How To Get High Friendship In Pokemon

The concept of Friendship was introduced in Pokemon Yellow. It was later expanded on the later Generations. A lot of players want to know how to increase a Pokemon's Friendship because that can be very important in some games. Increasing the Friendship rating can be tricky, but it isn't entirely necessary. You can play the entire game without the need to increase any of your Pokemon's Friendship and it doesn't affect your gaming experience, but it has some benefits.

Regardless, this is a guide on how you can increase a Pokemon's Friendship rating. We'll be including tips and guides from Generation I to VII games. We'll also be specific about some tips in case it needs it. Plus, these games will be just for the main games, mostly.

CONTENTS

Everything you need to know about Friendship
- What are the benefits of Friendship?
- Guides on how to increase a Pokemon's Friendship per Generation
  - Generation I
    - Pro-Tips
  - Generation II
    - Pro-Tips
  - Generation III
    - Pro-Tips
  - Generation IV
    - Pro-Tips
  - Generation V
    - Pro-Tips
  - Generation VI
    - Pro-Tips
  - Generation VII
    - Pro-Tips
Conclusion

Everything you need to know about Friendship

What are the benefits of Friendship?

The popular or common benefit that a lot of players know about Friendship is that it evolves certain Pokemon. The most popular one would be the double Eevee evolution of Umbreon or Espeon. There are other Pokemon that require a high rating in Friendship. Another benefit is that in some games, a Pokemon needs to have a high Friendship rating to learn specific moves.

Speaking of moves, Return is a good Move to teach a Pokemon with high Friendship. The higher the Friendship rating is, the more damage Return will do. On the opposite end, Frustration is a good Move for a Pokemon with low Friendship. The lower the Friendship, the higher the damage Frustration will do.

Guides on how to increase a Pokemon's Friendship per Generation

Generation I

Friendship is only available in Pokemon Yellow and only to Pikachu since it follows you around. Checking its face will help you determine how high or low your Pikachu's Friendship is. It only affects Pikachu, and the only significance it has is the point where you get Bulbasaur because you need to have a high Friendship rating.

It doesn't have any other uses, but it wouldn't hurt to increase your Pikachu's Friendship. One thing to note is that only your main Pikachu will be affected by its Friendship. Any other Pikachu you have from trades will not have any effect.

Pro-Tips

Have Pikachu in your party most of the time.
Avoid letting Pikachu get fainted in battle.
Using healing items and removing status ailments on Pikachu also helps.
Have Pikachu in all of your Gym Battles.

Generation II

Increase a pokemon's friendship in gen ii

The concept is further expanded in the Generation II games with Gold, Silver, and Crystal. Friendship applies to all Pokemon now. Just as we stated, certain Pokemon like Espeon, Umbreon, Golbat, and more will evolve with a high rating in Friendship. This is where you can actually apply the tips on how to increase a Pokemon's Friendship.

Pro-Tips

Catching a Pokemon with a Friend Ball so that it starts with 200 Friendship.
Have the Pokemon you want to get a Friendship boost in your party. Any Pokemon in your party will have its Friendship increased.
Taking around 512 steps can always do the trick to increase your Pokemon's rating.
Avoid the Pokemon you want to faint in battle.
Using Vitamins like Protein, Zinc, Calcium, Carbos, and more can also help.
Avoid using Energy Root, Revival Herb, Energy Powder, and Heal Powder on your Pokemon.
Take the Pokemon to the Salon in the Goldenrod Tunnel and have it groomed to further boost its Friendship. Grooming can also be done by Daisy Oak in Pallet Town later on.
This is only applicable for Pokemon Crystal which is you level up your Pokemon in the area that you caught it. Players use Rare Candies in the spots where the Pokemon was caught to get the Friendship boost.

Generation III

Increase a pokemon's friendship in gen iii — Luxury Ball and Soothe Bell

The games on this guide include Pokemon Ruby, Sapphire, Emerald, FireRed, and LeafGreen. There really isn't much of a change in the concept of these games. The addition of the Luxury Ball and Soothe Bell items does help increase the Friendship level.

Pro-Tips

Use a Luxury Ball if you're able when you want to catch the Pokemon to have a boost in Friendship.
Give the Pokemon the Soothe Bell all the time until it has enough of the Friendship level that you want.
Leveling up your Pokemon also helps and don't forget the Soothe Bell.
Don't let your Pokemon faint as much in battle.
Have the Pokemon in your party all of the time.
Walking around 128 steps will also do the trick.
Avoid using Energy Root, Revival Herb, Energy Powder, and Heal Powder on your Pokemon.
Have your Pokemon participate in Gym Battles, Elite Four, and Champion battle.
Using Vitamins can also be a good idea.
This is only applicable for FireRed and LeafGreen. Go to Daisy Oak in Pallet Town and she can perform grooming on your Pokemon of choice.

