Pokemon Scarlet & Violet has a few species that only evolve when traded with another player, so you’ll need to find a friend if you want to complete your Pokedex.
Although most Pokemon evolve naturally as you level them up in Scarlet & Violet, some creatures have special requirements that must be met first, like achieving a high friendship level or giving them an Evolution Stone.
One of the most obscure methods is trade evolution, a long-running feature that requires you to trade a Pokemon with another trainer before it evolves. Some Pokemon even need to be holding a specific item when traded.
There’s often no explanation for these evolutions in the game, so to help you out, we’ve compiled a list of all the Pokemon in Scarlet & Violet and its Hidden Treasure of Area Zero DLC that need to be traded to evolve and instructions on how to do that.
All trade evolutions in Pokemon Scarlet & Violet
Here are all of the Pokemon in Scarlet and Violet and its DLC that can only evolve when traded, as well as any items they need to be holding:
| Pokemon | Evolved Pokemon | Held Item |
|---|---|---|
| Haunter | Gengar | – |
| Scyther | Scizor | Metal Coat |
| Slowpoke | Slowking | King’s Rock |
| Poliwhirl | Politoed | King’s Rock |
| Feebas | Milotic | Prism Scale |
| Graveler (Kantonian & Alolan) | Golem (Kantonian & Alolan) | – |
| Gurdurr | Conkeldurr | – |
| Phantump | Trevenant | – |
| Dusclops | Dusknoir | Reaper Cloth |
| Rhydon | Rhyperior | Protector |
| Seadra | Kingdra | Dragon Scale |
| Electabuzz | Electivire | Electirizer |
| Magmar | Magmortar | Magmarizer |
| Porygon | Porygon2 | Upgrade |
| Porygon2 | Porygon-Z | Dubious Disk |
Scyther needs to hold a Metal Coat, and Slowpoke and Poliwhirl need to hold a King’s Rock when traded in order for them to evolve. Additionally, Feebas must hold a Prism Scale, and Dusclops should be given a Reaper Cloth.
However, Pokemon like Haunter, Graveler, Gurdurr, and Phantump do not need to hold an item.
Subscribe to our newsletter for the latest updates on Esports, Gaming and more.
It’s worth mentioning that you can actually get a Gengar by trading a Pinchurchin with an NPC in Levincia, which saves you doing an online trade – we’ve got more information on that here.
How to trade Pokemon in Scarlet & Violet
If you want to trade with friends, you must choose Poke Portal from the pause menu. Scroll down to Link Trade and set up a Link Code to share with the person you’ll be trading with.
You can do this locally in Offline Mode or with friends anywhere in the world in Online Mode. Simply press the L button to connect or disconnect from the internet when you’re on the Poke Portal menu.
You can also take part in Surprise Trades with random trainers online, but we wouldn’t recommend using that for trade evolutions as there’s no guarantee you’ll ever get your now-evolved Pokemon back!
Now you know how to trade evolve in Pokemon Scarlet & Violet, take a look at some of our other guides below:
Paldea Pokedex | Best starter Pokemon | How to get Marks in Pokemon Scarlet & Violet | Are Pokemon Scarlet & Violet compatible with Pokemon Home? | Unlocking 5 & 6-star Tera Raids in Pokemon Scarlet & Violet | How to unlock Rotom Phone cases in Scarlet & Violet | How to change clothes in Scarlet & Violet | How to co-op with friends in Scarlet & Violet | All Shiny forms in Scarlet & Violet | Sandwich recipes in Pokemon Scarlet & Violet | Pokemon Scarlet & Violet egg breeding guide | How to get Rare Candy in Scarlet & Violet