If there's one thing that Pokémon's Pinsir has taught me, it's that horns can go a long way when you're trying to look scary - not that Pinsir really needs it, being a five-foot bug. It can throw opponents around, crush them between its pincers, and even tear them up. It's a force to be reckoned with, so once you know how to utilize it - and its Mega form - you'll defeat anything with ease.
Make sure you grab your latest Pokémon Go codes or Pokopia Mystery Gift codes for awesome freebies to fill up your Pokédex with.
Here's everything in our Pinsir guide:
Here's the key information you need to know about Pinsir:
| National Pokédex # | 0,127 |
| Type | Pinsir: Bug Mega Pinsir: Bug/Flying |
| Abilities | Pinsir: Hyper Cutter or Mold Breaker Mega Pinsir: Aerilate |
| Hidden ability | Moxie |
| Gender ratio | Female - 50% Male - 50% |
| Catch rate | 45 (11.9%) |
| Egg groups | Bug |
| EV yield | Two atk. |
Pinsir's evolution
Pinsir doesn't have any other traditional evolutions; however, it can Mega Evolve into Mega Pinsir if you have a Pinsirite.
Here's where you can find a Pinsirite:
| Game | Method |
| X | Santalune Forest (using an upgraded Mega Ring) |
| Y | Trade, Event |
| Omega Ruby / Alpha Sapphire | Route 124 (requires Dive) |
| Sun / Moon and Ultra Sun / Ultra Moon | Battle Tree for 64 BP |
| Let's Go Pikachu / Let's Go Eevee | Indigo Plateau |
| Legends Z-A | Purchase from Quasartico Inc. for 240 Mega Shards, after completing Main Mission 14 |
| Champions | Frontier Shop for 2k VP |
Pinsir's locations
Here are all the locations you can find Pinsir in each Pokémon game:
Gen 1 locations
| Red | Trade |
| Blue | Safari Zone, Celadon City (Rocket Game Corner) |
| Yellow | Safari Zone, Celadon City (Rocket Game Corner) |
Gen 2 locations
| Gold / Silver | National Park's Bug-Catching Contest (Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturday only) |
| Crystal | National Park's Bug-Catching Contest (Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturday only) |
Gen 3 locations
| Ruby / Sapphire | Safari Zone |
| Emerald | Safari Zone |
| FireRed | Trade |
| LeafGreen | Safari Zone, Celadon City (Rocket Game Corner) |
| Colosseum | Trade |
| XD | Citadark Isle (Shadow) |
Gen 4 locations
| Diamond | Trade |
| Pearl | Route 229 |
| Platinum | Route 229 (Swarm) |
| HeartGold / SoulSilver | National Park's Bug-Catching Contest (Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturday only) |
Gen 5 locations
| Black / White | Route 12 |
| Black 2 | Lostlorn Forest (Hidden Grotto) |
| White 2 | Route 12, Lostlorn Forest, Lostlorn Forest (Hidden Grotto) |
Gen 6 locations
| X | Route 12, Bug Friend Safari |
| Y | Bug Friend Safari |
| Omega Ruby / Alpha Sapphire | Safari Zone 4 |
Gen 7 locations
| Sun / Moon | Lush Jungle, Poni Grove, Poké Pelago |
| Ultra Sun / Ultra Moon | Lush Jungle, Poni Grove, Exeggutor Island, Poké Pelago, Exeggutor Island |
| Let's Go Pikachu | Trade |
| Let's Go Eevee | Routes 14 and 15 |
Gen 8 locations
| Sword / Shield | Trade |
| Isle of Armor | Training Lowlands, Challenge Road, Training Lowlands, Fields of Honor's Max Raid Battle |
| Brilliant Diamond | Trade |
| Shining Pearl | Route 229, Grand Underground - Grassland Cave, Riverbank Cave, Still-Water Cavern, Sunlit Cavern, Big Bluff Cavern |
| Legends: Arceus | Unobtainable |
Gen 9 locations
| Scarlet / Violet | Unobtainable |
| Legends: Z-A | Wild Zone 13, Wild Zone 20 |
How do I get Pinsir in Pokémon Pokopia?
To get Pinsir in Pokopia, you need to create a Tree-shaded Tall Grass Pokopia habitat. To do this, all you have to do is collect four tall grass with any large tree.
Pinsir's base stats
Pinsir's base stats are as follows. As you level it up, these stats grow.
- HP - 65
- Attack - 125
- Defense - 100
- Sp. Atk - 55
- Sp. Def - 70
- Speed - 85
Mega Pinsir's base stats are as follows. As you level it up, these stats grow.
- HP - 65
- Attack - 155
- Defense - 120
- Sp. Atk - 65
- Sp. Def - 90
- Speed - 105
Pinsir's type strengths and weaknesses
Pinsir is a Bug-type Pokémon, which comes with a set of strengths and weaknesses against other types of creature. This includes some types that it receives double damage from, and some that it receives half damage from. However, Pinsir is not immune to any types of 'mon.
| Normal damage | Bug, Dark, Electric, Fairy, Ghost, Ice, Normal, Poison, Psychic, Steel, Water |
| Weak | Fire, Flying, Rock |
| Resistant | Fighting, Grass, Ground |
| Immune | N/A |
Mega Pinsir's strengths and weaknesses
Mega Pinsir is a combined-type Bug/Flying 'mon, so its strengths and weaknesses differ from those of its normal self. It's immune to one type of 'mon, but to trade off, it comes with more weaknesses. Check it out below:
| Normal damage | Dark, Fairy, Ghost, Normal, Poison, Psychic, Steel, Water |
| Weak | Electric, Fire, Flying, Ice, Rock |
| Resistant | Bug, Fighting, Grass |
| Immune | Ground |
Pinsir's moveset
In the latest generation of Pokémon games, Pinsir can learn the following moves:
Level up moves
| Level | Move | Type |
| One | Harden | Normal |
| One | Tackle | Normal |
| Four | Focus Energy | Normal |
| Eight | Rock Smash | Fighting |
| 16 | Brutal Swing | Dark |
| 20 | Detect | Fighting |
| 24 | Take Down | Normal |
| 32 | X-Scissor | Bug |
| 36 | Lunge | Bug |
| 40 | Swords Dance | Normal |
| 50 | Close Combat | Fighting |
Learnable TMs
| Move | Type |
| Aerial Ace | Flying |
| Brick Break | Fighting |
| Bulk Up | Fighting |
| Circle Throw | Fighting |
| Close Combat | Fighting |
| Dig | Ground |
| Double Hit | Normal |
| Dual Wingbeat | Flying |
| Earthquake | Ground |
| Endure | Normal |
| Facade | Normal |
| False Swipe | Normal |
| Focus Blast | Fighting |
| Giga Impact | Normal |
| Hyper Beam | Normal |
| Iron Defense | Steel |
| Outrage | Dragon |
| Protect | Normal |
| Rock Slide | Rock |
| Rock Smash | Fighting |
| Rock Tomb | Rock |
| Stealth Rock | Rock |
| Stone Edge | Rock |
| Storm Throw | Fighting |
| Substitute | Normal |
| Swords Dance | Normal |
| X-Scissor | Bug |
Pinsir is ripe for the pinching now that you've got all the intel you could need to track it down - have fun!