Generation IV

Increase friendship gen iv — Ribbon Syndicate Building for Massages

Generation IV includes games such as Diamond, Pearl, Platinum, HeartGold, and SoulSilver. The previous introductions like the Luxury Ball, Soothe Bell are still present and not much has changed. One thing this Generation introduces is the Friendship Checker app which is the Poketch. You can check the Friendship levels of your Pokemon when you get this from the woman in the Pokemon Center in Eterna City.

Pro-Tips

Put the Pokemon in your party as always.
Walking around 128 steps can boost the Friendship rating of all Pokemon in the party.
Leveling up your Pokemon is also crucial.
Don't put them in the PC for most of the time.
Use a Luxury Ball and Soothe Bell if possible.
Using EV Berries on your Pokemon can also do wonders. These would include the Pomeg, Tamato, Grepa, Hondew, Kelpsy, and Qualot Berries.
Avoid using Energy Root, Revival Herb, Energy Powder, and Heal Powder on your Pokemon.
This is only available for Pokemon Diamond, Pearl, and Platinum. Go to the Ribbon Syndicate located in the Resort Area and give your Pokemon a massage because it can help boost Friendship levels.
These last ones are only available for Pokemon HeartGold and SoulSilver. Mainly, giving your Pokemon a haircut in the Goldenrod Tunnel which was the Salon in Generation II.
Going back to Daisy Oak in Pallet Town for a grooming session will also help.

Generation V

Increase friendship gen. V — Join Avenue for the Beauty Salon

There aren't any additions or changes to the games in Generation V. A lot of the tips are similar to the previous ones with some minor new ones but the mechanics are the same. Generation V includes Pokemon Black, White, Black 2, and White 2.

Pro-Tips

Use a Luxury Ball and Soothe Bell as usual.
Keep the Pokemon that you want in your party and avoid putting it in your PC.
Avoid having your Pokemon faint a lot in battle.
Heal any status ailments that the Pokemon has.
Have it take part in battles against Gym Leaders, Elite Four, and the Champion.
Walking around 128 steps can do the trick.
Using Vitamins can boost Friendship as well.
Using Battle Items like X Attack, X Defense, X Speed, and the others can also boost it.
Avoid using Energy Root, Revival Herb, Energy Powder, and Heal Powder on your Pokemon.
Take your Pokemon to the Beauty Salon.
Giving it a Massage can also work.
Buy a drink or combo at the Cafe. Depending on what you buy can greatly increase the Friendship rating.
Teaching your Pokemon TM moves can work too.

Generation VI

Increase friendship gen. Vi — Feather Item

Not much has been changed in Generation VI but several new methods for boosting Friendship is available. The Generation VI games are X, Y, Omega Ruby, and Alpha Sapphire. Never the less here are tips on how to increase a Pokemon's Friendship for Generation VI.

Pro-Tips

Put your Pokemon in the party as much as possible.
Avoid putting them in the PC since the Friendship won't grow.
Avoid using Energy Root, Revival Herb, Energy Powder, and Heal Powder on your Pokemon.
Walk around 128 steps with preferred Pokemon.
Have your Pokemon join Gym Leader battles, Elite Four, and Champion.
Using Vitamins can also be ideal.
Use Luxury Balls and Soothe Bell as always.
Don't forget about using Vitamins that help boost Friendship.
Getting a massage can be available for all games.
Give your Pokemon a juice from the Juice Shoppe.
A new method is by using Feathers on your Pokemon. While these items are available in Generation V, only in these games will these Feathers have a boost in Friendship.
When you do Super Training, do it with a Soothing Bag so that it helps boost the Friendship level.

Generation VII

Increase friendship gen. Vii — Food Stalls

This is the last Generation where will have a guide on how to increase a Pokemon's Friendship. The games included here are Pokemon Sun, Moon, Ultra Sun, and Ultra Moon. Once again, there aren't any changes and additions to the system here so most of the tips are already given above.

Pro-Tips

Do the usual which is to carry your Pokemon in your party most of the time.
Don't let them faint a lot and heal any status ailments right away.
Walking 128 steps is also a given.
Avoid using Energy Root, Revival Herb, Energy Powder, and Heal Powder on your Pokemon.
Let the Pokemon participate in Kahuna battles, Elite Four battles, and the Champion battle.
Using Vitamins and EV Berries will still work.
Feathers also have an effect on the Friendship boost.
Getting a massage is still doable.
You can also buy drinks and lunch combos from food stalls.
A new thing is where you can take your Pokemon to hot springs to boost Friendship.

Conclusion

Now that you know how to increase a Pokemon's Friendship, you won't have a hard time boosting it later on. You can get your preferred Pokemon to have the Friendship level that you want. It will still take some time, but you now have a guide that you can use to get it done much faster. You can also have Pokemon Friendship Checkers or Raters to see how high the rating is at the moment.

Raising your Pokemon's Friendship isn't that necessary, but the benefits you get can come in handy. One thing to remember is that many people confuse Friendship and Happiness. Those are two different things, so for the most part just stick to increasing and focusing on your Pokemon's Friendship level.