Table of Contents

Why Isn’t My Pokémon Evolving in Sword and Shield? A Comprehensive Guide

So, you’ve been diligently training your Pokémon in the Galar region, and it’s reached the level where it should be evolving. You’re pumped, ready to see your adorable Scorbunny transform into the formidable Raboot, or perhaps witness your Wooloo finally become the majestic Dubwool. But…nothing’s happening. Frustrating, right? There are several reasons why your Pokémon might be stubbornly refusing to evolve in Pokémon Sword and Shield, and we’re here to break them down.

The most common reasons for a Pokémon not evolving in Sword and Shield include:

Holding an Everstone: This is the most frequent culprit. An Everstone prevents evolution. Check your Pokémon’s held item. If it’s holding an Everstone, remove it.
Leveling up via Auto Battles: This is a quirk of the game. Pokémon will not evolve if they level up during auto-battles. You must level them up through manual battles.
Needing High Friendship/Happiness: Some Pokémon, like Golbat, require a high Friendship level to evolve. If you’ve recently traded your Golbat, its Friendship may have reset, preventing evolution.
Needing a Specific Item: Certain Pokémon need to hold a specific item while leveling up to evolve (e.g., holding a Protector while trading to evolve Rhydon into Rhyperior).
Specific Time of Day: Some evolutions only occur during a specific time of day (day or night in-game).
Location-Based Evolution: In rare cases, a Pokémon may need to level up in a specific location to evolve.
Incorrect Level: Double-check the level at which your Pokémon is supposed to evolve. You might be mistaken.
Evolution Method Not Yet Available: For some Pokémon, the evolution method may not be available until later in the game.
Glitch or Bug: Although less common, there is a possibility of a glitch. Try restarting your game or system.

Now, let’s dive deeper into these reasons and explore some other factors that might be at play.

Friendship & Happiness: More Than Just a Feeling

Many Pokémon require a certain level of Friendship (also referred to as Happiness) to trigger their evolution. This is a hidden stat that reflects how much your Pokémon likes you. Traded Pokémon reset to a base Happiness, so if you got your Pokémon through a trade, this is especially important.

How to Increase Friendship:

Keep it in your party: Simply having the Pokémon in your party as you explore will gradually increase its Friendship.
Use it in battles: Using your Pokémon in battles, and especially winning those battles, boosts Friendship.
Give it Berries: Certain berries, like the Pomeg, Kelpsy, Qualot, Hondew, and Grepa Berries, can increase Friendship, but be warned, they might also lower a specific stat.
Use the Soothe Bell: Equipping your Pokémon with a Soothe Bell will significantly speed up the Friendship-building process.
Pokémon Camp: Playing with and talking to your Pokémon in the Pokémon Camp is an excellent way to increase Friendship.
Cooking Curry: Making delicious curry in the Pokémon Camp can also boost Friendship, depending on the quality of the curry and your Pokémon’s preferences.

How to Check Friendship:

Talk to the NPC located in a house in Hammerlocke. He will give you an assessment of your Pokemon’s friendship, ranging from “They don’t seem to like you at all” to “They’re incredibly friendly towards you! It’s wonderful to see!”. The latter indicates maximum Friendship.

The Everstone: A Double-Edged Sword

The Everstone is a handy item that prevents Pokémon from evolving. It’s useful if you want to keep a Pokémon in its pre-evolution form for strategic reasons or simply because you like its appearance. However, it’s also the most common reason why players get confused when their Pokémon doesn’t evolve. Check your Pokémon’s held item screen. If it’s holding an Everstone, remove it, level up your Pokémon (manually), and watch the magic happen.

Time-Sensitive Evolutions: Day and Night

Some Pokémon evolutions are tied to the in-game time of day. For example, Eevee evolves into Espeon during the day with high Friendship, and into Umbreon at night with high Friendship. Make sure you’re leveling up your Pokémon during the correct time period. The overworld environment will give you a clear indication of whether it is day or night.

