Meta description: Cradily Pokémon GO guide covering the best moveset, Great League and Ultra League use, PvP IVs, weaknesses, counters, shiny availability and evolution.
Cradily Pokémon GO is a bulky Rock and Grass-type Pokémon that can be surprisingly awkward to deal with in GO Battle League. Its unusual typing, solid defensive stats and access to moves such as Bullet Seed, Rock Tomb and Grass Knot give Cradily a useful niche in Great League, while its 2,499 maximum CP also allows it to reach almost the entire Ultra League CP cap.
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Cradily Pokémon GO is not a Pokémon most players need for raids, but it is far more interesting for PvP. It can pressure Water, Ground, Flying and several other common Pokémon while its natural bulk allows it to remain in battles long enough to make good use of its Charged Moves.
This Cradily Pokémon GO guide covers the best moveset, Great League performance, Ultra League potential, PvP IVs, weaknesses, counters, evolution, shiny availability and whether Cradily is worth building.
Is Cradily Good in Pokémon GO?
Cradily Pokémon GO is good primarily as a specialist PvP Pokémon.
It is not currently one of the absolute top Pokémon in unrestricted Great League, but it remains viable and becomes considerably more valuable in certain restricted cups. PvPoke currently lists regular Cradily around the middle of the overall Great League rankings, while it can rank much higher in formats where its typing and coverage line up well with the available Pokémon.
Cradily has several useful qualities:
- Strong defensive stats
- Rock and Grass typing
- Fast energy generation with Bullet Seed
- Grass damage against Water and Ground Pokémon
- Rock coverage against Flying, Fire, Bug and Ice Pokémon
- Access to Rock Tomb for Attack debuffs
- Viability in Great League
- Enough maximum CP to compete in Ultra League
- No Elite TM requirement for its standard PvP moveset
Cradily Pokémon GO is therefore more of a roster-building Pokémon than an automatic first choice for every team.
Cradily Pokémon GO Best Moveset
The best Cradily Pokémon GO moveset for most Great League battles is:
| Move slot | Recommended move |
|---|---|
| Fast Move | Bullet Seed |
| Charged Move 1 | Rock Tomb |
| Charged Move 2 | Grass Knot |
PvPoke currently recommends Bullet Seed, Rock Tomb and Grass Knot for Cradily in unrestricted Great League.
Bullet Seed is particularly important because it allows Cradily to generate energy quickly.
Rock Tomb provides Rock-type coverage while also lowering the opponent’s Attack in Trainer Battles.
Grass Knot gives Cradily a stronger Grass-type Charged Attack for punishing Water and Ground Pokémon.
Bullet Seed or Acid on Cradily?
Bullet Seed is usually the safest Fast Move for Cradily Pokémon GO.
Cradily currently has access to Bullet Seed, Acid and Infestation, but Bullet Seed benefits from Cradily’s Grass typing and provides strong energy generation. Current Great League rankings favour Bullet Seed on regular Cradily.
Acid is more aggressive and can be useful in some specialist formats or on Shadow Cradily, but it changes how Cradily plays.
For a general Great League build, start with Bullet Seed.
Rock Tomb or Grass Knot on Cradily?
You ideally want both.
Cradily Pokémon GO becomes significantly less flexible when limited to a single Charged Move.
Rock Tomb gives Cradily valuable Rock coverage and can reduce the opponent’s Attack.
Grass Knot provides reliable Grass-type damage.
Together, they allow Cradily to threaten very different types of opponents.
Rock Tomb is useful against:
- Flying
- Fire
- Bug
- Ice
Grass Knot is useful against:
- Water
- Ground
- Rock
This dual coverage is one of Cradily’s biggest PvP advantages.
Does Cradily Have Rock Slide?
Cradily can also use Rock Slide, and previous versions of its PvP moveset commonly featured it.
However, current unrestricted Great League rankings favour Rock Tomb alongside Grass Knot.
Rock Slide provides more immediate Rock damage, while Rock Tomb gives Cradily the added utility of lowering the opposing Pokémon’s Attack.
This means the best choice can vary depending on the cup and team role.
Cradily Pokémon GO Weaknesses
Cradily Pokémon GO is weak to:
- Bug
- Fighting
- Ice
- Steel
Its Rock and Grass typing creates a rather unusual defensive profile.
Cradily does not have the obvious Fire weakness associated with many Grass Pokémon because Rock resists Fire and cancels that weakness.
It is also not weak to Flying because Rock resists Flying.
That can catch opponents out if they are used to dealing with more conventional Grass-types.
Cradily Pokémon GO Resistances
Damage taken when Cradily is hit by each type: Weak to Resists Based on Rock / Grass typing. Abilities may modify these matchups.
Cradily’s typing allows it to resist several useful attack types.
This becomes particularly valuable in cups where Water, Electric and Normal attacks are common.
