Can Pokémon Evolve in Daycare? A Comprehensive Guide

For trainers looking to level up their Pokémon efficiently, the daycare is a convenient feature in many Pokémon games. “Can Pokémon Evolve in Daycare?” In this article, we’ll explore the mechanics of the daycare system, how it affects your Pokémon’s evolution, and what you need to know to make the most of this feature.

Understanding the Daycare System

The daycare is a facility available in various Pokémon games where trainers can leave their Pokémon to gain experience over time. The Pokémon will earn experience points (EXP) as you walk or cycle around the game world, making it an easy way to level up your team without actively battling. This feature is especially useful for hatching eggs and for training Pokémon that may require many experience points to evolve.

Can Pokémon Evolve in Daycare?

The short answer is no, Pokémon cannot evolve in daycare simply by gaining experience points. While Pokémon can level up while in daycare, they will not evolve solely as a result of this process. Here’s a breakdown of how evolution works in the daycare:

1. Level-Based Evolution: If your Pokémon evolves by reaching a certain level, it will not automatically evolve while in daycare. You will need to advance your Pokémon to at least the evolution level manually. For instance, if you leave a Charmander in the daycare and it reaches level 16, you will need to retrieve it and level it up one more time outside of the daycare to trigger its evolution into Charmeleon.
2. Non-Level-Based Evolution: Pokémon that require special conditions to evolve, such as friendship, specific items, or trading, cannot evolve while in daycare. For example, Eevee won’t evolve into Espeon or Umbreon while in daycare because these evolutions depend on having high friendship and being in the right time of day.
3. Move Learning: While your Pokémon gains levels in daycare, it may miss out on learning new moves. If a Pokémon levels up and is supposed to learn a new move, the move will not be automatically taught. Instead, the move will be skipped unless you retrieve your Pokémon and manually teach it the move through a Move Reminder NPC.

Strategies for Using Daycare to Evolve Pokémon

To maximize the benefits of the daycare while evolving your Pokémon, consider the following strategies:

• Level Up Simple Evolvers: Use the daycare to evolve Pokémon that have straightforward level-up requirements. This is a great way to evolve Pokémon that require a lot of experience points to reach their evolution level, such as Dragonair evolving into Dragonite at level 55. Remember, you’ll need to advance the Pokémon one additional level outside of the daycare to trigger the evolution.
• Monitor Movesets: If you plan to leave a Pokémon in daycare for an extended period, keep track of the moves it may learn at higher levels. Retrieve your Pokémon at crucial levels to manually teach it moves that you don’t want to miss out on.
• Combine with Egg Hatching: If you’re breeding Pokémon, you can use the daycare to hatch eggs and evolve Pokémon simultaneously. This is a time-efficient way to manage your Pokémon while working on multiple tasks.