Location, Location, Location

While less common in Sword and Shield than in some previous games, some Pokémon evolutions are location-dependent. These evolutions often involve magnetic fields or other environmental factors. So make sure the specific Pokémon can evolve in your location.

Auto-Battles: The Silent Evolution Killer

This is a crucial point specific to Pokémon Sword and Shield. Pokémon will not evolve if they level up as a result of auto-battles. You must gain the level in a manual encounter. This is an important aspect, as it may be intentional or a bug but it should be kept in mind when grinding to level up.

FAQs: Your Burning Pokémon Evolution Questions Answered

Here are some frequently asked questions to further clarify the evolution process in Pokémon Sword and Shield:

Can I evolve a Pokémon at any level, even above its usual evolution level? Yes! If you delay a Pokémon’s evolution, you can still evolve it later, even if it’s far past its original evolution level.
Does delaying evolution affect my Pokémon’s stats? No. The stats your Pokémon gains upon evolution are based on its level and base stats, not when it evolved. A level 100 Charizard evolved from a level 36 Charmeleon will have the same stats as a level 100 Charizard evolved from a level 50 Charmeleon.
Can a Pokémon evolve twice in a single battle? No, a Pokémon can only evolve once per level up. To get the second evolution you must level up again.
Why did my Pokémon not evolve after trading it? Trading a Pokémon resets its base Friendship level. If it requires high Friendship to evolve, you’ll need to rebuild that Friendship.
How do I check a Pokémon’s Friendship level in Sword and Shield? Talk to the Friendship Checker in Hammerlocke. He’ll give you an assessment of your Pokémon’s Friendship.
What’s the fastest way to increase Friendship? Having them hold a soothe bell, then level them up as much as possible.
Can I use Rare Candies to evolve a Pokémon that levels up via Friendship? Yes! Using a Rare Candy to level up a Pokémon with high Friendship will trigger its evolution.
Does purifying a Shadow Pokémon affect its evolution? Purifying a Shadow Pokemon will give your Pokemon a significant increase in Combat Power and it will cost less candies to evolve.
Is it better to purify a Pokémon before or after evolving it? Purifying a Pokémon before evolving it reduces the candy cost.
Why do some Pokémon evolve via trade? They talked about how there is only so much one trainer can teach a Pokémon “so by being traded away into the hands of another trainer, they learn a lot more, triggering their evolution.”
Why can’t I trade a Pokémon twice? Pokémon cannot be traded more than once, to stop players “re-rolling a Pokémon’s stats through trade” over and over.
Should I level a Pokémon’s CP before evolving it? No, it doesn’t matter if you power up a Pokemon before evolving or after the cp it gets to won’t change.
What happens if I trade a perfect Pokémon? In PoGo, traded IVs will absolutely not stay the same, regardless of level. Pokémon Go will recalculate all IV stats of every Pokémon traded.
Are there any Pokémon that are better not to evolve? Yes, a prime example is Vigoroth. Vigoroth’s evolution, Slaking, has an amazing Attack stat but the ability Truant which causes it to skip its turn every other turn.
My Pokémon is holding the correct item, is at the right level, and it’s the right time of day, but it still won’t evolve! What’s going on? Double check that you are leveling the Pokémon up in Manual Battles. If that isn’t the reason try restarting your game. There is a small chance that you are encountering a bug.

Understanding these nuances of Pokémon evolution in Sword and Shield will save you countless hours of frustration. Remember to check the basics (Everstone, level), consider Friendship, time of day, and specific items, and always level up in manual battles!

If you’re interested in learning more about the educational aspects of gaming, including how games can teach valuable skills and foster creativity, be sure to visit the Games Learning Society at GamesLearningSociety.org. They have tons of research on different types of learning in games.

Happy training, and may all your Pokémon evolve into the powerhouses you envision!

Why is my Pokemon not evolving sword and shield?