Its defensive profile is one reason Cradily can remain on the field for a surprisingly long time despite not having extremely high CP in Great League.
Best Cradily Counters
The best Cradily Pokémon GO counters generally use Fighting, Steel, Bug or Ice attacks.
Strong options can include Pokémon such as:
| Counter type | Why it works |
|---|---|
| Fighting | Deals super-effective damage |
| Steel | Exploits Cradily’s Steel weakness |
| Ice | Deals super-effective damage |
| Bug | Deals super-effective damage |
Fighting Pokémon can be particularly effective because Cradily’s Grass and Rock attacks do not naturally punish Fighting-types.
Steel Pokémon are also troublesome because they can resist much of Cradily’s usual damage while hitting back super effectively.
Cradily Pokémon GO Great League
Cradily Pokémon GO has a genuine role in Great League.
It is currently outside the very top group in unrestricted Great League, but it still offers useful wins and becomes much stronger in certain cup formats. PvPoke currently places regular Cradily around rank 132 overall in standard Great League, although rankings can move whenever the meta or move balance changes.
Its main strengths in Great League are:
- Excellent bulk
- Strong Water coverage
- Rock coverage against Flyers
- Attack reduction through Rock Tomb
- Few obvious typing assumptions
- Good performance in selected limited cups
Cradily Pokémon GO is particularly useful when a cup contains large numbers of Water, Ground or Flying Pokémon.
Cradily in Weather Cup
Cradily has historically been especially valuable in Weather Cup-style formats.
Current PvPoke Weather Cup rankings place Cradily among the strongest available choices, demonstrating how dramatically its value can increase when the allowed Pokémon favour its typing.
Its Grass attacks can punish Water Pokémon while Rock coverage gives it an answer to several Flying and Ice threats.
This is exactly why Cradily is worth keeping even if it is not always a top unrestricted Great League Pokémon.
Cradily as a Lead
Cradily Pokémon GO can work as a lead when its team is designed around forcing uncomfortable opening matchups.
Rock Tomb is particularly useful from the lead position because lowering the opponent’s Attack can create value even when Cradily eventually loses the matchup.
A Cradily lead can work well against opponents that rely on:
- Water damage
- Ground Pokémon
- Flying Pokémon
- Some Electric Pokémon
However, immediate Fighting or Steel leads can force Cradily out quickly.
Cradily as a Safe Switch
Cradily can function as a bulky switch, although it is not a completely safe switch because several hard counters exist.
Its advantage is that Rock Tomb can still reduce the opponent’s Attack even when Cradily is fighting from a poor position.
That can leave the incoming counter weakened for the next Pokémon.
Cradily Pokémon GO also has enough bulk to survive neutral damage while reaching multiple Charged Attacks.
Cradily as a Closer
Cradily can be dangerous later in a battle once shields are gone.
Grass Knot deals strong damage to Water and Ground Pokémon, while Rock attacks can punish Flying opponents that might otherwise expect to resist Grass.
Its bulk is also valuable when both players are down to their final Pokémon.
Cradily works best as a closer when its Fighting and Steel counters have already been removed.
Best Cradily PvP IVs
Cradily Pokémon GO generally wants low Attack and high Defence and Stamina in Great League.
That is because Attack contributes more heavily to CP than the other stats.
A lower-Attack Cradily can often be powered to a higher Pokémon level before crossing the 1,500 CP limit.
This usually produces better overall bulk.
Players looking for a Great League Cradily should therefore prioritise:
- Low Attack
- High Defence
- High Stamina
- Final CP as close to 1,500 as possible
Do not automatically transfer a low-star Lileep.
A Lileep that looks unimpressive in the appraisal screen may have excellent PvP IVs.
Cradily Pokémon GO Base Stats
495
Cradily has 152 Attack, 194 Defence and 200 HP in Pokémon GO. Its stat distribution helps explain why it performs better in PvP than as a raid attacker.
Its relatively modest Attack keeps its CP under control, while the higher Defence and HP provide useful Battle League bulk.
At Level 50, Cradily reaches a maximum CP of 2,499.
That number is particularly interesting because it is almost exactly the Ultra League CP limit.
Is Cradily Good in Ultra League?
Cradily Pokémon GO can be used in Ultra League.
Unlike many Great League specialists, Cradily can reach 2,499 CP at Level 50, just one CP below the 2,500 Ultra League cap.
That allows players to use virtually all of Cradily’s available stats in Ultra League.
Cradily is not automatically one of the strongest unrestricted Ultra League Pokémon, but it can be useful in cups and specialised teams.
Its Grass typing remains useful against Water and Ground Pokémon, while Rock coverage gives it another offensive angle.
Does Ultra League Cradily Need Candy XL?
Yes.
A fully powered Cradily Pokémon GO reaches 2,499 CP at Level 50, meaning a maximum Ultra League build requires Candy XL.
