Focus Energy
——30Normal
Lv 1
Growl
—10040Normal
Lv 1
Peck
3510035Flying
Lv 1
Pluck
6010020Flying
Lv 1
Quick Attack+1
4010030Normal
Lv 5
Focus Energy
——30Normal
Lv 9
Quick Attack+1
4010030Normal
Lv 13
Wing Attack
6010035Flying
Lv 17
Double Team
——15Normal
Lv 21
Aerial Ace
60—20Flying
Lv 27
Quick Guard+3
——15Fighting
Lv 33
Agility
——30Psychic
Lv 39
Air Slash
759515Flying
Lv 45
Endeavor
—1005Normal
Lv 51
Brave Bird
12010015Flying
Lv 57
Reversal
—10015Fighting

TM Moves

Src
TM40
Aerial Ace
60—20Flying
TM45
Attract
—10015Normal
TM97
Defog
——15Flying
TM32
Double Team
——15Normal
TM58
Endure+4
——10Normal
TM42
Facade
7010020Normal
TM94
Fly
909515Flying
TM68
Giga Impact
150905Normal
TM15
Hyper Beam
150905Normal
TM88
Pluck
6010020Flying
TM17
Protect+4
——10Normal
TM18
Rain Dance
——5Water
TM44
Rest
——10Psychic
TM51
Roost
——10Flying
TM82
Sleep Talk
——10Normal
TM47
Steel Wing
709025Steel
TM90
Substitute
——10Normal
TM11
Sunny Day
——5Fire
TM87
Swagger
—8515Normal
TM46
Thief
6010025Dark
TM89
U-turn
7010020Bug
TM10
Work Up
——30Normal

Egg Moves

Src
Egg
Boomburst
14010010Normal
Egg
Brave Bird
12010015Flying
Egg
Hurricane
1107010Flying
Egg
Sky Attack
140905Flying
Egg
Supersonic
—5520Normal
Egg
Whirlwind-6
——20Normal

Tutor Moves

Swellow can't learn any Tutor moves

Swellow is only available through the PokeRadar in this game. No standard wild encounters here. 2 spots are listed below with details on how to trigger them. These become available in mid-game encounter areas.

Where To Catch Swellow in Brilliant Diamond & Shining Pearl

  1. Taillow
    Step 1Obtain Taillow
  2. Swellow
    Step 2Swellow ✓
    Route 213
    Shining PearlUsing PokeRadarLv.20-2222%MidRoute
    CHALLENGING
    Route 213
    Brilliant DiamondUsing PokeRadarLv.20-2222%MidRoute
    CHALLENGING
    or evolve from Taillow (Step 1)

  • We rate Swellow C-Tier — a situational pick that fills a niche. At 455 BST, it fits the pivot role. Base 125 Speed stands out.

  • Watch for Raikou (Electric), Walrein (Ice), and Golem (Rock) when using Swellow. They all hit it super-effectively with STAB. Swellow's base 125 Speed lets it outpace many threats and strike first, which matters more than trying to tank hits.

  • Taillow evolves into Swellow at level 22. Swellow is the fully evolved form. It sits at 455 BST in its evolved form.

  • Guts increases Attack to 1.5× with a major status ailment — that's the one you want on Swellow. Scrappy is the hidden ability. Niche, but it has its uses.

  • Base 125 Speed lets it outrun most of the field. On offense, Swellow is a mixed attacker — base 85 Attack and 75 Sp. Atk. Best used as a pivot.

  • Swellow appears in 13 games, including Ruby & Sapphire, FireRed & LeafGreen, and Emerald.

Available in 13 titles since its debut in Ruby & Sapphire, Swellow spans 7 generations of Pokemon games. It's accessible through wild encounters in a solid number of games.