That makes Ultra League Cradily considerably more expensive than a normal Great League build.
Players will need substantial:
- Lileep Candy
- Lileep Candy XL
- Stardust
For most players, a Great League Cradily should therefore be the first priority.
Is Cradily Good in Master League?
No.
Cradily Pokémon GO reaches a maximum of only 2,499 CP.
That is enough for Ultra League but far too low for unrestricted Master League, where Pokémon commonly exceed 4,000 CP.
Cradily should not be built for Master League.
How to Get Cradily in Pokémon GO
Cradily Pokémon GO evolves from Lileep.
The evolution requires:
| Evolution | Requirement |
|---|---|
| Lileep to Cradily | 50 Lileep Candy |
Lileep evolves directly into Cradily for 50 Candy.
There is no additional evolution requirement.
Lileep availability varies depending on the current wild spawn pool, events, Research and other Pokémon GO rotations.
Can Cradily Be Shiny in Pokémon GO?
Yes. Cradily Pokémon GO can be shiny.
Players can obtain Shiny Cradily by evolving a Shiny Lileep.
Shiny Lileep is available in Pokémon GO, meaning the entire evolutionary line can be obtained in its shiny form.
Shiny Cradily is primarily a cosmetic change and does not receive any battle advantage.
Which Lileep Should You Evolve Into Cradily?
Players building Cradily Pokémon GO for Great League should check their Lileep carefully before evolving.
Look for:
- Low Attack
- High Defence
- High HP
- A final CP below 1,500
- Enough Candy to unlock a second move
Players planning an Ultra League Cradily have a different goal because Cradily reaches only 2,499 CP at Level 50.
For Ultra League, higher overall IVs become more valuable because there is no risk of Cradily overshooting the 2,500 CP cap at maximum level.
Does Cradily Need a Second Charged Move?
Yes, if you intend to use Cradily Pokémon GO seriously in Battle League.
Rock Tomb and Grass Knot cover very different matchups.
Running only Grass Knot makes Cradily much easier for Flying Pokémon to handle.
Running only Rock Tomb removes much of its threat against Water and Ground Pokémon.
Unlocking both Charged Moves allows Cradily to perform the role that makes it useful in the first place.
Does Cradily Need an Elite TM?
No.
The normal Cradily Pokémon GO PvP moveset does not require an Elite TM.
Bullet Seed, Rock Tomb and Grass Knot are available through Cradily’s regular move pool in current Great League rankings.
Players may need ordinary Fast or Charged TMs to obtain the desired moves.
Is Shadow Cradily Better?
Shadow Cradily Pokémon GO is also available and plays differently from the normal version.
Shadow Pokémon deal more damage but also take more damage.
Current Great League rankings place normal Cradily above Shadow Cradily overall, which makes the regular version the safer first investment for most players.
Shadow Cradily can still be useful on aggressive teams and in limited formats.
Do not automatically purify a good Shadow Lileep until you have checked its PvP potential.
Is Cradily Good for Raids?
Cradily Pokémon GO is not a good raid investment.
Current Pokémon GO Hub rankings place Cradily in the lowest Rock-type raid tier and do not consider it a meaningful raid attacker.
Its stats favour bulk rather than damage output.
There are far stronger Grass and Rock attackers available for raids.
Players should save Cradily primarily for Battle League.
Best Pokémon to Pair With Cradily
Cradily Pokémon GO needs teammates capable of handling Fighting, Ice, Bug and Steel Pokémon.
Potential partners include Pokémon that pressure Fighting and Steel opponents in particular.
Azumarill can help against Fighting Pokémon.
Charjabug can provide useful pressure against several Water and Flying threats alongside Cradily.
Skeledirge can threaten Steel and Fighting Pokémon with its Fire and Ghost coverage.
The exact best Cradily team depends on the current Battle League rotation, but covering Fighting and Steel should be a priority.
Should You Keep More Than One Cradily?
It can be worthwhile.
Cradily Pokémon GO has legitimate uses in both Great League and Ultra League.
That means players may eventually want:
- One Great League Cradily
- One Ultra League Cradily
- One Shadow Cradily
- A Shiny Cradily for collection purposes
There is no reason to build all of these immediately, but good Lileep should be checked before being transferred.
Is Cradily Pokémon GO Worth Building?
Cradily Pokémon GO is worth building for players who want a deeper Battle League roster.
It is not currently an absolute must-have for unrestricted Great League, but its unusual Rock and Grass typing, strong defensive stats, Rock Tomb debuffs and Grass Knot coverage give it genuine value.
Cradily becomes even more attractive in restricted formats. Current Weather Cup rankings, for example, show just how strong Cradily can become when the available meta suits its typing.
Its ability to reach 2,499 CP also means Cradily Pokémon GO has potential beyond Great League, although an Ultra League build requires a much larger Candy XL and Stardust investment.
